WVU Football Gains Rare Bowl Game Projection Ahead of 2026 Season

As Rich Rodriguez’s WVU football team turns up their preparation for the upcoming season, one national outlet is moving towards a somewhat positive prediction for the Mountaineers in 2026.

After constantly hearing about how they may suffer the same fate as the 2025 group, West Virginia will now enter the new season hoping to take step in the right direction in the second year of Rodriguez’s return tenure. ESPN has WVU earning the right to have a postseason, even if not the one that results in a shot to play for a national championship.

According to ESPN’s latest bowl projections, the Mountaineers are slated to face off against Liberty in the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl. Making a bowl game would be the 42nd in the history of the WVU program.

However, one prominent ESPN analyst is even willing to go beyond just reaching bowl eligibility.

ESPN’s Stanford Steve, a fixture on the network’s College GameDay show, is willing to go out on a limb and say WVU can shock the college football world this fall.

College GameDay Analyst Makes Really Bold Prediction About WVU Football

During an appearance on The Ryen Russillo Show, he threw out West Virginia as his answer when was asked which team could dethrone Texas Tech as Big 12 champion.

“I’m going to go way off the cuff, and if I had to do a quarterback, my favorite one, I look at Rich Rod and Michael Hawkins coming in. Rich Rod with a running quarterback, and then bringing in [Cam] Cook, the NCAA leader…you want a mini Pat White and Steve Slaton back in Morgantown? I think West Virginia is built to surprise a lot of teams,” he said.

“I like the teams that they get at home, so I’m going to say West Virginia plays in the Big 12 title game. That’s my big surprise. I just think to beat Texas Tech, you need something different and possibly outscore ‘em. I’ll take my chances with a West Virginia team with Hawkins, who I think can really succeed in that offense. I know they’re starving there and I think a big year is coming in Morgantown.”

But one bold prediction isn’t going to stop Rodriguez selling a “prove everyone wrong” message to his team.

He even reiterated that he doesn’t care what people outside the program have to say about his team when he opened fall camp in early August. He knows it doesn’t really matter, and many of the greatest teams in school history were viewed as a surprise success by the rest of the country.

So what exactly did Rodriguez tell his 2026 group about what’s being said – those predicting West Virginia to finish towards the bottom of the Big 12? Well, he’s hoping they use it as extra motivation.

WVU head coach Rich Rodriguez looks on after winning the 2025 season opener – his first win as West Virginia’s head coach since 2007. (WVSN photo by William Wotring)

“I told the team there’s not a lot of people predicting us to not do very well, and I hope that’s motivation. It should be motivation when people are picking last or next to last,” responded Rodriguez during his first when faced with a question about the offseason projections.

Rodriguez has continuously expressed a belief in the 2026 West Virginia Mountaineers, pointing to the talent and experience he acquired. He feels this year’s team has a legitimate shot at being a Cinderella story and contending, not only just in the Big 12, but nationally.

Only time will tell if Rodriguez is right or if the doubters are vindicated.

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