1973 West Virginia Mountaineers football team

1973 West Virginia Mountaineers football
Conference	Independent
Record	6–5
Head coach	Bobby Bowden (4th season)
Home stadium	Mountaineer Field
Seasons ←  1972 1974  →

1973 NCAA Division I independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Notre Dame			–					11	–	0	–	0
No. 5 Penn State			–					12	–	0	–	0
No. 9 Houston			–					11	–	1	–	0
Temple			–					9	–	1	–	0
No. 20 Tulane			–					9	–	3	–	0
Memphis State			–					8	–	3	–	0
Tampa			–					8	–	3	–	0
Boston College			–					7	–	4	–	0
South Carolina			–					7	–	4	–	0
Utah State			–					7	–	4	–	0
Air Force			–					6	–	4	–	0
Southern Miss			–					6	–	4	–	1
Northern Illinois			–					6	–	5	–	0
Rutgers			–					6	–	5	–	0
West Virginia			–					6	–	5	–	0
Pittsburgh			–					6	–	5	–	1
Colgate			–					5	–	5	–	0
Dayton			–					5	–	5	–	1
Xavier			–					5	–	5	–	1
Georgia Tech			–					5	–	6	–	0
Holy Cross			–					5	–	6	–	0
Miami (FL)			–					5	–	6	–	0
Cincinnati			–					4	–	7	–	0
Marshall			–					4	–	7	–	0
Navy			–					4	–	7	–	0
Southern Illinois			–					3	–	7	–	1
Villanova			–					3	–	8	–	0
Syracuse			–					2	–	9	–	0
Virginia Tech			–					2	–	9	–	0
Army			–					0	–	10	–	0
Florida State			–					0	–	11	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1973 West Virginia Mountaineers football team represented West Virginia University in the 1973 NCAA Division I football season. It was the Mountaineers' 81st overall season and they competed as an independent. The team was led by head coach Bobby Bowden, in his fourth year, and played their home games at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia. They finished the season with a record of 6–5.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 15		at Maryland		Byrd Stadium College Park, MD (rivalry)	W 20–13	35,112	[1]
September 22		Virginia Tech		Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV (rivalry)	W 24–10	33,000	[2]
September 29		at Illinois		Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	W 17–10	48,107	[3]
October 6		Indiana	No. 20	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	L 14–28	37,000	[4]
October 13		Pittsburgh		Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV (rivalry)	L 7–35	37,000	[5]
October 20		at Richmond		City Stadium Richmond, VA	L 17–38	21,172	[6]
October 27		at No. 5 Penn State		Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry)	L 14–62	59,138	[7]
November 2	8:03 p.m.	at Miami (FL)		Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL	W 20–14	24,890	[8]
November 10		Boston College		Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	L 13–25	22,500	[9]
November 17		Virginia		Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	W 42–17	26,000	[10]
November 24		at Syracuse		Archbold Stadium Syracuse, NY (rivalry)	W 24–14	12,917	[11]
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

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Game summaries

at Penn State

West Virginia Mountaineers at No. 5 Penn State Nittany Lions

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
West Virginia	0	14	0	0	14
Penn St	14	14	14	20	62

at Beaver Stadium, University Park, Pennsylvania

• Date: October 27, 1973
• Game weather: Sunny, 60 °F (16 °C)
• Game attendance: 59,138
• Referee: Raymond Bower
• Box Score

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
WVU	Passing	Ben Williams Jr.	6/22, 166 Yds, TD, 4 INT
	Rushing	Dwyane Woods	14 Rush, 26 Yds
	Receiving	Danny Buggs	1 Rec, 96 Yds, TD
PSU	Passing	Tom Shuman	6/18, 175 Yds, TD
	Rushing	John Cappelletti	24 Rush, 130 Yds, 4 TD
	Receiving	Chuck Herd	1 Rec, 76 Yds, TD

External videos
1973 Penn State vs. West Virginia (Game footage – no audio)

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP WVU PSU 1 PSU– John Cappelletti 10-yard touchdown run, Chris Bahr kick good 0 7 1 PSU John Cappelletti 2-yard touchdown run, Chris Bahr kick good 0 14 2 PSU Chuck Herd 76-yard touchdown reception from Tom Shuman, Chris Bahr kick good 0 21 2 WVU Danny Buggs 96-yard touchdown reception from Ben Williams Jr., Frank Nester kick good 7 21 2 PSU John Cappelletti 5-yard touchdown run, Chris Bahr kick good 7 28 2 WVU Kickoff returned 95 yards for touchdown by Artie Owens, Frank Nester kick good 14 28 3 PSU Bob Nagle 53-yard touchdown run, Chris Bahr kick good 14 35 3 PSU John Cappelletti 2-yard touchdown run, Chris Bahr kick good 14 42 4 PSU Rusty Boyle 4-yard touchdown run, Chris Bahr kick good 14 49 4 PSU Mike Pirogowicz 5-yard touchdown run, kick no good 14 55 4 PSU Interception returned 25 yards for touchdown by Greg Buttle, John Reihner kick good 14 62 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 14 62

Roster

1973 West Virginia Mountaineers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class   Danny Buggs	Defense Pos. # Name Class	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Bobby Bowden Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "Danny Buggs scores late for West Virginia, 20–13". The Greenville News. September 16, 1973. Retrieved January 25, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
2. "W. Virginia beats Virginia Tech". Sunday News. September 23, 1973. Retrieved December 14, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
3. "West Virginia deals Illini first loss, 17–10". Lansing State Journal. September 30, 1973. Retrieved January 25, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Hoosiers rock and roll by 14". Chicago Tribune. October 7, 1973. Retrieved January 25, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Pitt crushes W. Virginia, 35–7". The Philadelphia Inquirer. October 14, 1973. Retrieved January 25, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Richmond defense wins over West Va., 38–17". The Gastonia Gazette. October 21, 1973. Retrieved October 28, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Penn St. blitzes West Va". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. October 28, 1973. Retrieved January 25, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Mountaineers upset Miami". The Roanoke Times. November 3, 1973. Retrieved January 25, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
9. "BC runs over W. Virginia, 25–13". The Boston Globe. November 11, 1973. Retrieved January 25, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
10. "W. Virginia wallops Virginia". The Pittsburgh Press. November 18, 1973. Retrieved January 25, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
11. "West Virginia Mountaineers defeat Syracuse Orangemen". The Beckley Post-Herald & Register. November 25, 1973. Retrieved January 25, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
12. "Schedule/Results (1973 West Virginia)". NCAA Statistics. National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved September 23, 2025.