Initial Thoughts on WVU's Win Over Duquesne

Quick analysis on the Mountaineers' home-opening win.

West Virginia took care of business Saturday night against the Duquesne Dukes, 56-17. With the win, the Mountaineers are back to .500 on the season as they enter Backyard Brawl week. 

Here are a few quick initial thoughts on what took place tonight in Morgantown.

Hudson Clement can play

We've heard about him since the day he stepped foot on practice. The coaching staff has raved about him and you hear this from time to time with walk ons and they never really develop into anything other than being a key special teamer or rotational player at best. Clement's got a shot. I know it's Duquesne, so we have to be careful of not getting ahead of ourselves here but he's a football player. The young man just flat out makes plays. It'll be interesting to see where he fits into the rotation moving forward.

Intriguing young defenders

If you've read my stuff before you know I've been extremely high on linebacker Trey Lathan. He flashed again tonight, but so did Kentucky defensive line transfer Tomiwa Durojaiye, who recorded three tackles and 1.5 sacks. He's not getting a ton of snaps, but he is certainly making the most of his opportunities. True freshman linebacker Ben Cutter flew around and made some plays as well, finishing with four tackles.

Perfect scenario

We talked about it on The Walk Thru GameDay Show and it just so happened to come to fruition. Pitt had to strain for four quarters against a Cincinnati team they were likely overlooking and ended up losing the game. Meanwhile, WVU had a tune-up game and were able to get some younger guys some reps. West Virginia will head into the Backyard Brawl rested and relatively healthy. 

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