The West Virginia Mountaineers haven’t been ranked inside the AP Top 25 since the 2018 season, a far cry from where they were through the 2000s. But there is a demand for things to be different this season. Last season, that demand wasn’t as present and the Kansas Jayhawks took full advantage of it, dismantling WVU by a massive 41-10 margin in a game that never truly looked close. But even with that resounding 2025 win, KU is only 2-8 over their last 10 matchups against West Virginia.
Heading into Week 11, the Jayhawks would hopefully be continuing from their momentum that started in the week’s prior win over the UCF Golden Knights. The Mountaineers will be seven days removed from an interesting affair against the Texas Tech Red Raiders.
Leading West Virginia through their latest rebuild is Rich Rodriguez. There aren’t many coaches in the sport who have seen as many collegiate landscapes as Rodriguez. Rodriguez farmed the most impressive period of his time as a coach in the early 2000s before slightly slumping as the 2010s took full shape. Only to leave the sport a couple of seasons before it went completely haywire. But even he couldn’t resist the temptation as he threw himself right back into the sport, and now finds himself back where it all started.
Rodriguez’s career record sits at 140-99, and his lengthy career has also seen stops at Michigan, Arizona and Jacksonville State.
Rodriguez’s first season ended in an unexciting 4-8 record that only saw wins against Robert Morris, Pitt, No. 22 Houston and Colorado. Enough to buy in, but there is still work to be done
Kansas’ run defense will be tested early and often against this WVU side
Last season, the Kansas Jayhawks finished the season as one of the nation’s worst run defenses, giving up an astounding 184.1 yards per game, 105th-worst in the FBS. Next season the Mountaineers will be employing an offense that is stocked with running talent.
Firstly, it comes in the form of quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. While Hawkins wasn’t a massive succes at Oklahoma, the strengths of his game were quickly found out as he ran the ball 84 times in just nine games. Rodriguez has also brought in running back Cam Cook who was a highly sought-after portal running back. Last season at Jacksonville State, Cook led the nation with 1,659 yards, adding 16 touchdowns for 127.6 yards per game.
Even if KU has a better run defense, it is going to be a tall task attempting to keep this pair completely quiet.
Heading into the offseason, you could have convinced many people that this would have been a straightforward win for the Jayhawks, but Rodriguez has an acute ability at being able to turn things around in his second season. He improved his win total by five wins in 2002, his second season at WVU, by two wins in 2009, his second season at Michigan, and kept his win total at eight and nine during his time at Arizona and Jacksonville State. Who knows if that will completely hold up, but if it does, this doesn’t look as surefire anymore.
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