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Behold the 2015 football schedule

November 19, 2014 by Mike Casazza

There’s not much WVU can do about it, and ultimately it might not matter much, but today I’d wager to say the Mountaineers aren’t going to like the 2015 slate.

They open Sept. 5 at home against Georgia Southern. That’s no treat. It’s a dangerous game without many rewards. The Eagles are very good on offense and are loaded with players who will be back next season, though they have five seniors who play on the offensive line. If you’re not familiar with Georgia Southern, understand getting ready for that in the opener is about the total opposite of getting ready of Alabama.

It’s like opening with Navy, except that Georgia Southern uses more unorthodox formations to run Willie Fritz’s personalized triple option. And when that game’s over, that’s the last WVU will see of that offense for the entire season. It’s better than catching it in the middle of the season or with one week to prepare in the non-conference part of the schedule, but there are countless other was you’d rather spend a summer. It’s a wonder teams want to schedule the Eagles.

A week later, WVU plays host to Liberty. While Georgia Southern, which beat Florida last season, is new to the FBS this season after many years as a FCS powerhouse, Liberty is a blossoming FCS program under the guidance of Turner Gill. The Flames are 7-4 and return most of their offense next season, but their defense will be hit hard by graduation. Still, it’s not a punk program.

WVU then has the third week off, and this is where things get weird.

This season is a 15-week season. Next season is a 14 week season. Teams get two open weekends instead of three. Most teams would like one on the week before they start conference play, which begins on Sept. 26. Oklahoma, Kansas State and Iowa State get that privilege.

WVU’s first open week is Sept. 19, between its second and third games. That third game is against Maryland, which will probably have Randy Edsall, on Sept. 26 … the first week of the 11-week Big 12 schedule. Baylor (vs. Rice) and Kansas (at Rutgers) are the other teams playing a non-conference game. Oklahoma State plays at Texas and TCU plays at Texas Tech. The others are off, which, again, is desirable.

If 2015 were a 15-week schedule, the other two open weeks would, ideally, come after four or five conference games and then on the final weekend of the regular season, just to get a head start on recruiting. It’s a shorter season, so teams can’t pick and beg as much. For competitive purposes, the open week during the season is probably more beneficial, but having that final weekend off to recruit is a big deal.

Oklahoma, Iowa State, Kansas, TCU, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech get that one. In the second season of the College Football playoff and the first after the frontloaded schedule and the lack of a championship game was put in the crosshairs, the Big 12 is curiously playing just two games Dec. 5: Texas at Baylor, WVU at Kansas State.

The Sooners and Cyclones get what would seem to be the most coach-friendly deals with one open week at the start of conference plays and one at the end, but they’re forced to play their nine-conference games without a break.

WVU and Baylor get neither the open week to start or finish. Every other team gets one, the other or both.

As for the Mountaineers (and the Bears), they’re playing 10 games in the 11 weeks allotted for nine conference games. (So is Kansas, which has the game at Rutgers and then its entire conference schedule in succession before having the Dec. 5 weekend off, which sounds brutal.) WVU’s second open week comes Oct. 24, but only because it’s playing at TCU on a Thursday night five days later. As such, the Mountaineers play once (TCU) in the time between playing at Baylor Oct. 17 and playing host to Texas Tech Nov. 7, which makes the stretch of six straight games to close the season a little easier to navigate.