2010 West Virginia Mountaineers football team

Last updated

2010 West Virginia Mountaineers football
West Virginia Mountaineers logo.svg
Big East co-champion
Conference Big East Conference
Record9–4 (5–2 Big East)
Head coach
Offensive coordinator Jeff Mullen (3rd season)
Offensive scheme Spread
Defensive coordinator Jeff Casteel (9th season)
Base defense 3–3–5
MVPJock Sanders (offense)
MVPChris Neild & Brandon Hogan (defense)
Captains
Home stadium Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium
Seasons
←  2009
2011  →
2010 Big East Conference football standings
ConfOverall
Team W L  W L 
Connecticut $+  5 –2   8 –5  
West Virginia +  5 –2   9 –4  
Pittsburgh +  5 –2   8 –5  
Syracuse  4 –3   8 –5  
South Florida  3 –4   8 –5  
Louisville  3 –4   7 –6  
Cincinnati  2 –5   4 –8  
Rutgers  1 –6   4 –8  
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • + – Conference co-champions
As of January 11, 2011
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2010 West Virginia Mountaineer football team represented West Virginia University in the college football season of 2010. The Mountaineers were led by head coach Bill Stewart and played their home games on Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown, West Virginia. They were members of the Big East Conference. They finished the season 9–4, 5–2 in Big East play to share the conference title with Connecticut and Pittsburgh (UConn earned the conference's BCS berth via a tiebreaker). They were invited to the Champ Sports Bowl where they were defeated by North Carolina State 7–23.

Contents

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
September 43:30 p.m. Coastal Carolina *No. 25
 ESPN+ W 31–057,867 [1]
September 107:00 p.m.at Marshall *No. 23
 ESPN W 24–21 OT41,382 [2]
September 18Noon Maryland *No. 21
  • Mountaineer Field
  • Morgantown, WV
 ESPNU W 31–1760,122 [3]
September 259:15 p.m.at No. 15 LSU *No. 22
 ESPN2 L 14–2092,575 [4]
October 93:30 p.m. UNLV *
  • Mountaineer Field
  • Morgantown, WV
ESPN+W 49–1058,234 [5]
October 147:30 p.m. South Florida No. 25
ESPNW 20–654,955 [6]
October 23Noon Syracuse Dagger-14-plain.pngNo. 20
  • Mountaineer Field
  • Morgantown, WV
ESPN2L 14–1958,122
October 298:00 p.m.at Connecticut
ESPN2L 13–16 OT40,000 [7]
November 13Noon Cincinnati
  • Mountaineer Field
  • Morgantown, WV
ESPN+W 37–1056,593 [8]
November 20Noonat Louisville
ESPN+W 17–1051,772 [9]
November 26Noonat Pittsburgh
ABC W 35–1060,562 [10]
December 4Noon Rutgers No. 23
  • Mountaineer Field
  • Morgantown, WV
ABCW 35–1448,386 [11]
December 286:30 p.m. NC State *No. 22
ESPNL 7–2348,962 [12]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Dagger-14-plain.pngHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend:██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre1234567891011121314Final
AP 25232122RVRV2520RV———RV2322RV
Coaches 24222121RVRV2519RV———RV2422RV
Harris Not released2519RV———RV2321Not released
BCS Not released20—————2422Not released

Game summaries

Coastal Carolina

1234Total
Chanticleers00000
No. 25 Mountaineers7314731

Marshall

1234OTTotal
No. 23 Mountaineers30315324
Thundering Herd7707021

Facing a 21–6 fourth-quarter deficit, West Virginia outscored Marshall 15–0 on drives of 96 and 98 yards in the final 8:28 of the game. In overtime WVU took the lead with a field goal and won 24–21 when Marshall's kicker Tyler Warner missed a 39-yard field goal attempt. The comeback win was significant because the loss would have marked Marshall's first-ever win in the series.

Maryland

1234Total
Terrapins0014317
No. 21 Mountaineers1477331

LSU

1234Total
No. 22 Mountaineers077014
No. 15 Tigers7100320

UNLV

1234Total
Rebels003710
Mountaineers21147749

South Florida

1234Total
Bulls03306
No. 25 Mountaineers1073020

Syracuse

1234Total
Orange1090019
No. 20 Mountaineers1400014

WVU lost their homecoming game to Syracuse after winning eight straight in the series. The loss, which saw Geno Smith throw three interceptions (after throwing only two all season), broke the Mountaineers' 12-game home winning streak and dropped the team out of the BCS standings. Coming into the game, West Virginia was the only ranked team in the Big East.

Connecticut

1234OTTotal
Mountaineers10030013
Huskies0373316

West Virginia lost to Connecticut for the first time in history after WVU's Ryan Clarke fumbled at the UConn one yard line and Connecticut's Dave Teggart kicked the game-winning, 27-yard field goal in overtime. After the loss, the WVU coaching staff received criticism from fans and the media over the team's offensive struggles in two consecutive Big East conference games against Syracuse and the Huskies. [13]

Cincinnati

1234Total
Bearcats037010
Mountaineers14167037

After losing two consecutive conference games, the Mountaineers needed to win against the Bearcats to stay in the Big East race. The Mountaineers snapped a two-game losing skid against Cincinnati by getting off to a quick start behind Geno Smith's four first-half touchdown passes.

Louisville

1234Total
Mountaineers773017
Cardinals370010

The Mountaineers stayed in contention for the Big East title by winning 17–10 on the road in a contest highlighted by defensive performances. The West Virginia defense, at the time ranked 4th in the country and first in the Big East Conference, held the Big East's best rushing team (averaging 192 yards per game) to a total of 26 yards on the ground. [14] The defense allowed only 3 offensive points—the other 7 coming off a Louisville fumble recovery in the end zone—and held the Cardinals to 2 of 13 on 3rd-down conversions. However, the WVU offense failed to score a second-half touchdown for the fourth time in its five conference games. The Mountaineers also remained scoreless in the fourth quarter in Big East play.

Pittsburgh

1234Total
Mountaineers7714735
Panthers703010

In the 103rd edition of the Backyard Brawl, the Mountaineers remained in contention for the Big East's BCS Bowl bid by winning 35–10 at Heinz Field. Pittsburgh controlled its own destiny, and needed to win its last two games to claim the Big East title and BCS bowl berth outright, but the West Virginia defense forced 4 turnovers off of 6 Panther fumbles and an interception to defeat Pitt for the second year in a row. [15] The West Virginia offense, plagued by poor performances in the second half of its previous Big East games, showed improvement by totaling 21 points in the second half and breaking its scoreless streak in the fourth quarter of conference games. The momentum heavily favored the Mountaineers after Geno Smith threw a 71-yard touchdown pass to Tavon Austin to make the score 21–7 in the third quarter. Following the win, the Mountaineers appeared in the top 25 rankings, listed 24 in the BCS and 23 in the AP, for the first time since their home loss to Syracuse over a month earlier.

Rutgers

1234Total
Scarlet Knights070714
No. 24 Mountaineers7771435

Geno Smith threw for a career-high 352 yards, Ryan Clarke had three short touchdown runs, and No. 23 West Virginia overcame turnover problems to beat the Scarlet Knights 35–14 to clinch a share of the Big East title. It marked the fifth shared or outright Big East title for the Mountaineers since 2003. Smith finished the season with 2,567 passing yards and 22 TDs. Both are the second most in school history behind Marc Bulger's 3,607 yards and 31 TDs in 1998. WVU extended its winning streak over Rutgers to 15, and have never lost to the Scarlet Knights in Morgantown. After defeating Rutgers in the regular season finale, WVU needed a UCONN loss to obtain berth in a BCS bowl. The Huskies defeated South Florida later that evening, and despite winning a share of the Big East title, the Mountaineers lost the head-to-head tiebreaker with Connecticut, who received the conference's BCS bowl bid.

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The West Virginia Mountaineers football statistical leaders are individual statistical leaders of the West Virginia Mountaineers football program in various categories, including passing, rushing, receiving, total offense, all-purpose yardage, defensive stats, and kicking. Within those areas, the lists identify single-game, single-season, and career leaders. The Mountaineers represent West Virginia University in the NCAA's Big 12 Conference.

References

  1. ↑ "Coastal Carolina Chanticleers vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Box Score". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on September 7, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
  2. ↑ "West Virginia Mountaineers vs. Marshall Thundering Herd Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 10, 2010.
  3. ↑ "Maryland Terrapins vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Box Score". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on September 21, 2010. Retrieved September 19, 2010.
  4. ↑ "West Virginia Mountaineers vs. LSU Tigers Box Score". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on September 27, 2010. Retrieved October 10, 2010.
  5. ↑ "UNLV Rebels vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Box Score". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on October 12, 2010. Retrieved October 10, 2010.
  6. ↑ "South Florida Bulls vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Box Score". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on October 22, 2010. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
  7. ↑ "West Virginia at Connecticut Box Score". ESPN. Archived from the original on October 5, 2010. Retrieved October 4, 2010.
  8. ↑ "Cincinnati at West Virginia Box Score". ESPN. Archived from the original on November 17, 2010. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
  9. ↑ "West Virginia at Louisville Box Score". ESPN. Archived from the original on November 26, 2010. Retrieved November 21, 2010.
  10. ↑ "West Virginia at Pittsburgh Box Score". ESPN. Archived from the original on December 1, 2010. Retrieved November 27, 2010.
  11. ↑ "WVU-Rutgers Gameday Blog". WV Metronews. Archived from the original on December 22, 2010. Retrieved December 6, 2010.
  12. ↑ "West Virginia Mountaineers vs NC State Wolfpack". ESPN. Retrieved December 28, 2010.
  13. ↑ Hickman, Dave (November 11, 2010). "Mullen Stands Up to Critics". The Charleston Gazette . Archived from the original on April 6, 2012. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
  14. ↑ "West Virginia stops Louisville, sets up showdown with Big East leader Pitt". ESPN. Archived from the original on November 26, 2010. Retrieved November 21, 2010.
  15. ↑ "West Virginia knocks Pitt out of Big East lead". ESPN. Archived from the original on December 1, 2010. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
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