Both WVU and Cincinnati’s outlook suddenly improved greatly with Saturday’s win

MORGANTOWN — For all the challenges in West Virginia University’s 2024 football season — tough home losses, injuries, a midseason change of defensive coordinator — the Mountaineers can still grasp the fact that they’re still mathematically in search of a spot in the league. Big 12 Conference Championship game. The vast majority of the league’s 16 teams can say that.

“This league is wide open,” WVU coach Neal Brown said this week. “You know, BYU is the only undefeated team left, and I wouldn’t be surprised at all if it wasn’t a two-loss team in Dallas when all is said and done.”

Both WVU and Saturday’s opponent, Cincinnati, are among eight Big 12 teams with two or fewer conference losses. The stakes are high in the noon showdown between the Mountaineers (4-4, 3-2 Big 12) and the Bearcats (5-3, 3-2 Big 12). Both teams need a win to advance to the championship game.

Teams sitting at .500 after eight games often don’t have that goal in front of them. Offensive lineman Tomas Rimac knows this is unusual. And he doesn’t intend to take it lightly.

“It’s pretty crazy to think about,” Rimac said. “And with that in mind, we know the next four games are going to be really competitive because (other teams) are thinking the same thing.

“Everyone thinks they have a chance,” he added. “So anything can happen.”

Just about anything happened to the Mountaineers in the first eight games. Many winnable games slipped away from WVU, mostly due to defensive mistakes. This led to the firing of defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley during the Mountaineers’ bye week and inside linebackers coach Jeff Koonz stepping into the role.

Moreover, many important players are either doubtful or will not be able to participate in Saturday’s competition. Already ranked near the bottom of the Football Bowl Subdivision in several categories, WVU’s defense will be without starting corner Ayden Garnes and starting cornerback Aubrey Burks. Garrett Greene, who has been the starting quarterback since the second half of the Kansas State game while recovering from a head injury, remains questionable for this week, meaning redshirt sophomore Nicco Marchiol will likely make his second straight start.

Marchiol performed well in his first start of the season; At Arizona, he completed 18 of 22 passes for 198 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. His 81.8% completion percentage was the best for a WVU starter since Skyler Howard completed 83.3% of WVU’s passes against Texas in 2015.

The Bearcats hope to play better against WVU’s quarterback, whoever it is, than they did in their last game, a 34-23 loss to Colorado in which Shedeur Sanders completed 25 of 30 passes for 323 yards and two touchdowns. Pass defense has been one of Cincinnati’s weaknesses this year. UC ranks 101st in the FBS in allowing 240.5 yards per game, 107th in opponent passer rating (143.42) and 109th in allowing 8.0 yards per attempt.

WVU’s pass defense has also been its Achilles heel. He ranks 115th in passing yards at 256.6 per game, 129th in opponent passing rating (161.99) and 132nd in allowing 9.3 yards per attempt. That’s an exciting combination for Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby, who has thrown for 2,108 yards and 15 touchdowns against four interceptions through eight games.

Cincinnati coach Scott Satterfield said his team is looking at regular-season home games like WVU.

“I think the most important thing for our guys is if you win this game you’re sitting there at 4-2,” he said. “You’re still in the running in the Big 12. There’s a lot of football left. “We saw what happened last weekend.”

Satterfield was referring to upset losses to both Iowa State and Kansas State that helped open up the race for the Big 12 championship game. There is some precedent for teams with multiple conference losses to win the title. Last season, Oklahoma State went 9-3.

“There’s still a lot of ball to play in this league,” he said. “I think more than anything, just go out and do your job, you’re now one step closer to potentially playing in the Big 12 Championship. We’re not out of it yet.”

Neither is WVU, Brown said, and the Mountaineers plan to come up with a strong finish to help them qualify for their first Big 12 title. West Virginia has some precedent in this regard; by a score of 3-1 last November.

“Traditionally we played our best football in November,” Brown said, “and we need to fit that bill this year.”

— Story by Derek Redd