Predicted record: 6-6
9/4 at Maryland - 57.8%
Maryland seems to be trending in the right direction with Mike Locksley at the helm but they are still a step or two behind where Neal Brown and the Mountaineers are. That said, it is a rivalry game and the first game of the season. It should be a rather close contest with the Mountaineers coming out on top.
9/11 vs Long Island - 99.7%
It's going to be quite a challenge for Long Island to keep this one from getting ugly. You can't necessarily put this game at 100% because anything can happen in college football but this is about as close as it gets to a guaranteed win.
9/18 vs Virginia Tech - 52.1%
The Hokies finished 5-6 a year ago and really struggled to get off the field defensively. They allowed an average of 32.1 points per game which ranked them 10th among 15 ACC teams. The Mountaineers return a rather experienced defense and an offense that should be much improved. I think if the Mountaineers play their best ball, they could win this game by two or more scores.
9/25 at Oklahoma - 6.9%
West Virginia and Oklahoma did not meet last year after their matchup was postponed once and then the rescheduled game got canceled due to COVID-19 complications. It would have been an intriguing matchup to see the nation's No. 1 passing defense go up against Spencer Rattler and the Oklahoma offense. Oklahoma is the only school WVU has not defeated since joining the Big 12 Conference in 2012. Unless everything just happens to goes WVU's way, I expect Oklahoma's perfect Big 12 record against the Mountaineers to continue.
10/2 vs Texas Tech - 62.5%
If we're being honest, WVU handed Texas Tech a win a year ago. The Mountaineers came out flat on both sides of the ball and didn't settle in until the 2nd half. The only problem? It was too little, too late. Neal Brown is 0-2 against Texas Tech - a school WVU has had a lot of success against. They won't forget about that loss from last season and with it being homecoming, West Virginia should have a big advantage with an electric crowd at Mountaineer Field.
10/9 at Baylor - 41.5%
Veteran quarterback Charlie Brewer transferred to Utah in the offseason leaving the Bears with an inexperienced quarterback room. Gerry Bohanon and Jacob Zeno will battle for the starting job but I don't see either one of them having much success against West Virginia's stout defense. Even with this game being on the road, I would have the Mountaineers as favorites.
10/23 at TCU - 29.4%
There's not a lot of folks who are high on the Horned Frogs this upcoming season but you can't keep Gary Patterson down for long. TCU hasn't won more than seven games in each of the last three seasons, meaning they are due to make a big jump. Dual-threat QB Max Duggan is now entering his third year as the starting quarterback and it's time for him to become one of the best signal-callers in the league. I would give West Virginia more than a 29% chance but I agree with TCU being the favorite here.
10/30 vs Iowa State - 32.6%
The Cyclones are the real deal. They are no longer a dark horse to win the league. The expectation is for them to get to the Big 12 championship as they return a veteran quarterback (Brock Purdy) and one of the best running backs in the country, Breece Hall. Iowa State throttled WVU in the regular-season finale, 42-6 last fall. I don't see it being that ugly of an outcome for the 2nd consecutive year but Iowa State is in a much better spot than the Mountaineers are. The percentage on this one is pretty much spot on.
11/6 vs Oklahoma State - 48%
The Cowboys have been a thorn in West Virginia's side over the last handful of years. If QB Spencer Sanders is healthy, Oklahoma State could be in a position to clinch a spot in the Big 12 Championship. WVU played them tight for the majority of the game a year ago before things got out of reach late in the 4th quarter. West Virginia's offense struggled to cap off drives with touchdowns and was held to just 13 points. Given the timing of this game, the Mountaineers should be clicking on all cylinders offensively which makes this one a bit of a toss-up.
11/13 at Kansas State - 60.2%
Even with a healthy Skylar Thompson, I don't see how Kansas State will be able to match scores with West Virginia. They don't have much in terms of explosiveness and the Mountaineers are really good at limiting big plays from happening. It might be a notch or two higher than I expected but the FPI is not off by much.
11/20 vs Texas - 31.4%
Texas is back! Well, are they? Who knows. Same story, different year for the burnt orange as they ride into the season with extremely high expectations despite not having proved anything to earn that type of respect other than the rich history of the program. Life after Sam Ehlinger could make for some tough times offensively for the Longhorns. Home game in Morgantown, a solid WVU defense, and a first-year head coach does not seem to bode well for Texas. Very surprised Texas is viewed as the favorite in this one.
11/27 at Kansas - 87.4%
The Les Miles experiment failed just as we all anticipated. Now, it's up to Lance Leipold to turn the Kansas program around. There have been some bad Kansas teams over the years but this might just be the worst one yet. If the over/under on their win total is 1.5, I'd hammer the under. Anyways, how on earth is this not north of 90% in favor of West Virginia?
9/4 at Maryland - 57.8%
Maryland seems to be trending in the right direction with Mike Locksley at the helm but they are still a step or two behind where Neal Brown and the Mountaineers are. That said, it is a rivalry game and the first game of the season. It should be a rather close contest with the Mountaineers coming out on top.
9/11 vs Long Island - 99.7%
It's going to be quite a challenge for Long Island to keep this one from getting ugly. You can't necessarily put this game at 100% because anything can happen in college football but this is about as close as it gets to a guaranteed win.
9/18 vs Virginia Tech - 52.1%
The Hokies finished 5-6 a year ago and really struggled to get off the field defensively. They allowed an average of 32.1 points per game which ranked them 10th among 15 ACC teams. The Mountaineers return a rather experienced defense and an offense that should be much improved. I think if the Mountaineers play their best ball, they could win this game by two or more scores.
9/25 at Oklahoma - 6.9%
West Virginia and Oklahoma did not meet last year after their matchup was postponed once and then the rescheduled game got canceled due to COVID-19 complications. It would have been an intriguing matchup to see the nation's No. 1 passing defense go up against Spencer Rattler and the Oklahoma offense. Oklahoma is the only school WVU has not defeated since joining the Big 12 Conference in 2012. Unless everything just happens to goes WVU's way, I expect Oklahoma's perfect Big 12 record against the Mountaineers to continue.
10/2 vs Texas Tech - 62.5%
If we're being honest, WVU handed Texas Tech a win a year ago. The Mountaineers came out flat on both sides of the ball and didn't settle in until the 2nd half. The only problem? It was too little, too late. Neal Brown is 0-2 against Texas Tech - a school WVU has had a lot of success against. They won't forget about that loss from last season and with it being homecoming, West Virginia should have a big advantage with an electric crowd at Mountaineer Field.
10/9 at Baylor - 41.5%
Veteran quarterback Charlie Brewer transferred to Utah in the offseason leaving the Bears with an inexperienced quarterback room. Gerry Bohanon and Jacob Zeno will battle for the starting job but I don't see either one of them having much success against West Virginia's stout defense. Even with this game being on the road, I would have the Mountaineers as favorites.
10/23 at TCU - 29.4%
There's not a lot of folks who are high on the Horned Frogs this upcoming season but you can't keep Gary Patterson down for long. TCU hasn't won more than seven games in each of the last three seasons, meaning they are due to make a big jump. Dual-threat QB Max Duggan is now entering his third year as the starting quarterback and it's time for him to become one of the best signal-callers in the league. I would give West Virginia more than a 29% chance but I agree with TCU being the favorite here.
10/30 vs Iowa State - 32.6%
The Cyclones are the real deal. They are no longer a dark horse to win the league. The expectation is for them to get to the Big 12 championship as they return a veteran quarterback (Brock Purdy) and one of the best running backs in the country, Breece Hall. Iowa State throttled WVU in the regular-season finale, 42-6 last fall. I don't see it being that ugly of an outcome for the 2nd consecutive year but Iowa State is in a much better spot than the Mountaineers are. The percentage on this one is pretty much spot on.
11/6 vs Oklahoma State - 48%
The Cowboys have been a thorn in West Virginia's side over the last handful of years. If QB Spencer Sanders is healthy, Oklahoma State could be in a position to clinch a spot in the Big 12 Championship. WVU played them tight for the majority of the game a year ago before things got out of reach late in the 4th quarter. West Virginia's offense struggled to cap off drives with touchdowns and was held to just 13 points. Given the timing of this game, the Mountaineers should be clicking on all cylinders offensively which makes this one a bit of a toss-up.
11/13 at Kansas State - 60.2%
Even with a healthy Skylar Thompson, I don't see how Kansas State will be able to match scores with West Virginia. They don't have much in terms of explosiveness and the Mountaineers are really good at limiting big plays from happening. It might be a notch or two higher than I expected but the FPI is not off by much.
11/20 vs Texas - 31.4%
Texas is back! Well, are they? Who knows. Same story, different year for the burnt orange as they ride into the season with extremely high expectations despite not having proved anything to earn that type of respect other than the rich history of the program. Life after Sam Ehlinger could make for some tough times offensively for the Longhorns. Home game in Morgantown, a solid WVU defense, and a first-year head coach does not seem to bode well for Texas. Very surprised Texas is viewed as the favorite in this one.
11/27 at Kansas - 87.4%
The Les Miles experiment failed just as we all anticipated. Now, it's up to Lance Leipold to turn the Kansas program around. There have been some bad Kansas teams over the years but this might just be the worst one yet. If the over/under on their win total is 1.5, I'd hammer the under. Anyways, how on earth is this not north of 90% in favor of West Virginia?
