WVU Football Moves Up in ESPN FPI, Still Sits Behind Teams They Beat

Another Big 12 road win caused WVU to move up a few spots in the latest ESPN FPI (Football Power Index). However, and possibly due to the ugly nature of the win, the Mountaineers only advanced from No. 54 to No. 51 after their triumph over Cincinnati.

And now looking to keep building on a win streak, West Virginia opens the new week with a couple major sportsbooks waffling on their upcoming matchup against Baylor.

As far as the two top major sportsbooks, DraftKings had WVU as a 1-point favorite on Sunday, but that moved to Baylor with an 2-point edge on Monday. Also, FanDuel opened with the Mountaineers as a 2.5-point underdog, but that shifted to just -1.5, also as of Monday.

A win is a win, but WVU head coach Neal Brown still left Cincinnati disappointed with one key aspect of his team. West Virginia beat the Bearcats on Saturday afternoon, 31-24, but the big number on the scoreboard was thanks to multiple defensive touchdowns, not an offensive showing to be proud of.

Multiple Defensive Touchdowns Lead WVU to Ugly Win at Cincinnati

Even while being happy about holding on for the win, Brown couldn’t ignore the noticeable struggles on the offensive side of the ball. A couple weeks after Nicco Marchiol performed admirably in Arizona, he was only able to total 174 yards against Cincinnati.

Marchiol completed 9-of-15 passes for 156 yards through the air and then added 18 yards on the ground. It also took until the final minutes of the first half for the WVU offense to find the end zone, granted that came after a pick-6 from earlier in the game.

Strangely enough, Cincinnati only fell three spots themselves and remains ranked ahead of West Virginia at No. 43.

For a notable jump, Kansas skyrocketed all the way to inside the top 30 at No. 29 after beating Iowa State 45-36. Despite the big win, the Jayhawks are still only 3-6 on the year, including a loss to WVU.

For a related story, Saturday marked the first time in over 20 years WVU scored multiple defensive touchdowns in a game.