Instant Analysis: West Virginia-Connecticut

In the first half of a messy 2008 season, West Virginia head coach Bill Stewart played the part of a country bumpkin without a clue. Saturday in New England, a dominating second half from his ballclub has silenced the skeptics... and given the Mountaineers a firm grip on first place in the Big East Conference.

Anyone who thought West Virginia panicked with its in-house hire after the ugly end to the Rich Rodriguez era had reason to feel vindicated in mid-October. The Mountaineers--a national title aspirant with a loaded stable of skill-position studs--flopped in embarrassing losses at East Carolina and Colorado. Without playing a single heavyweight opponent, the 'Eers still lost two of their first six games. Wins over Rutgers and Syracuse, achieved without any artistry whatsoever, left the locals wondering what went wrong. The defending Fiesta Bowl champions lacked a sense of direction, and Stewart rightly bore the brunt of the criticism. Out of his depth and uncertain on the sidelines, the endearing and refreshingly honest coach needed to prove that he could deliver results.

Saturday in East Hartford, Conn., West Virginia fans finally saw the team that has re-established itself as the Beast of the Big East, as the criticisms and complaints from previous weeks melted away in the face of the firepower flashed by Pat White and company.

West Virginia did perform well in the second half of the previous week's win over Auburn, but since the Tigers are tanking under Tommy Tuberville, the value of that victory didn't have the same cachet it would ordinarily possess. If WVU was going to truly temper the tut-tutting from the chattering classes, the Mountaineers would need to win in Rentschler Field, where Randy Edsall's homestanding Huskies hadn't lost since November of 2006.

After a noticeably sluggish first half, the Mountaineers--down 13-7 at halftime--had to wonder if they would be able to turn the corner. As soon as the third quarter started, however, those doubts would vanish.

White, the quarterback who has turned West Virginia's offense into a prolific unit over the past three and a half seasons, is developing a reputation as a second-half superstar. Always one of the very best players in college football since replacing Adam Bednarik midway through the 2005 campaign, White has made 2008 the year of the second-half surge.

Errant on his downfield throws and generally cautious in his overall approach over the first 30 minutes of play, White simply settled down once he trotted out of the tunnel at halftime. Instead of gunning the ball, White began to put a little touch on his tosses, and as a result, the completions began to add up for a rejuvenated attack. As soon as White hit Jock Sanders for a go-ahead touchdown midway through the third quarter, the anxieties exited the West Virginia sideline. A team that has always been susceptible to prolonged periods of collective depression over the past few years has also been unstoppable once it gains a fresh injection of confidence. This conquest of Connecticut proved to be no exception, as the attainment of a 14-13 lead proved to be the turning point for the men from Morgantown.

Emboldened and energized, West Virginia's defense--placed on its heels by the Huskies' offensive line and star running back Donald Brown in the first half--punched the home team in the mouth. Turnovers began to tumble from a Husky squad that, with its inferior athleticism, lacked the same margin for error the Mountaineers enjoyed. An interception thrown by quarterback Cody Endres, quickly followed by a Brown fumble, gave White two straight drive starts deep in Connecticut territory. Given the tidal wave of momentum resting on the West Virginia side of the divide, those two turnovers were surgically and unsurprisingly transformed into touchdowns. In roughly five minutes of game time, West Virginia had turned its 13-7 deficit into a 28-13 stranglehold on the proceedings. The Huskies never made another credible reply, and a once-embattled coach notched the kind of win that will possess far more shelf life than the one achieved against Auburn.

Bill Stewart deserved to take his lumps over the first six weeks of the season. Today, the main man of the Mountaineers has earned the right to bask in the sunshine that accompanies a restoration of prestige and prominence. If the Big East's most talented team stays the course in the final month of the season, a conference crown and a BCS bowl will once again return to Appalachia.