The Bears aim to extend their three-game winning streak on Saturday and capture their first victory in Morgantown against West Virginia. Baylor (5-4, 3-3) is coming off its second bye week of the season, while the Mountaineers (5-4, 4-2) are coming off back-to-back road victories over Arizona and Cincinnati.
Here are a few keys to the game that Baylor needs to accomplish to defeat West Virginia and become bowl eligible.
The West Virginia defense is awful, and they recently changed defensive coordinators mid-season. Baylor’s offensive success, led by quarterback Sawyer Robertson (RJr.), has the perfect opportunity to pick apart a Mountaineers secondary that gives up 263 passing yards per game.
West Virginia has had only four interceptions this season while giving up 2,367 yards and 18 touchdowns. The Mountaineers are ranked 13th in passing defense and 16th in passing defense efficiency in the Big 12.
West Virginia can become bowl-eligible as well if they beat Baylor, and they will likely pull out all the stops to do so. The Mountaineers have been aggressive on offense all season and have shown on multiple occasions that punting isn’t their first choice on fourth downs.
The Mountaineers are tied for third nationally among Power Four programs in fourth downs converted (17) this season. Don’t be surprised to see West Virginia try to slow this game down and keep the ball away from Baylor’s offense at all costs.
Redshirt freshman running back Bryson Washington (196 yards, 4TD) is coming off a record performance against TCU where he became the first Big 12 player to rush for four or more touchdowns in a game this season and the first Baylor player to rush for four or more touchdowns is Terrence Ganaway in 2011.
He has clearly emerged as Baylor’s best running back, and his versatility makes him a nightmare for opposing defenses. West Virginia’s defense is allowing 125.4 YPG on the ground, and Washington, along with the help of Dawson Pendergrass (So.) and Richard Reese (Jr.), should be able to get that and more.
Baylor seems to be checking off boxes left and right at the moment, and what better time than now to get a win in Morgantown? For our staff predictions for this game, I picked the Bears to win 35-24.
Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. from Milan-Puskar Stadium, and the game will be televised on ESPN2. Be sure to tune into the 365 Sports pregame show from 9-10:30 a.m. on YouTube or locally on KWTX.
