What Needs to Happen for WVU to Crack the AP Top 25 Sunday?

Because I'm not on the team, I'm allowed to look ahead and talk about what needs to happen for West Virginia to hop into the AP Top 25 come Sunday. Some folks may still scream, "FOCUS ON OKLAHOMA STATE," which should be the ONLY thing WVU is thinking about, but we can have some fun here talking about the possibility because, well, it hasn't been a realistic conversation in a long, long time.

Obviously, West Virginia has to do its part and win on Saturday against Oklahoma State. If they lose, you can forget about seeing a number next to their name next week or anytime soon. They'd have to bounce back and win a couple in a row to get back in position.

But beyond a win over the Cowboys, what are some results Mountaineer fans should be hoping for this weekend? Let's take a look at the schedule with teams ranked 15-25.

Keep in mind, with WVU technically sitting at No. 28, they don't need a bunch of things to happen.

15. Utah: at Iowa State
16. Louisville: vs. Wake Forest
17. Iowa: at Michigan
18. Michigan: vs. Iowa
19. Missouri: at Mississippi State
20. Oregon: at USC
21. Florida: vs. Ole Miss
22. SMU: vs. Missouri State
23. Texas A&M: at LSU
24. Mississippi State: vs. Missouri
25. Houston: at Georgia Southern

Don't waste your time: Houston at Georgia Southern, SMU vs. Missouri State

This isn't happening. I'm pretty sure the Cougs could start their backups and win this one, with all due respect to Georgia Southern. The Eagles did play Clemson and Jacksonville State tough, but they're not going to hang around in this one.

SMU isn't going to mess around this week, especially after losing to Louisville in a shootout a week ago. This one should turn into a laugher pretty quickly.

Probably not happening even with a loss: Utah, Iowa, Michigan, Florida

Utah should beat Iowa State on the road, but in the event that they don't, dropping 11 spots just doesn't seem realistic. With Iowa and Michigan both coming into the weekend unbeaten and sitting next to one another in the rankings, I don't see either one of them falling out. Florida could fall out with a loss to No. 4 Ole Miss, but if they're competitive, probably not. It's one of the top-ranked teams in the country, and you know voters are going to want to keep SEC teams in.

Could fall out with a loss: Louisville

The Cards enter the weekend ranked 16th, so a loss doesn't guarantee that they will fall out, although they would drop to 2-2 with a loss at home to an unranked Wake Forest team. The one caveat? Losing by two scores. If that happens, it's going to be hard for folks to justify keeping Louisville ranked.

Dropping out with a second loss: Texas A&M, Oregon

The Aggies should have dropped out last week after losing to Kentucky at home, if we're being honest. If LSU puts the belt to them, there's no way they're still ranked on Sunday. Oregon is a little tricky because although a loss would put them at 2-2, they could very well remain ranked if the game is super tight against a fringe top-10 team like USC. A win for the Trojans likely bumps them out, though.

Mississippi State vs. Missouri

The Tigers aren't going to be penalized for losing on the road unless they absolutely get smacked by 4+ scores. The Bulldogs are just barely in, and if they drop this one at home, they'll fall right back out. Mississippi State likely wins this one, but it should be a competitive game. WVU fans, you're pulling for Mizzou.

The others looking to jump in: Washington, Kentucky

Washington eked out a win over Utah State a couple of weeks ago and didn't look all that great against Washington State. They will have Minnesota at home, which might be a more competitive game than most think.

I seriously don't know how Kentucky isn't already ranked. Unbeaten and have a win over Texas A&M on the road. They will host South Alabama this weekend, so they are not in danger of picking up their first loss.

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