Credit to...Neal Brown Explains Why He Feels Tipping Hat to the Opponent is Necessary

The mounting losses have frustrated WVU fans, but the recurring postgame comment has equally maddened fans.

Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images

Most West Virginia fans have reached the tipping point with Neal Brown as the team is going through yet another disappointing season in year six of this regime. Everything that the head ball coach says is going to be picked through with a fine-tooth comb, and when you are just two games over .500 this deep into your tenure, it's expected.

One thing that really seems to bother WVU fans is Neal Brown's postgame press conferences after a loss. Before getting into why the game went the way it did, he often begins his opening statement with "Credit to" fill in the blank and goes on to say that they played a better brand of football on that given day and how they just executed better.

This is something pretty much every coach says after a loss, so it's not abnormal by any means. It's a way to pay respect to your opponent even when the game didn't go your way. That being said, the message becomes tuned out when oftentimes it's not the opposing team playing better, and instead, it's WVU finding a way to beat themselves.

Fans want Brown to own the losses and show more emotion after a loss rather than acting as if it's business as usual. If you watch Brown coach on the sidelines, you can see the passion he has for the game and this team. He wants to win. There are no questions about it. But when fans hear the same hollowed-out message after a loss, they don't see or hear the passion.

Brown talked out tipping his hat to the opponent earlier this week and why he feels its important to do so.

“Every time after a game, I come in here and tell you all exactly how I feel, and I think you’re doing a disservice to your opponent if you don’t give them credit. Do I feel like we could have beat Iowa State at home? Yes. Do I feel like we could’ve, should’ve won a game against Baylor? Yes. Now, we were decimated in the second half versus Kansas State - that doesn’t condone us playing poorly. We didn’t play well in the second half versus Kansas State, but we also probably had more injuries than I’ve ever had in my career in one game. I think anytime you get beat, you’re doing a disservice to your opponent if you just say you played bad.”

If you were unaware of how irritated the fans are with the credit to ___ thing, just check at some of the replies to my tweet following the loss to Baylor last weekend.

Part of Neal Brown's opening statement: "Credit to Baylor."

— Schuyler Callihan (@Callihan_) November 18, 2024

It may seem like something very small, but it just goes to show how tired, frustrated, and agitated this fanbase is with the current state of the program.

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