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With Oklahoma Game Canceled, WVU Shifts Focus to Potential Bowl Game Appearance

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(Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire)

The West Virginia University football team saw its regular season come to an abrupt end Thursday with the cancellation of Saturday’s home game against No. 11 Oklahoma, but the possibility still exists that the Mountaineers appear in a bowl game this postseason.

WVU announced Thursday it was pausing all football activities and canceling the game against the Sooners due to a COVID surge and contact tracing within the program. Prior to that announcement, however, Mountaineer coach Neal Brown said during his Tuesday press conference that West Virginia (5-4, 4-4 Big 12) was certainly looking forward to a possible postseason invitation if one comes.

“We’ll always discuss those things with the players, but as a staff and as a head coach, we’d be excited about playing,” Brown said. “And I’d feel confident that our guys would too. An opportunity to play in the postseason, that’s the reason you come to college.”

WATCH: Neal Brown Recaps Iowa State, Talks About Moving on to Oklahoma

Brown added during his Tuesday press conference that his only concern about playing in a bowl game would be the continued strain on WVU’s players brought on by more testing and isolation.

“I think the big thing for them is being able to go home and see their families, decompress a little bit,’ Brown said. “Then come back and get into the testing protocol. Our guys are living the dream, playing Division I football, but it’s hard. It’s difficult what they do. It’s a long time, they get mentally to a point where they’re drained and just need a pause.”

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