2023 West Virginia Mountaineers football team

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2023 West Virginia Mountaineers football
Duke’s Mayo Bowl champion
ConferenceBig 12 Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 25
Record9–4 (6–3 Big 12)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorChad Scott (1st season)
Offensive schemeSpread option[1]
Defensive coordinatorJordan Lesley (4th season)
Co-defensive coordinatorShaDon Brown (3rd season)
Base defenseMultiple[1]
Home stadiumMilan Puskar Stadium
Seasons
← 2022
2024 →
2023 Big 12 Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 3 Texas y$^   8 1     12 2  
No. 16 Oklahoma State y   7 2     10 4  
No. 15 Oklahoma   7 2     10 3  
Iowa State   6 3     7 6  
No. 18 Kansas State   6 3     9 4  
West Virginia   6 3     9 4  
Texas Tech   5 4     7 6  
No. 23 Kansas   5 4     9 4  
UCF   3 6     6 7  
TCU   3 6     5 7  
Houston   2 7     4 8  
BYU   2 7     5 7  
Baylor   2 7     3 9  
Cincinnati   1 8     3 9  
Championship: Texas 49, Oklahoma State 21
  • ^ – College Football Playoff participant
  • $ – Conference champion
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2023 West Virginia Mountaineers football team represented West Virginia University as a member of the Big 12 Conference during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Mountaineers were led by fifth-year head coach Neal Brown and played their home games at Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown, West Virginia.

Offseason[edit]

Transfers[edit]

Outgoing[edit]

Player Position Destination
Mumu Bin-Wahad CB UConn
Charles Woods CB SMU
Mike O'Laughlin TE Houston
Naim Muhammad CB Kent State
Reese Smith WR Liberty
Will Crowder QB Troy
Saint McLeod S Unknown
Corbin Page TE Unknown
Tyrin Woodby CB Unknown
JT Daniels QB Rice
Jordan White IOL Liberty
Kaden Prather WR Maryland
Taurus Simmons EDGE Withdrawn
Jordan Jefferson DL LSU
Chris Mayo IOL Eastern Michigan
Taijh Alston EDGE Colorado
Lanell Carr LB Indiana
Jaylon Shelton CB Texas State
Dylan Ray IOL Kentucky
Aric Burton DE Unknown
Caleb Coleman CB Texas State
Tony Mathis RB Houston

Incoming[edit]

Player Position Previous school
Noah Massey WR Angelo State
Tyrin Bradley DL Abilene Christian
EJ Horton WR Marshall
Tomiwa Durojaiye DL Kentucky
Anthony Wilson S Georgia Southern
Beanie Bishop CB Minnesota
Davoan Hawkins DL Tennessee State
Fatorma Mulbah DL Penn State
Michael Hayes K Georgia State
Keyshawn Cobb S Buffalo
Ja'Shaun Poke WR Kent State
Devin Carter WR NC State
Kole Taylor TE LSU
Montre Miller CB Kent State
Ak'Bar Shabazz II CB Pittsburgh

[2][3]

Schedule[edit]

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 27:30 p.m.at No. 7 Penn State*NBCL 15–38110,747
September 96:00 p.m.Duquesne*ESPN+W 56–1750,037
September 167:30 p.m.Pittsburgh*
ABCW 17–661,106
September 233:30 p.m.Texas Tech
  • Milan Puskar Stadium
  • Morgantown, WV (Gold Rush)
ESPN+W 20–1350,071
September 308:00 p.m.at TCUESPN2W 24–2143,736
October 127:00 p.m.at HoustonFS1L 39–4132,152
October 213:30 p.m.Oklahoma State
  • Milan Puskar Stadium
  • Morgantown, WV
ESPNL 34–4851,870
October 2812:00 p.m.at UCFFS1[a]W 41–2844,136
November 47:00 p.m.BYU
  • Milan Puskar Stadium
  • Morgantown, WV (True Blue)
FOXW 37–750,266
November 117:00 p.m.at No. 17 OklahomaFOXL 20–5983,525
November 182:30 p.m.Cincinnati
  • Milan Puskar Stadium
  • Morgantown, WV (rivalry)
ESPN+W 42–2143,588
November 257:00 p.m.at BaylorFS1W 34–3136,200
December 275:30 p.m.vs. North Carolina*ESPNW 30–1042,925
  1. ^ Partially aired on FOX as a look-in due to lightning delayed OU-Kansas game

[4]

Game summaries[edit]

At No. 7 Penn State[edit]

West Virginia Mountaineers at No. 7 Penn State Nittany Lions – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Mountaineers 0 7 0815
No. 7 Nittany Lions 7 7 71738

at Beaver Stadium, University Park, Pennsylvania

Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
  • PSU – Lambert-Smith, 12-yard TD pass from Allar, Alex Felkins kick, 8:36 (PSU 21–7)
Fourth quarter
  • PSU – Felkins, 25-yard field goal, 14:47 (PSU 24–7)
  • PSU – Malik McClain, 25-yard TD pass from Allar, Felkins kick, 7:32 (PSU 31–7)
  • WVU – Garrett Greene, 1-yard TD run, Donaldson pass from Greene for 2-point conversion, 3:34 (PSU 31–15)
  • PSU – Beau Pribula, 5-yard TD run, Felkins kick, 0:06 (PSU 38–15)

Statistics

Statistics WVU PSU
First downs 17 27
Plays–yards 67–308 65–478
Rushes–yards 40–146 35–146
Passing yards 162 332
Passing: comp–att–int 16–27–0 22–30–0
Time of possession 31:16 28:44
Team Category Player Statistics
West Virginia Passing Garrett Greene 16/27, 162 yards
Rushing CJ Donaldson Jr. 18 carries, 81 yards, TD
Receiving Devin Carter 6 receptions, 90 yards
Penn State Passing Drew Allar 21/29, 325 yards, 3 TD
Rushing Nicholas Singleton 13 carries, 70 yards, TD
Receiving KeAndre Lambert-Smith 4 receptions, 123 yards, 2 TD

Duquesne[edit]

West Virginia Mountaineers (0-1) vs. Duquesne Dukes (1-0)
Period 1 2 34Total
Dukes 7 3 7017
Mountaineers 7 28 71456

at Milan Puskar StadiumMorgantown, WV

  • Date: Saturday, September 9, 2023
  • Game time: 6:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: • Rainy Temperature: 75
  • Game attendance: 50,037
  • Referee: Henry Johns
  • TV announcers (ESPN+): Noah Reed (play-by-play) & Jay Sonnhalter (analyst)
  • ESPN box score
Game information
First quarter
  • (12:01) DUQ – Darryl Powell 38 yard pass from Darius Perrantes, Brian Bruzdewicz kick (Drive: 4 plays, 46 yards, 02:04; DUQ 7–0)
  • (8:27) WVU – Hudson Clement 14 yard pass from Garrett Greene, Michael Hayes kick (Drive: 8 plays, 46 yards, 03:22; TIE 7-7)
Second quarter
  • (14:40) WVU – Jaylen Anderson 8 yard run, Michael Hayes kick (Drive: 9 plays, 94 yards, 03:01; WVU 14–7)
  • (8:14) DUQ – Brian Bruzdewicz 39 yard field goal (Drive: 9 plays, 38 yards, 03:24; WVU 14–10)
  • (6:49) WVU – Hudson Clement 70 yard pass from Garrett Greene, Michael Hayes kick (Drive: 3 plays, 75 yards, 1:25; WVU 21–10)
  • (3:57) WVU – Hudson Clement 46 yard pass from Garrett Greene, Michael Hayes kick (Drive: 3 plays, 57 yards, 1:14; WVU 28-10)
  • (0:39) WVU - Preston Fox 22 yard pass from Garrett Greene, Michael Hayes kick (Drive: 7 plays, 63 yards, 2:11; WVU 35-10)
Third quarter
  • (4:40) WVU - Jahiem White 19 yard run, Michael Hayes kick (Drive: 7 plays, 67 yards, 3:00; WVU 42-10)
  • (1:02) DUQ - Tedy Afful 16 yard pass from Darius Perrantes, Brian Bruzdewicz kick (Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 3:38; WVU 42-17)
Fourth quarter
  • (9:50) WVU - Nicco Marchiol 1 yard run, Danny King kick (Drive: 6 plays, 20 yards, 2:53; WVU 49-17)
  • (2:08) WVU - DJ Oliver 5 yard run, Danny King kick (Drive: 12 plays, 67 yards, 5:33; WVU 56-17)
Statistics DUQ WVU
First downs 10 30
Total yards 234 619
Rushes/yards 28/3 49/304
Passing yards 231 315
Passing: Comp–Att–Int 15-32-2 17-32-0
Time of possession 28:21 31:39
Team Category Player Statistics
Duquesne Passing Darius Perrantes 14/31, 220 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing Taj Butts 10 carries, 23 yards
Receiving Tedy Afful 4 receptions, 83 yards, 1 TD
West Virginia Passing Garrett Greene 10/18, 240 yards, 4 TD
Rushing Jahiem White 12 carries, 115 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Hudson Clement 5 receptions, 117 yards, 3 TD

Pittsburgh[edit]

Pittsburgh Panthers at West Virginia Mountaineers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Panthers 3 3 006
Mountaineers 0 7 10017

at Milan Puskar Stadium, Morgantown, WV

  • Date: September 19
  • Game time: 7:30 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 66 °F (19 °C), clear
  • Game attendance: 61,106
  • Referee: Jeff Heaser
  • TV announcers (ABC): Sean McDonough (play by play), Greg McIlroy (analyst), and Molly McGrath (sideline)
  • ESPN box score
Game information
First quarter
  • (7:39) PITT - Ben Sauls 21 yard field goal (Drive: 11 plays, 67 yards, 6:41; PITT 3-0)
Second quarter
  • (4:45) WVU - Kole Taylor 7 yard pass from Nicco Marchiol, Michael Hayes kick (Drive: 1 play, 7 yards, 0:05; WVU 7-3)
  • (0:09) PITT - Ben Sauls 36 yard field goal (Drive: 12 plays, 57 yards, 4:36; WVU 7-6)
Third quarter
  • (5:05) WVU - CJ Donaldson 1 yard run, Michael Hayes kick (Drive: 13 plays, 61 yards, 7:48; WVU 14-6)
  • (1:57) WVU - Michael Hayes 42 yard field goal (Drive: 4 plays, 6 yards, 2:06; WVU 17-6)

Statistics

Statistics PITT WVU
First downs 12 14
Plays–yards 56–211 62–211
Rushes–yards 36–130 51–151
Passing yards 81 60
Passing: comp–att–int 8–20–3 6–11–0
Time of possession 26:47 33:13
Team Category Player Statistics
Pittsburgh Passing Phil Jurkovec 8/20, 81 yards
Rushing Rodney Hammond 14 carries, 54 yards
Receiving Gavin Bartholomew 2 receptions, 39 yards
West Virginia Passing Nicco Marchiol 6/9, 60 yards, 1 TD
Rushing CJ Donaldson 18 carries, 102 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Kole Taylor 3 receptions, 21 yards, 1 TD

Texas Tech[edit]

Statistics

At TCU[edit]

Statistics

At Houston[edit]

1 2 3 4 Total
Mountaineers 10 0 7 22 39
Cougars 7 7 7 20 41

Statistics

Oklahoma State[edit]

Oklahoma State Cowboys at West Virginia Mountaineers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cowboys 10 3 72848
Mountaineers 0 7 171034

at Milan Puskar Stadium, Morgantown, West Virginia

Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Statistics OKST WVU
First downs 21 24
Total yards 491 475
Rushes/yards 33/281 44/226
Passing yards 210 249
Passing: Comp–Att–Int 24-36-1 15-30-1
Time of possession 27:24 32:36
Team Category Player Statistics
Oklahoma State Passing Alan Bowman 24/36, 210 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing Ollie Gordon 29 carries, 282 yards, 4 TD
Receiving Brennan Presley 9 receptions, 62 yards, 1 TD
West Virginia Passing Garrett Greene 15/30, 249 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing Garrett Greene 16 carries, 126 yards
Receiving Preston Fox 4 receptions, 81 yards

At UCF[edit]

West Virginia Mountaineers at UCF Knights – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Mountaineers 10 7 71741
Knights 7 7 7728

at FBC Mortgage Stadium, Orlando, FL

Game information
Statistics WVU UCF
First downs 25 27
Total yards 450 463
Rushing yards 286 189
Passing yards 164 274
Turnovers 1 4
Time of possession 36:06 23:54
Team Category Player Statistics
West Virginia Passing Garrett Greene 14-23, 156 yards
Rushing C.J. Donaldson 17 carries, 121 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Devin Carter 3 receptions, 47 yards
UCF Passing John Rhys Plumlee 25–36, 274 yards, 3 TD, 3 INT
Rushing R. J. Harvey 14 carries, 100 yards
Receiving Kobe Hudson 3 receptions, 66 yards, 2 TD

BYU[edit]

At No. 17 Oklahoma[edit]

West Virginia Mountaineers (6–3) vs. No. 17 Oklahoma Sooners (7–2)
Period 1 2 34Total
West Virginia 7 7 6020
No. 17 Oklahoma 14 17 141459

at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial StadiumNorman, OK

  • Date: Saturday, November 11, 2023
  • Game time: 6:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: • Sunny Temperature: 55
  • Game attendance: 83,525
  • Referee: Kevin Mar
  • TV announcers (FOX): Jeff Levering (play-by-play) & Mark Helfrich (analyst)
  • ESPN box score
Game information
First quarter
  • (11:00) WVU – CJ Donaldson 13 yard rush, Michael Hayes kick (Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 4:00; WVU 7–0)
  • (8:27) OKLA – Dillon Gabriel 2 yard rush, Zach Schmit kick (Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 2:33; Tied 7–7)
  • (3:16) OKLA – Dillon Gabriel 2 yard rush, Zach Schmit kick (Drive: 11 plays, 65 yards, 3:26; OKLA 14–7)
Second quarter
  • (13:58) OKLA – Zach Schmit 23 yard field goal (Drive: 6 plays, 65 yards, 1:20; OKLA 17–7)
  • (9:06) OKLA – Austin Stogner 3 yard pass from Dillon Gabriel, Zach Schmit kick (Drive: 9 plays, 46 yards, 2:57; OKLA 24–7)
  • (6:20) OKLA – Jaden Gibson 32 yard pass from Dillon Gabriel, Zach Schmit kick (Drive: 5 plays, 86 yards, 1:49; OKLA 31–7)
  • (0:07) WVU – Kole Taylor 3 yard pass from Garrett Greene, Michael Hayes kick (Drive: 6 plays, 75 yards, 0:53; OKLA 31–14)
Third quarter
  • (13:48) OKLA – Drake Stoops 60 yard pass from Dillon Gabriel, Zach Schmit kick (Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 1:12; OKLA 38–14)
  • (9:28) WVU – Devin Carter 7 yard pass from Garrett Green, Garrett Greene 2 pt conversion failed (Drive: 12 plays, 61 yards, 4:14; OKLA 38–20)
  • (4:34) OKLA – Drake Stoops 9 yard pass from Dillon Gabriel, Zach Schmit kick (Drive: 6 plays, 43 yards, 1:53; OKLA 45–20)
Fourth quarter
  • (13:46) OKLA – Drake Stoops 9 yard pass from Dillon Gabriel, Zach Schmit kick (Drive: 7 plays, 81 yards, 3:20; OKLA 52–20)
  • (7:59) OKLA – Dillon Gabriel 5 yard rush, Zach Schmit kick (Drive: 10 plays, 65 yards, 4:37; OKLA 59–20)
Statistics WVU OKLA
First downs 17 25
Total yards 330 664
Rushes/yards 41/176 42/221
Passing yards 154 423
Passing: Comp–Att–Int 10–31–2 23–36
Time of possession 30:32 29:28
Team Category Player Statistics
West Virginia Passing Garrett Greene 10/27, 154 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing CJ Donaldson 14 carries, 79 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Devin Carter 3 receptions, 67 yards, 1 TD
Oklahoma Passing Dillon Gabriel 23/36, 423 yards, 5 TD
Rushing Gavin Sawchuk 22 carries, 135 yards
Receiving Drake Stoops 10 receptions, 164 yards, 3 TD

Cincinnati[edit]

Game Eleven – Cincinnati Bearcats at West Virginia Mountaineers
Period 1 2 34Total
Bearcats 0 7 01421
Mountaineers 7 21 14042

at Milan Puskar StadiumMorgantown, West Virginia

  • Date: Saturday, November 18, 2023
  • Game time: 2:30 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 48
  • Game attendance: 43,588
  • Referee: Michael VanderVelde
  • TV announcers (ESPN+): Jorge Sedano (play-by-play) & Orlando Franklin (analyst)
  • ESPN box score
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Statistics CIN WVU
First downs 18 31
Plays–yards 332/58 634/65
Rushes–yards 141/31 424/46
Passing yards 191 210
Passing: comp–att–int 16-27-0 12-9-1
Time of possession 25:11 34:49
Team Category Player Statistics
Cincinnati Passing Emory Jones 14/24, 166 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Corey Kiner 13 carries, 56 yards
Receiving Xzavier Henderson 6 receptions, 104 yards
West Virginia Passing Garrett Greene 12/19, 210 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing Jahiem White 21 carries, 204 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Jahiem White 1 reception, 75 yards, 1 TD

At Baylor[edit]

Vs. North Carolina (Duke's Mayo Bowl)[edit]

Game Thirteen – North Carolina Tar Heels vs West Virginia Mountaineers (Duke's Mayo Bowl)
Period 1 2 34Total
Tar Heels 0 10 0010
Mountaineers 7 10 31030

at Bank of America StadiumCharlotte, North Carolina

  • Date: Tuesday, December 27, 2023
  • Game time: 5:30 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 59 °F (15 °C) • Wind: 3 mph (4.8 km/h) SE
  • Game attendance: 42,925
  • Referee: Jerry McGinn
  • TV announcers (ESPN): Matt Barrie (play-by-play), Dan Mullen (analyst), and Harry Lyles Jr. (sideline)
  • Box score
Game information
First quarter
  • (14:49) WVU – Traylon Ray 75 yard pass from Garrett Greene, Michael Hayes kick, (Drive: 1 plays, 75 yards, 0:11; West Virginia 7–0)

Second quarter

  • (8:34) UNC – Noah Burnette 28 yard field goal, (Drive: 14 plays, 45 yards, 7:13; West Virginia 7–3)
  • (1:29) WVU – Beanie Bishop Jr. 78 yard punt return, Michael Hayes kick, (Drive: 4 plays, 2 yards, 2:16; West Virginia 14–3)
  • (0:27) UNC – J.J. Jones 16 yard pass from Conner Harrell, Noah Burnette kick, (Drive: 5 plays, 76 yards, 1:02; West Virginia 14–10)
  • (0:00) WVU – Michael Hayes 30 yard field goal, (Drive: 6 plays, 63 yards, 0:27; West Virginia 17–10)

Third quarter

  • (2:40) WVU – Michael Hayes 34 yard field goal, (Drive: 8 plays, 54 yards, 3:46; West Virginia 20–10)

Fourth quarter

  • (12:48) WVU – Jahiem White 11 yard rush, Michael Hayes kick, (Drive: 4 plays, 78 yards, 1:56; West Virginia 27–10)
  • (7:58) WVU – Michael Hayes 29 yard field goal, (Drive: 8 plays, 15 yards, 3:27; West Virginia 30–10)
Statistics UNC WVU
First downs 20 16
Plays–yards 68–339 54–392
Rushes–yards 41–140 30–164
Passing yards 199 228
Passing: comp–att–int 18–27–3 12–24–1
Time of possession 34:39 25:21
Team Category Player Statistics
North Carolina Passing Conner Harrell 18/27, 199 yards, TD, 2 INT
Rushing Omarion Hampton 19 carries, 62 yards
Receiving Gavin Blackwell 3 carries, 78 yards
West Virginia Passing Garrett Greene 12/24, 228 yards, TD
Rushing Garrett Greene 9 carries, 64 yards
Receiving Traylon Ray 3 carries, 91 yards

Rankings[edit]

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre1234567891011121314Final
APRVRVRVRVRV
CoachesRVRVRVRVRVRVRV25
CFPNot releasedNot released


Coaching staff[edit]

Coach Title Year at West Virginia Previous job
Neal Brown Head coach 5th Troy
Matt Moore Assistant head coach/OL 5th Troy (Co-OC/OL)
Chad Scott OC/RB 5th Louisville (RB)
Jordan Lesley DC/OLB 5th Troy (DL)
Jeff Koonz ILB/ST 4th Ole Miss (ILB)
Andrew Jackson DL 3rd Old Dominion (DL)
Sean Reagan QB 5th Troy (Co-OC/QB)
Blaine Stewart TE 1st Pittsburgh Steelers (Assistant WR)
Bilal Marshall WR 2nd VMI (WR)
Dontae Wright S 4th Western Michigan (S)

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "2023 West Virginia Mountaineers Football Depth Chart". ourlads.com. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  2. ^ "West Virginia Mountaineers 2023 College Football Transfer Portal". 247Sports. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  3. ^ "2023 West Virginia Football Transfer Portal". on3.com. Retrieved August 11, 2023.
  4. ^ "2023 Football Schedule". West Virginia University Athletics. Retrieved November 21, 2022.