Game Preview: West Virginia football vs. Albany

West Virginia will look to bounce back after a season-opening loss when Albany comes to town for a 6 p.m. kickoff. WVSports.com offers a look at some key elements of the matchup to get you ready for kick-off.

In our game preview, we explore key stats and insights, provide a depth chart, share our video breakdown, and offer details on where to watch the game.

Series: First meeting

Last meeting: First meeting

Television: 6 p.m. ESPN+, Richard Cross (PBP), Barrett Brooks (analyst)

COACHES:

Greg Gattuso

ALBANY RECORD: 51-61, 11th Year

OVERALL RECORD: 148-93, 23rd Year

VS. WEST VIRGINIA: 0-0

Neal Brown:

WEST VIRGINIA RECORD: 31-30, 6th Year

OVERALL RECORD: 66-46, 10th Year

VS. ALBANY: 0-0

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NOTES:

--West Virginia head coach Neal Brown is in his sixth season atop the Mountaineers football program and has gone 31-30 in Morgantown during that time. Overall, Brown is 66-46 as a head coach in his tenth season in that role.

--West Virginia is 21-0 all-time against teams that play at the FCS level.

--WVU is 3-3 in games played on Sept. 7, including 3-0 at home. The last time WVU played on that date was in 2019 at Missouri (L 38-7) and the last time at home was against Western Michigan in 1996 (W 34-9).

--West Virginia is 34-45 against schools from the state of New York. The Long Island game in 2021 (W 66-0) marked the last school from New York, WVU has played.

--WVU is 38-17 in nonconference games since 2010, including 26-2 at home. The Mountaineers are 73- 32 since 2000, including 50-8 at home.

--Since 2002, the Mountaineers are 100-15 when winning the turnover battle.

--The Mountaineers are 84-74-3 all-time in games played at night, including 34-16-2 at home.

--Three true freshmen have seen action for the Mountaineers in 2024: Ric'Darious Farmer (WR), Zae Jennings (SPEAR), Jack Sammarco (TE).

--The 2024 roster consists of 125 players from 24 different states and three foreign countries: Australia (1), Finland (1) and Liberia (1). Leading the way are West Virginia (28), Ohio (17), Pennsylvania (14), Florida (13), Georgia (8), Maryland (7), Virginia (5), South Carolina (4), Kentucky (3), New Jersey (3), New York (3), Alabama (2), Delaware (2), Illinois (2), Oklahoma (2), Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Washington.

--Coaching assignments: AHC-OL Matt Moore (Field), OC-RB Chad Scott (Field), DC-OLB Jordan Lesley (Field), Co-DC-Secondary ShaDon Brown (Press Box), ST Coordinator-ILB Jeff Koonz (Press Box), QB Tyler Allen (Press Box), DL Andrew Jackson (Field), WR Bilal Marshall (Field), TE Blaine Stewart (Field) and OLB Victor Cabral (Field).

--Dating back to the 2002 Continental Tire Bowl in Charlotte, North Carolina, West Virginia has made 19 bowl appearances in the last 22 years, missing only the 2013, 2019, and 2022 seasons.

--Over the last nine years, West Virginia has produced 167 takeaways, No. 38 among Power 5 schools. During that span, West Virginia’s defense tied for No. 35 nationally in interceptions (106) among FBS schools and is tied for No. 23 among Power Five schools.

--Breaking down the West Virginia offensive numbers for the 2024 season shows that the Mountaineers have run 66 plays, 37 on the ground and 29 through the air.

--The rushing game has totaled 85 yards, an average of 2.3 yards per carry and one touchdown. The passing attack has totaled 161 yards, 0 touchdowns and an average of 10.7 yards per completion. Combine the two and the Mountaineers have turned in 246 yards of total offense, 1 touchdown, an average of 3.7 yards per play and an average of 12.0 points per game.

--Deeper analysis shows that the Mountaineer offense has gained 10 first downs by the run and 7 via the pass. On average, West Virginia has totaled 85.0 yards per game on the ground, 161.0 yards per game passing and 246.0 yards per game of total offense.

DEPTH CHART: