Coastal Carolina tight end David Duran is not necessarily banking on professional football being a part of his future, but it’s certainly an interest of his should the opportunity present itself.

And, with that said, he knows games like the Chanticleers’ season opener Saturday at West Virginia are the moments that help create those opportunities.

“When scouts come in, the first tapes they want to see are us against Division I teams and quality opponents,” said Duran, a 6-foot-5 junior and reigning all-Big South selection. “These are the games that, if that’s a goal of yours to play at the next level, you’ve got to play well in these.”

Full Article at: thesunnews.com

Here is the final chapter of my look at the best and worst case scenarios for each Big East team. Closing out the cases is West Virginia.

Best Case

Country roads lead to Arizona.

Full Article at: ESPN

Head coach Bill Stewart will officially release his team’s injury report tomorrow (Thursday), but don’t expect to see too many Mountaineers on the list.

West Virginia emerged virtually unscathed from preseason camp. The two players to watch for are linebackers J.T. Thomas and Pat Lazear.

Thomas had an MRI on his neck after sitting out for an undisclosed neck injury in preseason camp. The MRI came back clean and Coach Bill Stewart says the senior will play on Saturday against Coastal Carolina, but fans will notice Thomas wearing a collar to protect his neck.

Full Article at: WVMetroNews

West Virginia freshman wide receiver Ivan McCartney is getting some high-powered advice these days.

“Be great at whatever you do,” McCartney’s cousin has told him. “Work harder than anyone in the nation.”

Who is McCartney’s cousin? None other than Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver and reality TV star Chad Ochocinco.

Full Article at: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Pitt and West Virginia will be dressed for combat during the 103rd Backyard Brawl.

When they meet Nov. 26 at Heinz Field, the teams will wear Nike Pro Combat System of Dress, uniforms designed to represent Pitt’s ties to the steel industry and pay respect to the deadly explosion at West Virginia’s Upper Big Branch mine this past April.

The Big East Conference rivals are among 10 schools whose football teams will wear the Nike Pro Combat uniforms this season, joining Alabama, Boise State, Florida, Miami, Ohio State, Oregon State, Texas Christian and Virginia Tech.

Full Article at: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Little kids in South Carolina want to grow up and play for the Gamecocks; block, run, tackle in the Southeastern Conference.

Some, maybe dream of rubbing Howard’s Rock, wearing their bright orange Clemson helmets before dashing down the hill and playing for the Tigers.

But not many little boys say, “When I’m older, I want to play for the Chanticleers.”

Full Article at: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

I have given this a great deal of thought and all things considered, no matter how barren my bank account may be I would not go out and stand in front of a speeding Mack truck on I-79 to collect an insurance windfall.

I mention this today because Coastal Carolina and other similar schools out of football’s FBS do the college football equivalent of this on a rather regular basis, usually with the results you would expect to have when looking into the headlights of a speeding Mack truck.

Full Article at: TimesWV

West Virginia may have to go into its opening game against Coastal Carolina without its injured starting linebacker Pat Lazear but outside linebacker J.T. Thomas, who has battled a neck problem all through pre-season drills, has been cleared to play.

Lazear was leg whipped in his knee during a play a week ago and is still being treated for it.

Coach Bill Stewart evaded a question as to whether Lazear has been practicing, saying only “he’s getting treatment” and he would not predict whether he would be out for the game.

Full Article at: TimesWV

Woodland Hills is facing a Manatee, Fla., team Saturday that runs an offense similar to West Virginia’s. So Woodland Hills is going to a former West Virginia player for some pointers.

Wesley Lyons, pictured to the left, is a Woodland Hills graduate who played receiver at West Virginia only a year ago.

“Wes Lyons has been helping Coach Morton out this week. Just showing us some of the things West Virginia does on offense,” said Woodland Hills coach Goerge Novak.

Full Article at: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

It is the mantra West Virginia coach Bill Stewart has preached exclusively leading up to West Virginia’s opener against Coastal Carolina on Saturday:

What the Chanticleers do is not nearly as important to him as the way his Mountaineers perform.

It is an entirely logical approach, considering that Coastal Carolina is a prohibitive underdog in Saturday’s 3:30 p.m. game at Mountaineer Field. No matter how well the Chanticleers play, they have no chance of winning unless West Virginia is off its game. So why shouldn’t the Mountaineers worry more about themselves?

Full Article at: The Charleston Gazette

Some fans would love to see West Virginia open with a Boise State — a la Virginia Tech — or an Ohio State, as the Mountaineers did in 1998.

The likes of Coastal Carolina, Saturday’s opening foe, or Liberty, Villanova or Western Michigan — the Mountaineers’ opening opponents the last three years — don’t inspire much more than a yawn.

Not a lot of magic in a sure-win situation.

Full Article at: The Register-Herald

Of the many debuts and additions to occur Saturday at Mountaineer Field, maybe none will have as much impact as what happens at defensive end.Not because Julian Miller required an upgrade or because redshirt freshman Will Clarke and junior college transfer Bruce “B.J.” Irvin have a superhuman sort of potential, but because that pair can combine with Miller to give West Virginia an abundance of depth and ability to pressure the backfield it hasn’t had in several seasons.

“They look the same out there,” senior nose guard Chris Neild said, “but they all have different qualities about themselves.”

Miller, the 6-foot-4, 260-pound junior from Columbus, Ohio, will start, as he did all 13 games in 2009. Miller had nine sacks last season, the most at WVU since Gary Stills had 10 in 1998 and the eight-best total in school history.

Full Article at: Charleston Daily Mail

West Virginia’s 119th season of football might remind fans a lot of the 105th Mountaineer autumn.

That was 1996, when Coach Don Nehlen’s defense – with current safeties coach Steve Dunlap as coordinator – led the nation. The 2010 Mountaineers could be so strong and solid on that side of the ball that they won’t need to average 27 points per game to have a big season.

Some WVU fans seem perennially unhappy, and this potential development – no exploding scoreboards – will give them another reason to wish Coach Bill Stewart would replace Oscar the Grouch as the Muppet who lives in a trash can.

However, I think Stew’s quick-cook stew has enough ingredients to get to a 10-win regular season in the one that starts Saturday at Mountaineer Field against Coastal Carolina.

Full Article at: Charleston Daily Mail

Coastal Carolina will bank $350,000 for its trip to West Virginia and the season opener at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Mountaineer Field, but there are other layers to the experience.The Chanticleers were 6-6 last season, but return 61 lettermen and 23 starters. A team from the Football Championship Subdivision has 63 scholarships, 22 fewer than Football Bowl Subdivision programs.

Coastal Carolina, beginning just its eighth season of football, is 50-29 under Coach David Bennett and was picked to finish third in the seven-team Big South Conference.

“We’re really more concerned about our guys and getting us ready,” Bennett said. “I think in coaching, a lot of time you worry too much about what the other guys are doing. I’ve been reading about them on the Internet. I know they’re loaded.”

Full Article at: Charleston Daily Mail

Last week, when I found out I would be heading to New York City to cover the Nike Pro Combat jersey unveiling, I immediately became excited. Quickly, that excitement turned into an uneasy feeling.  Not over the trip to New York City, but over the new uniforms West Virginia was going to be getting from Nike.

In the back of my mind, I figured the new jerseys would either be something I absolutely loved or an ugly disaster.  To be honest, I was not too optimistic.  On Wednesday afternoon, though, Nike gave WVU, as well as myself, an early Christmas present.  As each team’s uniform model came out one by one, my anticipation grew.  Then, there it was.  WVU’s uniform drew my attention from the moment I saw it.

The Mountaineers’ uniforms were flawless, and most every media member at the event raved about how well the uniforms compared to the other nine schools, which, for comparison sakes, were Alabama, Boise State, Florida, Miami (Fla.), Ohio State, Oregon State, Pittsburgh, TCU and Virginia Tech.

Full Article at: The Daily Athenaeum

As West Virginia University football season dawns, students expect a new song each year to keep their Mountaineer pride alive: local rapper 6’6 240’s “Gold N Blue” anthem.  6’6 240, real name Lionel Jordan, debuted the 2011 installment of his “Gold N Blue” hits Wednesday on WVAQ.  While these school spiritpacked raps are nothing new to Jordan, who has released five “Gold N Blue” songs since 2005, he said with each year there is always new material to cover.

“This year there was a huge number of players that needed recognition; more than usual,” Jordan said. “This year’s is the best one yet.”

Jordan is a fan of WVU football himself, but said he does these songs out of what he feels is his duty to the Morgantown community and to all Mountaineer fans.

“I’ve always obviously been a fan of the Mountaineers,” Jordan said. “But I definitely feel obligated to my fans to release these songs.”

Full Article at: The Daily Athenaeum

The West Virginia Mountaineers try to prove they are worthy of being ranked 25th in the nation as they open the 2010 season with a home date against the Chanticleers of Coastal Carolina on Saturday afternoon.

Last year WVU, which finished with a ranking of 25th in the final AP poll, kicked off against Liberty at home and that meeting wasn’t as easy as some would have expected, the Mountaineers slipping by with a 33-20 victory. The team won six of its first seven games of the season, but setbacks to USF and Cincinnati in Big East Conference action didn’t help matters and the squad was left to take part in the Gator Bowl against the Florida State Seminoles and former WVU head coach Bobby Bowden in his final game. The ‘Noles prevailed in a 33-21 decision, marking the sixth straight game in which the Mountaineers had been held to 24 points or less. Nevertheless WVU, at 9-4 overall, finished in the AP’s Top-25 for the fifth straight season, marking the longest streak in school history, and it was also the second straight year in the final rankings for second-year head coach Bill Stewart, making him the first coach in program history to achieve the feat.

Full Article at: kansascity.com

West Virginia and Pittsburgh have squared off in the Backyard Brawl 102 times. This year, the passion is the same but the uniforms are strikingly different. On Nov. 26, the Mountaineers will suit up in the Nike Pro Combat System of Dress. The special rivalry-day uniform pays respect to the 29 lives lost in the devastating explosion at West Virginia’s Upper Big Branch mine last April.

In West Virginia, coal mining is a way of life. So is football. With this in mind, Nike designers brought inspiration from the mines above ground to the gridiron. Tribute to the hard-knocks industry is evident throughout the uniform.

Full Article at: MSN

I finally saw Inception a few weeks ago.

After a month of hearing it hailed as the can’t miss movie event of the summer, and having a dozen friends zealously describe it to me as the cinematic equivalent to sliced bread, I at long last found the time to take the plunge and go see it.

My verdict?

Full Article at: MSN

John Cooper, former head football coach at The Ohio State University, will visit West Virginia University as the 2010 Don Nehlen visiting lecturer in coaching series.

Cooper will be on campus Wednesday, Sept. 29, 2010 to offer two lectures. He will speak to students at 11 a.m. and will offer a second presentation at 7 p.m. Both events will be held in the Erickson Alumni Center and are free and open to the public.

Cooper was born and raised in Tennessee. He spent two years serving in the U.S. Army, following high school graduation. After receiving discharge, he enrolled at Iowa State University. He played football all four years at Iowa State, served as team captain and won the Most Valuable Player Award his senior season. After graduating, Cooper embarked upon a football coaching career starting at Iowa State, and then moving on to Oregon State University, UCLA, University of Kansas and University of Kentucky.

Full Article at: MSN