Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Bluefield, WV

College Sports

Discussion

September 9, 2010

WVU finds another playmaker

By DAVE MORRISON Bluefield Daily Telegraph

MORGANTOWN — Credit some good coaching up by West Virginia defensive backs Sidney Glover, Robert Sands and Brandon Hogan for the emergence of another productive player on the Mountaineers’ defense.

Terence Garvin said the three helped him over the summer and the results were shown Saturday in a 31-0 shutout of Coastal Carolina in the season opener at Milan Puskar Stadium.

Garvin matched last season’s tackle total with 10 against the Chanticleers.

“Honestly, I didn’t know until after the game that I had that many,” Garvin said. “I knew I had a couple, but I didn’t really realize that I had that many.”

And he said his teammates’ impact was huge.

“All spring, all summer, just telling me stuff, different things that I could do to be in position to make better plays,” said Garvin, a 6-foot-3, 215-pounder from Baltimore. “I thought I came along. This time last year I didn’t know anything. I was just kind of out there.”

He played special teams last year for the Mountaineers.

He will be starting at strong safety against Marshall Friday night in the Friends of Coal Bowl in Huntington. ESPN will televise the game nationally.

Garvin said the shutout against outmanned Coastal Carolina was big.

“It’s confidence; it helps us out going into next week,” he said. “So far, nobody’s scored on us. That’s our defense, that’s what we try to do.”

Garvin said the Mountaineers must also improve.

“We can always get better,” he said. “That’s what our coaches are always telling us.”

Including his own play, Garvin said.

“There were a lot of things I could have done better, that I could have done different to help me get better,” he said. “I could have gotten in better position to make more plays. I didn’t really wrap up real well on Saturday. There’s a lot of stuff out there. I didn’t do great.”

He said he was impressed by the play of Marshall.

“Their tight end (Lee Smith) is real good,” Garvin said. “Their receivers are good receivers. They run good routes, make catches. They’re a good team. They do a lot of short passes and get their playmakers in the open field.”

•••

Freshman Doug Rigg saw his first action at linebacker for the Mountaineers and the 6-1, 215-pound Onadell, N.J., native finished with four tackles and a half tackle for a loss last week.

“It felt great to be out there with 60,000 people,” Rigg said. “I loved every second of it. The first couple of plays went by, and I was like, ‘Wait, what just happened?’ Everything came back to me, and it felt like I was in practice again.

“It was good after that. The more reps you take and the more you do things right, coach will come up to you and say, ‘Good job,’ and you start to grow confidence. All the reps I took from summertime and practice helped a lot. I just went out and played my game.”

•••

J.D. Woods got his first college touchdown — and West Virginia’s first touchdown of the season — on a 4-yard pass from Geno Smith on the first drive of the game.

“I just figured if I could execute and do what I was supposed to do, something good would happen,” Wood said.

It wasn’t a shock to his position mates.

“It wasn’t a surprise to us that he got the first touchdown,” senior Jock Sanders said. “All the receivers, him, Tavon and the others, have been competing at a high level.

“Just being on the field shows that anybody can score in our offense. It’s not a set person — anybody can score at any given time. He does it all. He’s kind of young and I’m sure everything is spinning in his head. We’re trying to loosen him up a bit.”

•••

Coach Bill Stewart has been trying to downplay the fact that he is going up against former assistant coach Doc Holliday Friday.

“This is all about the guys in the arena,” Stewart said at his press conference Tuesday. “I don’t know why people want to talk about me or Doc, but I guess some do.

“I see it as there will be 11 guys out there in Old Gold and Blue, and 11 in green and white.”

Text Only
College Sports
Local Sports

Sports Videos
Heat knock out Pacers Heat torch Pacers in Game 5 Heat even up series with Pacers Spoelstra on Dwyane's demeanor Hibbert huge in Game 3 win Bosh goes down in Heat win over Pacers Playoff Preview: IND/MIA Marques: D-Wade iffy on Olympics LeBron on Pacers matchup Marques: Dealing Dwight? Celtics rely on defense in Gm. 4 Highlights: Aaron's 499 Bosh on child's birth, Game 3 win Wade, Heat win in MSG Celtics handle Hawks in Game 2 NFL Draft: Day 2 Winners/Losers NFL Draft: Day 3 Best Available MLB on FOX: MIL/STL recap Race Preview: Richmond Arkansas brings back Smith
Pro Sports