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West Virginia football season preview 2020: Record predictions, depth chart analysis, breakout players

By Nick Villano

MANHATTAN, KS - NOVEMBER 16: Quarterback Jarret Doege #2 of the West Virginia Mountaineers throws a pass down field against the Kansas State Wildcats during the second half at Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium on November 16, 2019 in Manhattan, Kansas. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images)
MANHATTAN, KS - NOVEMBER 16: Quarterback Jarret Doege #2 of the West Virginia Mountaineers throws a pass down field against the Kansas State Wildcats during the second half at Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium on November 16, 2019 in Manhattan, Kansas. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images) /
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Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /

West Virginia football schedule game-by-game predictions

The Mountaineers have almost exclusively Big 12 opponents on their schedule. It’s an interesting year in the Big 12 but not a good one to be in transition. Texas brings back a lot of last year’s roster, Baylor lost Matt Rhule as head coach but a lot of its stars came back including the quarterback. Oklahoma State has Chuba Hubbard looking to dominate on the ground again. Brock Purdy is back to lead Iowa State again. This hasn’t even mentioned Oklahoma yet.

It all starts with Eastern Kentucky. Don’t spend a lot of time on this matchup as the Mountaineers will probably use this as an extended camp with a bye week coming right after it. Hopefully, they don’t ignore it to the point they make it a game. Then, things immediately go up 10 notches. Oklahoma State on the road is their second matchup, and with Chuba Hubbard playing so early in the season, this feels like a major loss.

With the first loss already on the books, the Mountaineers welcome Baylor, who still has Charlie Brewer under center. However, with Dave Aranda trying to put a new system in place, the Mountaineers could have a chance here. It still feels like two-straight losses for the Mountaineers, as Baylor keeps its hopes of another big season alive. The Mountaineers have three winnable games in a row, taking on Kansas, Texas Tech, and Kansas State in consecutive weeks. This would be a major bounce back if Brown can lead this team to a streak.

The game that is going to define the Mountaineers’ season is November 7th against Texas. The Mountaineers are 4-4 against Texas since joining the Big 12. If Texas lost to WVU, it would ruin their season, while making it for the Mountaineers. This will be a valiant effort, but West Virginia comes up short.

Now at 4-3, a win against TCU gives them necessary momentum going into the matchup against Oklahoma. Unlike Texas, WVU has zero success against the Sooners, going 0-8 since joining the Big 12. This just isn’t the year where this ends. WVU doesn’t have the firepower to keep up with Oklahoma like they had in years past.

The Mountaineers are now 5-4, with a possible bowl game on the line (not sure how that’s working this season), and only Iowa State in their way. This team feels like it will grow as the season progresses, and once they pick a quarterback and stick with them, things will go so much better. This will end Brock Purdy’s Cyclones career with a loss.

Final Record: 6-4

The Mountaineers put together a much better season thanks to a much better running game, a passing attack led by a deep group of receivers, and some impressive coaching. Brown won 10 games in his second season with Troy. A similar improvement in a much better situation. This could go off the rails if the offense doesn’t click. This is close to the WVU best-case scenario, but it feels like this could be that type of season. Although, it wouldn’t be terribly surprising if that record was flipped.