West Virginia no doubt has a difficult schedule heading into the 2023 season, but what can be expected out of a team looking to rebound?
The Mountaineers finished last season 5-7 in a disappointing campaign that left many wondering about the job status of head coach Neal Brown.
Eventually, new athletic director Wren Baker and the administration offered their support for Brown to return but the focus was clear from all of those involved.
There were no excuses for what unfolded in 2022 and West Virginia needed to find a way to win now in order to help alleviate concerns in the fan base.
There is no question that the fanbase has certainly been patient with Brown and company over their four seasons but with a 22-25 overall record that has all but run out. It’s not something that Brown has avoided either though.
“It’s on me. I accept it. It’s not something I’m trying to shy away. I’m not trying to sugar coat that. It wasn’t good enough,” the fifth-year head coach said.
So, can it be in 2023? That is the question and Brown has to prove that he can do that in order to help win a portion of the disgruntled fan base back.
“Last fall was really the first point where I felt really good about our personnel from an experience and talent level where I really felt like we could compete week in and week out against the top of our league. And we just didn’t do that,” Brown said. “We didn’t give ourselves enough chances.”
Looking back at the 2022 team, Brown believes that the struggles of the unit can best be summarized into the three e’s. First there were simply too many errors.
That includes both turnovers and penalties, some in critical times, that prevented success. Those must be cleaned up if the 2023 edition wants to take a step forward.
Next was efficiency, as the offense struggled on the first play of a series far too often and couldn’t convert in third and medium or long situations while the defense struggled with situational football as well.
The final came with explosives as West Virginia regressed in that department after making strides in each of the previous two seasons. The offense simply relied on sustaining drives far too often and was unable to generate big plays in both the run or pass game, while the defense couldn’t prevent those types of plays.
The 2023 schedule is one of the more difficult in the Big 12, at least on paper, as West Virginia will open on the road at Penn State in a daunting task while hosting Pittsburgh in another power five out of conference matchup.
Winning at Penn State will be a difficult assignment most seasons, but the Nittany Lions return a lot from last season’s team and will be a pre-season top 10 team.
However, the second game against Duquesne at home should be an opportunity for a quick turnaround if things don’t end up on the positive side in Happy Valley.
It’s the next two games that should help determine the trajectory of the season. The Mountaineers blew a late lead last season on the road at Pittsburgh but this time the game will be in Morgantown at night. West Virginia has won the past two home night games against the Panthers and finding a way to win that game will be critical.
The next game is the Big 12 opener against Texas Tech, a team that has beaten West Virginia in all four of Brown’s seasons atop the program. The Red Raiders are considered a dark horse in the Big 12 title race but with the game in Morgantown it’s a golden opportunity for the program to change their fortunes in the series.
The schedule from there will feature nothing but Big 12 games as the Mountaineers will travel to TCU Sept. 30, go to Houston Oct. 12, host Oklahoma State Oct. 12, travel to UCF Oct. 28, host BYU Nov. 4, travel to Oklahoma Nov. 11, host Cincinnati Nov. 18 and close on the road at Baylor Nov. 25.
That certainly isn’t the easiest slate but West Virginia did catch some breaks. The program gets all four of the newcomers to the league and in the process avoids teams like projected league favorites Texas and Kansas State, along with matchups against Iowa State and Kansas. Those four schools are already entrenched in the league and won’t have to go through an adjustment period like the newcomers.
There’s no denying that trips to Oklahoma and Baylor will be difficult, but the rest of the slate appears manageable on the surface. TCU has lost a lot of production from last season’s national runner up, while Oklahoma State was hit hard by the portal.
The expectation nationally is that West Virginia will be again near the bottom of the Big 12 standings with a projected win total of 4.5 and was picked last in the pre-season poll. However, Brown and his coaches understand that simply won’t be good enough.
"Pre-season poll we were last I can guarantee you we won’t finish last. We have a much better football team than that and we’re anxious to show it," Brown said.
And the challenge is now to prove it where it matters the most.
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