WVU still has a lot of work to do in the road game against Texas Tech

MORGANTOWN — The pressure of bowl eligibility is off for the West Virginia University football team. The Mountaineers made sure of that last week when they defeated UCF in their home finale.

So WVU enters today’s regular season finale – a lunchtime match against Texas Tech in Lubbock, Texas (FS1) – with a little less stress, but still plenty of scope.

“We go into every single week just wanting to win,” senior offensive tackle Wyatt Milum said. “That one-play mentality, that one-game mentality. Every game we just want to go in and win the game.”

If WVU (6-5, 5-3 Big 12) can defeat the Red Raiders (7-4, 5-3 Big 12), it would be for the second straight year and only the second time in coach Neal Brown’s tenure West Virginia, the Mountaineers have earned at least seven wins, supporting last season’s 9-4 record. It also marks the first time since WVU joined the Big 12 that it has finished 6-3 in back-to-back conference campaigns.

But accomplishing all of that won’t be an easy task considering what lies ahead for the Mountaineers in Lubbock. Texas Tech has one of the most productive offenses in college football. The Red Raiders rank in the top 20 in the country in scoring (37.4 points per game), total yards (450.3 per game) and passing yards (292.8 per game). Also featured is Tahj Brooks, the school’s all-time leading rusher, who ranks sixth nationally with 131.7 yards per game.

Additionally, Texas Tech has played more games this season than all but two other teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision, and that up-tempo style could cause problems for the WVU defense, which has struggled all season. The Mountaineers, facing an offense that can throw, have struggled to pressure quarterbacks, averaging less than two sacks per game and intercepting just four passes all season. They rank 122nd in the FBS in passing yards allowed (260.7 per game) and are among the worst at allowing third- and fourth-down conversions.

That last stat could be concerning given a Texas Tech offense that converts nearly 48% of its third downs, which is 13th best in the country.

“I think part of it is just the sheer amount of attempts they have because they run so many plays,” defensive coordinator Jeff Koonz said. “They create more possession per game. … Now the question arises: How often can we reset between two trips? How many times can we play a new game on every single possession? They can do that, so they will have more opportunities for third place.”

But WVU will have an opportunity today it has rarely enjoyed this season – to play against a defense worse than theirs.

Texas Tech has the second-worst pass defense in the country, allowing 309 yards per game. That should help a WVU passing game that doesn’t typically produce big numbers, averaging 194.6 yards per game. An effective passing game will be necessary for the Mountaineers as the game becomes a track and field meet. But the Red Raiders have succeeded in one thing: intercepting quarterbacks. They have recorded 12 interceptions this season, and while WVU quarterback Garrett Greene led the offense with his athleticism, he threw nine interceptions.

Greene said that with what WVU faces today, the offense can’t miss any scoring opportunities, which also means the offense has to keep the ball in their hands.

“As an offense, we expect to score every time we touch the ball,” he said. “It doesn’t matter who we play, who plays against us. We want to score every time we touch the ball so the mentality doesn’t change. If we score every time we touch the ball, there’s a good chance we’ll get a pretty emphatic win.”

A win would give WVU a significant boost heading into bowl season. The Mountaineers have been stuck at the five-to-six win plateau for most of Brown’s tenure, and the team would like to get above that. That won’t be an easy place to accomplish at Jones AT&T Stadium due to the swirling winds and historically loud crowd.

“It’s a tough place to play,” Brown said. “It’s a long journey, but our boys are excited to get it done.”

— Story by Derek Redd