Bowl season is right around the corner and West Virginia’s postseason destination will be revealed on Sunday.
One thing to keep in mind is that there are eight bowl eligible Big 12 teams this year and seven bowl games that have a Big 12 tie-in. If Oklahoma defeats TCU in the Big 12 Championship, the Sooners will advance to the College Football Playoff, leaving the seven bowl eligible Big 12 teams to fill those seven tie-in slots.
However, if Oklahoma loses to TCU, it could make things interesting.
This means that there’s a strong possibility that with quarterback Will Grier not likely seeing the field for the bowl game, selectors from certain bowls could be hesitant to extend an invitation to the Mountaineers knowing that a West Virginia team without Grier may not draw as big of a crowd or audience as one with Grier on the field.
WVSports.com takes a look at the potential bowl destinations that may lie ahead for West Virginia.
1.) AutoZone Liberty Bowl-Dec. 30, 12:30 p.m. (ABC) Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tenn.
The Liberty Bowl along with the Camping World Bowl are the case scenarios for West Virginia when it comes to the level of competition, level of bowl prestige and national attention. This bowl also looks to be the favorite for West Virginia to land in. ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura, Sports Illustrated and Athlon Sports all project the Mountaineers to play in Memphis on Dec. 30. Athlon Sports and Sports Illustrated project West Virginia to face off against Missouri. Typically, the Liberty Bowl features a Big 12 and SEC tie-in, and a matchup between two teams that finished the regular season at, near or slightly above .500 in conference play, so a matchup between a West Virginia team that finished 5-4 in the Big 12 and a Missouri team that finished 4-4 in the SEC makes sense. For West Virginia, facing an SEC team in Missouri or even Kentucky in this game would present a favorable matchup when you consider these defense’s inability to stop the run. Both Missouri and Kentucky allow more than 150 rushing yards per game on average. There also lies the possibility of West Virginia facing Memphis from the AAC Conference in this game as projected by Bonagura. This could become a reality if Memphis were to lose to UCF in the AAC Championship Game Saturday. History doesn’t favor West Virginia in this bowl game as the Mountaineers are 0-2 all-time in the Liberty Bowl with their most recent loss coming in 2014 to Texas A&M.
2.) Camping World Bowl-Dec. 28, 5:15 p.m. (ESPN) Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.
There still lies a chance that West Virginia could end up playing in the Camping World Bowl for the second year in a row, but here’s where Grier not playing in the bowl game could come into play. This bowl game features Big 12 and ACC tie-ins and as of now, Virginia Tech and Notre Dame are the two most projected teams to face off against the Big 12 tie-in. West Virginia has been projected by many to play in this game against either Notre Dame and Virginia Tech, but with Grier most likely not playing, this could present an unfavorable game for West Virginia and matchup overall in the eyes of bowl representatives. Therefore, a Big 12 team like Iowa State or even Texas could hold an advantage over West Virginia when it comes to presenting an intriguing matchup. I’m not saying that West Virginia couldn’t hold its ground against either team without Grier, but bowl representatives want to produce a matchup that will draw a high television audience and attendance rate and without Grier, attendance and television rates may dip. If West Virginia is selected to play in this game though, this presents an opportunity for the Mountaineers to prove themselves, end the season on a high note and avenge their season-opening loss if the Hokies become their opponent.
3.) Cactus Bowl-Dec. 26, 10 p.m. (ESPN) Chase Field in Phoenix.
The Cactus Bowl is also a likely destination for West Virginia and similar to the Camping World Bowl, this is where Grier most likely not playing could play a role in West Virginia’s bowl destination. If the Mountaineers do not end up playing in neither the Liberty or Camping World Bowls, then the Cactus Bowl seems like the most likely destination if those two scenarios were to take place. This bowl is a Big 12 and Pac-12 tie-in, so the Mountaineers will likely see either Oregon (7-5, 4-5), Arizona State (7-5, 6-3) again or former West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez and Arizona (7-5, 5-4). The Mountaineers are just 3-11 all-time against the Pac-12 with two of those wins coming against Arizona State. West Virginia is also 1-1 in the Cactus Bowl (first appearance came in 1998’s 34-31 loss to Missouri when the game was known as the Insight Bowl).
4.) Texas Bowl-Dec. 27, 9 p.m. (ESPN) NRG Stadium in Houston.
This bowl game is another Big 12 and SEC tie-in and a potential destination for West Virginia considering the fact that this game, like the Liberty Bowl, usually features a Big 12 team that finished conference play around .500. Most project Texas to represent the Big 12 and it seems that the only possible way West Virginia would end up playing in this bowl is if the Longhorns wound up playing in the Camping World Bowl instead. Even then, it’d look like Texas Tech would play in this game if that scenario took place. The Mountaineers have never appeared in the Texas Bowl and the Big 12 is 3-5 all-time in this game.
5.) Zaxby’s Heart of Dallas Bowl-Dec. 26, 1:30 p.m. (ESPN) Cotton Bowl in Dallas.
ESPN’s David M. Hale projects West Virginia to play in the Zaxby’s Heart of Dallas Bowl against UT San Antonio. This bowl game seems like an unlikely destination for the Mountaineers and the worse case scenario if the team doesn’t get an invitation to either of the four bowl games listed above. This bowl game features Big 12, Big 10 and Conference USA tie-ins, but most project a Conference USA team like UT San Antonio, Marshall or North Texas to face off against the Big 12 school selected. West Virginia has never appeared in the Heart of Dallas Bowl since this game entered the bowl playing field in 2011, but the Big 12 is 2-0 all-time in this game.
