PREVIEW: The Mountaineers Aim to Solve Issues vs. Towson

West Virginia seeks first win of the season against undefeated Towson

The 0-2 West Virginia Mountaineers are seeking their first win of the season as the undefeated FCS opponent Towson Tigers come to Morgantown.

Towson head coach Rob Ambrose has his Tigers off to a 2-0 start following a 14-13 road win over Bucknell in the season opener, then knocked off Morgan State 29-21 in the Tigers’ home-opener.

“They are well coached - They are a quality FCS program,” said West Virginia head coach Neal Brown. “Coach Ambrose has done a nice job building that program.”

Maryland and Western Kentucky transfer quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome leads the team with 507 yards of total offense and three touchdowns. He thrown for 352 yards and three touchdowns and is second on the team in rushing with 155 yards on the season.

Norfolk State transfer Da’Kendall James has hauled in a team-best 10 receptions for 85 yards while freshman Isaiah Perkins leads the team with 195 receiving yards and a touchdown on eight catches. Perkins earned CAA Rookie of the Week in the season-opener with a six-catch, 81-yard performance. He is the first Towson player to earn this honor since November 2017. Pitt transfer receiver Darien Street has a team-best two touchdowns on the year.

Junior running back Devin Mathews has a team-high 165 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns. Paving the way for the ground game is senior fullback Luke Hamilton. He picked up his first-ever preseason all-league selection after becoming one of the top blocking fullbacks in the league.

Towson redshirt center Cole Cheripko as the lone returning starter along the offensive line.

Defensively, Towson is led up front by defensive end Jesus Gibbs and defense tackle Vinnie Shaffer. Gibbs was selected to the 10th Annual Reese's Senior Bowl Watch List and was featured on Bruce Feldman's 2022 College Football "Freaks" List as one of the top college football players with unique physical abilities. The two have combined for 19 tackles, two tackles for a loss and a sack.

Senior linebacker Ryan Kearney leads the team with 13 tackles while his counterpart Mason woods is second on the team with 12 tackles, including 1.5 tackles for a loss and a sack and the lone Towson interception.

Redshirt senior corner Charles Peeples is one of two starters returning in the secondary along with redshirt senior safety Robert Topps III.

Sep 10, 2022; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers head coach Neal Brown argues with a referee during the third quarter against the Kansas Jayhawks at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium / Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports

“To be honest with you, the focus is on us this week, and I mean that with all due respect to Towson,” said Brown.

“I respect FCS programs, I finished my career there (UMass), I started my career coaching there and I very well understand that mentality that’s going to be in that locker room when they come here. This is their opportunity on a national state to show what they can do.”

The Mountaineers are 0-2 on the season, the worst start for the program since 1979.

The defense became the primary focus of frustration after allowing 200 yards on the ground and another 219 through the air last week as Kansas produced 55 points and a stunning overtime win in Morgantown.

West Virginia ranks 126th nationally in scoring defense (46.5) and 93rd in total defense, allowing 401.5 yards per game.

West Virginia has been without Preseason All-Big 12 selection Charles Woods since the first quarter of the season opener and were without Wesley McCormick the first half due to a targeting call late in the fourth quarter versus Pitt.

Defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley credited Kansas’s triple option attack but shouldered the responsibility of lackluster performance.

“You go in and you’re down some guys and you’re trying to not put a lot of stress on some guys which affects your game plan,” he said. 

Kansas showed multiple formations, some new, and adjusting on the fly with several newcomers proved troublesome.

“You’re trying to adjust that at the same time with guys you know where your weak, and that’s on me,” continued Lesley. “I got to be better. Got to be a better coach, gotta get them in better position, and that’s the only person it’s on.

“Everybody was trying their best. With the situation that was given to adjust to do what’s best for everybody involved in that situation and that was not good enough, that’s as simple as I can make it.”

Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Offensively, transfer quarterback JT Daniels is settling into the offense with offensive coordinator Graham Harrell. Daniels is third in the Big 12 in passing, averaging 284.5 yards per game while receiver Bryce Ford-Wheaton leads the league in receiving yards (249), receptions (20) and tied with Iowa State’s Xaviers Hutchinson with four touchdowns.

Freshman CJ Donaldson has rushed for a team-high 173 yards and three touchdowns, and his 8.4 yards per rush, on 20 carries or more, leads the conference. Redshirt sophomore Tony Mathis Jr. is not too far behind with 132 yards. 

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