The Shotgun/Throwdown (11/12/18): Mountaineers can clinch Big 12 title game spot with a little help from the Longhorns

Welcome, By-Godders, to The Shotgun/Throwdown, WVU’s best place for sports links, information, sophomoric humor and daily distractions.

Football

Mountaineers can clinch Big 12 title game spot this week with some help | Charleston Gazette-Mail
The West Virginia University football team is in the driver’s seat for a spot in next month’s Big 12 championship game — keep winning and the Mountaineers have a place in the game. The rest of the pack, however, isn’t going away.

TCU Takeaways | West Virginia Athletics
Some takeaways from West Virginia's impressive 47-10 victory over reeling TCU Saturday afternoon at Milan Puskar Stadium

Gibby’s defense delivers a beauty before Bedlam | WV MetroNews
After the backpats, handshakes and locked-arms crooning that capped another successful Saturday, Tony Gibson transitioned from talking about TCU to bracing for Bedlam. He departed the postgame media room in time to flip on the Oklahoma-Oklahoma State game, noticing the Sooners had compiled 453 yards … by halftime.

Football Names Award Winners for the TCU Game | West Virginia Athletics
The West Virginia University football coaching staff has named its award winners for outstanding performances in the Mountaineers' 47-10 win against TCU on Saturday, Nov. 10.

Recruits impressed by WVU performance, atmosphere on Saturday | Charleston Gazette-Mail
It wasn’t always pretty on Saturday, but the end result was exactly what West Virginia wanted when it beat down TCU, 47-10, in a crucial Big 12 Conference matchup.

Basketball

Toughness lacking as West Virginia re-focuses on rebounding | WV MetroNews
Having prided itself as a program built on toughness and gritty play, Bob Huggins was understandably disappointed as No. 13 West Virginia wilted down the stretch of a 99-94 overtime loss to Buffalo.

Mountaineers Down NJIT | West Virginia Athletics
Five players scored in double figures as the No. 25 West Virginia University women's basketball team downed NJIT, 95-50, on Sunday afternoon at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown.

West Virginia Athletics

Times Set for NCAA Tournament Matches | West Virginia Athletics
The No. 8-ranked and second-seeded West Virginia University women's soccer team will play host to second- and third-round matches in the 2018 NCAA Tournament on Nov. 16 and 18, at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.

Five Mountaineers Finish First at Journeymen | West Virginia Athletics
Five Mountaineers took first place in their respective pools at the round-robin tournament, as the West Virginia University wrestling team collected 217 points for a seventh-place finish at the 2018 Journeymen MyHouse Collegiate Classic on Sunday, held at Hudson Valley Community College, in Schenectady, New York.

WVU Finishes Fall Season in Florida | West Virginia Athletics
Highlighted by three singles wins in the tournament finale, the West Virginia University tennis team concluded its fall season at the Florida State All-Conference Showdown, on Sunday afternoon in Tallahassee, Florida.

Around the Big 12

Report: Jerry Jones, Cowboys Have an 'Affinity' for Lincoln Riley | Heartland College Sports
As the Oklahoma Sooners continue to roll their way through the Big 12 and potentially another conference championship, and maybe, another College Football Playoff, rumors continue to connect second-year head coach Lincoln Riley to the NFL.

Around the NCAA

THIS WEEK IN SCHADENFREUDE, Bama fans are in utter despair after their 24-point win | SBNation
Your weekly tour of the most distraught fans in college football internet parks in Tuscaloosa.

College Football Empires Map, Week 11: Bama and Iowa State (!) on the march | SBNation
The rules: Every FBS team started with land, and every week winners take more and more. We’ve kept track all year long.

New bowl projections for a college football season in need of madness at the top | SBNation
Here are picks for all 40 bowl games, including the College Football Playoff.

College football odds 2018, Week 12: West Virginia, Notre Dame highlight betting favorites | SBNation
The West Virginia Mountaineers and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish are away from home in Week 12 of the season but both sit as betting favorites at the sportsbooks.

The best college football gambling picks for week 12, including Michigan State | SBNation
The early betting lines often allow for the most value.

These 9 teams are helping make the college football season weird and enjoyable | SBNation
Northwestern is going to the Big Ten championship game, UAB is 9-1 after not existing four years ago, and more!

Why Louisville’s firing Bobby Petrino, and why Louisville should hire Jeff Brohm | SBNation
Petrino’s Cardinals didn’t win enough when they had Lamar Jackson, and they cratered after he left. Fortunately, there’s an ideal replacement candidate out there.

Hold on. We need to talk more about Pitt’s hilarious mauling of Virginia Tech | SBNation
The Panthers beat the Hokies more thoroughly than pretty much any Power 5 team ever beats another.

4 reasons why the Patriots shouldn’t be too worried about their 24-point loss to the Titans | SBNation
New England got smoked on Sunday, but it’s not doom and gloom for the Patriots looking ahead.

The Winners and Losers of NFL Week 10 | The Ringer
Is Bill Belichick just being nice to his old friends, or are they seeking vengeance against him? Plus: Cody Parkey’s preternatural ability to hit the uprights, Matt Barkley’s MVP candidacy, and Dirk Koetter’s questionable play-calling.

Recount Déjà Vu: How the 2000 Presidential Election Haunts the Midterms | The Ringer
In Florida, Arizona, and Georgia, key races are still being decided by late ballot counting. Donald Trump is crying foul. But will that matter?

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