Oddsmakers Put WVU Football on Upset Alert at Ohio

Able to overcome early struggles to win big in the season opener, the WVU football team knows they will have to be much better in Week 2. Oddsmakers even seem to be uneasy about West Virginia’s upcoming road trip.

Most major sportsbooks, most notably DraftKings and FanDuel, have the Mountaineers as a slight favorite to mover their record to 2-0. At the open of the new week, WVU sits as a 3.5-point favorite on most books, indicating a close game.

Unlike WVU, Ohio is coming off a loss in their season opener. The Bobcats scored 31 points before falling 34-31 at Rutgers.

It’s certainly possible a high-powered Ohio team at home with a sold out crowd in their favor could upset the Mountaineers.

Can West Virginia avoid disaster in what many are classifying as a “trap game” before Pitt visits Morgantown? Rich Rodriguez will quickly learn the mental fortitude of his team based on how they perform in a tough environment. He also knows they have to be more disciplined and play a cleaner game.

“Well, I’d like to say that was a typical first game, but I don’t know if I’ve ever had or seen three fumbles in four plays. That’s what I think we had. I know we had three straight fumbles. So, we obviously didn’t play well at all in the first half. West Virginia beating West Virginia,” said Rodriguez immediately following WVU’s 45-3 Week 1 win over Robert Morris.

West Virginia Overcomes Rough First Half to Cruise Past Robert Morris

“There were some things we did okay, but you know, obviously not playing like we should’ve and the second half went like it should’ve. So we’ll take the win, learn from it. Obviously, there are a lot of things to clean up and fix, but there are a lot of guys playing for the first time and there are a lot of things we’ve got to do as a staff to be better for next week. We’ll take the win and grow from it and see what happens next.”

Kickoff for the West Virginia Mountaineers (1-0) at the Ohio Bobcats (0-1) from Athens, Ohio is set for 4 pm ET.

Find more coverage of the WVU football program at WV Sports Now.

For a related story, Nicco Marchiol grades as the top Big 12 starting quarterback for Week 1.