West Virginia still has a lot to play for this season.

That seems obvious enough but sitting at 4-5 the Mountaineers need to find a way to win at least two games in order to achieve bowl eligibility for the second year in a row. The time afforded to the team with the extra practices in December that will help shape the future of the club is reason enough to do it.

That doesn't even include the momentum that the program will need to capture not only with the fan base but on the recruiting trail. It also provides more exposure for the program in order to showcase in a nationally televised game.

No, that extra practice time isn’t as critical as it used to be due to the rise in significant recruiting that’s done in December with the introduction of the early signing period but it’s still an important piece heading into the off-season.

“Bowl eligibility is very important. It’s something that you always point to that you want to make happen,” head coach Neal Brown said. “I don’t think it’s lost its luster in any regards.”

The Mountaineers will travel to Kansas State this weekend, before hosting the final home game of the season against Texas. The year will close on the road at Kansas. That means the margin for error is exactly one game for the program to lose over the next three weeks and while it won't be easy those aren't unwinnable games either.

Finding a way into a bowl game would be significant from a momentum standpoint after beating Army in the Liberty Bowl a season ago. It isn’t going to cover up some of the sting of the disappointment from a season of close calls and what ifs, but the alternative would be considered an abject failure.

Part of the problem this season has been the lack of consistency not only from game-to-game but snap-to-snap especially on the offensive side of the football.

“Being consistent is the sign of a really good football team and we’re not there yet,” Brown said.

Talk is cheap though and not making a bowl game would unquestionably be a step back for a program that entered the season with a lot of high hopes. It will make for a long December, and by extension winter in general if the Mountaineers aren’t able to string together some success down the stretch.

Getting to a bowl game is the goal and while the season has clearly been disappointing if the Mountaineers can’t accomplish feat you can’t call this year anything but a failure.

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