Published: November 19, 2008 10:20 pm      

WVU not giving up title hopes

BLUEFIELD — If Cincinnati beats Pittsburgh on Saturday night, the Bearcats could put a stranglehold on the Big East championship.

However, West Virginia isn’t giving up. Not with the way this college football season has progressed.

“We’re far from being out of it,” West Virginia senior wide receiver Dorrell Jalloh said. “As long as we only worry about ourselves and take care of us, then we’ll be perfectly fine.”

West Virginia won’t be completely out of it even if the Bearcats prevail, but all Cincinnati will have left in the Big East is a clash with cellar-dweller Syracuse.

Still, the ‘Eers spent its bye week preparing for its final three games, starting with Saturday’s visit to Louisville, followed the next two weeks by a visit to Pittsburgh and a home game with South Florida.

“Bye weeks aren’t fun always. If you’re doing well they aren’t too bad,” West Virginia offensive lineman Greg Isdaner said. “Early in the season there is more hitting, but now it’s toned down.

“It’s more mental now with more meeting time and you usually get a day or two off. At the end of the bye week you’re fresh and ready for game week.”

West Virginia (6-3, 3-1), which is coming off a 26-23 overtime loss to Cincinnati, will travel to Louisville (5-5, 1-4) on Saturday for a noon game that will be televised by ESPN. The loss to the ‘Cats snapped the ‘Eers’ five-game win streak, while the Cardinals will seek to stop a three-game losing skid of its own.

While the ‘Eers are 7-2 against the Cardinals, they’re 2-1 at Papa John’s Stadium, including a 44-34 loss at Louisville in 2006, a game that pitted a pair of top 10 teams on a brutally cold night in Kentucky.

“I remember that it was a tough game; a lot of people counted us out,” Jalloh said. “We persevered and never gave up. They were ready to go when we went there two years ago.

“They had a good game plan and we had some misfortunes on offense.”

They don’t want again on Saturday. Louisville has struggled on defense this season, but can score, led by quarterback Hunter Cantwell, tailback Victor Anderson and talented receivers Doug Beaumont, Josh Chichester and Trent Guy.

Cantwell is enjoying a solid senior season after waiting for his chance behind the departed Brian Brohm.

“(Cantwell) has a great arm — he’s a gunslinger,” West Virginia safety Sidney Glover said. “I didn’t compare him to the quarterback last year, but he can fire the ball. That’s what I saw on film and on TV.

“They seem like they have everything they need. They have a big target, speedy receivers who are the small guys, a strength receiver and No. 3 (Guy) is great. They have different types of guys and they’re athletic.”

Louisville’s defensive struggles were evident in a 41-7 loss at Pittsburgh. They’ve allowed at least 20 points in their last eight games. West Virginia hopes to add to that total this week with a healthy Pat White and Noel Devine, who needs just 33 yards to reach 1,000 on the season.

The ‘Eers showed their abilities by scoring 13 points in less than two minutes to force overtime against Cincinnati before falling in the extra period.

“We have a high tempo offense and we’ll stay in that offense a little more and move forward,” Jalloh said. “We also could slow it down.

“Thirteen points in less than two minutes is pretty amazing so we’ll try to emulate that same thing we did two weeks ago.”

Still, the ‘Eers are concerned since West Virginia’s offense continues to be inconsistent. Having two weeks to prepare will certainly help.

“The way defenses shift and move, you really have to prepare for everything every week, even though you have a short period of time to prepare for certain schemes,” Isdaner said. “We’re pretty confident that we’ll get the scheme they’ve been playing all year, and they have been successful with it. We should be well prepared for the game.”

Meanwhile, West Virginia’s defense has progressed throughout the season, especially in the second half. The ‘Eers haven’t allowed a point in the third and fourth quarters in their last four games.

“I think we’ve progressed. We talk and communicate better and we’re getting more game experience,” Glover said. “I think it’s exciting because we’re young so we have time to grow.”

—Contact Brian Woodson

at bwoodson@bdtonline.com