Way-Too-Early Game-by-Game Predictions for WVU's 2023 Football Schedule
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After weeks of waiting, Big 12 fans can finally start making plans for next season as the conference released the 2023 schedule Tuesday afternoon.
As always, I pieced together my way-too-early predictions for West Virginia. So, here we go.
9/2 at Penn State
Prediction: Loss
Record: 0-1
I actually think West Virginia will play Penn State a lot tougher than many expect. It has the feel of one of those games where WVU will be in it but crucial mistakes in the fourth quarter cost them the game.
9/9 vs Duquesne
Prediction: Win
Record: 1-1
Duquesne isn't just a bad FCS football team, they're a really bad FCS team. You know that Long Island team WVU played last year and could have put up 100 on if they really wanted to? Well, the Dukes lost to them in double OT and gave up 50 points. Easy win here.
9/16 vs Pittsburgh
Prediction: Loss
Record: 1-2
I went back and forth on this one. Initially, I picked West Virginia because it's a home game and they will want revenge from what happened a year ago. That said, I just don't think WVU has the depth (as of now) to slow Pitt's offense down. This prediction could look different by the time August rolls around. We'll see.
9/23 vs Texas Tech
Prediction: Loss
Record: 1-3 (0-1)
The Red Raiders surprised a lot of people in the first year of the Joey McGuire era. They have a ton of talent and a lot of experience to build with in 2023. They'll take another step next fall and finish in the top half of the conference. The Red Raiders steal one in Morgantown.
9/30 at TCU
Prediction: Loss
Record: 1-4 (0-2)
The Frogs are losing two big pieces in Max Duggan and Quentin Johnston but they are loaded with veterans everywhere else on the roster. I'm not sure who QB1 will be but whoever it is will be rolling in Sonny Dykes' offense. TCU's talent takes over and hands WVU its first two-score loss of the season.
10/12 at Houston
Prediction: Win
Record: 2-4 (1-2)
After a dreadful 1-4 start, the Mountaineers finally get back in the win column and win their first game against an FBS opponent. Too bad this one isn't in Morgantown (for obvious reasons).
10/21 vs Oklahoma State
Prediction: Win
Record: 3-4 (2-2)
The Cowboys fell apart at the end of the season, losing five of its final six games including one to West Virginia. They lost 17 players to the portal, one of which was starting QB Spencer Sanders. This feels like a rebuild year for Mike Gundy and co. Give me West Virginia.
10/28 at Central Florida
Prediction: Win
Record: 4-4 (3-2)
Relatively soon, UCF is going to be a real problem in the Big 12. They have a strong recruiting base in the state of Florida and will attract even more talent now that they're in a Power Five league. But that's a few years from now. They'll struggle out of the gate in terms of making that jump with the players they currently have. WVU dominates the trenches and wins this one fairly easy.
11/4 vs BYU
Prediction: Loss
Record: 4-5 (3-3)
After owning the line of scrimmage vs UCF, West Virginia's front gets pushed around in this one against BYU, who is always very physical in the trenches. The Cougs run the ball at will and make a few plays on special teams to get the road win.
11/11 at Oklahoma
Prediction: Loss
Record: 4-6 (3-4)
It was a challenging first year for Brent Venables, to say the least. They won't be much better in 2023 but WVU has never won in Norman in Big 12 play, so until happens, I just can't trust them to give them a win here.
11/18 vs Cincinnati
Prediction: Win
Record: 5-6 (4-4)
The Bearcats will be two years removed from the College Football Playoff and during that span, they've lost a TON of talent, including their head coach Luke Fickell. They won't struggle as much as UCF but they're certainly going to be a much different team than what we've seen from them over the last handful of years.
11/25 at Baylor
Prediction: Loss
Record: 5-7 (4-5)
With bowl eligibility and quite possibly Neal Brown's job on the line, WVU rounds out the season in Waco. I see Baylor being back in the mix for the Big 12 title next fall, so I'm going with the Bears dropping the Mountaineers to 5-7, once again missing out on a bowl game.
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