West Virginia's Schmitt gets kicks through contact

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — West Virginia fullback Owen Schmitt seeks out defenders with one simple quest.

"Every time I hit, I want to make that guy feel dizzy,” Schmitt said.

There's no official stat for that, but the Mountaineers have added a unique category that speaks to Schmitt's effectiveness: Broken facemasks.

Schmitt's total: 10 — and counting, entering Wednesday night's Fiesta Bowl.

"It's kind of blown up bigger than it really is,” Schmitt said. "It's not like I actually broke the facemask in half or anything. Maybe it's a fault in the steel.

"I guess I can take pride in it. They thought it was important enough to make their only little stat category on me. That's kind of cool.”

Schmitt is a 6-foot-3, 260-pound load one columnist labeled a "beer truck with a broken parking brake.”

The Mountaineers use him in a variety of ways, with him occupying as many as four positions as well as taking his turn on special teams. Schmitt gets few carries on a team that features quarterback Pat White, Steve Slaton and Noel Devine in the running game. But he has 208 yards and three touchdowns, along with 121 yards receiving.

Still, his reputation is built on his blocking.

If there's any doubt, Schmitt leaves a calling card with every crushing block.

"He's a monster,” White said. "He loves contact like a brick wall. He loves contact more than anyone I've ever seen.”

West Virginia defensive back Eric Wicks has butted heads with Schmitt more than a few times in practice. Wicks said the meetings are memorable.

"It's a train wreck,” Wicks said. "It's crazy. He's a big guy and he runs real hard.”

Schmitt's rugged reputation is enhanced by his bulk and a Mohawk haircut he adopted this season.

"It was a lot longer during the year,” Schmitt said. "I had to cut it because I took a job interview. Apparently they don't like Mohawks in the job world.”

Schmitt adds attitude to the Mountaineers' spread offense, which isn't built on speed and deception alone.

"He's a very aggressive, downhill player that plays with a great deal of emotion,” said Sooners defensive coordinator Brent Venables. "And the physical presence that he brings, the offense feeds off that. A lot of times the misconception is that the spread offense is a finesse offense. That couldn't be further from the truth here.

"I bet you if they voted on who their MVP was, he'd have a chance to get a good majority of the votes because of what he brings physically as much as anything, and the leadership standpoint. You can see that just watching tape.”