Just recently it was announced that West Virginia has settled its lawsuit against the Big East and has been allowed to join the Big 12. With this move the Mountaineers will take on more formidable opponents than they would in the Big East.
As soon as the news broke, the official Big 12 website released its schedule for all teams including West Virginia's. Home games include; Marshall, Maryland, Baylor, Kansas State, TCU, Oklahoma, and Kansas. The Mountaineers will travel to; FedEx field to take on James Madison, Texas, Texas
Tech, Oklahoma State, and Iowa State. Unfortunately it looks like the Backyard Brawl will not carry on, which is an end to a great tradition. Both Dana Holgorsen and Pittsburgh coach Todd Graham wanted this game to continue through the years even with both teams moving to new conferences.
Analysis of Schedule:
Marshall: The Mountaineers kickoff the season against rival Marshall. Last year it only took three quarters to beat the Thundering Herd, the game was called early due to weather. This is a team West Virginia has faced many times before and will look to continue its winning streak against them.
@James Madison: This is West Virginia's first away game and it is a big one as they will be heading to FedEx Field in Washington D.C. Last year the Dukes went 8-4 and did not face a single team close to West Virginia’s caliber. If the Mountaineers want to end this one early they will have to play like they did against Norfolk State and Bowling Green last year. JMU will be in for quite a shock once they step onto the field.
Maryland: This is another team West Virginia has faced many times and has beaten many times. Last year when these two teams squared off the Mountaineers nearly lost after having a terrific first half and falling apart in the second half which allowed the Terrapins to close the gap. Luckily for the Mountaineers they were able to hang on for the win.
Baylor: This is West Virginia's first Big 12 game. With Robert Griffin III leaving for the NFL, the Mountaineers should have an easier time with this team. The other key player the Bears will be without is running back Terrance Ganaway. However, don’t underestimate Baylor as they do have some decent players coming back. One such player is wide receiver Terrance Williams who had 59 receptions for 957 yards and 7 touchdowns. The Mountaineers will need to play tough against him in order to make him a nonfactor.
@Texas: The Mountaineers will travel to Texas to take on the Longhorns. This will be a very tough game for the Mountaineers for a number of reasons. Texas is very hard place to win and West Virginia will have their work cut out for them. Texas also has two very good quarterbacks; Case McCoy and David Ash. Last year, Ash who was a freshman played in twelve games had 84 completions for 926 yards, 3 touchdowns and 8 interceptions. While interceptions were a big problem look for Ash to possibly be a factor. McCoy had 89 completions for 1045 yards, 7 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. If the Mountaineers can pressure either one of these guys then they should be able to force turnovers easily, keeping in mind that no Longhorns running backs or wide receivers had over 1,000 yards in their respective positions.
@Texas Tech: The Mountaineers head back to Texas the next week to take on the Red Raiders. Texas Tech did put up impressive numbers on nonconference teams and Big 12 teams, but it wasn’t enough to win. The Red Raiders only won two Big 12 games last year, these two wins were on the road against Oklahoma who was ranked #3 in the nation last year and Kansas. Last year junior
quarterback Seth Doege threw for 4,004 yards with 28 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Doege’s stats seem nearly identical to Geno Smith’s and this could play into West Virginia’s favor if Doege does in fact mirror Smith’s passing ability.
Kansas State: The big name the Mountaineers have to lookout for is quarterback Colin Klein. Last year Klein threw for 1,918 yards, 13 touchdowns and 6 interceptions, however it won’t be his passing the Mountaineers have to be careful of it’s his rushing ability. Klein had 1,141 on the ground for 27 touchdowns. West Virginia does not want this guy to get out of the pocket and start moving around because that is when he is at his best. Their best bet is to keep him in the pocket and swarm him so he can’t move and either wrap him up with the sack or make him throw the ball away.
TCU: Originally West Virginia would be playing TCU at some point since they had agreed to enter the Big East at one point and now these two teams will finally faceoff. The Mountaineers will have to keep tabs on two huge playmakers for the Horned Frogs; quarterback Casey Pachall and wide receiver Josh Boyce. Last year these two sophomores dominated with Pachall throwing for 2,921 yards with 25 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. Boyce meanwhile hauled in 61 receptions for 998 yards and 5 touchdowns. Look for these two to continue their chemistry and put up even bigger numbers this year. The Mountaineers will have to apply a lot of pressure to Pachall and maybe even double cover Boyce in order to beat this team.
@Oklahoma State: Dana Holgorsen returns to his old stomping grounds as West Virginia travels to take on the Cowboys. Luckily for the Mountaineers they will be without quarterback Brandon Weeden who was unstoppable last year throwing for 4,727 yards with 27 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Also not available to the Cowboys will be standout wide receiver Justin Blackmon who had 122 receptions for 1,522 yards and 18 touchdowns. Both these players will likely be headed to the NFL, which will give the Mountaineers a fighting chance. One player West Virginia does have to look out for is running back Joseph Randle who had 1,216 yards on the ground with 24 touchdowns; the Mountaineers have to slow him down if they want to come home with a win.
Oklahoma: This is without a doubt the toughest opponent on West Virginia's schedule. The main factor for this game will be potential Heisman trophy winner Landry Jones. Last year Jones threw for 4,463 yards with 29 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. The Mountaineers have got to cause mass turnovers if they want to come out on top in this matchup. Another player West Virginia has to keep an eye on is wide receiver Kenny Stills; last year he snagged 61 balls for 849 yards and 8 touchdowns. With Ryan Broyles headed to the NFL, look for Still to become Jones’ favorite target. It should also be noted that College Gameday could be coming back to Morgantown for this game.
@Iowa State: After a tough game at home, the Mountaineers go on the road one last time to take on the Cyclones. While this game may seem like a walk in the park after facing Oklahoma, Iowa State did take down Oklahoma State in double overtime last year. One player the Mountaineers have to stop is running back James White. White last year rushed for 743 yards and 8 touchdowns. West Virginia also has to apply pressure to quarterback Steele Jantz (yes that is his real name). Last year, Jantz threw only 10 touchdowns, but he also threw 11 interceptions. If the Mountaineers play smart they should come away with a few interceptions.
Kansas: West Virginia’s finally game of the season is at home against the Jayhawks. This is one team the Mountaineers to ease back on the throttle a little bit since there are no significant standouts. That’s not to say they shouldn’t completely slack off since any team can beat another team on any day. One player they will have to cover is wide receiver D.J. Beshears who last year had 23 receptions for 328 yards and 3 touchdowns. While this may not seem like much he was second on the depth chart to Tim Biere who is no longer with Kansas so look for Beshears to be the main target. Kansas is also bringing in three new quarterbacks; one is a freshman, another is a junior transfer and the last one is a senior transfer. The Mountaineers need to take advantage of their inexperience with a new system.
The Mountaineers definitely have their work cut out for them as they will be facing much more talented opponents than they would in the Big East. Another interesting fact about this schedule release is that there is an open spot on October 27th; could this mean that the Backyard Brawl might continue? Mountaineer fans will have to wait and see.
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