MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- West Virginia starting defensive tackle Scooter Berry, a junior, has battled through a shoulder injury he sustained in the first half of the East Carolina victory Sept. 12.

Saturday's win at Syracuse was the first action since the injury that Berry saw.

It was just a handful of plays, though. And, moving forward, Berry will be needed on that Mountaineers defensive front.

Berry's health was one of the big topics as West Virginia coach Bill Stewart met with the media for his weekly news conference yesterday.

"We feel the progression is going anywhere from adequate to OK; not great, but not good," Stewart said. "Our medical folks are certainly on top of that situation. He did OK [against Syracuse], he didn't do anything that was extraordinary, as he can do or as he has done, but he didn't go out there and stand like a one-armed man, either."

Berry's injury has served as a blessing, of sorts -- helping to cultivate added importance, and in some cases playing time, for Josh Taylor, Julian Miller, Larry Ford, Jorge Wright and J.B Lageman.

"We've had a saying," Stewart said. "You pick up the saber and march on; you replace the fallen one."

The player who has marched on strongest has been nose tackle Chris Neild. A starter even if Berry were healthy, Neild has done a fabulous job of stuffing the middle.

"He is having the banner year of all interior defensive linemen," Stewart said. "Chris Neild is having an all-star year."

On Saturday, West Virginia (4-1) steps back out of conference for the final time of the regular season and will play host to Marshall (4-2) at 3:30 p.m.

Stewart is very concerned with Marshall, the team and the player -- as in running back Darius Marshall, the Thundering Herd's top offensive threat.

A 5 foot 10, 190-pounder, Marshall has rushed for 737 yards and nine scores this season and is averaging 147.4 yards per game. He rushed for 186 yards in a win against Bowling Green Sept. 19.

"He's got it," Stewart said of the running back. "He runs hard, he plays hard. ... Last year, on kickoff return, he went up and down the field on us. He looked like a track guy running sprints on us.

"This year, he has done the same thing [as a running back]."

Stewart's wardrobe has taken a decidedly dapper turn in the past two games: for the first time, he's put a dark blue sweater vest, adorned with a Nike symbol and the school's "Flying WV" logo atop a button-down shirt.

Stewart is 2-0 with the sweater vest, beating Colorado and Syracuse.

The story of how it came about is a decent one. The fans at Mountaineer Field for the Colorado game were urged to participate in a 'Gold Rush' and wear gold shirts. That was a little much for Stewart, as some of the coaches wear gold and some wear blue so the players can easily pick them out. But, he knew he had to do something to participate.

"It was the Gold Rush and I thought it was very special," he said. "I felt like, if we asked the fans, then why not me?

"But, I didn't want us all to look like a mustard seed on the sideline and I thought, if I had just the [button down] shirt on, people would say, "what's he wearing just an Oxford for?" So I put on a Nike sweater vest over it, I figured I'd just try it."

The results have been perfect and have forced a superstitious side to Stewart.

"You don't want to break the moxie," Stewart said. "So I guess I'll wear the sweater vest for a while. I hope I wear it for a long, long time. Forever and ever would be nice."

The real question is: How does he compare to Ohio State coach Jim Tressel, known for his signature red sweater vest?

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Stewart said. "Jim Tressel is a good looking young man. He's aged better than me."

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