Morgantown, West Virginia – The Big 12 Conference was scheduled to release the 2023-2024 football schedule on December 1st. However, there has been a delay and the schedule could be released anytime now.
With Houston, Cincinnati, BYU and UCF joining the conference, there will be a nine game schedule in 2023 and it’s unlikely that there will be any divisions next season. With the uncertainty surrounding Texas and Oklahoma’s future in the conference, the Big 12 will have teams play nine conference games, which means that West Virginia (and every other team in the conference) won’t play four teams in the conference.
With that said, here is our attempt at predicting the Mountaineers’ 2023 schedule:
Non-conference games: (Locked in)
Week 1 – @ Penn State – Brutal start for the Mountaineers. Penn State is one of the top football programs in the country right now and opening the season on the road at Happy Valley is one of the most challenging tasks for any team in the nation.
Week 2 – vs. Duquesne – Should be an easy bounce-back game for the Mountaineers against an inferior opponent.
Week 3 – vs. Pittsburgh – Outstanding opportunity for West Virginia to get revenge for last year’s loss and get a winning record before starting the Big 12 Conference schedule.
Big 12 Conference Games: (Predictions)
Week 4 – @ Kansas State – The Wildcats made it to the Big 12 Championship game last season and played Alabama in the Sugar Bowl to finish the season. Another really tough road challenge for the Mountaineers.
Week 5 – vs. Cincinnati – First change to play Cincinnati as a member of the Big 12 Conference, the Bearcats will no longer be led by former head coach Luke Fickell, who moved on to coach Wisconsin.
Week 6 – @ TCU – Current Big 12 Conference Champions who are playing the Georgia Bulldogs in the National Championship. West Virginia could start the season 0-3 on the road to start the season.
Week 7 – vs. Iowa State – Very winnable game for the Mountaineers here.
Week 8 – @ Baylor – West Virginia was able to beat Baylor at home 43-40 last season, but beating the Bears in Waco will be yet another huge challenge in 2023.
Week 9 – BYE
Week 10 – vs. Houston – The return of Dana Holgorsen as the head coach of an opposing team will be a huge story in Morgantown.
Week 11 – vs. BYU – West Virginia will get another new kid on the block in Morgantown in their opening season in the Big 12. BYU always has a tough, well-prepared team.
Week 12 – @ UCF – West Virginia’s road schedule doesn’t get much easier when they travel to Orlando to play an up-and-coming UCF program led by Gus Malzahn.
Week 13 – vs. Texas – The Mountaineers get one last crack against the Longhorns at home before they move on to the SEC.
Floor: 3-9 or 4-8
Ceiling: 7-5 or 8-4
Likely finish: 6-6
