THE SHOTGUN THROWDOWN: Jarret Doege named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week

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DOEGE ADDS TO WVU LEGACY

West Virginia quarterback Jarret Doege has been named this week’s Big 12 Conference Offensive Player of the Week. Doege led WVU to a 31-23 win over Texas on Saturday, by completing 27 of his 43 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns. He continues to lead the Big 12 this season with 2,738 passing yards. Doege also has 16 passing touchdowns this year and is averaging 248.9 yards per game.

Despite the almost constant hate by “fans” on social media and an offensive line that has struggled this year, Doege has been quietly moving his way up in the Mountaineer record books. By completing 238 passes this season, he has been able to pass many legendary WVU quarterbacks in completions, including Pat White, Oliver Luck, and Major Harris. Doege has now completed 566 passes in his career, which ranks third in Mountaineer history behind Geno Smith and Marc Bulger. He ranks fifth among WVU quarterbacks with 6,143 career passing yards, sitting behind Geno Smith, Marc Bulger, Will Grier, and Skyler Howard. Doege is also in the top 10 in school history in all-purpose yards, passing touchdowns, and 300-yard passing games. The only other Mountaineers to rank that high in all of those categories are Geno Smith and Marc Bulger.

TAZ SHERMAN EARNS TWO HONORS

West Virginia shooting guard Taz Sherman also earned conference honors this week by being named the Big 12 men’s basketball Player of the Week. The fifth-year senior averaged 20 points and four assists last week, helping WVU go 2-1 to finish in third place at the Shriners Children’s Charleston Classic in South Carolina. He also had a career-high 27 points in the tournament opener against Elon.

Along with the conference award, Sherman was one of five players selected to the Charleston Classic All-Tournament Team. In the early games of the 2021-22 basketball season, Taz has emerged as the leader of the Mountaineers, especially on offense, and they will likely rely on him as the year continues.

NCAA TOURNAMENT THRILLER

The West Virginia men’s soccer team hosted Virginia Tech in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday afternoon. Despite the cold and rainy weather, over 1,000 Mountaineer fans came out to help their team remain undefeated at home this season.

Senior forward Ike Swiger scored the opening goal for WVU. It appeared that the Mountaineers were the superior team for the entire match, but the Hokies scored a lucky goal early in the second half, and the score remained at 1-1 at the end of regulation and after two overtime periods.

The match then went to a penalty shootout. Fifth-year senior goalkeeper Steven Tekesky made a pair of saves and fifth-year senior midfielder Pau Jimenez Albelda scored the winning goal, which led to the entire team jumping the side wall of the stands to join the fans in a wild celebration.

WVU now advances to the Sweet Sixteen against Tulsa.

WEST VIRGINIA ROUNDUP

• The #22 West Virginia women’s basketball team remains undefeated after absolutely destroying Radford, 83-31, at home on Sunday. Junior guard KK Deans led WVU with 16 points. Fifth-year senior A’riana Gray came off the bench to add 11 points and grab a team-high nine rebounds. Freshman guard JJ Quinerly also contributed off the bench with eight points, five steals, and three assists. The 3-0 Mountaineers now travel to the St. Pete Showcase to face Purdue on Thursday and the winner of the #17 Florida State/BYU game on Saturday.

• West Virginia junior Ceili McCabe had a program-best third-place finish at the 2021 NCAA Cross Country Championships on Saturday. McCabe also concluded the season with All-American honors.

AROUND THE BIG 12

• The Oklahoma men’s basketball team made it to the championship game of the Myrtle Beach Invitational, but fell to Utah State, 73-70, on Sunday. Junior forward Jalen Hill had a double-double for the Sooners with 10 points and a team-high 10 rebounds.
• Iowa State improved to 4-0 after an 82-47 blowout of the Grambling basketball team this weekend. Senior forward Aljaz Kunc came off the bench to lead the Cyclones with 21 points.

AROUND THE NCAA

• The #14 Illinois men’s basketball team suffered its second loss of the season at the Hall of Fame Classic on Monday. The Fighting Illini are now 2-2 after getting smacked by Cincinnati, 71-51.
• After jumping into the top 25 with its recent win over then-#4 Michigan, #21 Seton Hall lost to Ohio State, 79-76, at the Fort Myers Tip-Off. The Buckeyes also had a recent loss while they were ranked, which dropped them out of the national polls this past week.

ODDS AND ENDS

• The NFL Playoff picture is starting to take shape. The Tennessee Titans are the current frontrunner for the top spot in the AFC, while the Arizona Cardinals are leading the NFC.

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