MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Try as he might to be forward-looking and preach the next-man-up mentality, Tony Gibson said West Virginia’s defense hasn’t recovered from the loss of senior safety Karl Joseph.
Some guys are expendable. Joseph obviously was not.
“You lose your first-team All-American and your best player? That hurts,” Gibson said. “We’re a totally different defense without No. 8. I know injuries are part of it, but when you lose such a significant player …”
After a torn ACL at practice ended Joseph’s career and his string of 42 consecutive starts, the Mountaineers’ defense was on the hook for only 16 points in a 33-26 overtime loss to Oklahoma State.