Game Preview: West Virginia football at UCF

West Virginia has now lost back-to-back contests and will hit the road looking to right the ship in the first Big 12 Conference meeting with UCF (3-4). WVSports.com offers a look at some key elements of the match up to get you ready for kick off.

In this game preview, we dive into numbers and notes, a depth chart, our video preview of the game as well as where to can watch the contest.

Series: WVU 2-0

Last meeting: 2004 WVU 45 UCF 20

Television: 12 p.m. ET = FS1 - Eric Collins (PBP), Devin Gardner (analyst)

COACHES:

Neal Brown:

WEST VIRGINIA RECORD: 26-28, 5th Year

OVERALL RECORD: 61-44, 9th Year

VS. UCF: 0-0

Gus Malzahn:

UCF RECORD: 21-13, 3rd Year

OVERALL RECORD: 98-51, 12th Year

VS. WEST VIRGINIA: 0-0

NOTES:

--West Virginia head coach Neal Brown is in his fifth season atop the Mountaineers football program and has gone 26-28 in Morgantown during that time. Overall, Brown is 61-44 as a head coach in his ninth season in that role.

--The Mountaineers are the 15th winningest program of all time.

--WVU is 6-6-1 in games played on Oct. 28, including 3-0 on the road. The last time WVU played on that date was in 2017 against Oklahoma State (L/50-39).

--The Mountaineers are 97-15 since 2002 when winning the turnover battle.

--West Virginia is ranked No. 25 nationally in third-down defense, allowing opponents to convert on 32.6% of their attempts (31/95). WVU’s opponents are converting 35.3% (6/17) in the first quarter, 34.4% (11/32) in the second stanza, 39.1% (9/23) in third quarter and 21.7% (5/23) in the final quarter.

--This is the 318th nationally televised game for West Virginia. All-time, the Mountaineers are 165-151-1 in nationally televised games.

--West Virginia has three blocked kicks for the season, ranking No. 3 nationally

--On first down, the Mountaineers have run 213 plays and have gained 1,170 yards for a 5.5 average. On second down, the Mountaineers have run 161 plays for 951 yards and a 5.9 average. On third down, the Mountaineers have run 99 plays for 562 yards and a 5.7 average gain. West Virginia has run 21 plays on fourth down for 75 yards and a 3.6 average. WVU’s touchdowns have come 14 times on first down (9 rush/5 pass), five times on second down (2 rush/3 pass), five times on third down (4 rush/1 pass) and two times on fourth down (1 rush/1 pass).

--Breaking down the West Virginia offensive numbers for the 2023 season shows that the Mountaineers have run 494 plays, 313 on the ground and 181 through the air.

--The rushing game has totaled 1,340 yards, an average of 4.3 yards per carry and 16 touchdowns. The passing attack has totaled 1,418 yards, 10 touchdowns and an average of 14.6 yards per completion. Combine the two and the Mountaineers have turned in 2,758 yards of total offense, 26 touchdowns, an average of 5.6 yards per play and an average of 29.3 points per game

--Deeper analysis shows that the Mountaineer offense has gained 77 first downs by the run and 56 via the pass. On average, West Virginia has totaled 191.4 yards per game on the ground, 202.6 yards per game passing and 394.0 yards per game of total offense.

--Over the last nine years, West Virginia has produced 157 takeaways, tied for No. 37 among Power 5 schools.

--West Virginia is 77-60 all-time against current members of the Big 12 Conference. WVU is 7-4 vs. Baylor; 1-0 against BYU; 16-3-1 vs. Cincinnati; 0-1 against Houston; 6-5 against Iowa State; 10-2 vs. Kansas; 6-7 against Kansas State; 3-11 vs. Oklahoma; 5-10 against Oklahoma State; 8-5 vs. TCU; 6-6 against Texas; 7-6 vs. Texas Tech and 2-0 against UCF.

--Dating back to the 2002 Continental Tire Bowl, played in Charlotte, North Carolina, West Virginia has made 18 bowl appearances in the last 21 years, missing only the 2013, 2019 and 2022 seasons. The Mountaineers are one of 16 Power 5 schools to accomplish that feat: Georgia (21), Oklahoma (21), Wisconsin (21), Clemson (20), Florida (20), LSU (20), Ohio State (20), Oklahoma State (20), Virginia Tech (19), Alabama (19), Auburn (19), Florida State (18), Iowa (18), Oregon (18), Texas (18) and West Virginia (18).

--In 2023, the Mountaineers have 44 players with at least one game of starting experience.

--Fifteen true freshmen have played for the Mountaineers in 2023: DJ Cotton (DL), Ben Cutter (LB), Oreyend Fisher (DL), Rodney Gallagher III (WR), James Heard Jr. (BAN), Jordan Jackson (CB), Josiah Jackson (CB), Nick Krahe (OL), Corey McIntyre Jr. (DL), DJ Oliver (RB), Aden Tagaloa-Nelson (S), Traylon Ray (WR), Jahiem White (RB), Johnny Williams IV (OL) and Cooper Young (OL).

--Coaching assignments: AHC-OL Matt Moore (Field), OC-RB Chad Scott (Field), DC-OLB Jordan Lesley (Field), Co-DC-DBs ShaDon Brown (Press Box), ST Coordinator-ILB Jeff Koonz (Press Box), PGC-QB Sean Reagan (Press Box), DL Andrew Jackson (Field), WR Bilal Marshall (Field), TE Blaine Stewart (Field) and S Dontae Wright (Field).

--The 2023 roster currently consists of 117 players from 25 different states and four foreign countries: Australia (1), Finland (1), Sweden (1) and The Netherlands (1). Leading the way is West Virginia (20), Florida (13), Pennsylvania (13), Ohio (12), Georgia (8), Kentucky (6), Maryland (6), North Carolina (5), South Carolina (4), New Jersey (3), New York (3), Virginia (3), Alabama (2), Delaware (2), Michigan (2), Texas (2), Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri and Washington.

DEPTH CHART:

No depth chart has been released for this contest but this was the depth chart from the flip card prior to the start of the Houston game.

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