West Virginia Football: Everyone Taking Mountaineers Lightly

West Virginia football is being taken way too lightly this season, and few are giving them any chance to win the Big 12 and make it to the College Football Playoff.

Too many seem to think that the Mountaineers are joke, but that’s because they get no love and everyone writes them off as soon as the season starts. This makes WVU a very dangerous team to face for anyone, Especially this year. No one that they have faced has taken them seriously, and it’s showed in the results of each game.

The one team who took West Virginia seriously was Kansas State, and they couldn’t come up with a win against Dana Holgorsen’s team. The result was much closer then Mountaineer fans wanted to see, but it did give everyone a chance to see will and toughness of this WVU team.

I’ve said from the beginning of the season that if they don’t win eight games this year, then that will be the end for head coach Dana Holgorsen.

Jul 20, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers head coach Dana Holgorsen speaks to the media during the Big 12 Media Days at Omni Dallas. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

The team is playing for their head coach, and it is really showing on the defensive side of the ball. They have had a “bend but don’t break” attitude. The defense has held teams to field goals instead of touchdowns, which is what every coach loves to see from his team. This gives the offense time to shine as well.

WVU has had three rushers with over 150 yards and three touchdowns. This allows for the wide receivers and Skyler Howard to bust it out and go deep down the field. Howard is averaging 357.9 yards per game, and he’s doing this under the radar. No one is paying attention to how great this WVU team actually is.

The main focal point for this offense, especially in the passing game, is that of wideout Shelton Gibson. The junior has really shown that he is the real deal. To try and follow in the shadows of Kevin White – now with the Oakland Raiders – is a big task to take in and of it’s own. But Gibson has shown that he has learned from the Morgantown great.

Gibson is almost to his 2015 full season totals in every category. What really amazes me is that he is averaging 20.5 yards per catch this season alone. His long is 57 yards this year. Now I get that it’s lower then his 70 yard catch last season, but we have a lot of football to play.

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WVU will be a playoff contender this season, weather anyone wants to see it or not. With everyone not giving them a chance to win, this makes them a very dangerous team to play. If opponents keep overlooking the Mountaineers, the Big 12 title will be in their grasp.