Exciting Early Takeaways From WVU Football's Shocking Upset Over No. 22 Houston

West Virginia football entered their matchup with No. 22 Houston on Saturday as 13.5-point underdogs, winless in Big 12 play, and requiring four consecutive wins to close the season to keep their bowl hopes alive. And despite expectations, the Mountaineers were able to beat the odds and keep dreaming of postseason play as they upset the Cougars and walked out of TDECU Stadium with a 45-35 win.

“The season has had a lot of up and downs, but I think that this game was kind of a testament to who we are as a team," linebacker Chase Wilson told the Mountaineer Sports Network after the game.

As the Mountaineers now have a Big 12 win and their first road win over an AP-ranked Big 12 opponent in seven years, here's a look at our early takeaways from the game.

The Mountaineers Must Do What It Takes To Retain Scotty Fox Jr

Okay, on paper, it wasn't the most jaw-dropping performance. But Fox did everything he needed to in order to help WVU football beat Houston. He went 13-of-22 passing for 152 yards and one touchdowns, which certainly aren't Heisman numbers. But he was poised and composed in the pocket the entire game, even in the face of pressure from Houston. And he also dropped a few dimes over the shoulders of defensive backs into the hands of open receivers, like a fourth-quarter deep bomb to Jeffrey Weimer that broke open a drive, or his beautiful touchdown throw to Cam Vaughn in the second quarter.

He also added 10 carries for 65 yards, demonstrating he can be the type of mobile quarterback that thrives in a Rich Rodriguez offense. He also completed his second consecutive game without a turnover, showing that he was the awareness and football IQ a Big 12 quarterback needs to protect the ball consistently.

Zac Alley's Defense Is Back

The defense still was not perfect. But after holding TCU to 23 points last week after looking lifeless during their first four Big 12 games, there were questions if WVU was getting back to the defense that allowed just 44 points and was one of the leading teams in the nation in sacks during non-conference play.

They still gave up 35 points – once again, not perfect – but they forced the three turnovers defensively that defensive coordinator Zac Alley highlighted in the preseason as the program standard, and also recorded three sacks and held Houston to just 82 total rushing yards. Some big gains were given up, but the offense was finally playing in a way to compensate for those. And if the offense maintains it's rhthym while the defense continues this level of play, WVU might get some more wins before the season ends.

A Historic Losing Streak Averted

WVU already broke one historic losing streak with five straight Big 12 losses to start conference play, which is a new record for the Mountaineers in any conference. But if they had dropped Saturday's game to Houston, WVU would have been on a six-game losing streak for the first time since 1986, nearly 40 years ago. Whether that was on the team's mind today or not is unknown, but it's an unfortunate record avoided in any case.

WVU Might Have Found It's Offensive Line Combination

WVU's offensive line has been pretty rough this season, and we've talked plenty about it. This week, starting right tackle Ty'Kieast Crawford returned to the lineup after missing last week with injury, but right gurd Kimo Makane'ole missed the game due to an injury. That shifted Walter Young Bear, who has started seven games but was replaced last week by Donovan Haslam, to starting right guard, where he hasn't played all year. Haslam started at left guard, with Nick Krahe still at left tackle and Landen Livingston at center.

It's not a massive change, but things looked much better than they have so far this season. The Mountaineers still didn't get a ton of vertical push, but the run game was a lot more sustained, and several times the big boys in the trenches were five or six yards downfield with the running back. That's new. The team rushed for over 240 yards and averaged 5.1 yards per play, which is a winning combination against a lot of teams. Young Bear was helped off field with an injury near the end of the game, which isn't a great sign if this IS the right combination, but things seem on the way to getting fixed.

The Future Is Bright For Cyncir Bowers

Diore Hubbard started at running back and had a carer day, with 101 rushing yards and one touchdown, but Bowers looked the best he has in his limited action all season on Saturday. He looked like the type of explosive back fans of the first Rich Rodriguez era would recognize in Steve Slaton or Noel Devine. He finished with nine carries for 65 yards and one touchdown, and averaged 7.2 yards per carry. It's safe to say he likely played his way into the rotation.