Mountaineers not in a rush to abandon running game

But West Virginia will likely throw more this season.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) -- West Virginia found out last year that a no-huddle, spread offense doesn't always equate to hurry up and throw, throw, throw.
The Mountaineers finished the regular season 9-3 by becoming the nation's No. 2 rushing offense, and coach Rich Rodriguez won't mind letting go in that direction again.
But with Big East career rushing leader Avon Cobourne gone and junior quarterback Rasheed Marshall in his third year of Rodriguez's system, the Mountaineers likely will see an improvement in passing.
It won't take much.
Marshall completed just 54 percent of his tosses for 1,616 yards a year ago.
"I don't want to say we're going to abandon what we did last year because it worked," Rodriguez said. "We've said we want to throw it more. But listen, if we can run it 80 times a game and win ... [there's] a lot less chances to screw things up. So we'll see what we can do to have success."
Showing improvement
Marshall has been throwing downfield more during practices. This year he's got a taller group of targets.
"Can he put the ball down the field when it's third-and-12, fourth-and-10, third-and-15?" said quarterbacks coach Bill Stewart. "That's what we have to get better at."
Conversely, Mountaineer running backs can only hope to approach last year's success despite having the deepest position on the team.
"I don't care if we throw for 400 yards and rush for 100," said running backs coach Calvin Magee. "If we win the game, I'm going to be happy every week."
Senior Quincy Wilson probably won't come near Cobourne's school-record 1,710 yards of last season. But as a team, the Mountaineers could still be among the nation's elite running attacks.
Wilson looks to improve on a 901-yard season in which he averaged 6.4 yards per carry.
Marshall remains dangerous on the ground, having scored 13 rushing touchdowns and gaining 666 yards last year to break the Big East record for quarterbacks held by Michael Vick.
Add to the mix 240-pound Kay-Jay Harris, a junior college transfer; junior Hikee Johnson, and improving redshirt freshmen Jason Colson and Erick Phillips.
But Marshall warns opposing defenses not to key on the Mountaineers' running.
Looking to throw
"I really want to throw the ball better. That's it, basically. The running is secondary," he said. "The first job is to get the ball to the receivers and move the offense.
"A lot of teams are going to be going off last year about how we can't throw the football. If we hit a couple [long passes] early, I think that will get the word out and let teams know we are a different team and you can't stack those guys in there like you did last year."
The Mountaineers lack experience on the offensive and defensive lines, although offensive linemen Tim Brown, Jeff Berk and Geoff Lewis can play multiple positions to help make up for the loss of three starters from a year ago.
The defense has to replace seven starters, including four of the six top tacklers.
The defense made fourth-quarter stops to secure back-to-back road wins over Top 25 teams Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh last year, but there were letdowns in other games. The Mountaineers allowed 40 or more points three times.
The defensive line has "the most youth on our team," Rodriguez said.
Back are all-Big East linebacker Grant Wiley, who led the team with 129 tackles, and fourth-leading tackler Jahmile Addae, who had a team-high four interceptions.