It might not have been the way West Virginia preferred, but the Mountaineers got it done.
The eighth win of the season proved to be a challenging one against a scrappy Baylor team that despite a 3-8 record gave Neal Brown and company all they could handle.
West Virginia had to rally down 31-27 in the fourth quarter with only 1:14 left on the clock and zero timeouts despite mustering only a pair of first downs in the entire second half to that point.
The result was an 80-yard touchdown drive that featured three first downs and a 29-yard touchdown pass to Jaheim White leaving Baylor just 23 seconds left to navigate a potential comeback.
That defense would hold giving West Virginia their highest win total in five seasons at 8-4, 6-3 in the Big 12 Conference, and their first time hitting that mark since 2018. It was the first win for the Mountaineers in Waco under Brown and by far the best his teams have felt after a game there.
It certainly wasn’t their best effort, but a winning one in the end. The Mountaineers raced out to a 27-14 halftime lead before being outscored 17-0 in the second frame before that final drive. It’s exactly the type of game that has cost the program in the past, but this one ended differently.
“I didn’t feel comfortable at halftime, but we found a way,” Brown said.
The game continued the theme between these two teams as the Mountaineers won for only the second time in Waco with the last coming in 2017, while the Bears have yet to win in Morgantown. In the past two meetings, West Virginia lost by a field goal in 2019 and was handled in 2021.
This was a chance, despite Baylor’s struggles, to change the trend.
The Mountaineers now sit with a chance to win nine games for the first time since 2016 and will head to a bowl game in the next month although the destination is not yet known. By now you’ve heard that this team was picked 14th in the pre-season and will finish in a three-way tie for third.
West Virginia will likely be without center Zach Frazier for the game, he sustained an injury on that final drive, but the goal of hitting that nine-win plateau is plenty of motivation in itself. And Brown believes that the approach of his team over the next month will be focused on several things.
This is a young team that has the potential to return a bulk of their key contributors next season. Add that with the possibility of getting to nine wins and that could provide some real momentum if the key needs are met with both the recruiting trail and the transfer portal.
“First, we want to win. Second of all, we want to make sure this is an enjoyable experience for our guys because it’s a bonus. And we want to prepare for next year, so we can do all of those things,” Brown said. “The goal is to get to nine.”
And that couldn’t be possible without first getting number eight.
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