History is on the side of the Mountaineers as they gear up to play Brigham Young University this Saturday.
The matchup will be the first conference game played between the two teams in history, as BYU joined the Big 12 this season. Both schools sit at 5-3, as whoever wins guarantees bowl eligibility.
None of these factors were at play in their September 2016 matchup which stands as the only matchup between the two schools ever.
As the only time the teams have ever faced off, the game was just the third of the season for both the Mountaineers and the Cougars. West Virginia entered 2-0 to start the season while BYU came in 1-2 after two straight losses to Utah and UCLA the previous two weeks.
With momentum at stake in this early stage of the season, both teams fought for the victory at the neutral site in Landover, Maryland. After matching each other with one touchdown in the first quarter, though, the Mountaineers held the advantage at halftime, winning 21-13.
WVU and BYU both played through their senior quarterbacks, Skyler Howard and Taysom Hill respectively, and in this game, Howard outplayed the now NFL utility. Each quarterback threw one interception in the first half, and Hill threw the only touchdown between the two, but Howard clearly played safer as the Mountaineers pulled ahead.
Hill failed to complete two passes that would force BYU field goals as opposed to touchdowns in the first half and also threw an interception returned for a WVU touchdown. Howard, meanwhile, led the Mountaineers consistently without forcing touchdowns himself, as running back Rushel Shell rushed for both offensive touchdowns in the half.
In the second half, it was a similar story, as the Cougars opened with the first touchdown but were unable to complete the two-point conversion on an incomplete pass from Hill. Skyler Howard scored soon after, rushing for the only other touchdown of the quarter and extending West Virginia’s lead to nine points.
After opening the fourth quarter with Howard’s only passing touchdown of the game, West Virginia held a 35-19 lead over the Cougars, but the game was not over yet.
BYU matched WVU’s touchdown on the next possession but once again went for the two-point conversion and failed. After stopping the Mountaineers in just three plays for five yards, they did it again, as Hill threw a touchdown to freshman receiver Moroni Laulu-Pututau, shrinking the West Virginia lead to 35-32.
From there, all offensive efforts ended for both teams. While West Virginia found themselves completely stuck, punting after three plays once again and fumbling on a drive in their next possession, the Mountaineers shut down Taysom Hill.
Hill threw two more interceptions in the fourth quarter to stop his own comeback and give West Virginia the win, 35-32.
Howard finished ahead in the quarterback matchup, as he completed 31 of his 40 throws for 332 yards, a touchdown, and an interception while Hill completed 23 of 35 attempts for 241 yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions. In the run game, Hill gained 97 yards in 14 carries while Howard ran for 27 yards and a touchdown in 11 carries.
While West Virginia won the third of what would be a six game winning streak, BYU ended their own losing streak there. The Cougars would go on to lose just one more game in the season to No. 14 Boise State to finish with a 9-4 record.
West Virginia ended their season one win better than BYU, finishing 10-3 on the year.
BYU and West Virginia will kickoff from Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. and will be televised on FS1.
