Mountaineers Now

Former Mountaineer Vouches for Tony Gibson's Return to WVU

West Virginia fans and football alums are not happy with WVU's defense.

Schuyler Callihan

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West Virginia's defense had a rough day at work on Saturday, giving up 34 points, 457 total yards (235 passing, 222 rushing), and 11 explosive plays (20+ yards) in the season-opening loss to No. 8 Penn State.

A large portion of WVU fans are upset with defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley, including former West Virginia safety and current Arizona Cardinals linebacker, Kyzir White, who is vouching for his defensive coordinator Tony Gibson, return to WVU.

While I can understand the frustration, it's a bit of an overreaction.

Just a few years ago, Lesley had one of the nation's best defenses in all of college football, especially in the Power Five. Due to some hits from the transfers portal, it took them a little bit of time to get back on track and it started to turn back around last year. West Virginia led the Big 12 in sacks, turned a role player into a consensus All-American, and ended the season with the league's fifth-best defense.

All of the attention and displeasure seems to be with the defense, but you could make the arguement that the offense had a worse day. They turned it over three times, couldn't run the ball, and dropped several passes. That side of the ball has higher expectations, yet the criticism doesn't seem to be coming in quite as strong.

The reality of the matter is, it was a bad day for the entire team. No, things didn't look great defensively, but those issues will be shored up in the coming weeks and they will finish in the top half of the league once again. Don't overreact off of one bad game against one of the nation's best teams.

MORE STORIES FROM WEST VIRGINIA ON SI

Time to Panic? Neal Brown Explains Why Everything Will be Just Fine for WVU

Jordan Lesley Takes Ownership of End-of-Half Collapse: 'Throw Darts at Me'

WVU Mailbag: Climb Doubters, Scheduling, Overhyped? + More

Quick Hits: Areas of Concern, Moving Past Penn State + More

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Schuyler Callihan
SCHUYLER CALLIHAN

Publisher of Mountaineers Now on FanNation/Sports Illustrated. Lead recruiting expert and co-host of Between the Eers, Walk Thru GameDay Show, Mountaineers Now Postgame Show, and In the Gun Podcast.

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