Last Thursday, Tennessee had its annual “takeover day” on the SEC Network. The network’s social media pages changed their profile pictures to match the school colors and the network played Tennessee content all day.
This got me thinking… what would a West Virginia Mountaineers takeover day of the (imaginary) Big 12 Network feature? Unfortunately, I imagine we’d only be allowed to show games and events from our time in the Big 12, so here’s a list of games across many sports that I would want to watch all day:
2016 Women’s Soccer National Semifinal, WVU vs. UNC
For me, this is the “biggest” game a WVU team has played since joining the conference. This is the farthest a Mountaineer team had advanced in an NCAA tournament since the great Jerry West’s basketball team went to the national title game in 1959. Not only that, but the Mountaineers downed the winningest program in NCAA women’s soccer history on a national stage, advancing to the final with a 1-0 victory over the Tar Heels
2012 Football, WVU @ Texas
This was the single-greatest victory of the 2012 season and still stands as one of the biggest wins in the Dana Holgorsen tenure. The new kids on the block had a bunch of hits coming into the game, but Texas is THE program and THE university in the conference. The No. 8 Mountaineers outlasted the No. 11 Longhorns, 48-45, and Karl Joseph killed a man.
2017 Women’s Basketball Big 12 Championship, WVU vs. Baylor
In order to make the 2017 NCAA women’s basketball tournament, the Mountaineers had to win the Big 12 tournament. And they did that, against the conference’s best team, no less. WVU ran out to a huge lead, draining threes. Though Baylor tried to mount a comeback, the Mountaineers prevailed 77-66, and lifted the Big 12 tournament trophy.
2017 Men’s Basketball Big 12 Semifinal, WVU vs. OU
The first time WVU had made the Big 12 men’s basketball title game was in thanks to Buddy Hield not having a quick enough release on his attempted buzzer beater. Remember that time OU thought they had won and then they didn’t? That’s this game, 69-67 Mountaineers.
2014 Football, WVU vs. Baylor
I missed this game because I was at watched this game during a wedding. The Mountaineer defense was the star of the show, holding a prolific Baylor offense down for much of the game. Tied going into the fourth quarter, WVU proved their worth and won the game 41-27.
2016 Men’s Basketball, WVU vs. No. 1 Kansas
WVU-Kansas has become an incredibly fun rivalry in men’s basketball and typically features two of the Big 12’s best teams. This matchup, brought a new level of energy to the WVU Coliseum. The No. 11 Mountaineers pretty much led wire-to-wire and sent the No. 1 Jayhawks back to Kansas with a 74-63 loss.
What would you most want to watch again? What games would you include?