Has this happened before?

[pressvirginia]

Looking ahead at schedules and match-ups, it's probable WV will face four straight undefeated & nationally ranked opponents.

15 Okla is 3-0, of course.

20 Okla State (4-0) hosts K-State Saturday. Cowboys are an 8-point home favorite.

5 Bay is a 17-point favorite vs TX Tech in Arlington. Bay is at Kansas thereafter. In all realistic likelihood, Bay will be 5-0 and top 5-ranked when WVU comes to town.

4 TCU is a 15-point home favorite vs 1-3 Texas. Assuming TCU can outscore their way to Ws at K-State and at Iowa State, they would be 7-0 when WVU arrives in Fort Worth one month from today.

Facing four straight undefeated & ranked opponents - three of which are road tests, two of which are at top 5-ranked teams - would figure to be an unprecedented stretch in WV football history.

Assuming things shake out this way, has it ever happened?

& how do you forecast the team will fare? Is this a springboard opportunity or is a snowball slide the more likely?

My take is it's hard to know what we have just yet. 2-2 would be an outstanding achievement. 1-3 pits WV at 4-3 by October's end, still with a chance to capture a strong season with a more manageable November.

 

[43rd Parallel]

Can't answer your question, but I would expand it: Has any college football team ever faced four straight unbeaten, nationally ranked opponents (and not in September)?

 

[torontoeers]

Not sure yet which is more likely...Oct is a tough go for sure but I like your terminology of a springboard opportunity...
Imo right now the talking heads are scratching their collective chins saying 'hmmm, what about The Mountaineers? ' while looking at our slate with seeds of doubt...win on Saturday and they'll all be saying 'How bout those Mountaineers! '....
Win the next one with a solid effort and I think the winning attitude will carry them through....2-2 I'm pretty darn impressed, 3-1 or 4-0? Over the moon...
I love this conference. The team will earn every victory they get...
LGM!

 

[eers-to-ya]

I've been following WV since 1961 and I certainly don't remember 4 ranked opponents in a row. You could probably count the number of times they've face 4 ranked opponents in one season on one hand.

 

[pressvirginia]

Can't answer your question, but I would expand it: Has any college football team ever faced four straight unbeaten, nationally ranked opponents (and not in September)?

Yeah good point. I don't know the answer either, but if things do in fact unfold this way, it'll be talked about & someone will dig up the stat.

I think this October schedule could make a mark as the most difficult 4-game stretch in college football history when one considers four consecutive undefeated opponents who are each nationally ranked. & by undefeated, not 1 or 2-0, but rather something somewhat sustained.

That is really something to behold in my opinion. & not intended to set up a platform for excuses in the event of losses. We'll know a whole lot more about this 2015 team come Saturday, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility that they compete & hold their own on some level.

 

[HurdyGurdyEer]

I like our chances to go at least 3-1. Then the real challenge comes ... finishing strong.

We (in my opinion) have the players/leaders to get through October. But can they keep up the intensity to get through November against so-called lesser teams?

 

[skygusty_rivals]

Can't answer your question, but I would expand it: Has any college football team ever faced four straight unbeaten, nationally ranked opponents (and not in September)?

I know this, there have been lots of teams that have won National Championships in the past that NEVER had to go through such a meat grinder of a schedule in the regular season. See Pitt and Clemson's schedule when they last won as examples (among others). Like tOSU this year, they went into the season with a high ranking and didn't have very tough schedules. Maybe the Big12 DOES need to add a couple of doormats. It would not result in any more money or prestige but it would make the path to a NC a lot easier than trying to play our current round robin schedule with only 1 loss. Bring on Ohio University and Memphis!

 

[bobhertzel'ssweatpants]

Looking ahead at schedules and match-ups, it's probable WV will face four straight undefeated & nationally ranked opponents.

15 Okla is 3-0, of course.

20 Okla State (4-0) hosts K-State Saturday. Cowboys are an 8-point home favorite.

5 Bay is a 17-point favorite vs TX Tech in Arlington. Bay is at Kansas thereafter. In all realistic likelihood, Bay will be 5-0 and top 5-ranked when WVU comes to town.

4 TCU is a 15-point home favorite vs 1-3 Texas. Assuming TCU can outscore their way to Ws at K-State and at Iowa State, they would be 7-0 when WVU arrives in Fort Worth one month from today.

Facing four straight undefeated & ranked opponents - three of which are road tests, two of which are at top 5-ranked teams - would figure to be an unprecedented stretch in WV football history.

Assuming things shake out this way, has it ever happened?

& how do you forecast the team will fare? Is this a springboard opportunity or is a snowball slide the more likely?

My take is it's hard to know what we have just yet. 2-2 would be an outstanding achievement. 1-3 pits WV at 4-3 by October's end, still with a chance to capture a strong season with a more manageable November.

The last time we played 4 straight ranked opponents was in 1959. And two of those games were at home. We've never faced 4 straight ranked opponents with 3 of them being on the road. That 1959 team finished 3-7 & went 1-3 during that stretch:

Oct. 17 1959 WVU 23 #20 Pitt 15 Morgantown, WV
Oct. 24 1959 #6 Syracuse 44 WVU 0 Syracuse, NY
Oct. 31, 1959 #7 Penn State 28 WVU 10 Morgantown, WV
Nov. 7, 1959 #6 USC 36 WVU 0 Los Angeles, CA

Needless to say, this is likely the toughest stretch we've ever had in modern history.

 

[WVURumm32]

The last time we played 4 straight ranked opponents was in 1959. And two of those games were at home. We've never faced 4 straight ranked opponents with 3 of them being on the road. That 1959 team finished 3-7 & went 1-3 during that stretch:

Oct. 17 1959 WVU 23 #20 Pitt 15 Morgantown, WV
Oct. 24 1959 #6 Syracuse 44 WVU 0 Syracuse, NY
Oct. 31, 1959 #7 Penn State 28 WVU 10 Morgantown, WV
Nov. 7, 1959 #6 USC 36 WVU 0 Los Angeles, CA

Needless to say, this is likely the toughest stretch we've ever had in modern history.

We faced a similar October schedule in 1992. The first ranking is what they were ranked when we played and I was able to find each ranking before bowl games were played which is second.

10/3 Boston College #22 (#16)
10/17 Syracuse #14 (#6)
10/24 Penn State #14 (#21)
10/31 Miami #1 (#1)

Syracuse had one loss to Ohio St when we played and Penn State had lost their previous 2 games before our match up getting beat by Miami and BC by a field goal in each game.

 

[bobhertzel'ssweatpants]

We faced a similar October schedule in 1992. The first ranking is what they were ranked when we played and I was able to find each ranking before bowl games were played which is second.

10/3 Boston College #22 (#16)
10/17 Syracuse #14 (#6)
10/24 Penn State #14 (#21)
10/31 Miami #1 (#1)

Syracuse had one loss to Ohio St when we played and Penn State had lost their previous 2 games before our match up getting beat by Miami and BC by a field goal in each game.

F*** Marvin Graves!!