Ken Durbin’s Predictions: I am going to predict Buie rushing for 100 yards, receiving 25 yards, and 2 total scores. WVU gets a nail-biting victory for the ages: 56-54 in 3OT.

I said that if West Virginia was to have a shot in this game, they would need to establish the running game to balance Geno and the passing game. The Mountaineers not only established the run, they dominated the line of scrimmage against a top Sooners defense. WVU piled up 458 rushing yards, far exceeding their rushing totals for the past 4 games combined!

The only problem with my prediction is that I thought Andrew Buie would be the one to carry the load for the Mountaineers. Tavon Austin, after receiving high praises from Holgorsen all week, was given the task of establishing the run for the Mountaineers. Austin, who once played as a running back under Coach Stewart, showed why Stew had him originally slotted for running back. Austin found tiny creases to carve up the Oklahoma defense for 344 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Buie was mostly an after thought to the explosive Austin, only seeing 16 carries for 48 yards and a touchdown. Not exactly the performance I envisioned him having.

As whole, I was close on the game prediction, thinking WVU would pull out a close victory in the 50 point range, just was on the wrong side of that one. Sigh…

November 17, 2012; Morgantown, WV, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers wide receiver Stedman Bailey (3) catches a thirty-three yard touchdown pass behind Oklahoma Sooners defensive back Aaron Colvin (14) during the second quarter at Milan Puskar Stadium . Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

Brandon Miller’s Predictions: Bailey and Austin will both have huge games, each going for 150 total yards and a touchdown. I also think the running game will show some life – Buie will run for 80 yards with Alston adding 50 yards and a touchdown. WVU will become bowl eligible with a 38-34 victory.

I really feel terrible for Tavon Austin. He puts up 572 all-purpose yards and still is on the losing end of the game. That’s unbelievable. And if you look at our last 3 games, only a handful of plays stand between us and an 8-2 record. 5-5 looks really bad, but despite our difficulties, we could very easily be sitting 8-2 right now. I guess that’s why I’m not really concerned, long term, about our program in the new conference.

As for this game, it’s pretty hard to believe that we lost when you look at the stats. It’s ridiculous actually. Our defense might be the worst ever in the history of football. I cannot understand how you can repeatedly give up 3rd and longs, why you play 10 yards off receivers on 3rd and shorts, and how you can actually be in good coverage a fair amount of the time and simply fail to turn around and make a play. I don’t understand why anyone bothers to run the ball against us. There’s no point. There’s no excuse for the performance of this defense, and the blame falls on everyone- coaches and players. I’m done thinking that it will be better this year. We just have to hope for a drastic improvement next year.

It was good to see the offense get its groove back though. After struggling in the first half, Geno looked like Geno again in the second half. He made perfect throws and looked like a Heisman candidate again. Hopefully this continues. I really wish he would stop staring receivers down though. He’s done it his whole career so it probably won’t change, but that is one major obstacle between him and a starting job in the NFL. You just can’t do that. He’s got to be more consistent with looking off defenders and going through his check-downs.

As for my predictions:
-I said the defense would turn in its best performance of the year. Couldn’t have been more wrong.
-I said the running game would be the key- and it was for us, although I didn’t expect 450+ yards on the ground. What a shame to waste that performance.
-I called Austin and Bailey having huge games, but I vastly underestimated what they would do, particularly Austin. That has to be one of the best individual performances in NCAA history. And give a lot of credit to Holgorsen for changing up the offense and putting Austin in the backfield- if not for that decision, we would have gotten blown out.
-Missed on Buie and Alston. Buie took a backseat to Austin in the running game, and Alston didn’t play.
-I was almost right on the outcome (WVU winning it close). A few plays here or there and I would have been right.

November 17, 2012; Morgantown, WV, USA; Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Kenny Stills (4) catches an eleven yard touchdown pass against West Virginia Mountaineers safety Ishmael Banks (34) during the third quarter at Milan Puskar Stadium. The Oklahoma Sooners won 50-49. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

Alan Searles’ Prediction: 55-43, OU.

If someone actually predicted that Tavon would blow up at running back, they deserve prediction of the year award.

I was really down headed into game and thought we would get trounced, but we ended having a great shot to win. The defense had a few big stops that allowed us back into the shootout, but we couldn’t make the stops at end, when it mattered to seal the game.

My lasting thoughts all seem to surround Austin’s gameplay (that pass from Geno over Stedman’s shoulder was awesome as well), however it’s startling to think we still lost. Two things stand out to me, the missed extra point and Kenny Stills abusing Ishmael Banks. I have come to expect the latter; the former is what is really killing this team though. Doesn’t it seem like we have not had a technically sound special teams unit since … The Cold War?

Patrick Pishko’s Predictions: OU 54- WVU 17.

November 17, 2012; Morgantown, WV, USA; The West Virginia Mountaineers offense faces the Oklahoma Sooners defense during the first quarter at Milan Puskar Stadium . Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

In the first half, the Mountaineers offense could not consistently maintain rhythm. One drive, they are red hot, moving the ball down the field well. The next drive, Geno can’t find a wide open receiver or the running game can’t escape the backfield. It is not abnormal for any offense to have good and bad drives, but when you play with a defense like West Virginia has, you have to score on almost every single drive to have a shot at winning the game.

In the first half, Coach Holgorsen followed up his talk of getting Tavon Austin the ball more, by lining the star player up in the backfield. Austin, who started his WVU career as a running back, looked like he has not missed a beat since his freshman season, able to find creases in the Sooner front and really was a major factor in West Virginia’s early drives. Holgorsen would feed Austin 10 carries in the first half for 75 yards rushing.

Austin’s rushing, paired with Stedman Bailey’s receiving, gave WVU a potent balance offensively, keeping the Mountaineers alive in the first half.

The biggest issue for the Mountaineers was ball security. Geno Smith once again tried to force the ball down the field to Bailey, throwing a pair of interceptions in the first half. The turnovers kept the Mountaineers defense on the field much longer than they should have been, leading to the Sooners lighting up the scoreboard for a 31-17 halftime lead.

The Mountaineers would come out firing offensively in the second half behind an electrifying 74-yard touchdown run by Austin. With that kind of momentum boost, you would expect the Mountaineers defense to play with a little extra edge and get a stop. But no, this is the Mountaineers defense that just cannot cover the pass. Landry Jones took the Sooners right back down the field on an 80-yard touchdown drive.

The Mountaineers defense suffered from a split personality disorder tonight. Against the run, the defense locked down D.D. Williams with the exceptions of one big touchdown run in the first half. As good as they were against the run, the Mountaineers were equally poor at defending the pass. The secondary could not cover Kenny Stills in the redzone and failed to make open field tackles on short screen passes to the rest of the Sooners receivers.

November 17, 2012; Morgantown, WV, USA; Oklahoma Sooners running back Damien Williams (26) scores a forty-eight yard touchdown against the West Virginia Mountaineers during the second quarter at Milan Puskar Stadium . Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

Outside of a forced fumble early in the first half, the WVU defense played a pretty poor first half of football. They got no pressure on Landry Jones, giving him plenty of time to pick apart the secondary. Jones tuned up the defense to the tune of 38/51 passing for 554 yards and 6 touchdowns. Don’t be surprised if a performance like this helps him land a spot in the late first round of the NFL draft in April.

Then, out of nowhere, the Mountaineers defense came alive in the second half. After giving up a touchdown on their first series of the second half, the defense got a little bit of pressure on Jones, finally forcing an interception early in the fourth quarter, keeping the Mountaineers within one score at 38-30.

With the defense tightening up their game, the Mountaineers went run heavy in the second half to keep the defense off the field as much as possible and give them a chance to keep their confidence up. Coach Holgorsen relied on the legs of Andrew Buie and Tavon Austin to convert some critical third and fourth downs to keep WVU in the game late.

Tavon Austin was the all-purpose spark plug for the Mountaineers. He racked up a grand total of 572 yards, shattering the WVU single game record for all-purpose yards. That record was set in 1965 by Garrett Ford Sr. against Pitt at 356 yards. The way Austin was able to make the Sooners defense grasp at thin air, I would have expected Holgorsen to go to Austin more often throughout the game.

November 17, 2012; Morgantown, WV, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers wide receiver Tavon Austin (1) carries the ball on a 31 yard gain against the Oklahoma Sooners during the first quarter at Milan Puskar Stadium . Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

Austin finished his monumental evening with 344 yards rushing, 82 receiving, 146 yards returning, and 2 touchdowns. Tavon’s 344 yards on the ground set a single game rushing record last held by Kay Jay Harris with 337 yards against ECU in 2004. That’s right, a WIDE RECEIVER set a WVU single game rushing record. R-I-D-I-C-U-L-O-U-S!

Austin wasn’t the only Mountaineer to flex his all-purpose skills tonight. Fellow wide receiver Stedman Bailey took a couple rushes himself, cashing one in for a touchdown run to close the gap to 38-36 midway through the fourth quarter. Bailey would finish with 205 yards receiving, 0 yards rushing, and 4 touchdowns. Bailey also added 2 tackles on special teams. Even Geno got in on the act, running the ball 4 times for 52 yards.

After fighting off some early struggles, Geno finally started clicking with his offense in the second half, looking like the quarterback that was receiving Heisman hype early in the season. Geno led the Mountaineers to a pair of great touchdown drives to give the Mountaineers a late 49-44 lead. Geno finished the game with 20/35 passing for 320 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions.

Unfortunately for the Mountaineers, their defense was on the field late with only 49 yards between them and the endzone. Landry Jones found Kenny Stills in the endzone on 4th and 3 to give the Sooners a 1 point victory in Morgantown.

The young Mountaineers secondary just had no answer for the skillful and experienced Sooners receiving corps. Coach DeForest left the cornerbacks on an island too often, leaving them to face Stills in man coverage near the goal line. Probably why Stills hauled in 4 touchdowns.

Heartbreaking loss for West Virginia. The loss moves the losing streak to 5 games, the longest losing streak since 1986. WVU will have to regroup and pursue their bowl eligibility on the road in Ames, IA next Saturday.

Mountaineer fans and national media alike thought that this game would be the de facto Big XII championship game. Neither team has lived up to that billing, WVU especially. The Sooners will bring their 7-2 record and their #12 ranking into Touchdown City to face the 5-4, unranked Mountaineers.

Riding a 4-game losing skid, how confident are the staffers of HailWV that the Mountaineers can pull out a win?

Ken Durbin:

I really think that the key to West Virginia being able to beat Oklahoma is the establishment of the running game. The last time the Mountaineers won, at Texas, they were able to balance both the run and the pass. That was due in large part to an exceptional performance from Andrew Buie. Since that time, the Mountaineers have looked like they have been running into brick walls, failing to find any openings along the defensive line.

Okahoma’s defense has been stout all season, but has shown some weakness in recent weeks. Against Baylor, the Sooners were carved up for 252 yards and 4 touchdowns. If there was ever a time to strike, now is that time for WVU. Coach Holgorsen will need to find ways for the offense to take advantage of Oklahoma’s recent problems handling the run to keep the Mountaineers in this game.

For WVU to have a shot against the Sooners, Buie is going to need to put up a big game. In the spirit of rooting for the Mountaineers, I am going to predict Buie rushing for 100 yards, receiving 25 yards, and 2 total scores. If Buie can rack up those numbers, I like WVU’s chances.

With all that said, I really don’t know if the Mountaineers are going to pull this one out. They will need to avoid stupid special teams blunders and get a couple of stops defensively. I really have a hard time imagining all those things going right for the Mountaineers, but I have seen stranger things happen in night games at Milan Puskar Stadium.

So, under the lights of Morgantown, the Mountaineers will prolong their 30 years of bragging rights over the Sooners for at least one more season. WVU gets a nail-biting victory for the ages: 56-54 in 3OT. If that isn’t bold, then I don’t know what is.

September 22, 2012; Morgantown, WV, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers wide receiver Tavon Austin (1) celebrates with wide receiver Dante Campbell (left) and running back Andrew Buie (13) after Austin scored a touchdown against the Maryland Terrapins during the fourth quarter at Milan Puskar Stadium. The West Virginia Mountaineers won 31-21. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

Brandon Miller:

Before the Oklahoma State game, I knew we’d have a shot at OSU, but we’d blow it. And we did have chances to beat Oklahoma State but just couldn’t take advantage. This week, I’m feeling a win. We have a history of coming out of nowhere to surprise the nation, Oklahoma has a history of dropping games they shouldn’t, and this wouldn’t be the first time they’ve overlooked WVU. Also- it’s a night game. Yes- I know Kansas State was too, but it definitely gives us an extra edge to be playing at home at night.

I sure hope the fans pack the stadium- I know the student turnout will be low due to Thanksgiving break and the dorms being closed (hopefully someone at WVU sees the light and they start leaving the dorms open on game weekends during break), but if you have a ticket, either get in the stadium or get your ticket to someone that will. Tickets are still available from WVU too if you can’t find any.

After two absolutely dreadful performances on all sides of the ball against Texas Tech and Kansas State, we’ve started to turn it around. Our defense is still below average, but it has improved. We still give up some big plays, but it doesn’t happen every series anymore, and we have shown an ability to stop the other team from time to time. This is an improvement. I’m not sure what caused the improvement- whether it’s the freshmen gaining experience, putting Patterson on the field and having him call the plays, or maybe Holgorsen is getting more involved with the defense. Whatever it is, I hope we continue to see improvement on that side of the ball. It really seems like we’re close to figuring it out. Hopefully this is the game everything comes together.

Offensively, we’re still sputtering, but we are starting to move the ball a bit better than we did against TT and KSU. Having Stedman Bailey back and healthy is huge, but Geno is still missing throws he made earlier in the year. I have no idea what his problem is or when it will improve, but we’re leaving points on the field when he can’t hit open receivers deep down the field. We are also getting killed by having no tangible running game. Offensively, the key to the Oklahoma game will be our ability to put a running game together. I’m not saying we need to gain 300 yards on the ground, but it would be a big help to the passing game to get a solid 150 on the ground. It would take some pressure off of Geno and maybe give the offense some rhythm and stability and put us in manageable 3rd down situations.

And all we can hope for from special teams is they don’t lose the game for us. Special teams has been as brutal as the defense. I’d consider it great if we aren’t talking about special teams after the game.

en though I think we’ll win, I’m not quite sure how we’ll get there. A blowout? Getting a big lead early then clinging to it as Oklahoma storms back in the second half? Maybe a close game throughout? I don’t know. But I do think that the defense will put in it’s best performance of the season (which still won’t be that great, but beggars can’t be choosers) and the offense will put in its most consistent performance since we played Texas.

Bailey and Austin will both have huge games, each going for 150 total yards and a touchdown. I also think the running game will show some life – Buie will run for 80 yards with Alston adding 50 yards and a touchdown. WVU will become bowl eligible with a 38-34 victory.

Alan Searles:

My weekly prediction is that I plan to be deep frying a turkey by mid morning. Honestly, that is the most important part of Saturday.

Gold Rush, 2012, V. II.

On paper or via the vaunted Eye Test, the only way we have a chance is to somehow remove the inane mistakes that we have occurred over the past few weeks. How do you predict that? Have a future sensitive DVR or a Flux Capacitor. At least it seems that we can get back to predicting that Austin and Bailey will have big games again and if Geno can narrow down some of the mistakes he made on easy throws last week (is he pressing?), then we could have a monster game on offense, but I have to imagine Landry Jones has a big game.

55-43, OU.

Patrick Pishko:

Nov 10, 2012; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Blake Bell (10) celebrates after scoring a touchdown in the second half of the game against the Baylor Bears at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. The Sooners won 42 – 34. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-US PRESSWIRE

In the spirit of cooperation, I decided to ask Joe a set of 5 questions from the WVU fan perspective in preparation for tomorrow’s showdown in Morgantown. Here’s what Bendiez had to say:

1. Oklahoma’s run defense got lit up by Baylor’s Lache Seastrunk and company for 252 yards and 4 touchdowns. What was the problem with defending the run last week and will there be any hangover from that game this Saturday?

Oklahoma’s run defense has struggled in comparison to the secondary this season. They really have not done a great job of getting in the backfield enough, but with linebacker Tom Wort starting to come back on a bit, I would expect the Sooners to bounce back against WVU. They’ve really focused on containing each opponent’s air attack, but I would expect Mike Stoops to really let the dogs loose Saturday against Geno.

2. Landry Jones was projected to be one of the top quarterbacks in college football this season, but has not lived up to his billing. He is a pretty good quarterback, but he is no longer considered elite. What has been the biggest problem for him this season?

The biggest problem for Landry is his consistency. We all know he’s capable of having great games, but Jones can self-destruct quite easily. He loses confidence in himself and forgets what made him considered one of the best quarterbacks in the nation. He has had some good games this season, but you can always count on once or twice to make a head-scratching pass that gets intercepted or nearly does. To be honest, Landry will need a career game if Oklahoma wants to win in Morgantown.

3. Similar question for you, outside of Landry Jones and Kenny Stills, who is the one Sooner that the Mountaineers defense should be most concerned about?

The WVU defense should pay attention to Justin Brown. He has made a big impact after transferring from Penn State in August and brings a lot of experience to a young Sooner wide receiving corps. Brown has a good set of hands and can kill you in the passing game, but has been a threat as a punt returner as well. Brown has made plenty of big plays this season, and has taken plenty of pressure off Kenny Stills this season.

4. Oklahoma has taken a page out of the 2006 Florida Gators playbook this year. Blake Bell has gotten a ton of looks in the redzone in the “Belldozer” package. Many analysts have already started drawing comparisons between Bell and Tim Tebow. So there are two questions here: a.) is Bell a capable passer? and b.) does Bell have a signautre pose like the once popular “Tebowing?”

a) From what we’ve seen, Bell can pass the ball. Not sure if he is anymore effective than Jones, because it is such a small sample size. However, I would not be surprised if Heupel tried to trick the Mountaineer defense and let Bell throw some out of the formation Saturday.

b) I don’t know if he has a signature pose, other than standing up right for an hour before he takes off for the endzone, however, after every touchdown, his celebration is always the same. Bell signals the crowd as if to honk their horn. Not sure if that’s the best way to describe, but he always does it and it has become his go-to celebration.

5. Is there any added motivation for Oklahoma to take down the Mountaineers given the recent somewhat recent history (see the 2008 Fiesta Bowl)?

There has to be some motivation for maybe Bob Stoops, but no current player was around for that Fiesta Bowl. I’m sure fans will want to get some revenge, but OU should be more concerned with getting a BCS Bowl bid this season, rather than what happened almost five years ago.

To see more of Joe Bendiez and his coverage of Sooner athletics, check out StorminInNorman.com or follow him on Twitter @StorminInNorman.

Dear BFA’s,

The head scratching and binge drinking continues.

I will say that I felt the defense has improved and the offense seemed to show more spark than the last three games.  Not to say that the defense is anywhere near what we could call “good” right now, but a few stops (5 punts!!!) and an interception versus the number four offense in the country is certainly an improvement over what we had been seeing.  Aside from a few instances, we didn’t have drives that in entirety featured wide open receivers without a defender in the same time zone.  On the offensive side, it was surprisingly Geno that seemed to hold us back at times.  The biggest issue we have on offense is a lack of consistent running game, but I have come to expect that as a weakness.  Geno’s mistakes though, are a bit harder to swallow.  I don’t mean to call the guy out as he has done so much for us in four years; it is simply shocking when he misses wide open receivers multiple times (I have about 3 to 4 images in my head on very easy throws).

None of what I said above really has anything to do with why we lost.  A degree in football rocket science is not needed to understand that you cannot make the mistakes on special teams that we made and win a game.  Those types of mistakes are the ones that if make against a 1-AA team, you will lose.  No way you can get by with those against a formidable team.  I guess the conundrum is, why are they occurring?  Bad luck?  Poor coaching, stupid players, lack of focus?  Beer Sales?  I am seeing a lot of comments that seem to settle around lack of focus and lack of commitment.  I certainly am not in the locker room or around practice, so for me to pontificate would be a bit out of order, but as the old adage goes, where there is smoke there is fire.  We now have three departed players in Pat Miller, Travares Copeland, and Pat Miller.  Is this indicative of a coaching staff that is not reaching their kids, or simply a delayed, but natural occurrence that happens when a new coach takes over (remember it was just a tad bit awkward how Dana entered his pseudo-first year last year)?  Unfortunately, this is not really a question that is typically answered in short order, but is found in following seasons.  The staff either weeds out the kids who can’t buy in or are exposed as poor coaches.  Sometimes, it is somewhere in middle.  All I know is that it doesn’t look great for the rest of the year.

All you can hope is that local guys like Ryan Nehlen and Connor Arlia can step up and make big plays like they did on Saturday, fighting for the team they love, and spotting Austin/Bailey.  Gotta love watching the WV guys who are just happy to contribute being out there.  By the way, lost in all of this is that Bailey had another monster game last week.  The best we can hope for is all the stars regain their stride and are well supplemented by “character” guys who prove that the departing crew equals addition by subtraction.

So, Gold Rush and Oklahoma.  I dunno what to predict, other than I’ll be standing around a deep frying turkey by mid morning on Saturday and enjoying a few fine selections from this list.

Around The Nation

Didn’t believe me when I said that more of these undefeated teams would lose?  Yea I know, wasn’t that tough of a prediction, but give me a break, my betting card for the year has looked like Edward Norton’s script in Rounders.  I have no particular affinity for Texas AM, but love the fact that the SEC newcomer, who runs one of them daggumit spread offenses that will never work in the SEC, was the team that knocked off the invincible Alabama.  It was shocking watching Johnny Manziel run up the points to get such a huge first quarter lead, but anyone could have guessed that Saban and crew would come back.  The fact that Bama had the ball at the end win with a chance to win, and AM still held on to win is very impressive.  Its a fun week to tune into the Finebaum show; I hope you have enjoyed.

Now what?  Oregon has two big tests left in back to back weeks with Stanford and Oregon State.  Both are solid teams and capable of winning.  The Ducks will then get the winner of this week’s game between the Los Angeles schools in the Pac 12 title game.  Snyder’s Squad goes to Baylor this weekend, then is off, and wraps up against Texas, avoiding the need to compete in a title game.  Notre Dame also avoids the title game issue, gets another cream puff in Wake Forest, before playing USC in two weeks.  Funny how USC can now play spoiler to two different national title contenders.  Oregon easily has the toughest schedule left, but they just seem like they are on auto-pilot right now.  Something about how there always seems to be a crazy Big XII upset at the end of the year has me leery of K State every week, and I still think USC will beat Notre Dame, so I am predicting Oregon vs K-State or the last standing SEC team.

While it is not assured yet, it is amazing to think that we may actually be looking at a non-SEC championship, after six years of SEC dominance and last year’s all SEC title game.  Rest assured the south will be pissed, playing tons of David Allen Coe, and citing numerous passages of how the South will rise again.  It doesn’t matter though; in a year that there are numerous undefeated programs from major conferences, you have to win out, no matter how tough your schedule is.

Speaking of USC, this is incredible work by UCLA students.

Random

First, let me re-post this line from last week, including the link that I forgot to include.  Its a good one: I respect this man. If you are going to go down for stealing, it might as well be for stealing beer.  There is nothing wrong with that.  Now if he had stolen the orange camo Keystone cans, the cameras would have probably never seen him.

If you thought that the BCS was confusing, the new playoff/contract/access bowl system is going to be wild.  I am waiting for the year in which the winner of the “Group of Five” is a 6-6 team.  The problem with all of these arrangements is that the conferences are out to protect themselves and not football as a product.  There should be no guarantees  any time you have an absolute, you open the door for a snafu.

This link pretty much sums up the personality of every other caller on the Paul Finebaum show.  This is why we listen.

MUST SEE:  This is a phenomenal recap of a couple of Alabama fans watching the loss.

Good Luck Sooner Hunting,

Love Al

Just imagine this scenario…

WVU went to the Big12 a year earlier. In the transition year. TCU also got in the Big12 a year earlier.

So, for the next 10 weeks, we will be posting results of games against Big12 teams from the 2011 season.

After the jump is the entire schedule.

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The latest name to surface in WVU’s hunt for a defensive coordinator is former Oklahoma University Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers Coach Brent Venables. Mike Stoops is now the new Oklahoma DC.

This name surfaced as of today, and what do we need to know about Venables. Also, Joe DeForest of Oklahoma State has been offered a job at WVU as well.

Here’s the info on Venables, after the jump.

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In what was suppost to be a great day in the history of West Virginia University, fans of the gold and blue are again today wondering what happened. News broke yesterday on social media outlets, message boards, and ESPN that WVU was bound for the BigXII, and a news conference was scheduled for this afternoon. So what happened? We’ll do our best to break it down.

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Daily Mail: Done deal: West Virginia headed to the Big 12 Conference

WV Metronews: Multiple Reports: WVU To The Big 12

What a great day for Mountaineer Fans everywhere, especially those in the midwest.

After the jump is our reaction to it all… you all should check out Smoking Musket’s reaction first.

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Was I surprised at my findings? Not really. However, others may be… I’ll be posting the chart and a small write-up after the jump.

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