Virginia
WEST VIRGINIA FOOTBALL PREVIEW – West Virginia Mountaineers at Houston Cougars
OPENING THOUGHTS
There should be no more reservations, gang. That TCU game is not one that bad teams go out and win on the road, and they especially don’t dominate the way we did in the second half. We’re good. The question now is, what do we do with that knowledge? How do we manage that success? Because while Houston is not a good team, they certainly have enough talent to challenge or even beat us if we go down there with any sort of ego.
14. That still has to be the message – that there were a whole bunch of folks who cover football for a living who looked at 2-3 Houston this summer and thought they were better than us. Let’s show those people and the rest of the nation what Mountaineer Football is all about.
WHEN/WHERE
Date: October 12th, 2023
Kickoff: 7:00PM EST
Where: Texas Dow Employees Credit Union Stadium – Houston, TX
WATCH/LISTEN
Live: FS1
Streaming: Only available on Big 12 Now on ESPN+
Radio: Mountaineer Sports Network from IMG (Radio Affiliates) | WVU Gameday App (Apple | Android)
Radio Announcers: Tony Caridi (PBP), Dwight Wallace (analyst), and Jed Drenning (sideline)
Reminder: It is against site policy to post links to illegal streams in the comments.
DEGENERATION STATION
Spread: West Virginia -3.5
ML: WVU -164
Over/Under: 52.5
First time we’ve been favored since Duquesne. ML should be a safe bet here.
WEATHER FORECAST
Partly cloudy – high 84/73 low – Wind 8 mph
80ish at kickoff and dropping throughout the game. No issues there.
THE ENEMY
Where are they from: Houston, TX.
All-time Series: 0-0. Looking forward to starting this one on the right foot.
The Last Time We Played: N/A, see above.
Head coach: Dana Holgorsen (5th season, 29-23). Dana won 12 in 2021, but overall his winning percentage there has been worse than the mark he posted in Morgantown. There’s a reason he’s on the hot seat.
2023 record: 2-3 (0-2). The Cougs started the season with a couple of one-score contests against UTSA and Rice, but the three games since then have left little doubt one way or the other. Exactly the sort of high-variance team you’d expect from HCDH.
WOMEN LIE, MEN LIE, NUMBERS DON’T
19.9% – Havoc rate generated by the West Virginia defense. That’s 31 passes defended (6th in FBS!!!), 36 TFLs (18th), and 1 forced fumbles (117th) in 341 plays.
8.6 – Sacks (2.6) and TFLs (6) allowed per game by the Cougs. Only Baylor has been worse in the B12.
4.6 – Yards per carry allowed by the Cougs this season, good for 12th in the Big 12 and 102nd nationally.
+5 – Houston’s turnover margin in their two wins. They’re only +1 in the three losses.
32% – Percentage of Houston QB Donovan Smith’s passes that travelled further than 10 yards in the air, the second lowest percentage in the B12 behind Iowa State’s Rocco Becht.
18 – First downs picked up by Smith with his legs this year, the most among B12 quarterbacks.
WHEN WE HAVE THE BALL – PROTECT ROCK
Mountaineers to Watch: QB6 Garrett Greene, RB4 CJ Donaldson, RB22 Jaheim White, TE87 Kole Taylor
Cougs to Watch: DT18 Anthony Holmes Jr, DE9 Nelson Caesar, CB23 Isaiah Hamilton, S15 Malik Fleming
Houston defense is… how can I say this nicely? Flawed? Flawed. Cougar opponents have generally had their way both on the ground (110th in effective rush per Beta_rank) and through the air (99th), and I expect that to be the case for the OGnB on Thursday. However, one thing they’ve done well is create turnovers, with at least two takeaways in every game except their most recent contest against Texas Tech. Turning us over multiple times feels like one of their few paths to victory here, so we really need emphasize ball security and field position to avoid handing them any cheap scores. As is tradition, some cause for optimism here.
We’re in the top third of FBS with just 5 giveaways through 5 games, and zero of those have come courtesy of Garrett Greene. Greene’s 1.1% TWP rate is T-5th in FBS among QBs with at least 50 dropbacks, and overall he’s the only FBS QB with at least 50 dropbacks and 15 designed runs who hasn’t thrown an interception or fumbled. Greene’s decision making has definitely improved, but he’s also been protected to some extent by conservative play calling and an offense that has generally done a decent job of staying on schedule and avoiding situations where he’s had to force the issue. If we’re ever going to come out of our shell offensively, you figure a team like Houston on 10 days rest would be a prime opportunity – can Greene turn up the aggressiveness without being reckless? If he can then we should have no problem moving the ball and putting up points.
WHEN THEY HAVE THE BALL – GET TO SMITH
Cougs to Watch: QB1 Donovan Smith, RB23 Parker Jenkins, WR4 Sam Brown (*), WR2 Matthew Golden, WR0 Joseph Manjack
Mountaineers to Watch: DE91 Sean Martin, DE3 Tomi Durojaiye, LB1 Lee Kpogba, LB15 Ben Cutter, CB11 Beanie Bishop
Houston’s running backs generally seem fine, but I really don’t expect their running game to find much success against our front 7. We’ve been excellent at generating negative run plays this year, while only BYU and Baylor have allowed more TFLs per game than Houston in the B12. However, the Cougs do pose some problems in the form of Donovan Smith getting into a rhythm with those three receivers in the underneath passing game and extending drives with his feet.
Two pieces of good news here. First, we’ve already seen a version of that against Texas Tech, and our defense showcased the ability to both win early downs and rush the passer in that game. And second, if we are able to generate similar pressure against Houston, Smith’s completion percentage (71%->40%), yards per attempt (7.6->4.7), and overall offensive grade (85->41) all drop off a cliff. That’s been the path to success for us all year, and it should be again on Thursday.
X-FACTOR – FIELD POSITION
We’re one of the most improved teams in the country in net field of position, ranking 3rd in FBS with an NFP of +5.6. However, Houston’s not far behind, ranking 23rd nationally at +4.0. Feels like an area that could be the difference if one team is able to gain and maintain an advantage.
FEAR FACTOR
5 out of 10. We each have two data points against TCU and Texas Tech. They lost by 23 and 21; we won by 3 and 7. There are no sure things, but considering everything in context makes this one feel like it should be.
PREDICTION
Unless I’m completely missing something, this feels like it should be our most comfortable game since Pitt. On paper the Cougars have bad matchups on both sides of the ball, meaning a Mountaineer loss would have to feature out of character performances on one or both sides, namely turnovers from our offense and/or an inability to generate havoc from our defense. I just don’t get the sense that this is the kind of team to go out and lay an egg. Real Deal Neal aside, this group has a level of swagger and on-field leadership on boths sides of the ball that just hasn’t been there previously. I think we go down there and TCB.
West Virginia 34-20 Houston
Virginia
VIDEO: UVA Football Players Preview the Virginia Tech Game
With the game of year looming this weekend, members of the Virginia football team were made available to to the media after practice on Tuesday morning to talk about the regular season finale against Virginia Tech in the Commonwealth Clash on Saturday night in Blacksburg. Watch the video below to hear what UVA senior safety Jonas Sanker, graduate tight ends Tyler Neville and Sackett Wood Jr., and graduate defensive tackle Jahmeer Carter had to say ahead of the Virginia Tech game:
Sanker is the team’s leader in tackles with 89 total tackles and also leads the ACC in solo stops with 60 unassisted tackles. He has racked up 8.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, four pass breakups, two fumble recoveries, and an interception as part of a strong senior campaign that should earn Sanker some serious consideration for a First-Team All-ACC selection.
A transfer from Harvard, Tyler Neville is Virginia’s second-leading receiver with 35 catches for 387 yards and two touchdowns. Sackett Wood Jr., meanwhile, has recorded three receptions for 18 yards and a touchdown this season. Between the two of them, Neville and Wood have combined to appear in 83 college football games and make 48 starts.
Saturday will be the 55th game in the five-year career of Jahmeer Carter, who has started nearly every game for the last four seasons at Virginia. This season, Carter has 30 total tackles, including nine solo stops, two tackles for loss, one sack, and a pass defender. For his career, Carter is up to 131 total tackles, 2.5 sacks, and 7.5 tackles for loss.
Saturday night will be the first time Virginia plays at Lane Stadium in front of fans since the 2018 season, as the 2020 edition of the Commonwealth Clash was played in front of only 250 fans due to COVID-19 restrictions and then the 2022 Virginia vs. Virginia Tech game was canceled due to the shooting tragedy at UVA.
Virginia is seeking its first road victory at Virginia Tech since 1998, as the Hokies have won the last 11 Commonwealth Clash games played at Lane Stadium. Virginia Tech has won 17 of the last 18 overall games against Virginia and leads UVA 61-38-5 in the all-time series that dates back to 1895.
Both Virginia and Virginia Tech bring a 5-6 overall record into the regular season finale and both need to win the game in order to reach the six-win threshold required for bowl eligibility. There is only one other game this weekend between FBS teams who are battling for bowl eligibility (Eastern Michigan vs. Western Michigan). Virginia and Virginia Tech played each other for bowl eligibility at the end of the 2014 season.
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Virginia
Virginia Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 3 Night results for Nov. 26, 2024
The Virginia Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Nov. 26, 2024, results for each game:
Mega Millions
Mega Millions drawings take place every week on Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m.
05-22-24-39-42, Mega Ball: 03, Megaplier: 3
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 3
DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.
Night: 7-3-0, FB: 2
Day: 7-2-1, FB: 5
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 4
DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.
Night: 1-6-6-8, FB: 5
Day: 7-4-5-8, FB: 4
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 5
DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.
Night: 0-5-4-9-9, FB: 2
Day: 6-9-5-3-2, FB: 0
Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Cash4Life
Drawing everyday at 9 p.m.
04-11-13-30-39, Cash Ball: 02
Check Cash4Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Cash Pop
Drawing times: Coffee Break 9 a.m.; Lunch Break 12 p.m.; Rush Hour 5 p.m.; Prime Time 9 p.m.; After Hours 11:59 p.m.
Coffee Break: 04
After Hours: 05
Prime Time: 06
Rush Hour: 09
Lunch Break: 12
Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.
Cash 5
Drawing every day at 11 p.m.
12-22-31-38-44
Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Center for Community Journalism (CCJ) editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Virginia
Virginia Basketball Holds Off Manhattan 74-65 | Key Takeaways
Virginia (4-2) got back in the win column with a 74-65 victory over Manhattan (3-3) on Tuesday night at John Paul Jones Arena. Here are our five quick takeaways from the Cavaliers’ win over the Jaspers.
Virginia was in serious need of a win after suffering those two humbling losses to Tennessee and St. John’s in The Bahamas. But a convincing and comfortable victory would have been even better and for a while, it seemed like the Cavaliers were on their way to doing just that. UVA led by as many as 15 points in the first half and opened up a 16-point advantage midway through the second half. But rather than putting the game away, Virginia let Manhattan hang around and the visiting Jaspers were in a situation where they were fouling to stop the clock in the final minutes, narrowing the deficit to as little as six points. A win is a win, but this was far from a confidence-boosting performance.
Virginia went with a new starting lineup on Tuesday night, as Andrew Rohde replaced TJ Power. Rohde has been playing very well recently, particularly with his resurgent outside shot, while Power came into this game shooting 25% from beyond the arc this season.
Power initially responded well to the benching, swishing a corner three shortly after he first entered the game, hitting the deck for a loose ball, and coming up with a steal to stop a Manhattan fastbreak. But he wound up playing only six minutes, fewest among Cavaliers who saw the floor in the game. That does not bode well for the Duke transfer.
Read Val’s Plus/Minus breakdown of the game here.
Rohde, on the other hand, had another solid game and was perhaps the top performer for the Hoos on Tuesday night. Though he missed his only three-pointer, which was a desperation off-balanced heave at the end of the shot clock, Rohde finished with a season-high 14 points, two assists (with one turnover), two rebounds, and four steals. Rohde showed excellent feel for the game, getting exactly where he wanted to go and exhibiting some nice touch on a couple of floaters plus a short jumper off the glass. If Rohde is playing like this and his three-point shot continues to be there, this could be a big season for the former St. Thomas transfer.
The main reason why this game continued to be close deep into the second half is because UVA’s defense frequently broke down and gave up open shots to Manhattan, particularly from the perimeter. The Jaspers shot 11/26 (42.3%) from beyond the arc and and seven different players knocked down a three. A couple of those Manhattan triples were well-contested, but the vast majority of them were wide-open. That’s very concerning and shows that this Virginia defense, with its many new faces, is still very much a work in progress.
Virginia’s offense was pretty well neutralized by Tennessee and St. John’s in The Bahamas. Tuesday night against Manhattan was a small step in the right direction, but there’s still a lot of room for improvement.
Let’s start with the good. Five different Cavaliers scored in double figures, including a game-high 18 points from Isaac McKneely, who hit three of his four three-point attempts and went 5/6 from the free throw line. We still think McKneely needs to shoot way more, but we’ll leave that alone for now. Dai Dai Ames scored 10 points and dished out five assists, but fouled out of the game. Blake Buchanan made his first four shots and finished with 11 points and five boards. Cofie made five of his seven shots and finished with 10 points and five boards. The best part of the game was that Virginia had 15 assists on 29 made baskets and turned the ball over only eight times, a vast improvement over the team’s turnover issues in The Bahamas.
Virginia outscored Manhattan 42-22 in the paint. That looks like a good stat, but it’s also an inevitable stat because of UVA’s size advantage over the Jaspers, whose tallest player in the rotation is 6’8″. Still, Manhattan snared 10 offensive rebounds and scored 11 second-chance points. In The Bahamas, UVA was dominated on the glass and was simply outmatched from a physicality and athleticism standpoint. Nothing we saw from the Cavaliers on Tuesday night did anything to alleviate those concerns.
Up next, Virginia remains at home for another (supposed) tune-up game against Holy Cross on Friday at 4pm at John Paul Jones Arena.
Virginia vs. Manhattan Live Updates | NCAA Men’s Basketball
UVA Basketball: Ten Things We Learned About Virginia in The Bahamas
Virginia Basketball Falls to St. John’s 80-55 | Key Takeaways
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