Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett
Earlier this week, West Virginia coach Bill Stewart called South Florida "our nemesis." And it does seem that defensively, the Bulls have found the kryptonite to stop Pat White and the Mountaineers.
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| | AP Photo/Chris O'Meara |
| | George Selvie and the Bulls' defense were all smiles following last year's 21-13 win over West Virginia. |
Two years ago in Morgantown, South Florida held West Virginia to just 310 yards of offense in a 24-19 upset. The Mountaineers hadn't been held under 27 points in their previous 17 games before that loss.
Last season, West Virginia managed 437 yards of offense in Tampa. But it committed six turnovers and lost 21-13. That was nearly 27 points below the Mountaineers' average point total in 2007.
"The last two years, they soundly whooped us," Stewart said. "They flat beat us up on defense."
What's the secret to the Bulls' defensive prowess in this series? Stewart said that in the past two seasons, South Florida was able to play tight man-to-man coverage in the secondary and bring its safeties into the box to help defend against the run. He said that's a formula Pittsburgh copied in last year's 13-9 upset in Morgantown.
But it's not just the scheme by Bulls defensive coordinator Wally Burnham. It's also the speed of his players.
"They are a very fast defense, and they think they're quick enough to pursue from behind on runs up the middle," West Virginia offensive lineman Greg Isdaner said. "So they've been able to string out our running game."
"The past few years, they have just had tremendous athletes on the defensive side of the ball," fellow lineman Jake Figner said. "They're well-coached overall. But for the most part, they just line up and play ball."
Many teams shudder at the thought of lining up against White, Noel Devine and Jock Sanders. The Bulls have a healthy respect for the speed of those guys. But being from Florida, they're pretty fast, too. The Bulls' defense is built more on athleticism than brute strength, and that helps against spread offenses.
"They have some very good athletes, but we like to say we have some very good athletes as well," South Florida safety Carlton Williams said. "We try to match speed with speed and try to get as many people to the ball as possible."
Will South Florida prove to be West Virginia's nemesis again? Perhaps, but there appears to be a few things going in the Mountaineers&
