by Chris Errington
SPORTS WRITER
MORGANTOWN -- Marc Bulger is a perfect fit for West Virginia -- both for the team and the state.
At 6-foot-3, 210-pounds, the WVU quarterback doesn't stand out in a crowd, or his own offensive huddle, for that matter. He's not loud, he's not cocky and he's not even mentioned when there's talk of WVU's offensive threats.
What Bulger is, however, is simple; just an old-fashioned working man. In fact, take away his football and fill his hands with a shovel and a lunch pail and he could pass for a coal miner -- he's that workman-like in his play.
"I don't mind not getting the attention that the other guys get," Bulger said.
"My job is to make correct reads and not make mistakes. I don't need to be flashy for us to win. We've got other guys that can do that."
Bulger tore apart Tulsa's defense for 253 yards and two touchdowns on 21-of-36 passing, his third big game of the season. Coming into Saturday's contest, Bulger had completed 69 percent of his passes for 525 yards and five touchdowns -- against just one interception.
Saturday, he made a believer out of Golden Hurricane head coach Dave Rader.
"They threw the ball all over the field and with (Amos) Zereoue running well, it makes it real tough to stop their passing," Rader said. "I thought (Bulger) did a fine job today."
WVU wide receiver David Saunders called Bulger the "coolest guy you'd ever meet" and said the Mountaineers' final drive of the first half proved it.
Following a Tulsa touchdown that put the Golden Hurricane ahead 14-13 with just over a minute remaining, Bulger responded. He led the offense 60 yards in 10 plays and put the Mountaineers on top for good when he hit Shawn Foreman with a one-yard touchdown pass.
The drive consumed just 1:21 and what's more, Bulger did it without any timeouts.
"It's the confidence he has in us and the confidence we have in him," Saunders said of Bulger's relationship with the WVU receivers. "He threw an interception before and came out laughing."
Then when the Mountaineers needed it most, Bulger took them right down the field for the most important score of the game.
With a Big East Offensive Player of the Week award for last week's win over Maryland and another solid showing against Tulsa, Bulger could have been expected to crow a little. But he stuck to talking about teammates instead of himself.
"I thought this was Amos' breakout game," Bulger said. "He needed this one.
"We ran some plays that we normally wouldn't have, but with Dave and Shawn, you can do that against a team like Tulsa."
For Bulger, Saturday was just another game, just another day at the office -- do your job effectively and earn your just due.
Something hard-working West Virginians can associate with.