![]() ![]() Marshall finished the game with just 98 yards passing on just 10 completions after also being sidelined with an injury for much of the game. He suffered a knee injury in the fourth quarter that kept him off the field in the most pivotal moments of the game. Wilson rushed for two touchdowns to give the Mountaineers a 17-10 lead at the end of three quarters, and he finished the game with 24 carries for 105 yards. If there was any doubt that senior running back Quincy Wilson could fill Cobourne’s shoes, it was silenced against the Badgers. The Badgers won the first leg of the home-and-home series in 2002 by a score of 34-17, and the 2003 Wisconsin team looked just as dangerous, even with the game taking place in Morgantown. 20 Wisconsin to open the season was a daunting one. (Photo by Chris Trotman/Getty Images) The Gauntlet He is pictured above with HC Rich Rodriguez in 2004 at Rutgers Stadium in Piscataway, New Jersey. In 2003, West Virginia WR Chris Henry (#5) became the second player in WVU history to record 1,000 receiving yards in a season. Rasheed is prepared to do that and we have prepared for it.”Īthlon Sports predicted WVU to finish the season ranked No. I don’t mind taking risks and throwing it every time if we have to. The key is how much success do we have in the run “We’ll have to throw the ball and keep them off-balance. “Teams are going to load the box and force us to throw the football,” Rodriguez said. He threw just five interceptions, but there was still doubt surrounding his arm talent. In his 2002 breakout season, Marshall threw for over 1,600 yards, ran for 666 more, and accounted for 22 touchdowns. Rasheed Marshall and his dual-threat skillset at quarterback was the anchor of the returning crop of players. In his senior season, Cobourne led WVU to a conference-best 283 rushing yards per game. The most notable departure was Avon Cobourne, who set the Big East career rushing record with 5,164 yards on the ground in four years with the Mountaineers. “Now the question becomes: Was it smoke and mirrors or did West Virginia really become that good?” Street & Smith’s 2003 College Football Preview For starters, 22 players, including 11 starters, expired their eligibility after the 2002 season. Rodriguez, on the other hand, had a long road ahead to please the masses. It had been nearly 10 years since Don Nehlen’s second undefeated regular season, and the taste of success still lingered like the red grease on a bag of pepperoni rolls. The season ended in a Continental Tire Bowl loss to Virginia, but the rapid turnaround excited fans in Morgantown. “Rodriguez’s no-huddle spread offense looked gimmicky in his rookie year as head coach in 2001. “ resurrected the school’s program far faster than anyone could have imagined,” Jorge Milian of the Palm Beach Post noted in his 2003 Big East preseason preview. In his second year in Morgantown, head coach Rich Rodriguez produced the best turnaround in the NCAA in 2002 when he improved WVU to 9-4 after a bowl-less 3-8 season in 2001. Some could argue that 2002 marked the rejuvenation of WVU football. RB Avon Cobourne set the Big East career rushing record with 5,164 yards on the ground in four years with WVU, but he departed in 2003. ![]() The Mountaineers went 9-4 in 2002 after posting a 3-9 record in 2001. That “glory period,” one of the best in WVU football history, began 20 years ago during the 2003 season in the unlikeliest of fashions. The Mountaineers earned a spot in the upper echelon of the sport thanks to a decade of Big East success. The Big 12 pool of competition was simply more talented. Hindsight reveals that WVU football’s successful run in the early 21st century ended with the first modern wave of conference realignment. They won 10 games only once more in Holgorsen’s eight years at the helm. In their inaugural Big 12 season, the Mountaineers went 7-6 in 2012, snapping a nine-year run of first- or second-place finishes in their conference. It was also the last time the Mountaineers won a conference title on the gridiron. Holgorsen won 10 games in 2011, something Stewart never accomplished in the three years prior. Head coach Dana Holgorsen appeared to be in prime position to maintain the momentum built by his predecessors Rich Rodriguez and Bill Stewart with the program making a move to the Big 12 Conference for the 2012 season. Twelve years ago, in 2011, West Virginia football won the Big East title for the last time. ![]()
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