2002 West Virginia
9–4 (6–1 Big East), coached by Rich Rodriguez, finished No. 25 in the AP poll. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest upsetBeat No. 13 Virginia Tech 21–18Nov 20
Virginia Tech was ranked No. 13, above it.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31 | vs Chattanooga | W 56–7 | 80% |
| Sep 7 | at 25Wisconsin | L 17–34 | 32% |
| Sep 14 | at Cincinnati | W 35–32 | 34% |
| Sep 28 | vs East Carolina | W 37–17 | 54% |
| Oct 5 | vs Maryland | L 17–48 | 51% |
| Oct 12 | at Rutgers | W 40–0 | 67% |
| Oct 19 | vs Syracuse | W 34–7 | 53% |
| Oct 26 | vs 1Miami | L 23–40 | 21% |
| Nov 2 | at Temple | W 46–20 | 58% |
| Nov 9 | vs Boston College | W 24–14 | 48% |
| Nov 20 | at 13Virginia Tech | W 21–18 | 29% |
| Nov 30 | at 17Pittsburgh | W 24–17 | 32% |
| Dec 28Bowls & playoff | vs VirginiaContinental Tire Bowl | L 22–48 | 56% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Lost to Virginia 48–22 in the Continental Tire Bowl; No. 25 in the final AP poll; 2nd in the Big East.
In program history: The 36th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 124 on file).
AP poll, week by week
- Wk 15: 24
- Wk 16: 15
- Final: 25
Players on this team
Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 2002.
- Record
- 9–4
- Conference
- 6–1 2nd in Big East
- AP final
- No. 25 peak No. 15
- Points
- 396–302
- Coach
- Rich Rodriguez
- Elo
- 1578 +117 this season
- SP+ rating
- 13.7 No. 29 of 117; offense No. 26, defense No. 33
- SRS
- 8.4 No. 33 of 117 in Division I-A
- Recruiting class
- No. 50
- Defensive coordinators
- Jeff Casteel and Todd Graham
- Offense
- Spread option
- Defense
- 3–3–5
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 0.0 | own 29 | — allowed |
| Defense | 0.0 | own 37 | — caused |
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.
Top recruits in the 2002 class
| J.T. Perry WR | ★★★ | No. 670 |
| Adam Serena TE | ★★★ | No. 670 |
| Craig Wilson DT | ★★★ | No. 670 |
| Adam Jones CB | ★★ | No. 898 |
| Dwayne Thompson DUAL | ★★ | No. 898 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2002 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 1 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Running backs | 1 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Receivers | 4 | 2.5 | 0.783 |
| Defensive line | 4 | 2.3 | 0.775 |
| Linebackers | 2 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Defensive backs | 2 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Athletes and specialists | 2 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Whole class | 16 | 2.2 | 0.773 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Drafted in 2003
The 2003 draft| Rd 4 | Lance Nimmo OT | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| Rd 5 | James Davis LB | Detroit Lions |
All-Big East
3 first team, 3 second teamFirst team
Avon CobourneRBCoaches-1- Lance NimmoOTCoaches-1
- Grant WileyLBCoaches-1
Second team
- David UpchurchDLCoaches-2
- James DavisLBCoaches-2
- Angel EstradaSCoaches-2
From Wikipedia’s 2002 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).
2002 Big East standings
| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miami | 7–0 | 12–1 | 2 |
| West Virginia | 6–1 | 9–4 | 25 |
| Pittsburgh | 5–2 | 9–4 | 19 |
| Virginia Tech | 3–4 | 10–4 | 18 |
| Boston College | 3–4 | 9–4 | |
| Temple | 2–5 | 4–8 | |
| Syracuse | 2–5 | 4–8 | |
| Rutgers | 0–7 | 1–11 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.