# 2022 West Virginia Mountaineers football team

The 2022 West Virginia Mountaineers football team represented West Virginia University in the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Mountaineers played their home games at Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown, West Virginia, and competed in the Big 12 Conference. They were led by fourth-year head coach Neal Brown.

## Preseason
### Big 12 media poll

The preseason poll was released on July 7, 2022.
* First place votes in
Big 12 media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | Baylor (17) | 365 |
| 2 | Oklahoma (12) | 354 |
| 3 | Oklahoma State (9) | 342 |
| 4 | Texas (2) | 289 |
| 5 | Kansas State | 261 |
| 6 | Iowa State (1) | 180 |
| 7 | TCU | 149 |
| 8 | West Virginia | 147 |
| 9 | Texas Tech | 119 |
| 10 | Kansas | 48 |

### Preseason Big-12 awards

2022 Preseason All-Big 12 teams
| Position | Player | Class |
| Offense |||
| OL | Zach Frazier | Sophomore |
| Defense |||
| DL | Dante Stills | Senior |
| DB | Charles Woods | Senior |
| Special teams |||
| K | Casey Legg | RS Senior |
Source:

## Offseason
### Transfer portal
#### Outgoing transfers

| Name | Pos. | New school |
| Lyn-J Dixon | RB | Tennessee |
| Ja'Corey Hammett | LB | None |
| John Hughes | OT | Rice |
| Nicktroy Fortune | CB | UTSA |
| Akheem Mesidor | DL | Miami |
| Josh Chandler | LB | Colorado |
| Tavis Lee | LB | None |
| Daryl Porter | CB | Miami |
| Charles Finley | TE | None |
| Isaiah Esdale | WR | Rice |
| Sean Ryan | WR | Rutgers |
| Jackie Matthews | CB | Mississippi State |
| Winston Wright | WR | Florida State |
| Jarret Doege | QB | Western Kentucky |
| TJ Banks | TE | Akron |
| VanDarius Cowan | LB | Maryland |
| Parker Moorer | OT | East Carolina |
| Sam Brown | WR | Houston |
| Avarius Sparrow | RB | Middle Tennessee |
| Devell Washington | LB | Northern Iowa |
| Darel Middleton | DL | Texas Tech |
| Kerry Martin | S | Akron |
| Eddie Watkins | LB | Alabama A&M |
| James Thomas | LB | None |
| Kaulin Parris | K | None |

#### Incoming transfers

| Name | Pos. | Previous school |
| Wesley McCormick | CB | JMU |
| Rashad Ajayi | CB | Colorado State |
| Tirek Austin-Cave | LB | Miami |
| Jasir Cox | OLB | NDSU |
| Michael Lockhart | DL | Georgia Tech |
| JT Daniels | QB | Georgia |
| Marcis Floyd | CB | Murray State |
| Parker Grothaus | K | Florida State |
| Brian Polendey | TE | Colorado State |
| Zeiqui Lawton | SDE | Cincinnati |
| Sy'Veon Wilkerson | RB | Delaware State |

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 1 | 7:00 p.m. | at No. 17 Pittsburgh* | Acrisure StadiumPittsburgh, PA (Backyard Brawl) | ESPN | L 31–38 | 70,622 |
| September 10 | 6:00 p.m. | Kansas | Milan Puskar StadiumMorgantown, WV | ESPN+ | L 42–55 $^{OT}$ | 52,188 |
| September 17 | 1:00 p.m. | Towson* | Milan Puskar StadiumMorgantown, WV | ESPN+ | W 65–7 | 50,703 |
| September 22 | 7:30 p.m. | at Virginia Tech* | Lane StadiumBlacksburg, VA (rivalry) | ESPN | W 33–10 | 65,632 |
| October 1 | 7:30 p.m. | at Texas | Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial StadiumAustin, TX | FS1 | L 20–38 | 100,740 |
| October 13 | 7:00 p.m. | Baylor | Milan Puskar StadiumMorgantown, WV (Stripe the Stadium) | FS1 | W 43–40 | 45,293 |
| October 22 | 3:00 p.m. | at Texas Tech | Jones AT&T StadiumLubbock, TX | FS1 | L 10–48 | 56,530 |
| October 29 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 7 TCU | Milan Puskar StadiumMorgantown, WV | ESPN | L 31–41 | 50,426 |
| November 5 | 3:30 p.m. | at Iowa State | Jack Trice StadiumAmes, IA | ESPN+ | L 14–31 | 56,109 |
| November 12 | 12:00 p.m. | Oklahoma | Milan Puskar StadiumMorgantown, WV (True Blue) | FS1 | W 23–20 | 50,281 |
| November 19 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 15 Kansas State | Milan Puskar StadiumMorgantown, WV | ESPN+ | L 31–48 | 37,055 |
| November 26 | 12:00 p.m. | at Oklahoma State | Boone Pickens StadiumStillwater, OK | ESPN2 | W 24–19 | 52,353 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll (and CFP Rankings, after November 1) - Released prior to gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||

## Game summaries
### At No. 17 Pittsburgh (College GameDay)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Mountaineers | 0 | 10 | 7 | 14 | 31 |
| No. 17 Panthers | 3 | 7 | 14 | 14 | 38 |
at Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
* Date: September 1
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny, 82 °F (28 °C)
* Game attendance: 70,622
* Referee: David Alvarez
* TV announcers (ESPN): Matt Barrie, Louis Riddick and Harry Lyles Jr.
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | WVU | PITT |
| First downs | 22 | 20 |
| Total yards | 404 | 384 |
| Rushing yards | 190 | 76 |
| Passing yards | 214 | 308 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 27:29 | 32:31 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| West Virginia | Passing | JT Daniels | 23/40, 214 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| West Virginia | Rushing | CJ Donaldson | 7 rushes, 125 yards, TD |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Bryce Ford-Wheaton | 9 receptions, 97 yards, 2 TD |
| Pittsburgh | Passing | Kedon Slovis | 16/24, 308 yards, TD |
| Pittsburgh | Rushing | Rodney Hammond Jr. | 16 rushes, 74 yards, TD |
| Pittsburgh | Receiving | Jared Wayne | 3 receptions, 89 yards |

### Kansas

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Jayhawks | 0 | 21 | 14 | 7 | 13 | 55 |
| Mountaineers | 14 | 14 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 42 |
at Milan Puskar Stadium, Morgantown, West Virginia
* Date: September 10
* Game time: 6:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Cloudy, 69 °F (21 °C)
* Game attendance: 52,188
* Referee: Kevin Mar
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Courtney Lyle and Forest Conoly
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | KU | WVU |
| First downs | 24 | 27 |
| Total yards | 419 | 511 |
| Rushing yards | 200 | 146 |
| Passing yards | 219 | 365 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 2 |
| Time of possession | 27:33 | 32:27 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Kansas | Passing | Jalon Daniels | 18/29, 219 yards, 3 TD |
| Kansas | Rushing | Jalon Daniels | 12 rushes, 85 yards |
| Kansas | Receiving | Luke Grimm | 6 receptions, 66 yards |
| West Virginia | Passing | JT Daniels | 27/39, 365 yards, 3 TD, INT |
| West Virginia | Rushing | Tony Mathis Jr. | 16 rushes, 59 yards |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Bryce Ford-Wheaton | 11 receptions, 152 yards, 2 TD |

### Towson

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Tigers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Mountaineers | 21 | 24 | 6 | 14 | 65 |
at Milan Puskar Stadium, Morgantown, West Virginia
* Date: September 17
* Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny, 77 °F (25 °C)
* Game attendance: 50,703
* Referee: Dan Scanlan
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Noah Reed and Adam Breneman
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | TOW | WVU |
| First downs | 11 | 32 |
| Total yards | 180 | 624 |
| Rushing yards | 82 | 316 |
| Passing yards | 98 | 308 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 24:00 | 36:00 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Towson | Passing | Tyrrell Pigrome | 7/14, 59 yards |
| Towson | Rushing | Devin Matthews | 7 rushes, 38 yards |
| Towson | Receiving | Da'Kendall James | 5 receptions, 44 yards |
| West Virginia | Passing | JT Daniels | 16/24, 174 yards, TD |
| West Virginia | Rushing | Tony Mathis Jr. | 17 rushes, 104 yards, 2 TD |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Cortez Braham | 5 receptions, 60 yards |

### At Virginia Tech

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Mountaineers | 3 | 10 | 3 | 17 | 33 |
| Hokies | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
at Lane Stadium, Blacksburg, Virginia
* Date: September 22
* Game time: 7:30 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny, 61 °F (16 °C)
* Game attendance: 65,632
* Referee: Scott Campbell
* TV announcers (ESPN): Matt Barrie, Louis Riddick and Harry Lyles Jr.
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | WVU | VT |
| First downs | 32 | 14 |
| Total yards | 421 | 228 |
| Rushing yards | 218 | 35 |
| Passing yards | 203 | 193 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 38:44 | 21:16 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| West Virginia | Passing | JT Daniels | 20/30, 203 yards, TD |
| West Virginia | Rushing | C. J. Donaldson | 23 rushes, 106 yards |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Kaden Prather | 6 receptions, 69 yards |
| Virginia Tech | Passing | Grant Wells | 16/35, 193 yards, TD, INT |
| Virginia Tech | Rushing | Jalen Holsten | 4 rushes, 18 yards |
| Virginia Tech | Receiving | Kaleb Smith | 5 receptions, 70 yards, TD |

### At Texas

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Mountaineers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 13 | 20 |
| Longhorns | 14 | 14 | 7 | 3 | 38 |
at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium, Austin, Texas
* Date: October 1
* Game time: 7:30 p.m. EDT / 6:30 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 100,740
* Referee: Michael Vandervelde
* TV announcers (FS1): Tim Brando and Spencer Tillman
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | WVU | TEX |
| First downs | 22 | 25 |
| Total yards | 314 | 446 |
| Rushing yards | 61 | 110 |
| Passing yards | 253 | 336 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 32:10 | 27:50 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| West Virginia | Passing | JT Daniels | 29/48, 253 yards, TD |
| West Virginia | Rushing | Justin Johnson Jr. | 10 rushes, 42 yards, TD |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Bryce Ford-Wheaton | 8 receptions, 93 yards |
| Texas | Passing | Hudson Card | 21/27, 303 yards, 3 TD |
| Texas | Rushing | Bijan Robinson | 21 rushes, 101 yards, TD |
| Texas | Receiving | Xavier Worthy | 7 receptions, 119 yards, 2 TD |

### Baylor

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bears | 3 | 21 | 7 | 9 | 40 |
| Mountaineers | 7 | 10 | 14 | 12 | 43 |
at Milan Puskar Stadium, Morgantown, West Virginia
* Date: October 13
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Clear, 54 °F (12 °C)
* Game attendance: 45,293
* Referee: Kevin Mar
* TV announcers (FS1): Noah Eagle and Mark Helfrich
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | BAY | WVU |
| First downs | 28 | 26 |
| Total yards | 590 | 500 |
| Rushing yards | 169 | 217 |
| Passing yards | 421 | 283 |
| Turnovers | 4 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 29:35 | 30:25 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Baylor | Passing | Blake Shapen | 14/22, 326 yards, 2 TD |
| Baylor | Rushing | Richard Reese | 13 rushes, 57 yards |
| Baylor | Receiving | Gavin Holmes | 7 receptions, 210 yards, TD |
| West Virginia | Passing | JT Daniels | 24/37, 283 yards, TD, INT |
| West Virginia | Rushing | Tony Mathis Jr. | 22 rushes, 163 yards, 2 TD |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Kaden Prather | 8 receptions, 109 yards, TD |

### At Texas Tech

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Mountaineers | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| Red Raiders | 14 | 3 | 14 | 17 | 48 |
at Jones AT&T Stadium and Cody Campbell Field, Lubbock, Texas
* Date: October 22
* Game time: 3:00 p.m. EDT / 2:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Cloudy, 83 °F (28 °C)
* Game attendance: 53,560
* Referee: Steve Baron
* TV announcers (FS1): Noah Eagle and Mark Helfrich
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | WVU | TTU |
| First downs | 19 | 33 |
| Total yards | 282 | 594 |
| Rushing yards | 73 | 239 |
| Passing yards | 209 | 355 |
| Turnovers | 4 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 26:09 | 33:51 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| West Virginia | Passing | JT Daniels | 23/36, 194 yards, TD, 3 INT |
| West Virginia | Rushing | Tony Mathis Jr. | 7 rushes, 33 yards |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Bryce Ford-Wheaton | 5 receptions, 53 yards, TD |
| Texas Tech | Passing | Behren Morton | 28/45, 325 yards, 2 TD |
| Texas Tech | Rushing | Tahj Brooks | 17 rushes, 107 yards, 2 TD |
| Texas Tech | Receiving | Xavier White | 8 receptions, 139 yards, TD |

### No. 7 TCU

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 7 Horned Frogs | 7 | 21 | 0 | 13 | 41 |
| Mountaineers | 7 | 14 | 3 | 7 | 31 |
at Milan Puskar Stadium, Morgantown, WV
* Date: October 29
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Clear • Temperature: 57 °F (14 °C) • Wind: NE 4 miles per hour (6.4 km/h)
* Game attendance: 50,426
* Referee: Kevin Mar
* TV announcers (ESPN): Bob Wischusen and Roddy Jones
* Box score, Recap
Statistics
| Statistics | TCU | WVU |
| First downs | 17 | 25 |
| Total yards | 494 | 430 |
| Rushing yards | 153 | 155 |
| Passing yards | 341 | 275 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 2 |
| Time of possession | 23:44 | 36:16 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| TCU | Passing | Max Duggan | 16/28, 341 yards, 3 TD, INT |
| TCU | Rushing | Kendre Miller | 12 rushes, 120 yards, TD |
| TCU | Receiving | Taye Barber | 4 receptions, 99 yards, TD |
| West Virginia | Passing | JT Daniels | 23/39, 275 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| West Virginia | Rushing | CJ Donaldson | 19 rushes, 104 yards, 2 TD |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Sam James | 6 receptions, 95 yards |

### At Iowa State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Mountaineers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| Cyclones | 3 | 7 | 0 | 21 | 31 |
at Jack Trice Stadium • Ames, IA
* Date: November 5
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 48 °F (9 °C)
* Game attendance: 56,109
* Referee: Scott Campbell
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Mark Neely, Chad Brown, Shane Sparks
Statistics
| Statistics | WVU | ISU |
| First downs | 11 | 26 |
| Total yards | 200 | 391 |
| Rushing yards | 76 | 172 |
| Passing yards | 124 | 219 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 21:45 | 38:15 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| West Virginia | Passing | JT Daniels | 8/22, 81 yards, TD, INT |
| West Virginia | Rushing | Justin Johnson Jr. | 12 rushes, 48 yards |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Bryce Ford-Wheaton | 3 receptions, 38 yards, TD |
| Iowa State | Passing | Hunter Dekkers | 24/36, 219 yards, 2 TD |
| Iowa State | Rushing | Deon Silas | 6 rushes, 77 yards |
| Iowa State | Receiving | Xavier Hutchinson | 10 receptions, 123 yards, TD |

### Oklahoma

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Sooners | 0 | 12 | 8 | 0 | 20 |
| Mountaineers | 0 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 23 |
at Milan Puskar Stadium • Morgantown, WV
* Date: November 12
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 51 °F (11 °C)
* Game attendance: 50,281
* Referee: David Alvarez
* TV announcers (FS1): Adam Alexander (play-by-play), Devin Gardner (analysts)
Statistics
| Statistics | OKLA | WVU |
| First downs | 22 | 25 |
| Total yards | 426 | 406 |
| Rushing yards | 236 | 203 |
| Passing yards | 190 | 230 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 2 |
| Time of possession | 22:45 | 37:15 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Oklahoma | Passing | Dillon Gabriel | 17/28, 190 yards |
| Oklahoma | Rushing | Eric Gray | 25 carries, 211 yards, 2 TD's |
| Oklahoma | Receiving | Jalil Farooq | 5 receptions, 49 yards |
| West Virginia | Passing | Garrett Greene | 12/22, 138 yards, 1 TD |
| West Virginia | Rushing | Garrett Greene | 14 carries, 119 yards, 2 TD |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Bryce Ford-Wheaton | 7 receptions, 36 yards, 1 TD |

### No. 15 Kansas State

| Pregame line | Over/under |
| K−State –8.0 | 54.5 |
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 15 Wildcats | 28 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 48 |
| Mountaineers | 19 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 31 |
at Milan Puskar Stadium • Morgantown, WV
* Date: November 19
* Game time: 2:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 34 °F (1 °C) • Wind: W 10 MPH
* Game attendance: 37,055
* Referee: Derek Anderson
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Mark Neely (play-by-play), Barrett Brooks (analyst), Tori Petry (reporter)
Statistics
| Statistics | KSU | WVU |
| First downs | 21 | 21 |
| Total yards | 437 | 369 |
| Rushing yards | 143 | 153 |
| Passing yards | 294 | 216 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 2 |
| Time of possession | 31:37 | 28:23 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Kansas State | Passing | Will Howard | 19/27, 294 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| Kansas State | Rushing | DJ Giddens | 12 carries, 78 yards, TD |
| Kansas State | Receiving | Malik Knowles | 6 receptions, 111 yards, TD |
| West Virginia | Passing | Garrett Greene | 15/27, 204 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT |
| West Virginia | Rushing | Jaylen Anderson | 7 carries, 69 yards |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Sam James | 3 receptions, 102 yards, 3 TD |

### At Oklahoma State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Mountaineers | 7 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 24 |
| Cowboys | 0 | 10 | 9 | 0 | 19 |
at Boone Pickens Stadium • Stillwater, OK
* Date: November 26
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Rain • Temperature: 47 °F (8 °C)
* Game attendance: 52,353
* Referee: Tuta Salaam
* TV announcers (ESPN2): Jay Alter (play-by-play), Charles Arbuckle (analyst)
Statistics
| Statistics | WVU | OKST |
| First downs | 15 | 20 |
| Total yards | 327 | 358 |
| Rushing yards | 250 | 180 |
| Passing yards | 77 | 178 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 28:43 | 31:17 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| West Virginia | Passing | Garrett Greene | 8/14, 48 yards, 1 INT |
| West Virginia | Rushing | Jaylen Anderson | 15 carries, 155 yards, 2 TD |
| West Virginia | Receiving | Bryce Ford-Wheaton | 2 receptions, 22 yards |
| Oklahoma State | Passing | Garret Rangel | 18/42, 178 yards |
| Oklahoma State | Rushing | Ollie Gordon II | 17 carries, 136 yards, 1 TD |
| Oklahoma State | Receiving | Brennan Presley | 5 receptions, 77 yards |

## Coaching staff

| Coach | Title | Year at West Virginia | Previous job |
| Neal Brown | Head coach | 4th | Troy |
| Matt Moore | Assistant head coach/OL | 4th | Troy (Co-OC/OL) |
| Graham Harrell | OC/QB | 1st | USC (OC/QB) |
| Chad Scott | RB/RGC | 4th | Louisville (RB) |
| Jeff Koonz | ILB/ST | 3rd | Ole Miss (ILB) |
| Jordan Lesley | Co-DC/OLB | 4th | Troy (DL) |
| Andrew Jackson | DL | 2nd | Old Dominion (DL) |
| Sean Reagan | TE | 4th | Troy (Co-OC/QB) |
| Tony Washington | WR | 1st | Coastal Carolina (WR) |
| Dontae Wright | S | 3rd | Western Michigan (S) |

## Players drafted into the NFL

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL Club |
| 6 | 213 | Dante Stills | DT | Arizona Cardinals |