An Unforgivable Conversation

''All great things must come to an end, otherwise they wouldn't end.....or someone could graduate.''

-Me

What follows is an email conversation between myself and fellow WVU Student/dick joke conoisseur Billy Stewart. Hope it causes you to possibly think amongst the haze of beer.

JS: So i've heard that WVU football is going to be fucked this year without Pat White. Quick question......How many National Titles did he ever win? The answer's zero. I know we are only ''WVU'' and our alumni only strived for top-10 status, but fuck that bronze medal shit, this isn't the Special fucking Olympics this is major college football. So heres the question I pose to you? Did Pat White, despite his record setting stats, undefeated bowl record, and immense popularity, hinder our teams chance to WIN big games? Was he really our best chance to not just put up big stats in 40 point rapeings of Syracuse, but to beat the best teams in close games?

BS: Ok here it goes, in order to do this we have to examine this in 2 very distinct eras. You have the Rich Rod era and the Bill Stewart era. i'm going to give the pro's and con's to both eras for Pat playing.

Rich Rod era-pro's for pat playing- with the zone read, you had he and Steve Slaton in the backfield. Steve was a big enough back who if he had to, he could run someone over. Defenses were already gearing up for the run since we ran the ball 80% of the time, but with Pat at QB, they couldn't gear up for semi fast white guy(Owen Schmitt) to run, they had to gear up for someone at QB who was not only fast, but was shifty. Pat White could change directions on a dime and that is what made him so elusive. Also, since most of our passes were screens, pat had a hell of an arm that could get the ball out fast to our speedy playmakers.

Con's for Pat playing- Pat was relied upon so much that when he would get injured then nobody knew what to do. I blame this partly on the scheme that was used. WVU used the zone read way too much, sometimes as much as 75% during offensive drives. Because of Pat having to run the ball so much, as well as the lack of downfield plays, he was relied upon to make plays. Pat on a good day stands in around 6'1 185 pounds, which is light for a scat back like Noel Devine, let alone a QB who takes hits. Pat took too many hits and when he would get injured, Jarrett Brown didn't have too much of a chance. Once again this can be blamed on the scheme. Second point for the con's during the Rich Rod era- WVU won a lot of games during the 3 years that Pat White played under rich rod, the majority of these games that were won were blowouts, yet Pat White played late into games. Jarrett Brown was a competent backup but did not receive near the amount of snaps that could have made things go well for him.

Bill Stewart era-pro's for Pat playing- Pat started to come into his own as a true QB with the help of Jeff Mullen. As much as people were on Mullen's ass, think about where Pat would be if not for him. Pat helped WVU during this transitional time because when plays broke down downfield, Pat could go into "fuck you i'm Pat White and faster than you" mode and just outrun everyone. For reference to this mode, look at some plays from the 2008 uconn game when Pat ran around and then broke into daylight. Look at the now infamous play against louisville where Pat had a 60+ yard run to win the game. Pat White gave us the best chance to win last year. with the help of a more balanced offense, Pat White was by far the best option as our QB. But just for fun, here are the...

con's for Pat playing- Bill Stewart's first full season and Pat White's last season coincided. WVU did not have the expectations to honestly have an opportunity to play for the BCS title last year. Jarret Brown should have played more at QB instead of fullback like he did. Jarret Brown could have taken 40% of the snaps and be well groomed for the next year where WVU could have reloaded and been ready for another run at a national title.

overall impressions: I am very big on Jarret Brown, i always have been and always will be. Not only is he 6'5 and weighs 200+ pounds. Not only is he built in the Steve "4holes" McNair mold, but he is also my neighbor, I speak to he and his awesome parents frequently, and... best of all he and Morty Ivy offered me "weed, liquor, and bitches" two years ago the night before the spring game. However Pat White is and always will be known as the best QB in WVU history. He should even go down as one of the top QB's of this decade. He is the greatest winner in college history. He rightfully should have played and been our QB.