An Old Gold-and-Blue Breakdown: Examining West Virginia vs. No. 11 Iowa State

Whether or not anyone expected it to start the season -- or even as recently as the end of the 2024 Backyard Brawl -- West Virginia football has a chance to sit in the driver's seat of the Big 12 race. But they'll have to execute against an undefeated team ranked amongst the best in the country of the AP Poll as No. 11 Iowa State comes to town.

Now, winning against AP Top 25 team's is not necessarily a strong suit of Neal Brown during his tenure in Morgantown -- he is 2-14 against such opponents. However, excitement is in the air the Mountaineers coming off back-to-back wins and debuting their black alternate jerseys during a "Coal Rush" themed game set for national primetime coverage.

The key to WVU finding it's way to victory might be in the run game, however. It certainly was when the Mountaineers tallied 389 yards on the ground last week in a 38-14 rout of Oklahoma State, and it also played a big role in the team's 49-14 win against Albany as they racked up over 300 yards on the ground.

Even in the comeback win against Kansas, the team managed 148 rushing yards. And when they led Pitt by 11 in the Backyard Brawl before a late-game collapse? They earned 188 yards on the ground that day. But in their most decisive loss -- a 34-12 disappointment against Penn State -- they failed to earn even 100 yards with their legs.

The magic number seems to be 200 yards rushing though. The Mountaineers are an impressive 17-1 during Brown's tenure when able to muster 200 or more rushing yards against an opponent. Luckily for WVU, Iowa State may provide cannon fodder for a deadly run game.

The Cyclones rank 67th nationally in run defense, allowing 138 yards per game. While that's not quite the magic figure of 200, it shows Iowa State isn't always stout against the run game. And while Iowa State did play an opponent similar to WVU on the ground and won -- Iowa (14th nationally in rushing yards per game, with West Virginia sitting 15th) -- Houston's 82nd-best FBS rushing attack and FCS North Dakota also managed 150+ yards on the ground against Iowa State.

In addition, Iowa State is currently missing four of what are considered six of their best linebackers to injury, with a fifth potentially slated to miss Saturday's game against WVU due to injury and the last of the six contemplating a redshirt.

When looking closely, it appears the battle between WVU and Iowa State -- colloquially known as the Riot Bowl -- may come down to which one of two elements gives in first. The determining factor will likely as not be whether it is Iowa State's run defense that breaks, or if a Neal Brown-led West Virginia once again fails to hold together against a ranked opponent.

READ MORE WVU SPORTS NEWS: