Published: November 05, 2008 10:28 pm      

White hopes for stronger start

Mountaineers seeking sixth straight win Saturday, host Cincinnati

MORGANTOWN — Quarterback Patrick White hopes 20th-ranked West Virginia’s offense can get off to a stronger start against Cincinnati here Saturday night than it did in the last two or three games.

“Yeah, I’d definitely like to see us become explosive in the first half like we have been doing in the second half,” he said. “We’d like to get things off on the jump at the start and then finish off.

“That would be an ideal ball game.”

The Mountaineers, 6-2 overall and 3-0 atop the Big East standings, will be seeking a sixth consecutive victory. The Bearcats, 6-2 and 2-1, could tie for the league lead with an upset win.

West Virginia has been installed as a 7 1/2-point favorite.

White thinks the game should be fairly tight.

“Another night game in Morgantown,” he commented. “We’ll see what happens.”

He believes the offense has been showing steady improvement each week. He attributes that to gaining trust in one another and also gaining trust in the coaches. Another factor is that the offensive line is starting to jell.

The senior signal-caller, who has passed the 9,000 milestone in career yards, is pleased that no one on the offensive unit has panicked during any sluggish start.

“It’s just a game,” he said. “You’ve got to keep playing and try to do better. It’s not the end of the world.”

“That’s always been my attitude and approach. Learned that from my grandma and my grandpa and my mom and dad, too.”

He’s very comfortable in running the offense with its new tweaks. He feels there is nothing that he can’t handle in the new system.

White is impressed by Cincinnati’s veteran defense. He thinks it’s one of the best in the Big East this year.

“They have two of the best cornerbacks I’ve seen in our conference,” he said. “They fly around and they’re aggressive.

“So we’ve got to come out ready to play. They have good schemes. What kind of problems does their defense pose? Stop our offense.”