By Bob Hertzel
MORGANTOWN — Considering the way things are going with America’s economic recovery, President Obama probably ought to give Bill Stewart a call.
Much like the average American, a year ago Stewart and his West Virginia Mountaineers had no purchasing power.
Come third down, they couldn’t buy a first down offensively or buy a stop on defense.
He realized this spring that it was time for drastic measures, so he went to the only bank that he was sure was solvent enough to solve his problems — his memory bank.
Somewhere back there, he knew, considering that he’d spent a lifetime in coaching in two countries and working with enough coaches to make up a football team’s full roster, there had to be an idea to call upon.
There was, and it was a doozy.
Everything he tried a year ago failed dismally. For example, he tried to use quarterback Jarrett Brown as a big back but saw rather quickly that he was in danger of getting his future quarterback maimed by running him head first into the line.
The answer wouldn’t be found in games or in strategy.
You want to make third and short against 11 defenders?
Prove in practice you can make it against 12.
Or 13.
Cub and Boy Scout honor, as Stewart would say.
“One day, I put 12 and 13 guys out there on defense and said, ‘We’re coming right here.’ Maybe that’s crazy, maybe that’s tough,” he said Sunday as he looked back upon Saturday’s 34-13 victory at Syracuse.
There was another day when he just decided to do it.
“We ran 46 plays, all powers and sweeps. Pound, pound, pound,” he said. “I wanted to see who was tough.”
And know what? He found out.
This year West Virginia is making 51 percent of all their third down attempts …. That’s more than half for the mathematically challenged.
That counts 3rd and 1, and 3rd and 3, and 3rd and 23.
At the same time his defense figured out how to keep the ball away from the offense, which was another problem last year.
“You might call it training by punishment. I call it training by reward. Three plays and off the field, that’s a reward,” Stewart said.
Syracuse saw the result of that. West Virginia controlled the football for 39 minutes and 2 seconds, the Orange possessing the ball just 21:58. West Virginia ran 74 plays to 49.
Syracuse literally did not convert a third down play all game — 0 for 11.
And while WVU’s third down was nothing to write home about, 5 for 14, they managed to use their short yardage stuff on the goal line when it wasn’t third down to bang the football home.
Fullback Ryan Clarke, for example, scored on two short touchdowns as he continues to display the toughness you need when everyone in the stadium knows you are going to get the ball and which way you are going to go … much as it was that day when there were 12 and 13 defenders out there trying to stop him.
WVU is doing it with toughness and with formation. On Clarke’s second touchdown they lined up in a jumbo package with a couple of tight ends and three fullbacks — Will Johnson, Ricky Kovatch and Clarke as the deep man. Johnson was on the wing to the left, Kovatch set in a power I spot to the left and Clarke in the I, taking the handoff and following his oversized compadres to the left side and into the end zone.
It wasn’t really a “Power I” formation, more a “Power I Can Score Formation.”
Stewart also took advantage of the lopsided score to see his kids, especially powerful running back Shawne Alston, who was given the football six times and actually outgained Clarke, who had seven carries.
Running hard inside, Alston banged for 18 yards on six carries while catching Stewart’s eye.
“He has to play more,” Stewart said.
E-mail Bob Hertzel at bhertzel@hotmail.com.
