First of all, the defense of the red zone added importance in the quest for Mountaineers to contain Navarro

Morgantown, W.VA. – The defense of Virginia-Western kept basic things last Saturday while the Mountaineers made their way in a 45-3 victory against a team from Robert Morris outdated.

It was not necessary to display exotic looks or a blitz surplus and to switch the opponents to what they could face in the future. But at 4 p.m. Saturday when the Mountaineers face Ohio at the Peden Stadium, this will probably not be the case because Virginia-Western opposes an experienced quarter-rear in fifth year, Parker Navarro.

Navarro guides a bobcat offense that scored 31 points and amassed 440 yards in total in a three -point season with Rutgers. He played his fifth and last season of university football and his fourth at or, while serving as a full -time signator for a second consecutive year.

There is a season, Navarro finished 195 assists on 295 for 2,423 yards with 13 touchdown and 11 interceptions. On the ground, it was among the most productive quarters of the country and rushed to 1,054 yards and 18 TD out of 160 attempts.

“He is one of the country’s five best quarters when he gets out of his pocket,” said the defensive coordinator for the first year of Virginia-Western, Zac Alley. “It is incredible if it is in motion, so do everything we can to keep it in it. This will imply the defensive line, spy players, man, area, everything I have the impression that we can do for the corral.”

During the 2025 opening match against the Scarlet Knights, Navarro experienced one of the most productive passage performances in his career, ending 21 against 31 with 239 yards and three affected. He was also his usual effective ego on the ground, rushing for 93 yards and a touch of 17 yards out of nine attempts and won the honors of the conference of the Mid-American conference.

“I prefer that they have a big slog there that does not work,” said Virginie-Western head coach Rich Rodriguez. “Schematically, you must have this in mind defensively when you assemble your packages. It is not from those offers where you do not care about takeoff of the quarter-tree. This is the main part of this. You cannot let it run, rush, run for the first tests and throw out games out of diagrams. It harms in this atmosphere.”

The security of Virginie-Western Darrian Lewis opposed Navarro last year by playing for Akron and remembers too well for what the quarterrier is capable of. Navarro succeeded 12 for 18 with 204 yards and rushed to 113 yards and a score on 13 races in the victory of the 30-10 bobcats against the zips in 2024.

“He will beat you with his arm and legs. He is a very good runner for sure,” said Lewis. “Once he starts to move, he can very well start the ball. We must be really healthy with our details.”

Alley underlines the importance of his unit which wins first, which Mountaineers can be better accomplished by being too aggressive. In his only match to date under Alley, WVU did not need to regularly bring additional defenders to generate a strong rush towards the passes against the colonials and was able to record four bags, eight plated for the loss and a pair of escaped recovery, while granting 123 yards on 2.1 yards per game.

However, last week at Rutgers, Navarro sculpted blitzs, finishing 9 passes out of 12 for 95 yards and a pair of affected when they are confronted with it. However, he finished 2 for 8 when he was under pressure, adding to a theme of 2024 that he fights against him.

“I remember [WVU linebacker] Chase Wilson told me when I am here: “Coach, will bring you six guys first and 10,” said Alley. “I said,” Yes, because the second and the 12 are more difficult than the second and the 2.. We want to drop them regularly and disadvantage them, because you get them more unidimensional. You are limited to your game calls in third and 12 compared to the third and 1. We want to win first so that we can win the second so that we can win the third and get out of the field. »»

Mountaineers will have to be wary of Navarro particularly when the Ohio is in motion. Over the past two seasons, all of his affected except one rushed into the red zone.

Three came against Jacksonville State in Cure Bowl from last year, a match in which Rodriguez would have guided the gamecocks if he had not accepted the job of the WVU coach a week earlier. Navarro’s game helped guide the bobcats to an advance of 27-7 at halftime in this match and Ohio hung on to Win, 30-27.

“When they get there, they score and they do a good job,” said Alley. “They like to make it work and this rises as you get closer to the goal line. The more racing game is something that you see many teams there that have this kind of capacity.

“I studied Jacksonville’s state film from last year as hell. I like a lot of things they did to him in the game of Bowl, and in the second half in particular, they really closed it. This is the closest thing we have to make me feel and warn them and what the game might look like.