Gwaltney maybe returning / Stew sets rules

"If he goes to class with his headset on and his hood over his head like a boxer like he did before, I'm going to fire him," Stewart said.

haha, i love that quote from Stew. Gwaltney was freshmen, i was freshmen, and he was in one of my big lecture hall class...he was ok at first, then he had that leg injury..and it all went down hill from there, he def. was "headset on and his hood over his head"...and playing his PSP game system. I hope he gets back on the field, stays healthy, goes to class, and is able to come in as a big bus change of pace from time to time...who was it we played that year? i think it was maryland early in the year, and Gwaltney just plowed the kid over.....good athlete, hope he gets back on team

How is this not a RR issue.  Gwaltney was recruited by RR and his staff no matter who was on on the staff ( including Stew).  He failed in the class room while playing for RR.  You know that it just didnt happen over night.  It wasnt like one day a report came out that Gwaltney failed all his classes.  I am sure Coach Rod had weekly reports on his players and their academic progress.

Once again I do not see how a bar fight and giving a kid a chance to qualify academically compare.  One is a crime....petty that it is....and the other is simply putting forth the effort in a class room.  One does not translate to the other. 

Giving a kid a second or third chance in the class room is a win/win situation for Stew.  If he qualifies and passes all the rules put forth to him by Stew and staff they pulled off something that apparently Coach Rod and staff couldnt or was unwilling to do.  If he fails in the classroom again well they simply do not allow him back on the team and have lost nothing because nothing was invested. 

There is no way of knowing at this time if Kerns will qualify....his grades have to be complete to know this and at this time they are not.  Yes he may be in line to have academic trouble but then again maybe not. 

ok so what staff would you rather have had him hire.   He could have saved money and not hired such highly touted staff but would the results have been there.  In results right now I am speaking of the recruiting path we have taken since the hirings.  Also if you are given a set amount of money and given the green light to get the best staff available why wouldnt you?

Garrison is his boss but I agree with you I think all the coaches should stay out of the academic arena and as we can tell Political arena because the Garrison issue is a political one.

And why wouldnt they have the Mountaineers pre season top 10....you return the BE player of the year on Offense along with your entire Offensive line and the most electrifying freshman RB in school history. 

The Defense lost some players but looks to have the best LB corps we have ever had. 

Win the BE and return to a BCS game for the 3rd time in 4 years.

After the Fiesta Bowl win anything less than winning the BE would be a disappointment any way no matter where the talking heads have us ranked.

Jason will have to prove himself in the classroom at the Junior College level or another academic arena simply to have the chance to re inroll at WVU so he will have to prove himself as a student even to get a chance to play again!

If he can get his grades in order and stay out of trouble why not let him play football again?

No my friend..I am saying RR should have never given him a scholarship either...I don't care how good he is..

Why??..because RR gave him 2 chances and cut him loose...Stew completely owns this now letting him back on campus....

What I am trying to imply or say here is...that ever since the Fight...it seems we are finding ways going forward to bury our head in the sand and spin this crap...If Stew who claims he is going to take the non - nonsense appraoch is starting to show that the fire is hot in the kitchen and he the cracks are beginning to show...

again..being the RB's Coach at the time..you refer to STEW himself here..

LL...you at Happy Hour posting this stuff...come on ...there are just  a few question marks the "EER's have to answer...You almost sound like the Louisville Card fans from last year...

Why??...Pac Man hits some kid with a pool stick..Gwaltney is arrrested for underage drinking and DUI...Henry never had issues with the Cops while on campus...he just didn't go to class....so I do not see as that far fetched..

Slaton,

If my memory serves me, I believe that in Gwaltney's freshman year and what would have been his sophomore year, Stew was the QB coach and special teams coordinator.  When Rod Smith arrived last year Stew changed to just the special teams coordinator and received the title of assistant head coach.

So this was never really a Stew issue from the get-go.  He is trying to help a kid that has had issues with his grades, showing him the path that he must follow, then giving him the opportunity and the honor to play collegiate football if he does the things that are required of him.  If he succeeds, great.  If he fails, he will be cut loose. 

I don't see the issue seeing as how he will not be participating in any games in the upcoming season regardless of whether he is a choir boy and straight A student or not.  He will not be eligible to play until 2009.  By the time he would have an opportunity to step on the field in a game, we will know for sure where his priorities and maturity level are.

Come on folks, what is the worst that can happen??

He gets kicked off the team again? He gets back into to school, gets to play for the first semester and is kicked off the bowl game team??

From what I understand, he and Quinton were pretty tight, so I guess they could get in trouble together, but I am sure that that issue has or will be addressed early on if he gets back into school.

The kid deserves a chacne. Lord knows when I was 18-20 I needed a heck of a lot more than 3 chances to prove my worth to my school, my family, and society at large and I wasn't under the spotlight.

Slaton

I see your point on some things and understand where you are going with the thinking that Stew and staff may be over looking some things but I dont see that happening here.

Gwaltney failed at WVU academically (sp...hey its late and I am tired)...He will have to prove himself with grades first  to enroll at the University simply to get on campus.  Now it appears to me that Stew is saying prove to me that you are serious by getting the academics together and then we will put you on the path to play for the team. 

First of all I believe this occurred after his dismissal from the team but are you kidding me with the underage drinking.....If that is the case then Half the Campus can be dismissed from the University right now because all the bars downtown would have to shut down if they did not allow under age drinking in their establishments.  I guess I didnt deserve a shot at my College Education either because I participated in Underage drinking the entire time I was at Fairmont State.

As for the DUI...I would dare to say that some time in our lives, if we are going to be honest, all of us who have taken part in drinking have driven when we shouldnt have!  We just didnt get caught.

We will simply have to agree to disagree on this one my friend....I can see your point that opening the door to athletes with baggage can lead to a slippery slope but I dont see the big issue with this incident in particular.  If Gwaltney has matured enough to get his act together in the classroom and proves it to Stews outlined standards I dont see the harm in giving him a shot.

JDAKAN

Gwaltney failed at WVU academically (sp...hey its late and I am tired)...He will have to prove himself with grades first  to enroll at the University simply to get on campus.  Now it appears to me that Stew is saying prove to me that you are serious by getting the academics together and then we will put you on the path to play for the team. 

We are splitting hairs here brother...He was an offensice Coach...he along with the other coaches new what the score was with Gwaltney and they alll failed....twice...and trying to lay this at RR's feet at the time ...yes He is the HC and ultimately responsible, but in like any business the Director relies on his departmetn heads to be accountable as well...as Stew was one of those "Department Heads" for the offense....

LL...this is the thing...your are right he was not "Back On the Team" perse whent his occured, but the notion was there of his retuning...just like it is now....

Again..I guess I am worried and it is intertwined with the Heather Bresch thing...how many borderline kids are we trying to get thru the dooor only to find out later, one they can't hack it...(See Joe McKNight/OJ MAYO) or possbiliy an " Oversight" happens when one of these prep schools falsifies records...and come on fellas that notion has had to cross all of our minds at some point..

I just rmemeber when Stew took the positon he said he was looking to bring the "RIght" student athlete into the program...I don't see Gwaltney being a poster child for that "Right" student athlete...but ...I will wait and see like the rest of us.

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You need to chill a little Slaton, being so pessimistic all the time is not good for your heart!    You know I normally agree with you, but IF he shows he is serious on the academics side, shows for practice and follows all the rules established by Stew...  why not give the kid his 3rd strike?  You're right, we don't all get those 3 strikes.  Many times it's 1 strike and you're out...   such is life.  But this is a new staff, and if he's showing signs that he's serious and he knows he's on a short leash, he hopefully understands this is his last chance.  And hey, just maybe, he lives up to the hype he had coming to WVU the first time.

Good debate.  My two cents: This IS a decision Stew will have to live with now. If it blows up in his face then he will have to be accountable for the consquences. I'm 50/50 on letting Jason back, if he makes the most of it, WVU gets a good running back in the fold again.  If Stew would have said "no way", I'd have been comfortable with it too. Granted, it is unusual and statistically highly risky to grant a third chance to someone who has already blown it twice, but I think in the long run, we're just going to have to wait it out and see what happens.  I don't thin Willie Williams and Jason Gwaltney are fair comparision whatsoever. If two years from now it all works out and Gwaltney makes some significant contribution to the team and graduates then Stew made the right decision. I don't percieve Stew as a man that will let anyone take advantage of him, but after the Dickrod fiasco, I will withhold any judgement after Stew has been head man for a year or two.

Lambert, love that avatar, the Pen's will finish if off this Sunday and it's on the Stanely Cup finals!!