Inside Texas Answers: Texas vs. West Virginia
Can Texas get it together on the road in Morgantown? Or will bowl eligibility slip away in Steve Sarkisian’s first year? The Inside Texas staff offers predictions.
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Eric Nahlin – Texas, 31-27. Jordan Whittington gives the team an emotional jolt as well as returning a much-needed schematic dimension to the offense. Marcus Washington continues to complement Xavier Worthy to give UT its best wide receiver corps of the season. Casey Thompson takes advantage efficiently enough to put Texas over the top.
Justin Wells – West Virginia, 30-24. Both teams have walked similar paths in 2021 and are looking to finish the season on a high note. Without Bijan Robinson, WVU’s defense will key on Xavier Worthy. But if Texas can get pressure on Jarrett Doege and force turnovers, this game could go either way.
Ian Boyd – Texas, 26-23. West Virginia is also 4-6 and struggles worse than Texas to maximize their best skill players. I think Xavier Worthy makes the difference along with some turnovers and special teams plays.
Joe Cook – West Virginia, 27-21. As I mentioned in our video roundtable, it will be funny to see A) if Texas goes up two scores early and Longhorn fans go “here we go again” or B) if Texas goes down two scores early and Longhorn fans go “here we go again.” These teams are mirror images of each other in a lot of ways, but I’ll go with the home team in this case. However, I’ll also predict a Jordan Whittington touchdown in the process.
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Paul Wadlington – West Virginia, 31-27. There are plenty of ways Texas could win this game against an equally struggling West Virginia, but that’s a theoretical exercise. West Virginia plays enough defense to stymie the Texas offense and the Texas defense has yet to show it can execute much of anything for four quarters. Jordan Whittington’s return is an optimistic X factor.
Hudson Standish – West Virginia, 40-31. Before the season started I chalked this game up as a loss and nothing I’ve seen from the Horns makes me remotely interested in going against that prediction. Sark will scheme up some points to keep things close but Leddie Brown runs rampant for the ‘Eers sealing Texas’ bowl-less fate.
Gerry Hamilton – West Virginia, 27-23. Just no way I can take Texas to win another game this season. Injuries mounting and confidence at all-time low. Will Texas have the quarterback play to win on the road tomorrow against a Power 5 team? That hasn’t happened this season, to this point. West Virginia is 33rd in the nation in rush defense, and Texas is 117th. If Texas can’t establish the run tomorrow, good luck, even against a average as grits 4-6 squad.
Bobby Burton – West Virginia, 27-20. The WVU defense is stout and Texas hasn’t fared well against any halfway decent defense all season long, no matter the health of its starting quarterback. This will likely be no different, which means the Horns will need a strong performance from its own defense. That seems highly unlikely for a unit awash in dysfunction. But the WVU offense is not a top flight unit even though it has pieces that can be strong at times. In the end, too little offense from the Horns spells another defeat.
