In less than 48 hours, the West Virginia Mountaineers and the Ohio Bobcats will square off in a non-conference matchup at Peden Stadium in Athens, Ohio. WVU and Ohio are not traditional football rivals – they've met less than 20 times since the series first started in 1897, and the haven't faced each other on the gridiron since 2001. But for some WVU football players, Saturday's game will be personal.
For WVU starting defensive lineman Hammond Russell IV, he has personal connections on the team at Ohio. Russell grew up in Dublin, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus that sits about 1 1/2 hours outside of Athens. He said that he knows a few guys who play for the Bobcats – one safety he knows went unnamed, but another player, Ohio offensive lineman Joshua Johnson, grew up alongside Russell outside of Columbus and the pair played football together in their youth. With the close trip to the game, he expects to have some personal fans in attendance.
"Yeah, I think I have a pretty good crew coming," he said. "The guys [at Ohio] asked me, 'did I need tickets?'"
But the most intriguing personal storyline entering the game might belong to WVU starting safety Darrian Lewis. He joined the Mountaineers this season after transferring in from Akron. The Zips are in the MAC alongside the Bobcats, and played Ohio each of the past four season – and unfortunately for Lewis he holds a career record of 0-4 against the defending MAC Champions, including a 30-10 loss last season in Athens where he recorded eight tackles. Now, he has revenge on his mind as he gets one last shot at the Bobcats.
"I absolutely did not get a chance to beat them at all, so this is a game I'm excited for, for sure. I can't wait to get out there," Lewis said. "It's a lot of personal, so don't worry about that part. But it's going to be a very good experience, I can't wait for it."
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He might not be the only Mountaineer hoping for a bit of revenge against Ohio, either. Several players followed Rich Rodriguez from Jacksonville State to WVU this past offseason – and while Rodriguez had already taken the job in Morgantown ahead of bowl season, the Gamecocks played the Bobcats in the 2024 Cure Bowl and were defeated 30-27. Current WVU wideout Cam Vaughn hauled in 180+ receiving yards and one touchdown in that game, and went for 126 yards and a score in his WVU debut.