VIP Mailbag: Regular Season Finale (2024)

1. So, if you're the Coach, tell us:
What is your end of season conversation with Marchiol?
(and do you base your decision whether to look for a QB in Portal on the outcome of that Marchiol convo?)

2.If you're Wren Baker, do you give Neal any input or directive that there need to be changes with the assistants/staff?

Cj Donaldson, sophom*ore slump, injuries, or were expectations for him simply too high? Are NIL deals negotiated yearly? Is CJ still the NIL priority he was last year? (BlueandGold81)

Any idea on Donaldson's injury/health status? The number of snaps shows he played significant at 19 snaps, 5 carries and 23 yds. Were they holding him back or using him as a decoy? They seemed reluctant to use him on 4 and short types of situations and the announcers kept saying he was limping. My concern is he is straight passed on the depth chart he's transfer portal bound. (sgtaylor24)

He ran like a man possessed against Pitt and Penn State. He looked hesitant for the next four weeks, like he wasn't sure which hole to hit or where his offensive line was blocking. The o-line, of course, also took a step back during this time. The staff changed the approach to some of these runs and then he looked dominant for the next three weeks before injuries settled in. I'm actually not that discouraged by his season, even thought it was a little more inconsistent.

If the law suits don’t get Battle on the court this year, does he stay at wvu when/if Eilert isn’t retained? (BlueandGold81)

When should I expect that Battle lawsuit to drop? (PrestonCo)

The threat of a lawsuit is always preferred over an actual lawsuit. So we'll see if it actually drops. As for Battle sticking around, it would be a bad look for him to leave after all these comments, although he did make sure his well-being was specifically tied to Eilert.

So if the reaction pod is to be believed, Baylor’s kicker saved Brown’s job? (eersfan03)

I wouldn't go that far, I don't think. I mentioned this heading into the Cincinnati game, but beating Cincy and Baylor should not add to Neal Brown's case. It was essentially a no-win situation for him. He wins, he's supposed to, and nothing changes. The only way things could have gone so far south to necessitate a chance was if there was an absolutely stupid collapse in one or both of these games where WVU just shot themselves in the foot right up until they lost.... and it nearly happened at Baylor.

How long do you think it will be before basketball is good enough to consistently make the tournament again? Do you think this year and the lack of talent is a one year issue, or will this lack of depth/talent persist into the next few years? (ProSpammer)

It could take one season with the right hire and the right portal money, especially if Kriisa, Battle, Farrakhan, and Akok are all back thanks to them not playing this year. Turnarounds can be quick in both sports, but especially fast in basketball.

All your main pieces return next year on both sides of the ball. Whats the first position you're going after in the portal on offense? Ditto for the defense. Which one is more important for success in 2024? (mahoney)

Wide receiver on offense. Want an alpha dog. Cornerback followed by cornerback followed by cornerback on defense.

If you’re the WVU athletic department, how do you view this season and HCNB, despite low preseason expectations but also the conference being down as a whole? What should be the water mark for next year? (HokieHater99)

Improvement. Trending in the right direction. I know fans aren't happy with "improvement" in Year Five but, if I'm the new Athletic Director, I've seen nothing but positives since I arrived - and since we made changes to the NIL approach. And that approach is the most important thing to roster building at the moment, so I feel like I want to see how this goes. I need to see an 8-4 or better year again next season.

Scale 1-10 Mike/Chris.......what's excitement level for 2024? Looks like 24 home schedule could be quite good. Is it enough to spike sales for tickets or do we repeat this season with one sellout(Penn State) and hover around 50,000 rest of the season? (baconmike47)

Who has the harder job this offseason, Neal Brown or MAC season ticket folks asking people to re up? (DubVGotM)

I understand there is going to be apathy, but the MAC season ticket folks might have an easier job thanyou might think. It's the first time since 2016 that WVU will have seven home games. You get Penn State at home for the first time in a literal generation. It would have been nice if one of the new Pac 12 schools came to Morgantown (it's Baylor, Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa State, and UCF for home games), so that hurts a bit. Still, you then turn to "hey, did you see this offense this year? Most exciting since 2018, and it's all back next year!"

How the attendance fares down the stretch is - and always has been - dependent on how the team begins the year. So a sell out for Penn State is certainly capable of of being followed up by 40-50k home crowds in November if things do not go well.

If only Kriisa is added to MBB able to participate in games this season, how much does it help with wins? On one hand guard play is our weakest position, on other hand we will still have a very short rotation and may continue to run out of gas late games. (Patiotoad2021)

I put that in my prediction piece at the beginning of the year - the difference scenarios depending on who comes back and who does not. If it's just Kriisa after nine games, then I have WVU finishing 13-18 overall and 4-14 in Big 12 play. Based off what I've seen so far, it might be a miracle just to get to that.

So for Zack no Senior Bowl and likely the Combine, right? Does this change his mind about the draft? (summitwvu)

It's an interesting question. Will NFL teams hesitate now that he's going to be out the next few months? I think it depends on what, exactly, the injury was. A clean break of the ankle and maybe it's not that big of a deal, but the margin for error for a center is so thin because they're not typically taken very high in the draft.

Could WVU put together an NIL package that pays him $500-750k ($750k being the minimum salary in the NFL) and have him come back next year while his draft stock rebounds? Likely a fantasy, but if I'm a big donor, I'm at least throwing out the idea.

Does Neal hire a new special teams coach? Does he learn to just kick the ball in the end zone? (baconmike47)

Special teams is so hit or miss. Excellent in some areas. Horrendous in others. Heck, even punt return was outstanding - among the best in the nation - for the first few weeks, and then fell off a cliff. Did you know WVU allowed exactly zero punt return yards this season? I'm serious. I honestly think it just comes down to not trying to get too cute on kickoffs.

I may be beating a dead horse with this one, and if I am just leave it out in the field to rot.

But, what is your opinion on why Brown has not made changes to his assistant coaching staff? At least none this year, and the majority of the changes in the past have been instigated by assistants, leaving on their own.

Is it loyalty to his employees (including misplaced loyalty), or is the program in such a state that he cannot attract quality assistants? (8389grad)

He made changes on offense. He made some tough tweaks on defense a couple years ago, but he's refrained from doing so since then. His reasoning was that the defense was great before and the staff did not suddenly forget how to coach. He's not wrong about that. Thing is, this is two years where the talent on the defensive side has been deficient. Or two years where the coaching has been deficient. One or the other. Or both. Either way, that's on the staff to improve, and he will need to force something to change this offseason.

There's no way to know the answer to No. 1 without knowing the future. We've gone over this before where making coaching changes costs tens of millions of dollars with about a 50% chance of success. There are no guarantees that it would get better.

He should force self-reflection. I touched on it on the podcast - it's not the calls or the development that I question. It's the talent. But that's also on the coaches. Sosomething needs to change. If I'm Wren Baker, I tell Brown to come to me with what he's changing about that side of the ball and explain to me why these are the changes necessary and not something else. As mentioned above, can't be two years in a row where the defense is horrible and you make zero changes.

You spoke of the questionable kickoff strategy that has occurred for several years on the podcast. On a similar vein why doesn't WVU defer when it whens the coin toss. The vast, vast majority of teams defer as, I assume, an inherent advantage in doing so (or they wouldn't, given the multitude of statistical analysis available). Has this ever been addressed. While it's great to score first, a three-and-out seems to hurt more knowing we chose to receive. (ChrisfromCL)

When one side of the ball is clearly better than the other, I think momentum and setting the tone might trump the statistics that say deferring to the second half is better. I believe Neal Brown knows his offense is (or has been lately) good at scripted plays and scoring early, while his defense has not been very good. Better to start out up 7-0 and figure out than 0-7 and try to play catch up. You're right about a three-and-out, but I think the confidence was there. Prior to Baylor, the previous four opening drives were touchdown, touchdown, touchdown, missed field goal.

Long offseason ahead, but what do you think Wren will need to see from Neal next year? i.e., is a similar season to this one a success and all is well, or is that no longer considered progress and Neal’s job is in danger? Is it in danger if we have a worse record? (coozapalooza)

I think what you saw this year should be, about, the new floor. Setting hard numbers (must win 9!) is dangerous, and there are too many factors, but the overall gist of this season - eight wins and exciting offense, but let one or two slip through the cracks and it was an easier schedule - should be the floor now.

Just assume NB makes a move on Defensive side of ball. Who are some names to consider? Do you look for new scheme? Is NB willing to turnover defense to someone and focus his attention on offense and ST? (KPCallahan)

Predicting who he might target before anyone is even out the door would be impossible right now. I'm usually one for hypothetical games, but this might be too difficult to do.

Where would we have finished in the B12 if Hail Mary didn’t happen? (mtngator96)

Pretty much the same. WVU lost the head-to-head to both Oklahoma State and Oklahoma, so WVU is tied at 7-2, but they easily lose the tiebreaker (and Oklahoma State still wins).

Rate the athletic programs on a scale of good, acceptable, rising, falling, poor (immediate change needed). (NC Wayward Eer)

Football is rising.

Men's Soccer and Women's Soccer are in great places right now.

Women's Basketball is rising, maybe good to great.

Men's Basketball would receive an "incomplete" right now. Can't really grade them at the moment. Something needs to happen.

Rifle still at or near the top.

Baseball good and rising.

Wrestling seems to be rising. Golf seems to be competitive. I can't say I know much about the other varsity sports, though.

Looking ahead to 2024, assuming no major transfers, would you say Neal is in the same spot as Dana in 2018?

Similar situation to Dana in 2018

Return 3/5 of oline (assuming only Frazier leaves early)
Your SR QB
Your RBs
Your top WRs
Your top TE
From a top 30ish offense. Probably higher the last couple of games

A fanbase losing patience and a similar contract situation. Should the expectation be to play in the Big12 Title game or bust? (Willy G 2013)

Pretty good comparison there. Big 12 title game or bust might be strong, but maybe it shouldn't be too strong? So much more nowadays depends on how you handle free agency.

Brightest future: WVU soccer men, soccer women, baseball, or hoops women?

Holiday Turkey: smoked, fried, traditional roasted? Is it a must at Christmas too or does Thanksgiving check the block?

Pie Priority: pumpkin, pecan, any fruit, peanut butter/chocolate, lemon/key lime, sweet potato, OR skip the pie for more gravy and dressing? (EerForce88)

Women's soccer. Don't start flirting with the new guys and gals just because you're too accustomed to Nikki Izzo Brown's winning ways.

I prefer fried, but my wife's family (who we spend Thanksgiving with) goes roasted.... and I pretty much avoid it. I'm a big ham guy for both Thanksgiving and Christmas.

My wife's aunt makes this pumpkin ice cream pie. It's delicious. That's my preference, even though I'm usually a chocolate only in the sweets department.

WB said this was an evaluation year for HCNB. How does his evaluation go? 8-4 is much improved on the surface. However, to some, our 8-4 really lacks substance considering the teams we beat and lost to. We know WB isn’t afraid of making bold moves (ex. Asking Jay Wright/Belein to be interim basketball coaches). When HCNB is evaluated by WB has he done just enough yet again? Or has WB seen enough and want to make his own hire? (lamdjxvi)

I don't expect him to push Neal Brown out and make his own hire after what he saw this season. He's refrained from putting a hard number on things, but I do believe the improvement and the exciting offense was enough.

Can you name some flight risks? Particularly contributors? (Nhunter17)

I don't *expect* any contributors to leave. At least not by name. I do expect someone to, though. That's the nature of it. Not going to name names on others as I choose not to be the reason a guy leaves if he is on the fence.

The NIL pie only has X number of slices available. How are you distributing the pie for next year. Internal vs external. Offense/defense. (patsfan1993)

I'm spending it on basketball..... oh.... oops. No, I'm spending it on acquisition of defensive players. I think you can retain most of your offense without spending too much. But finding better players on defense is a must. And that's where a large percentage of my NIL money is being spent.

Does this football team have a better or worse record this season if Shane Lyons was still the AD? (f4ceyourfe4rs)

Funny...

....

....

...Worse.

How do you view all the current HC jobs (cmm0016)

Houston would be so daggone temping. Same with Texas A&M. Money is no object. Talent pool is unbelievable. But the donors and the people making the decisions are outright nuts. I couldn't handle it. I need to be in charge of what I'm doing, not listening to some restaurant guy or oil baron tell me how to run a football team. I don't particularly care for any of the jobs that are open right now. If I were a hot name coordinator, I'd bide my time for another cycle.

What coaches on Neals staff would you consider replacing
For me its Kuntz for sure. Special teams has been an abomination the last 4 years (timberpimp)

Is Lesley a good Defensive coordinator who has been hamstrung by season ending injuries to key players and inexperience.
Or is he just a mediocre DC? (timberpimp)

Is Jordan Lesley back next Season Yes or No?
WVU is outside of the Top 50 in every main Defensive Stat except Rushing D and that's 49th. (Faddy)

Something has to change on the defensive side of the ball regarding the pass defense. Is there any chance HC Brown would look to add a defensive coach to strictly coach the DB’s similar to the setup in 2020 with Lesley/Addae? It’s a solution to a problem without the harsh ramifications of firing a friend. (WVblessed)

More of an exercise than a question: talk us into retaining Jordan Lesley and other defensive staff. (Clarence Oveur)

I went over this in the podcast, but I will put some of it in writing here. I'm sitting down and having a long talk with Neal Brown and telling him to reflect on that side of the ball. Last offseason, he made zero changes and claimed it was a personnel issue, not the coaches. I honestly agree. One hundred percent. But you can't make that claim two years in a row, especially when the coaches are also responsible for acquiring and retaining the personnel.

And this is where things get murkier, and this is part of the 'exercise' for Captain Oveur. Coordinators tend to be less involved in recruiting than position coaches. Just as head coaches are less involved than coordinators..... at least for all of them, until it comes time to close the deal and make a final call. But the actual pursuit and recruiting of individual players is typically handled by individual assistant coaches. And it's based off geography nine times out of ten. So it's possible that WVU missed out on a big time linebacker because of a poor recruiting job by the wide receivers coach (completely made up story, just giving an example). Is that the defensive coordinator's fault? The linebackers coach's problem? It's why it's important to not have any weak links on your team, but it raises the question of what exactly needs to be fixed on that side of the ball. That's something for Neal Brown to figure out, but there is *something.* He can't say we're running it back again because nothing was wrong for a second year in a row.

Does a bowl game win against a good opponent above .500 count for Brown, in your evaluation, or because of people transferring/sitting out potentially damper any bowl game checkmarks? (ClaicYuzoit)

All depends on those variables - the opponent, the location, and who is playing for both teams. I do think it can mean something, and 9-4 certainly looks better than 8-5. Also, as noted on the podcast, WVU has finished with nine wins only 18 times in 133 seasons. That's pretty rare company.

1. The new GM or whatever his title is will have his first chance to analyze talent in this first portal session correct? And do you think this will increase our hits and definite needs in the portal?

2. Since Brown finally started playing the more talented freshman, does the incoming class have any potential freshman stars or impact players their first year given the limited depth or talent at some positions?

3. With better than expected results this year, does that help us at all get better P5 ready transfers? We have to improve the talent (Jimmies and Joes) on the team. (Vkitko)

1. He will have more say in what goes on, yes. At the very least, the expectation for him should be that WVU has the same success this transfer portal as the last transfer portal cycle. At minimum.

2. If you had asked me this question exactly one year ago today, I probably pick Traylon Ray, Rodney Gallagher, Josiah Trotter and James Heard. That changed a bit when I did my preseason picks for five freshmen that will play, adding Jahiem White and Ben Cutter, with Trotter out due to injury.

Here's the thing - most of these contributors are coming at the skill positions. Wide receiver. Running back. And that's because WVU had a big need there. They shouldn't have a big need there next year. The big need may be linebacker, defensive back and edge rusher. Obinna Onwuka is someone who could fill in there. He'd probably be my top pick right now, but even then, we already saw how difficult it was for edge rushers to be physically ready as freshmen.

3. It should. You can tell transfers - hey, look at how much these one-year transfers were able to contribute and boost their profile, especially if Beanie Bishop gets some NFL love. "He was an afterthought at a mediocre Power Five program, and we turned him into an NFL corner!" And then you can add in, "hey, we got a lot of good players back from an 8-4 (or 9-4) team.... you and a couple other transfers fill the few voids we have, and......"

Assume that the nucleus of the team returns. Any shot at preseason Top 25? Greene will have hype along with OLine, White, CJ. (KPCallahan)

Win a bowl game, add some key transfers, don't lose too much in the portal.....and, yes.

Jahiem “Raheem” White…

Freshman All-American ? (crawdaddy26554)

Certainly in play. Too bad he wasn't playing more earlier in the season, but I think the explosive plays late might be enough to draw enough attention.

1) Is the offense more productive running tempo?
2) Does GG run the offense more efficiently, running tempo(2-minute drill success this season) ? (DownTheClowns)

I do think they find a rhythm at times, but that raises the chicken or the egg question. Are they in tempo because they found their rhythm? Or did they find their rhythm because they're in tempo?

And the two-minute drill success could be due to a few things. A more relaxed defense. The ability for Greene to improvise. And the fact that they're spread wider in those plays (or so it seems). Just more space for Greene to move.

If I recall correctly, Michael Hayes was regularly putting kickoffs into the endzone at the beginning of the year. Then suddenly he isn't and our kickoff return unit is awful. So what happened? (jdolin)

Can't say I have an answer to that, hence my rant on the postgame pod on Saturday night.

Over/Under 1.5 starters on Offense/Defense transfer? How about the 2 deep? Any position groups your particularly concerned about? (gdfull)

History says you're right on the money with your over/under line of 1.5. Certainly one, and ya never really know who. I'm not yet worried about mass departures. Haven't heard the rumblings outside of guys sitting third or lower on the depth chart yet.

Can you give some examples of how much NIL dollars some of our players can expect? Players like White, Ray and Gallagher. (Tagodwin)

I can't speak to those guys in particular, but certainly six figures type numbers for the top stars. There is a cap. I was told quite plainly by multiple People that a certain player who was considering a transfer last offseason was at the very top of his budget. If he came back asking for more, the staff would have told him good luck at his next stop.

I remember a lot of talk about depth so where does the football team need to build depth? D Line seemed to have depth and WR had depth that was better the the original starters. (JAL1234)

Safety depth is being built with this high school class. It needs high-end starters via the transfer portal, in my opinion. Cornerback would be the biggest concern for me, and in both categories - high end starters AND depth. It's very thin back there.

Favorite player you've ever watched in the old gold and blue? (ce5588)

Tavon. No doubt about it.

When WVU got the ball at the end of the game I had a pretty good feeling about how the game would turn out, which was a new feeling for me. How did you guys feel about our chances on that last drive? (saltydog8159)

It's weird, even with the struggles throughout the third and most of the fourth quarter, I felt pretty confident WVU could move the ball down the field and score to win the game. I was keeping tabs on the Plays That Changed the Game while also doing the Stock Up/Stock Down piece, and I kept having to stop because I couldn't believe the PTCTG odds were still so low for WVU once Baylor missed that field goal.

What are you hearing about the situation with Akok? It seems like people are being pretty tight lipped. Are there further medical tests taking place thus it is an ongoing situation? What have you guys heard behind the scenes?(if anything) (saltydog8159)

I have heard nothing, which is not normally a good sign. I thought it was a good sign that WVU felt the need to (un)officially leak out that Akok was unavailable for the Fort Myers Tip-Off, as if it were in the realm of possibility that he might play soon. We'll see.

Alabama reportedly paid Jahmyr Gibbs in the neighborhood of a million dollars to transfer from Georgia Tech in 2022. Jaheim White’s season compares quite favorably to the numbers that got Gibbs that deal, plus he has an extra year of required eligibility (Gibbs played two seasons at Georgia Tech).
Question, is WVU fully aware of the kind of offers teams will make (and surely already have made) to White, and what it will take to keep him? (Doley772)

WVU is well aware of some of the numbers being floated by opposing teams for players. They're also aware that these teams will float big numbers and not follow up on it, while WVU can actually show the plan to the players. If Alabama calls to offer Jahiem White a million dollars, WVU will have to make sure Diore Hubbard is ready to contribute next year. (The numbers I heard for CJ Donaldson were nowhere near that, and Donaldson was a bigger, potentially higher-end back)

What’s the most unpredictable thing (I know, it’s unpredictable!) and the most predictable thing to happen to football between now and the bowl game? (MontanaEer)

Isn't the most predictable thing to happen to WVU Football that something completely unpredictable will happen?

Out of these 12: Ray, Gallagher, Fox, Milum, Rimac, Yates, Malone, Hubbard, Taylor, Greene, Donaldson, White… how many are not here to start the 2024 season?

Will the Vegas win total be 8 or higher for 2024?

Will WVU be picked higher or lower than 6.5th in the B12 poll for 2024?

What will the PSU-WVU betting line/point spread be ? (wv2323)

I would set the line at 1.5. One lineman possibly, then one shocker.

Depends on what happens this offseason, but a good offseason could put the line at eight for sure.

Higher (better)

Penn State by 9.5?

Why doesn't the board cover women's basketball? Recruiting, commitments, game schedules and scores etc. (wvufan19)

I've tried to expand beyond football and basketball for years.I'll get messages or comments from people saying they want more coverage of this sport or more coverage of that sport. Then, I pay money to someone and spend resources and time to cover said sports and post stories and..... nothing. There was one year where I paid someone to cover women's basketball and then baseball (before baseball got good), and more people clicked on one story I did about WVU's Football recruiting class thanall of the women's basketball and baseball stories combined. It's changed with baseball since then, but still not too much. Even with the team being an NCAA Tournament team with MLB prospects, stories about that are still behind football, basketball, football recruiting, and basketball recruiting. Which sucks because I love baseball, and what the soccer teams are doing deserves a ton more love.

How often do you look at the topics and comments on the board and just think to yourself...WTF? (upstatesceer)

Every day. Ten times a day.