The 2008 West Virginia Mountaineers football team competed on behalf of West Virginia University during the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Bill Stewart, who took over after he led the Mountaineers to a 2008 Fiesta Bowl victory over the #3 Oklahoma Sooners as the interim head coach after the departure of former head coach Rich Rodriguez. The team finished the season with a 9â€"4 record and a win over North Carolina in the Meineke Car Care Bowl.
Schedule
January 2, 2008 - #11 West Virginia vs. #3 Oklahoma [Tostitos Fiesta Bowl] - January 2, 2008 - #11 West Virginia vs. #3 Oklahoma - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl - Glendale, Arizona.
Coaching staff
Head coach Bill Stewart is the Mountaineers 32nd head coach in school history. He returns defensive coordinator Jeff Casteel and defensive line coach Bill Kirelawich. His new hirings are associate head coach, recruiting coordinator, fullback, and tight ends coach Doc Holliday, assistant head coach and safeties coach Steve Dunlap, running backs coach Chris Beatty, offensive line coach Dave Johnson, and cornerbacks coach David Lockwood. Jeff Mullen, former quarterbacks coach at Wake Forest, was announced as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. The receivers coach was named on January 29, Lonnie Galloway, the receivers coach from Appalachian State.
Spring Game
The Gold & Blue Spring Game was held on Saturday, April 19, 2008, at Mountaineer Field. A record crowd of over 25,000 fans attended as the Gold defeated the Blue 59â€"15. Kicker Pat McAfee was four-for-four on field goals with a long of 47 yards, and starting quarterback Pat White and backup Jarrett Brown both had touchdown passes. Brown also had a four-yard touchdown run and two backup kickers hit a field goal each. The defense recorded six sacks in total, and walk-on linebacker Najee Good led all tacklers with 10 tackles. Sophomore linebacker Pat Lazear had the only interception on the game off of a White pass. Backup runningback led all ballcarriers with 54 yards on 17 carries while sophomore Brandon Hogan led all receivers with 49 yards on 6 catches.
Recruiting class
Rankings
Game summaries
Syracuse
- Noel Devine 18 Rush, 188 Yds
Auburn
Statistics
Team
Scores by quarter
Offense
Rushing
Passing
Receiving
Defense
Special teams
References
