By Dave Morrison
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Pat White casts a long shadow.
Approximately 300 or so miles on this day. All the way from Miami, where his Miami Dolphins prepare to play his boyhood team, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Likely without White.
But it’s not about the pros. It’s about the cons of following in the footsteps of a quarterback who led WVU to the pinnacle.
White’s former Mountaineer teammates are preparing to play Florida State Friday in the Konica Minolta Gator Bowl.
And several of those teammates were asked about the importance of winning this game without White.
It’s a legitimate question, even though its a head scratcher for the players in question.
“Well, we’ve been winning games without him all year,” offensive tackle Selvish Capers said.
True.
But remember what WVU’s bowl record was this decade without White?
It was 1-3, including a 30-18 loss to Florida State in this very city, in this very bowl.
The lone win was in 2000, in the Music City Bowl. That was a 49-38 win over Mississippi in Don Nehlen’s swan song, a game that saw a freshman named Eli Manning enter the game for Mississippi and nearly lead a dramatic comeback.
With White?
WVU was 4-0 (White was the only QB to win four bowl games, ever) with wins in the Sugar Bowl, the Gator (here), the Fiesta and the Meineke Car Care Bowl.
So it’s a very legitimate question.
Rephrase it to read, “Can WVU win a bowl game with Jarrett Brown at quarterback?”
“It’s important to us,” WVU linebacker and Floridian J.T. Thomas said. “All I know is I’m focused on beating Florida State right now. We want to win this game and keep the bowl streak (four straight) alive.”
Right, without White.
“Pat just played Pat’s game,” Capers said. “That’s the same thing Jarrett is doing. He’s getting his chance and he’s going to play his game. There are similarities and there are differences. But the one thing (they shared) is leadership.”
Make no mistake, Brown wants to win. The payoff is a 10-win season. A chance to show that he can win the big game. A chance to show that cannon of an arm is NFL worthy.
The stage will be bigger than he has seen.
There will be 70,000 fans against him, screaming for legendary Florida State and former WVU coach Bobby Bowden to go out a winner. WVU coach Bill Stewart said the sound will be louder than anything WVU encountered in the Sugar or Fiesta BCS games.
Brown will be back at home, giving him a chance to go out on top in his home state and atone for that loss at South Florida in October.
It’s unlikely Brown will give two thoughts to White Friday during the game.
But somewhere, in the back of his mind, he’s thought about it.
It’s a chance to show that yes, Brown is a winner, too.
Knowledgeable fans know this.
He did beat Pitt, something White didn’t do in his last two seasons.
He did throw for 2,129 yards.
But this game, more than any other, will be the one that defines Brown. Forget the relief appearances like the one against Rutgers three years ago.
This is a chance for Brown to cement his own legacy. And have people ask Geno Smith next year if he is ready to come out from the shadow cast by Jarrett Brown.
— E-mail demorrison@
register-herald.com
