"Mountaineers Are Always Free"

[superjames1992]

Introduction

Hello, and welcome to my dynasty which will be played on NCAA Football 06. This will replace my Penn State dynasty, which I really could not get into. West Virginia is my favorite college team, so I should be able to stick to this well.

"Mountaineers Are Always Free" is the English translation of the Latin phrase, "Montani Semper Liberi" which is the state motto of West Virginia. West Virginia University, which is the team I shall be using in this dynasty, is located in Morgantown, West Virginia.

Morgantown is located in Monongalia County, which is adjacent to the state of Pennsylvania. This puts Morgantown at a close proximity to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which resulted in the creation of the "Backyard Brawl", an annual hated rivalry of West Virginia University and the University of Pittsburgh. This rivalry has been going on for 100 years and is usually a good game.

Morgantown also boasts a unique, experimental personal rapid transit system. Morgantown has the Morgantown Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) system. The system has five stations (Walnut, Beechurst, Engineering, Towers, and Medical) covering 8.65 miles .

Most of Morgantown is accessible by MountainLine bus system. Most service operates Monday-Saturday from 7am-6pm with very limited service operating on Sunday during the WVU school year. MountainLine's Grey Line bus operates everyday of the year between Clarksburg, West Virginia and the Pittsburgh Airport.

As of 2006, the city of Morgantown had a population of 28,654 and a population density of 2,736/square mile. Of course, on gamedays of Mountaineer football games, Morgantown swells to become the largest city in all of West Virginia, as over 60,000 pack the seats of Mountaineer Field.


Dynasty Background

This dynasty will follow a bit of alternative history due to the time period being wrong since I am using NCAA Football 06. First off, we are going to have Rich Rodriguez leave for Michigan in the offseason before the 2005 season, unlike happened in real life. As in real life, Special Teams Coordinator Bill Stewart will be promoted to head coach and we will begin following with the hiring of Coach Stew.

I may inject (or should I say, I will inject!) some Michigan-hating bias into this for fun, so expect some hating on the Wolverines and such in here as I will be rooting for them to lose. Of course, Michigan fans, take it lightly and don't turn on me because it's all just for fun!

I will get the 2005 roster off of wvustats.com hopefully tonight as I could not play with WVU with a fake roster due to my familiarity with the team. I probably will create Steve Slaton since he is not in the default roster in the game. Pat White's ratings will be increased some since he was rated very low in the game. I will probably start Adam Bednarik and have Pat White play every other series or so, just as WVU did in real life until Bednarik got injured.

So, here we go. Thanks for all input, whether it be positive or negative, as long as it is constructive!

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

Dynasty Settings

Game: NCAA Football 06
Difficulty Setting: All-American
Sliders: My Own
Quarter Length: 7 Minutes
Rosters: Named
House Rules: I am allotted only 1 deep pass per half unless it is at the end of the half...As a 4-star program, I must recruit in pipeline states. I am currently a 4 star program...As a 5 or 6 star program, I am allowed to recruit nationwide.

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

Rodriguez Leaves West Virginia for Michigan

Ann Arbor, MI - Today, Rich Rodriguez accepted the job at Michigan to become the 18th coach of the Michigan Wolverines football program. He officially accepted the job yesterday and is pictured in his inaugural press conference as a Wolverine above. Rodriguez resigned from the West Virginia job a few days ago after citing, "I am the West Virginia athletic department could not come to terms", and "I knew Michigan was a better job and I said, screw those Mountaineers. I'm now a Michigan man!"

Rodriguez's harsh words and actions towards WVU continued past word of mouth as he reportedly called several top recruits on his WVU issued cell phone. He also is involved in a paper-shredding scandal, though the scandal seems skeptical at best.

Rodriguez, who guided the Mountaineers to a disappointing 8-4 (4-2) record last year, with a Co-Big East Championship and a loss to Florida State in the Gator Bowl, is now attempting to ge out of his $4 million buyout clause as well, though this is not likely to happen.

Rodriguez replaces longtime Michigan coach Lloyd Carr, who unlike Rodriguez, was a very classy man. After losing to Appalachian State at the Big House and losing to Ohio State again, fans were calling for his head. Thus, after Rutgers coach Greg Schiano and LSU coach Les Miles turned down the Michigan job, the Michigan Athletic Department went after Rodriguez and offered him $2.5 million a year.

Some think Rodriguez was embarrassed after losing 16-13 to Pittsburgh in a game that West Virginia clearly should have won. The loss in Pittsburgh cost West Virginia an outright Big East Championship and a berth in a BCS Bowl. Instead, West Virginia had to settle for the Gator Bowl, where they were thoroughly dominated by a better Florida State team. The year prior, the Mountaineers were also dominated in the Gator Bowl, falling 41-7 to the Terrapins.

Rodriguez's family members in West Virginia have reportedly received death threats and have been harrassed due to Rodriguez's rude departure. "He basically gave us the middle finger," commented one WVU fan. "I hope he turns the Michigan program into the cellar, because I think he is a liar, a liar!" Other fans had more apathetic reactions. One WVU fan said, "Well, Michigan does have more tradition and stuff, so I really don't blame him for leaving. I just wish he wouldn't left so abruptly and rudely."

In other news, West Virginia officially hired Special Teams Coordinator Bill Stewart as their new head coach. Stewart pledged his allegiance to WVU after he accepted a 5 year, $4 million dollar contract to become head coach, or 800K a year. He assembled a good coaching staff, which included Florida coordinator John "Doc" Holliday.

New West Virginia Coach Bill Stewart

Bill Stewart hopes to guide these Mountaineers to another good season this year. West Virginia is projected to finish 4th in the Big East this year as much of the team graduated last year, including quarterback Rasheed Marshall, halfback Kay-Jay Harris, wide receiver Chris Henry, and cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones.

This year also marks the first year of the new Big East. Newcomers Louisville, South Florida, and Cincinnati replace Boston College and Temple from last year's Big East. Boston College followed the footsteps of Miami and Virginia Tech, who bolted the the ACC one year earlier, as the Eagles joined the ranks of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Temple was kicked out of the Big East after being a perennial doormat football program. The Owls will be an independent and have no conference affiliation for the 2005 season.

So will Bill Stewart be able to guide the Mountaineers to a Big East Championship? Well, if he is going to, this is the year, as the entire Big East looks to be rather weak this year. Problem is, West Virginia itself is weak, so we will see how things shake out. One thing is for sure, we love college football season and it will be here in early September!

[Steelersfan85]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

Who wouldn't hate on a team as bad as the Wolverines? Also WVU's old basketball coach went to Michigan and has the worst record in the Big Ten 5-15I will be following because of the hating on The University of Losers

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

Who wouldn't hate on a team as bad as the Wolverines? Also WVU's old basketball coach went to Michigan and has the worst record in the Big Ten 5-15I will be following because of the hating on The University of Losers

Haha, thanks. :wink:

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

Mountaineer Field

Mountaineer Field, in Morgantown, West Virginia, is the football stadium for the West Virginia University Mountaineers, NCAA, Bowl Sub-division football team.

The original Mountaineer Field was located on the school's downtown campus, but it could not be expanded or modernized due to the proximity of campus buildings and roads near the stadium. It seated 38,000 when it was last used in 1979. The new stadium was originally to be called Mountaineer Stadium, but the fans ignored this and called it New Mountaineer Field, with the "new" eventually falling into disuse. Mountaineer Field was constructed in 1980 on the former site of a golf course between the Law School and Medical School buildings. The stadium's original cost was $22 million. Upon completion it had a seating capacity of 50,000. The stadium has been expanded as follows: in 1985 7,500 seats were added to the south end zone for $7.5 million, the next year 6,000 seats were added to the north end zone for $650,000, and in 2004 luxury suites were added for a cost of $21.1 million, the entire cost of the project paid for privately by a donation from local generic pharmaceutical magnate, Milan Puskar. The most recent expansion actually reduced the seating capacity by 3,500, so the current capacity is 60,000. In summer of 2007 approximately 500 seats were added in the corners of the north end zone and above the weight room in the south end zone. Although the University of South Florida plays at the larger Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Milan Puskar Stadium is still the largest on-campus facility in the Big East Conference. There are five banks of lights located on the perimeter of the stadium and one long bank along the top of the press box. The field surface was replaced in the summer of 2007, after the 5 year old playing surface was beginning to show signs of wear. The company that installed the 5 year old surface went out of business and was not available to maintain the worn surface. There are 12 luxury seats on the first level of the press box, 18 in the north end zone, and 648 club seats in the north end zone called "Touchdown Terrace".

The Caperton Indoor Facility, opened in 1998, sits adjacent to Mountaineer Field and provides a versatile, modern indoor workout space equipped with a 90-yard Astro-Turf 12 playing surface with seven yards of safety zone surrounding the entire field. Total length from wall to wall is 105 yards, with more than 75,000 square feet of practice room. Skylights provide natural lighting. The facility is also used by baseball and men's and women's soccer.
Mountaineer Field has occasionally hosted larger crowds than its listed capacity; the current attendance record is 70,222 against Miami on November 20, 1993. On a home game Saturday, attendance figures at the stadium make it the largest "city" in West Virginia, since the populations of both Charleston and Huntington remained below 60,000 according to the 2000 United States Census

Mountaineer Field has also hosted non-university football games in the past. One notable game was a pre-season exhibition match on August 22, 1998 between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Atlanta Falcons, both National Football League teams. Old Mountaineer Field had also hosted an NFL game in 1968 between the Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals. The stadium is also the location where the annual "MoHawk Bowl" is played between Morgantown High School and University High School, the two public high schools located in Morgantown.

When Mountaineer Field was dedicated in the fall of 1980, fans were surprised when singer John Denver made an appearance and led the fans in the singing of his hit song "Take Me Home, Country Roads". The song has been played at every Mountaineers home game since 1972. In recent years, the song has been the subject of a new tradition; after a Mountaineers win, the players lead the crowd in singing the song.

Denver's 1980 appearance marked the dedication of the new Mountaineer Field as well as the first game for coach Don Nehlen.

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

After consideration, I have decided not to include Steve Slaton in the game. I would like to go in a different direction than happened in real life, seeing if Adam Bednarik would have done well at QB if not for his injury and if Jason Gwantlney will succeed (He was a heralded recruit at RB) unlike his real life counterpart, who eventually dropped out of school.

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

2005 Mountaineers Starters

Pos. Name               Class      Rating
QB   Adam Bednarik      RS So.     84
HB   Jason Colson       RS Jr.     87
FB   owen Scmitt        RS So.     97
WR   Brandon Myles      Sr.        84
WR   Rayshawn Bolden    Rs Jr.     80
TE   Josh Bailey        RS SR.     86
LT   Greg Islander      So.        74
LG   Dan Mozes          RS Jr.     90
C    Jeremy Hines       RS Jr.     82
RG   Jeremy Sheffey     RS Jr.     80
RT   Garin Justice      RS Sr.     84


Pos.  Name              Class      Rating
LE    Warren Young      RS Jr.     74
RE    Ernest Hunter     RS Sr.     86
DT    Keilen Dyles      RS So.     78
DT    Craig Wilson      RS Jr.     78
LOLB  Marc Magro        RS So.     72
MLB   Jay Henry         RS Jr.     74
ROLB  Jeff Noechel      Sr.        82
CB    Anthony Mims      RS Sr.     82
CB    Dee McCann        Sr.        80
FS    Jahmile Addae     RS Sr.     89
SS    Mike Lorello      RS Sr.     91


Pos.  Name              Class      Rating
K     Colby Jones       So.        70
P     Phil Brady        RS Sr.     78
KR    Brandon Myles     Sr.        97
KR    Abraham Jones     RS Jr.     80
PR    Vaughn Rivers     RS So.     82
KOS   Phil Brady        RS Sr.     76
LS    Donny Smith       RS Jr.     68

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

2005 Big East Conference Predictions
1. Louisville
2. Pittsburgh
3. Rutgers
4. West Virginia
5. Syracuse
6. Connecticut
7. USF
8. Cincinnati


Predicted Conference Winners
ACC: #5 Florida State Seminoles
Big Ten: #3 Iowa Hawkeyes
Big 12: #4 Oklahoma Sooners
Big East: #8 Louisville Cardinals
C-USA: #24 UTEP Miners
MAC: Bowling Green Falcons
Mountain West: New Mexico Lobos
Pac-10: #1 USC Trojans
SEC: #2 Tennessee Volunteers
Sun Belt: North Texas Mean Green
WAC: #18 Boise State Broncos


Preseason Top 10
1. USC
2. Tennessee
3. Iowa
4. Oklahoma
5. Florida State
6. Texas
7. Michigan
8. Louisville
9. LSU
10. Virginia Tech
23. Pittsburgh
54. Rutgers
56. West Virginia
65. Syracuse
85. Connecticut
99. South Florida
100. Cincinnati

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

Reader Poll: How many games do you think West Virginia will win this season? We have only a B- rating, but the Big East is pretty weak this season.

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

WVU 2005 Schedule

Date              Opponent
Sept. 4, 2005     at Syracuse
Sept. 10, 2005    Wofford
Sept. 17, 2005    at Maryland
Sept. 24, 2005    East Carolina
Oct. 1, 2005      #10 Virginia Tech
Oct. 8, 2005      at Rutgers
Oct. 15, 2005     #8 Louisville
Oct. 22, 2005     @ South Florida 
Nov. 2, 2005      Connecticut
Nov. 9, 2005      at Cincinnati
Nov. 24, 2005     #23 Pittsburgh

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

Week 1

Top 10 Coaches Poll
1. USC (32) (0-0)
2. Tennessee (21) (0-0)
3. Iowa (4) (0-0)
4. Oklahoma (2) (0-0)
5. Florida State (1) (0-0)
6. Texas (1) (0-0)
7. Michigan (0-0)
8. Louisville (0-0)
9. LSU (0-0)
10. Virginia Tech (0-0)
23. Pittsburgh (0-0)


Big East Scores
No Games Played


Michigan Score
No Game Played


Big East Standings
1. #8 Louisville (0-0) (0-0)
2. #23 Pittsburgh (0-0) (0-0)
3. West Virginia (0-0) (0-0)
4. Cincinnati (0-0) (0-0)
5. South Florida (0-0) (0-0)
6. Rutgers (0-0) (0-0)
7. Syracuse (0-0) (0-0)
8. Connecticut (0-0) (0-0)

[theaub]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

This brings me back to the first year of OS College Fantasy Football, when I managed to go through Colson, Gwaltney and Slaton in the same year.

That Louisville game was insane.

[The GIGGAS]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

Don't care how many teams you beat, you can't beat the Hokies.

[superjames1992]

Re: "Mountaineers Are Always Free"

This brings me back to the first year of OS College Fantasy Football, when I managed to go through Colson, Gwaltney and Slaton in the same year.

That Louisville game was insane.

Yep, unfortunately Gwantley didn't turn out in the end. Jason Colson ended up a failure as well. I bet Slaton got you a bunch of points in that Louisville game with his school-record 6 rushing touchdown!

Don't care how many teams you beat, you can't beat the Hokies.

I probably will have a lot of trouble with the Hokies. They are #10, I am #56. Not too good of a matchup...

Thanks for following guys!