Morgantown, West Virginia – Do West Virginia fans remember what it’s like to win big? Like, really big? To have one of the very best teams in the country, to have a team that is feared, a team that is elite?
In basketball, the Mountaineers were last really good in the 2017-2018 season. West Virginia, led by seniors Jevon Carter and Daxter Miles, was ranked #11 in the preseason and got all the way up to #2 in the polls. However, this team was a 5 seed and lost in the Regional Semifinal of the NCAA Tournament. Despite their success, they underachieved.
Before that, the 2009-2010 West Virginia basketball team was outstanding. This team, led by Da’Sean Butler and Kevin Jones, was ranked 8th in the preseason polls and went on to a 31-7 record and a Final Four appearance. This was truly one of the very best teams in the nation and a team very capable of winning the national championship.
In football, it’s been well over a decade since the Mountaineers truly had a team that was among the very elite in the country. In 2007, West Virginia was #2 in the country and had an incredible opportunity to play in the national championship before the worst, most devastating loss in Mountaineers history, a 13-9 upset at home to rival Pitt.
During the Dana Holgorsen years in Morgantown, West Virginia certainly had several very good teams, but none really competed for a national championship. The 2012 Mountaineers were ranked 8th in the preseason and had huge expectations, but finished 7-6 and lost in the Pinstripe Bowl.
With this said, this year’s West Virginia team has the talent and ability to make real noise in the national scene. In fact, anything less than a Final Four or National Championship will be a disappointment for the Mountaineers.
Eight of the top ten scorers return from last season and the Mountaineers are loaded with the depth, talent and size required to be among the best teams in country.
The 2020-2021 West Virginia basketball team will make fans forget all about what will likely be a very long, frustrating football season. This is a team that will make fans remember what it’s like to have a truly elite, dominant team that has a real chance to win the national championship.
