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The original was posted on /r/cfb by /u/hammer_it_out on 2025-09-07 20:47:30+00:00.

by Joe Smith

It’s 11 PM on a Saturday night in Athens, Ohio. I’ve just hustled down Court Street past throngs of college kids at various levels of inebriation. Most of the attire I see is some sort of Ohio Bobcats branded gear. There are some gold-and-blue jerseys and shirts sprinkled in the mix, belonging to WVU football fans who made the 2 ½ hour trip to Athens for a Week 2 road game, but there aren’t many. Most Mountaineer fans are on their way back to Morgantown – after getting upset 17-10 by the Bobcats, they didn’t really want to be in town any longer.

I flash my ID and enter Tony’s Tavern, a well-known watering hole off West State Street in uptown Athens. It’s packed wall-to-wall, but I squirm to the back and meet up with some high school friends in town for the game. One of them, multiple drinks deep into a celebratory evening, assures me that he’s a good luck charm for Ohio – the Bobcats are 14-0 when he’s in attendance, he tells me.

That fourteenth win might be the biggest he’s witnessed, as the Bobcats knocked off a regional Power 5 opponent in West Virginia. The Mountaineer fans had rolled out in droves for what they expected to be an exciting Week 2 matchup that put them on a national stage. Rich Rodriguez was back in charge and had just won his first game since 2007 in Milan Puskar Stadium the week before, and sources had indicated to myself and other reporters that ESPN was set to bring College GameDay to Morgantown for The Backyard Brawl if they had won against Ohio.

But now, GameDay is headed to Rocky Top and the Mountaineers are 1-1. Ohio has a resume boosting power conference win to their name, and are headed to Ohio State for an in-state showdown next week with all the momentum in the world.

Trap Game? Not So Ridiculous.

Earlier in the week, WVU head coach Rich Rodriguez was asked about what his team could do to prevent Ohio from being a ‘trap game’ – he dismissed the idea as “ridiculous” and said he didn’t want anyone looking past Ohio to the Pitt game, or even looking past that day’s practice to the trip to Athens.

It turns out that Ohio didn’t find the idea so ridiculous, as from the moment WVU fans walked into the stadium they were mercilessly taunted by Ohio faithful, and once the game began it seemed as if the Mountaineers had nowhere near the energy or focus on Saturday’s game that the Bobcats did. After the game, Ohio players were asked if they ever thought it was ridiculous that they could act as a ‘trap game’ for WVU.

“No sir, we came into the game expecting to win,” said defensive lineman Nehemiah Dukes.

“No matter who the opponent is – when you see the schedule, you know, in March or whatever, whenever it drops. You get excited for those types of moments, right?,” said Ohio wide receiver Chase Hendricks. You live for these moments to compete against a team like that on ‘The Frank (Frank Solich Field)’. We hold a special place, we don’t lose on The Frank.”

Ohio Dominates In The Trenches, WVU’s Offense Goes Stagnant

The story of the game, which might surprise those given the nature of a Power 4 vs. Group of 5 affair, was that the Bobcats dominated the trenches. The Bobcats outgained WVU 429-250 in total offensive yards, and registered 182 rushing yards while the Mountaineers mustered just 72 yards on the ground.

Ohio has four new starting offensive linemen this season, but the highest PFF grade for any WVU defensive linemen against the Bobcats was 71.2, the grades for both Asani Redwood and Eddie Vesterinen – no other WVU defensive lineman was graded above a 67, while just two were graded above a 65. On the opposite end of the ball, the Mountaineers’ starting five on the offensive line combined for an average PFF grade – no other offensive lineman played a snap for WVU.

“A lot of it is how hard our guys play, and the effort that they have. I think a lot of the movement we do up front creates some challenges for people. But that’s what we really lean on, is our toughness and how hard we played as a team,” said Ohio coach Brian Smith.

The Mountaineers played both starting quarterback Nicco Marchiol and backup Jaylen Henderson, but neither showed any ability to effectively take over the game and lead WVU’s offense on scoring drives – starting tailback Jahiem White busted loose for the only touchdown for WVU in the first quarter, but then WVU was outscored 17-3 the rest of the way.

“We noticed that the quarterback was a little antsy in the pocket and that’s because of the pressure. We just continued to get after them,” Dukes said.

The WVU offense was stagnant enough that they even proved one of defensive coordinator Zac Alley’s guiding principles incorrect. Alley mentioned earlier this year he holds his defense to a standard of forcing three turnovers each practice – because if you can muster three takeaways per game, you’ll usually win. The Mountaineers came away with three interceptions on Saturday, but apparently Alley’s defensive philosophy couldn’t stand up to such a poor offensive showing.

The bad offensive news got worse for WVU too. White left the game in the first half with a lower body injury, and after being seen in the medical tent, was carted off the field. He returned to the sideline later on crutches. Rodriguez said the injury “didn’t look good from the sidelines” but had no further postgame update.

A Raucous Atmosphere

Known as “The Best Fans In The MAC,” the Bobcat faithful packed the stands full in Peden Stadium and were relentless in heckling their guests. Many WVU fans found themselves seated at the southern end of the stadium in bleachers that were located at the end of a long stretch of Ohio fans and students, and every single fan in gold-and-blue were taunted and jeered with insults and curses that would make many of their mothers’ blush as they walked past. The intimate environment at Peden Stadium made it easy for WVU players to hear the full force of the boos from Ohio fans, and a “Rich Rod Still Has Nightmares Of December 2007” sign stuck out amongst a group of students.

After the game, the Bobcats ran to their fans while proudly flying a MAC flag. And while waiting for Ohio’s postgame press conference, you could hear “Take Me Home, Country Roads” blaring from the Bobcats’ locker room. Smith acknowledged the moment with a chuckle and a smile.

“It’s a good feeling – it’s good to troll every now and again, I guess,” Smith said. "It wasn’t on my iPhone, that popped on from somebody else. But yeah, I mean, it’s great for the kids. They’re excited at the – you know, what they’ve accomplished and the opportunity to win that game.