Geography, matchup key in West Virginia bowl selection
West Virginia being selected for the Duke’s Mayo Bowl in nearby Charlotte is perhaps the lone instance since joining the Big 12 Conference where geography ended up being an ally.
The Mountaineers are positioned at least a time zone away from the bulk of their conference members, but with the league having one more bowl-eligible team than slots available it led to an opportunity.
It just so happened that the opportunity was in a city that has a strong West Virginia alumni base that would present a matchup that was attractive to fans of the program against the ACC.
For Charlotte Sports Foundation Executive Director Danny Morrison, the chance to bring the Mountaineers to Charlotte where the fanbase has come out in large numbers in the past was almost too good to be true. So, working with partners and ESPN, they were able to secure West Virginia.
“West Virginia is a perfect fit for us and our bowl and we’re able to get a quality opponent in North Carolina. There seemed to be moving parts throughout the day and then you get thrilled with the matchup you have in the end,” Morrison said.
Morrison compared the bowl selection process to playing whack-a-mole, but in the end, the matchup just made too much sense with West Virginia’s proximity to Charlotte and the matchup it would create.
Related: West Virginia to face North Carolina in Duke's Mayo Bowl
“I’ve always said the best bowl experiences are when fans can drive. You have more fans, a better environment so geography in this particular case worked in our favor,” he said.
It was the cap to an interesting week for head coach Neal Brown who admitted that due to the changes in the bowl system, there isn’t as much clarity as there used to be on destination. And while the pendulum on a potential destination swung back and forth throughout the week, he was pleased when he received a phone call from Athletic Director Wren Baker Sunday afternoon about the possibility.
“Where we were the whole time is we wanted to play a power five opponent in the bowl game, I felt that was important. That’s where we centered our discussions on,” Brown said.
This would provide that opportunity as well as all of the reasons mentioned above with Charlotte’s proximity to West Virginia, the active alumni chapter and the fertile recruiting grounds. Add on the fact that even without knowing the opponent it would be an ACC team and it was a no-brainer.
North Carolina is a team that was ranked for much of the season and will present plenty of challenges for the Mountaineers as both teams attempt to get to the nine-win mark. It’s a win that if Brown can achieve he has willingly agreed to douse himself in Duke’s Mayo per the customary winning tradition.
The plan for this week will be to finish classes while working with strength and conditioning coordinator Mike Joseph before practicing over the weekend then prepare for finals week in the classroom. After that the Mountaineers will resume practicing from Dec. 15-18 then give the team some time off before reconvening and traveling down to Charlotte Dec. 23.
Geography hasn’t been kind to West Virginia over the last decade-plus, but this is certainly one instance where it certainly helped with the eventual outcome.
“We love welcoming West Virginia fans to Charlotte,” Morrison said.
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