The West Virginia Mountaineers have finished the 2018 season ranked number 20 in the final AP poll. This finish comes as a disappointment to a team that had Big 12 title and possible College Football Playoff aspirations. The season got off to a fantastic start as the Mountaineers throttled the Tennessee Volunteers to open the season in the Belk Kickoff.
West Virginia rose as high as #6 before it fell to the Iowa State Cyclones in a precursor to the devastation that awaited the Mountaineers. The 30-14 loss dropped the Mountaineers out of the top 10, but a Thursday night showdown against the Baylor Bears was enough to get the ‘Eers back into the top ten.
West Virginia was once again inside the top ten following a dramatic come-from-behind win against the Texas Longhorns that saw the gutsy call to go for two and win the game following a beautiful dime of a throw from Will Grier. Sadly, the Texas game would be the last game the Mountaineers would win as they dropped their next three games: a complete failure of 30 minutes against Oklahoma State, then a heart-wrenching defeat to the Oklahoma Sooners before losing another bowl game to the Syracuse Orange.
Ultimately, 8-4 wasn’t enough to keep the Mountaineers out of the final rankings. West Virginia finishes the season 1-1 against final top 25 teams.