The Mountaineers have not played in a game broadcast by the network since Fox began its Big Noon Kickoff in 2019. As with ESPN’s College Gameday, Fox sends a crew of former coaches and players on site for the network’s main game at noon to prepare fans for kickoff.
This year, Fox has chosen the WVU-Penn State game in Week 1 in Morgantown as the site of the festivities, and fans can arrive early to watch Urban Meyer, Mark Ingram, Matt Leinart and Brady Quinn dissect the week’s events.
Although this is WVU’s first time playing a major role in the Big Noon Kickoff game, they have been featured on ESPN’s College Gameday game of the week multiple times before. However, no network has been on-site in Morgantown since 2014, when TCU played in town.
Let’s take a look at the history of College Gameday and WVU.
September 24, 2011 – Morgantown, WV No. 2 LSU at No. 16 West Virginia
This was the first time ESPN brought its show to Morgantown to compete in a ranked battle at a Gold Rush Night game at Mountaineer Field. The game featured some of the greatest Mountaineer players of all time, such as Geno Smith, Tavon Austin and Stedman Bailey.
LSU featured Odell Beckham Jr. and Tyrann Mathieu and eventually defeated WVU by a final score of 47-21.
November 1, 2014 – Morgantown, WV No. 10 TCU vs. No. 20 West Virginia
ESPN decided to bring the show back to Morgantown three years after the LSU game for a Big 12 top 20 matchup against TCU. The game was back and forth, with WVU leading until the final second of the game when TCU kicked a 37-yard field goal as time expired to win 31-30.
The Horned Frogs were one of the top teams in the country at the time, led by quarterback Trevone Boykin. This would be the last time College Gameday was in Morgantown.
October 7, 2017 – Fort Worth, TX No. 8 TCU vs. No. 23 West Virginia
In a rematch of the 2014 College Gameday game, ESPN has once again chosen TCU vs. WVU, this time in Forth Worth for another showdown between the Top 25.
Will Grier came to Fort Worth and threw for 366 yards and three touchdowns, but it wasn’t enough as WVU fell again 31-24 after TCU scored a touchdown to take the lead in the final minutes of the game.
September 1, 2022 – Pittsburgh, PA No. 17 Pittsburgh vs. West Virginia
The most recent and possibly most heartbreaking College Gameday experience for WVU fans was the revival of the Backyard Brawl two seasons ago. Coming off an ACC title, Pitt was ranked in the top 25 and WVU had a lot of hype surrounding new transfer QB JT Daniels.
After leading by seven points in the fourth quarter with possession, WVU let Pitt get back into the game and took the lead with a pick-six in the final minutes of the game. In heartbreaking fashion, WVU lost 38-31.
However, fans can also put a positive side to the game: The Mountaineers discovered a freshman in star running back CJ Donaldson, who ran for 125 yards on seven attempts and scored a touchdown in this game.
The overall record of 0-4 does not bode well for WVU when it comes to broadcasters covering their game before the game. However, those were all ESPN’s College Gameday. The WVU-Penn State game in week one will be the first time in the program’s history that the Mountaineers will be a Big Noon Kickoff. New history can be made.
