1. Another catcher
West Virginia needs to find a complementary receiver for Chris Henry, above, to become a threat on the opposite side of the field. This should lessen the chance of an opposing defense double-teaming deep threat Henry and/or using junk defenses to try to negate him.

"It helps if you can keep the safeties from kicking over the top of Chris all the time like they did toward the end of last year," WVU coach Rich Rodriguez said. "That's why it's so important for the emergence of a Brandon Myles so we can split out opposite so Chris won't get into a lot of double teams."

Myles is a 6-foot-3 junior who should blossom this season after spending much of last season learning the offense following a 2002 timeout to concentrate on academics.

Eddie Jackson, who sat out last season after transferring from Washington, also should help take the load off Henry.

"The second half of last season, everybody knew what [Henry] could do," wide receivers coach Steve Bird said. "What's helped us now is you're going to have an Eddie Jackson stepping in there who can get down the field just as well [and] a Brandon Myles who can get down the field just as well -- if not faster [than Henry]. I think they're going to all complement each other now."

2. Distractions
Although coach Rich Rodriguez his assistants and the Mountaineers' seniors did a lot in the preseason to downplay the high rankings for West Virginia -- No. 10 in the Associated Press poll; No. 11 in the USA Today/ESPN poll -- those rankings still could be a distraction for the team.

The No. 10 ranking in the AP poll is the highest in the preseason for West Virginia, and its fans will expect nothing less than an undefeated season, a Big East championship, a spot in a BCS bowl and perhaps a shot at a national championship.

Rodriguez and company will have to guard against, first, the players' possible overconfidence heading into the season and, second, a letdown when -- or if -- the Mountaineers lose a game.

"There's a lot on our shoulders, a lot to live up to, a lot of expectations," senior quarterback Rasheed Marshall said. "I think the biggest thing is not worrying about the outside elements that come with it, but worrying about what we need to do as a team."

West Virginia should win its first two games against East Carolina and at Central Florida. But then comes the Maryland game in Morgantown Sept. 18, and that will be a test. The Terrapins trounced WVU twice last season -- 34-7 in College Park and 41-7 in the Gator Bowl.

"People say we should be ranked here or ranked there or whatever," Rodriguez said. "But you don't have to think back too far --- to the bowl game -- to see we have a lot of work to do to take the next step."

3. Stepping up, stepping in
How well the Mountaineers replace All-American linebacker Grant Wiley, who graduated, will go a long way toward determining their success this season. Wiley last season had 158 total tackles and 14 tackles-for-loss. But just as important, he was an inspirational leader for the team.

"We lost a great player in Grant Wiley," Rodriguez said. "But we have more depth at [linebacker] than we had a year ago. We have some solid, talented players there with excellent experience and some younger linebackers ready to produce."

Seniors Adam Lehnortt and Scott Gyorko and sophomore Kevin "Boo" McLee from Uniontown form the nucleus of the linebackers corps.

Wiley isn't the only large loss from the defense.

"It's going to be tough to replace [backs] Brian King and Lance Frazier, too," defensive coordinator Jeff Casteel said.

WVU fans should remember that even with Wiley, King and Frazier the Mountaineers finished last in pass defense and sixth in total defense in the Big East last season.

4. ... H-I-J-K? No, Kay-Jay

The Mountaineers in 2002 had senior Avon Cobourne as their featured running back. Cobourne that year ran for 1,710 yards and 17 touchdowns and finished his career as the Big East's career rushing leader.

Last season, senior Quincy Wilson was the featured back. He rushed for 1,380 yards and 12 touchdowns.

This season, senior Kay-Jay Harris should be the starter at tailback, and he has some pretty big cleats to fill. The Mountaineers, who love to run the ball, need a big season from Harris.

"Our running back position has been so productive -- first with Avon and then with Quincy -- that you assume at some point there has to be a dropoff," Rodriguez said. "But there are guys there who should be able to pick it up right where Quincy left off."

Harris, who played three seasons in the Texas Rangers' minor-league system before resuming his football career, last season rushed for 524 yards and four touchdowns and averaged 5.8 yards per carry. Perhaps, though, his most memorable play was an 84-yard run on a screen pass that carried to the 1-yard line in West Virginia's near-monumental upset at Miami.

That shows Harris is a versatile back. At 240 pounds, he's strong enough to bust a run through the middle and he's fast enough to take a screen and scoot.

"I have to go out there and run the ball hard, trust my reads, trust my blocks," Harris said. "It will be there. I learned a lot from Quincy-- definitely that the first guy might not bring you down. Seeing him bounce off that first tackle and second tackle and gaining 40 or 50 yards was something.

"But the biggest thing I learned from Quincy was to be patient, that the holes are going to be there and to trust my reads."

Sophomore Jason Colson, who rushed for 104 yards and two touchdowns against Temple last season when Wilson sat out with an injury, will back up Harris. And diminutive Bryan Wright (5-7, 195) has played well in the preseason.

5. Marshall planning
This is the last go-round for senior quarterback Rasheed Marshall, a Brashear High School graduate who's a threat with his arm and with his legs.

Thing is, the Mountaineers' coaches would like Marshall to be even more of a threat this season.

Last season, Marshall completed only 50.7 percent of his passes, one reason WVU -- even with standout wide receiver Chris Henry -- finished last in the Big East in passing offense (156.5 yards per game).

Rodriguez thinks Marshall should be able to complete 65 percent of his passes. And Marshall agrees.

"As a player, you know what needs to get better and what needs improvement," Marshall said.

Then there's Marshall's rushing dropoff last season.

As a sophomore, Marshall rushed for 666 yards and 13 touchdowns. Last season, he fell off to 303 yards rushing and three touchdowns.

The WVU coaches insist Marshall will have more freedom to run this season because they feel they're deeper at the quarterback position.

And if Marshall does pick it up with his feet, the Mountaineers should pick it up through the air, too.

"If we run him a little bit more and let him go, I think the passing game will improve because when you have a guy with the ability to run, they don't blitz as much and play man coverage," quarterback coach Bill Stewart said. "What do they do? They play zone coverage. With zone coverage, the passing game should improve."

-- By Paul Meyer