West Virginia Fans Never Felt Threatened

By Paul Sykes

The day at Mountaineer Field started out pretty chilly, with 40-degree temperatures greeting us when we arrived to tailgate. Although it turned out to be an excellent day for football, the Louisville offense remained sluggish, with drive after drive halted by penalties and no passing continuity. Steve Kragthorpe’s ultra conservative play calling never really gave Louisville a chance.

The West Virginia fans sat on their hands most of the game, as if they knew they couldn’t lose and were content to wait. But give it up for the UofL defense, holding WVU to less offensive yards than U of L. The injury to Noel Devine probably helped, but guys were flying around out there.

• Tailgate festivities were low key as well, although we were not near where the students congregate. I will give the Eers fan base credit for putting out some of the most delicious tailgate spread I’ve seen recently, and they’re not shy about inviting you over to sample.

• The discussions I had with Mountaineer fans centered mostly around the disappointing loss to South Florida last week, the tough task ahead of going to Cincinnati next week and hosting Pitt the week after that. It was almost an afterthought that they did have to face the Cards today…a test run before taking on the tougher Big East foes.

• They also realize they’re not the football beast of the Big East anymore. The days of Pat White, Steve Slayton and Rich Rod have ended.

• On a day where Darius Ashley finally demonstrated what all his high school hype was about and we actually didn’t miss a field goal, it was the inability to throw the ball into the end zone from a team that used to pride itself on top-notch quarterbacking that ultimately was the deciding factor.

Kragthorpe finds a way to lose another one. Louisville remains a cellar dweller in the Big East. Morgantown fans yawn and eat their way through a win against a lesser rival. No moral victory for the Cards. Just another loss in a season filled with them.