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FSU football: Impact of West Virginia losing its defensive coordinator

By Kelvin Hunt

WACO, TX - OCTOBER 31: The West Virginia Mountaineers break the huddle during warm-ups against the Baylor Bears at McLane Stadium on October 31, 2019 in Waco, Texas. (Photo by Adrian Garcia/Getty Images)
WACO, TX - OCTOBER 31: The West Virginia Mountaineers break the huddle during warm-ups against the Baylor Bears at McLane Stadium on October 31, 2019 in Waco, Texas. (Photo by Adrian Garcia/Getty Images) /
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FSU football is set to play West Virginia in its 2020 season opener. If that game happens, the Noles should have an edge.

FSU football fans are still hoping the Noles will open up its season against West Virginia on September 5.

If that happens, that means FSU’s regular schedule will be intact, and college football will be taking place, at least for the time being.

A month ago, I wrote about West Virginia putting their defensive coordinator, Vic Koenning on leave. The move happened due to allegations of insensitive remarks to players on the team.

At the time, I thought he could be on leave for a few days, a few weeks, or eventually let go after the investigation concluded.

It was announced Tuesday West Virginia and Koenning mutually agreed to part ways.

Impact of Koenning Leaving

FSU football was going to be favored going into this game if it’s played. West Virginia wasn’t a good football team last year, and neither was FSU, but the Noles are the more talented team.

West Virginia wasn’t good defensively in Koenning’s first year as defensive coordinator in 2019. They finished No. 73 in SP+ advanced metrics and were-projected to finish No. 61 in 2020.

Those projections were with Koenning returning for a second year as players should be more familiar with what he was trying to accomplish on defense. He had been on leave for a month, and West Virginia likely had contingency plans in place to fill that spot should they part ways.

Whoever was taking his place during the last month, if they remain in that role, will have had roughly two months to prepare for FSU for the opener. That doesn’t sound like a recipe for success, not to mention nearly 30 of their players have tested positive for COVID-19 since returning to workouts last month.

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That’s a lot of time missed coupled with trying to get accustomed to a new defensive coordinator. If the game is played, these are all variables that should favor the Noles. A win for the Noles in game No. 1 would be a huge confidence booster for the team and its fans.

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