Charleston - United States

But for now, we face the non-conference games before we can take on our new conference foes. Tomorrow, WVU will face the only other Division 1 School in the state, Marshall. I could sit here and write about all the negative things surrounding Marshall and the attitude that comes with it. In all honesty, I do not care for Marshall. Why? They are arrogant. Yes, I know its right to have confidence that you can win, but you don't need to be going around talking trash to WVU players. What really sets me the wrong way is Marshall claiming they know Holgorsens' hand signals. Holgorsen shedded some light on the situation last night when asked about the rumors of Marshall knowing his hand signals on offense. He said "I have one hand signal they can remember." I about jumped out of my seat when I heard that, but what gives Marshall the right (assuming this is true) to cheat to win. If this is true, what's going to stop Marshall from sharing this information with other schools, such as Big 12 schools. This could really hurt WVU this year if this gets out. I have faith in Holgorsen and he knows what he is doing. He won't let this one slide.

But let's talk about the coal boal. Marshall has never beaten WVU in the 8 years we have played. With no games planned in the near future, this is the last time WVU will play Marshall in the forseable future. Let's make it count.

For WVU to walk out of Milan Puskar Stadium with its first win on the season, here's what there are going to have to do.

Prevent Hope

You know Marshall wants this victory bad. Would you want it if you were in their position? They're going to come out hard and give WVU everything they've got. WVU is going to have to contain that. Kill them early. Don't give Marshall any hope, because if you do, they will just keep coming at you and coming at you until you cave in. Hope can do many things, just don't give it to Marshall.

Watch for trickery

You can expect to see something irregular for Marshall. Whether it be trick plays such as reverses, WR passes, toss passes, etc. Don't be surprised if you see different formations too. Why not throw something at WVU that they've never seen before? For WVU to prevent that, run man coverage. There is pretty much no one on the Marshall offense who can match up evenly one on one with the WVU defense. Just saying the truth here. IF WVU runs man coverage, it eliminates the trick plays and the passing game. Just don't get sucked in on the PA's and the double fakes by the recievers.

Don't get too pass happy

Marshall Defense is weak. Don't forget the Herd finished ranked one of the lowest in the country on defense last year. What's even weaker is there run defense. Don't be afraid to run the ball 20-30 times this game. Reason is, so it doesn't give other teams something to study. The passing game is the core of the WVU offense, so don't give it all away in the first week so other teams can figure out your tendencies.

The stats show this is no matchup for WVU. Stats show Marshall doesn't stand a chance. But in college football anyone can win on any given night. WVU players need to not take this as an easy game. If every player does there job, this should not be a challenge for WVU.

Finally football season is here. Sit back and enjoy.

My final prediction for the game:

WVU 47
Marshall 8

Don't expect to see everything Holgorsen has in his playbook. Even without showing everything, this should be an easy win for the EER's.