West Virginia Mountaineers: By the Numbers

Oklahoma hits the road on Saturday looking to become bowl eligible in Brent Venables' first season back in Norman.

Entering Game 10, the Oklahoma Sooners are still looking to get bowl eligible.

OU (5-4 overall, 2-4 Big 12) fell 38-35 last week to the Baylor as Dave Aranda’s Bears ran all over the Sooner defense.

Brent Venables will have a chance to punch his ticket to his first bowl game as a head coach this weekend in Morgantown, where Oklahoma will face off with the last place team in the Big 12, West Virginia (3-6, 1-5).

Neal Brown’s Mountaineers are fresh off a 31-14 loss to Iowa State last week, but West Virginia has been a different team inside the friendly confines of Milan Puskar Stadium this year.

45.2

West Virginia quarterback JT Daniels has had an up-and-down season under offensive coordinator Graham Harrell :: Bryon Houlgrave / The Register, Des Moines Register-USA TODAY NETWORK

Following last week’s loss to the Cyclones, West Virginia took over sole possession of last place in the Big 12.

But the Mountaineers’ struggles haven’t been due to a lack of offense at home.

In its four home contests this season, West Virginia has scored 45.2 points per game, including a 43-40 upset win over Baylor on Oct. 13 and a narrow 41-31 loss to the No. 4-ranked TCU Horned Frogs two weeks ago.

Quarterback JT Daniels has thrown for 307.8 yards per game at home, tossing seven touchdowns and three interceptions.

The Mountaineer run game has also been potent at home, rushing for 172.7 yards per game in conference play at Milan Puskar Stadium.

Though offensive coordinator Graham Harrell has distinct Air Raid roots, West Virginia could have success against an OU rushing defense that enters the week as the No. 119-ranked unit in the country.

71.4

Mountaineers wide receiver Bryce Ford-Wheaton leads WVU with 605 receiving yards this season  :: BRYAN TERRY / THE OKLAHOMAN-Imagn Content Services, LLC

For the second straight week, the Sooners will be squaring off against an opponent who is unafraid to gamble on fourth down.

Brown has trusted Harrell and the Mountaineer offense to go for it on 21 fourth downs this season, and Brown’s faith has been rewarded.

West Virginia has converted on 71.4 percent of its fourth down attempts this year, which is the 12th-best mark nationally.

Last week Oklahoma was unable to come up with any game-changing plays on the critical down, allowing Baylor to convert on all three fourth down conversion attempts.

The Bears then turned two of those conversions into touchdowns later in the drive, seizing the momentum and forcing the Sooners to play from behind for most of the afternoon.

OU’s mentality will be tested once again this week, as the Mountaineers will likely force the defense to make stops across four downs instead of Oklahoma simply needing to string together three good plays to get off the field.

276.7

Oklahoma wide receiver Marvin Mims could be crucial in taking advantage of a porous WVU passing defense on Saturday  :: NATHAN J FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

While the West Virginia offense has been difficult to slow down at times this year, the Mountaineer defense has leaked points.

Teams are having plenty of success through the air, as WVU is ranked No. 118 nationally in passing defense by giving up 276.7 yards per game through the air.

The Sooners are a run-first team, handing the ball off to running back Eric Gray 15.5 times per game, but the opportunities should be there for Dillon Gabriel to have success in the passing game.

Gabriel will have to limit his mistakes, however, coming fresh off a three interception performance last week against Baylor.

West Virginia’s rushing defense still gives up 137.3 yards per game, giving the OU offensive line plenty of reason to think they can have success on the ground in Morgantown.

Kickoff between the Sooners and the Mountaineers is scheduled for 11 a.m., and the game will be broadcast on FS1.

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