The West Virginia Mountaineers are on a two-game losing streak, and because of that, there are a lot more questions on the table about the Mountaineers than there were just two weeks ago. The upcoming Arizona game might give us some more definitive answers to those questions. Let's take a look at three questions West Virginia needs to answer this week.
1. Is Zac Alley the right man for the defensive coordinator job?
The West Virginia Mountaineers have the worst defense among all Power 4 teams right now, and have given up nearly 1,200 yards and 86 points in their last two weeks. No one would have blamed the program for ending the Zac Alley experiement, but he's back for at least one more week. He also realizes things aren't working and is ready to take some accountability for the issues.
Arizona will be missing some key offensive starters, but still have veteran starting quarterback Noah Fifita behind center. If Alley's defense lays a third straight dud, there's a possibility that he's just not cut out for the job. But is things look considerably better, you can start making the argument they're find a solution to their defensive woes. This might be thw game to determine the answer to this question.
2. Is West Virginia a bowl team?
The Mountaineers now have two losses on the season, and three more of their games – Houston, Texas Tech, and Utah – are likely going to see West Virginia enter as overwhelming underdogs. That means if the program wants to get back to bowling in December or January, they will likely need at least three wins against Arizona, Cincinnati, Kansas, and TCU.
Three weeks ago, this question would have been answered with a resounding 'yes.' Now, it's a legitimate question to ask. And if West Virginia drops their third straight game this week, it's going to be a lot harder for the Mountaineers to give fans the answer they want to hear.
3. Can West Virginia's offense continue it's momentum.
West Virginia's offense regressed from the Virginia game to the Oklahoma State game. Last week, they looked to excellent, with Mike Hawkins Jr. passing for over 200 yards and rushing for over 100 yards, while Cam Cook added over 100 yards on the ground. In total, they put up 42 points against Iowa State. None of that ended up mattering because of West Virginia's defense.
But West Virginia's defense doesn't need to suddenly become perfect overnight if the offense continues to look like it did Saturday. You just need to add 1-2 stops. But the offense has also been inconsistent at times this year. Another massive performance would go a long way in showing that the offense isn't going to be playing the "hot, then cold" game for the second half of the year.
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