Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
The West Virginia Mountaineers travel to Austin in a matchup with the Texas Longhorns that will largely determine the fate of each team in the postseason.
For the Longhorns, they are looking to get bowl eligible in head coach Charlie Strong’s first season. They have three games left to get two wins, and this Saturday, along with next against the Oklahoma State Cowboys, are their best chances to get the victories they need. Dropping this game all but assures them a losing season with the TCU Horned Frogs waiting at season’s end.
On the other side of the ball, the Mountaineers put themselves completely out of the playoff picture and major bowls most likely with their loss to TCU last weekend. The one-point loss will no doubt hurt, but if they can get to nine wins they should still go to a respectable bowl. Both teams have something to play for this Saturday.
It’s tough to find any way that the Longhorns come on top in this one. The offense is at the bottom of the Big 12 in scoring and the defense is only middle of the road. In games against top competition, the Longhorns haven’t exactly stopped opponents and haven’t lit up the scoreboard.
The Mountaineers have scored 30-plus in their last eight games and boast as dynamic an offense as there is in the country. Quarterback Clint Trickett leads the conference in passing and has proven to be one of the top signal-callers in the nation. This will be tough sledding for the Longhorns to stop, even playing in front of the home crowd.
The offensive firepower of the Mountaineers will prove to be too much for Strong’s defense, and the Longhorn offense won’t be able to keep pace. West Virginia gets the win, putting the hopes Texas has of a bowl on life support.
Final score: West Virginia 31, Texas 17
