Country Roads Confidential: A WVU Mountaineers podcast

Bob Huggins hinted at changes, and he followed through with a new starting lineup and a shorter rotation. Wouldn’t you know it, West Virginia won for the first time in two weeks and swept the season series against Oklahoma State. The second half was better than the first, and a few performances gave Huggins plenty to consider before the upcoming road trip.

No harm in losing to the best team in the country, but West Virginia had stretches Saturday that rank among the worst of the season. The Mountaineers have lost three in a row and have to switch things up in a hurry against a favorable schedule so that they can preserve their postseason positioning. Chris and Mike discuss all of that after the breakdowns in Waco and wonder if you can criticize the...

Kansas pulled some more jewels from West Virginia’s crown, and the Mountaineers are no longer unbeaten at home and now have their first losing streak of the season. The No. 3-ranked Jayhawks turned the game around in the second half and sent WVU staggering toward a road game Saturday against No. 1 Baylor. Chris and Mike meet up to discuss what continues to go wrong, what reasons exist to think it...

The Mountaineers wanted to change the way onlookers think and speak about the team, and they didn’t accomplish that Saturday. WVU’s issues on the road continued, and now the season enters a difficult and defining stretch. Mike and Chris discuss the reality and the potential of this team and how it can use the final eight games of the regular season to position itself for the postseason.

Practically nothing went wrong for the basketball team, and the good outnumbered the bad in an easy win over Iowa State. The football team started signing day with some question marks and ended it with two exclamation points. Chris and Mike review the events on the court and off the field.

Maybe it's not as big of a deal as it used to be, but Wednesday is still a signing day on the college football calendar. It might be pretty cool at West Virginia this year, too. Chris explains why as he and Mike set the stage for the occasion, detail possible additions to the roster and discuss a provocative text Mike received Sunday night.

West Virginia improved to 4-0 after a loss with a win Saturday against Kansas State. It wasn't the prettiest product, and the opponent again wasn't the best following a defeat, but the Mountaineers could have been on the wrong side of this one. Chris and Mike chat about the successes after failures, the pecking order on offense, the keys to the game and the outlook the rest of this season.

West Virginia couldn’t make shots and Texas Tech wouldn’t miss any Wednesday as the Red Raiders built a big lead in both halves and held off every charge the Mountaineers made. Chris and Mike discuss the latest loss to a desperate team, how this fits in the learning process and what’s next for WVU.

West Virginia won for just the second time in the history of the Big 12/SEC Challenge and capped a compelling week with a second one-sided victory. The Mountaineers handled Missouri early, pushed back a charge in the middle of the game and imposed their will five days after clobbering Texas at home. What’s happened in the past week and what happens now? Chris and Mike have the answers.

With one of the most emphatic performances in quite some time, West Virginia defeated Texas and obliterated any side-effects on Saturday’s loss to Kansas State. The Mountaineers dominated every category and submitted a number of individual performances and highlights to make everyone feel much better.

West Virginia left a lot on the table with a performance that left a lot to be desired. Bob Huggins was dejected in defeat and watched his team and his opponent both play out of character. It's just one game, but was this one game that different from many others? Mike has thoughts on Saturday and beyond.

WVU had one of its familiar defensive performances and one of its best offensive performances in years in an 81-49 victory against visiting TCU. It didn't happen right away, but the Mountaineers eventually did what they wanted against what was one of the two unbeaten teams in Big 12 play. Mike discusses the good signs in the game and moving forward.

West Virginia returned home after a lengthy time away from the Coliseum and treated a sellout crowd to a Big 12 win against the team that nearly won the national title a season ago. Bob Huggins wasn’t happy, and we attempt to figure out why and explain his frustrations.

Gerad Parker and Jeff Koonz are the newest additions to West Virginia's coaching staff as a busy week reaches a sudden conclusion. How'd the Mountaineers do and what do the salaries tell us about the present and the future? Mike has the answers.

After road teams went 0-5 Saturday to start Big 12 play, West Virginia used its second conference road game of the season to even its Big 12 record. There were some familiar frustrations but some pleasing performances, too. Mike reviews the late game in Stillwater and what went right at the end of the road trip.

West Virginia had a 10-point lead but couldn't hang on and lost for the eighth time in as many trips to Kansas and Phog Allen Fieldhouse. There was plenty to discuss on a long list of likes and dislikes in our first basketball postgame podcast. It begins with what to think of officiating and Oscar Tshiebwe and then tries to figure out what to make of pretty much everyone and everything else after...

Following a run of podcasts to end 2019, the hosts are back for a new year and a new look at the basketball team. What's new following the win against Ohio State, who needs to pick it up, how will things go against Kansas? But there's also room for football with an updated look at recruiting and Neal Brown's coaching staff.

With strict parameters in place, Chris and Mike close the decade by looking back on WVU basketball through the years. Today's episode picks and, of course, debates the top players at each position.

The 2019 football season was about change, from the top of the program to the top row of the bleachers and everyone and everything in between. Covering the team on a daily basis was part of that, and it was sometimes slightly and sometimes significantly different this year and it was before. Chris and Mike discuss what was new, what was good, what was interesting and what might be different again...

With strict parameters in place, Chris and Mike close the decade by looking back on WVU football through the years. Today's episode picks and, of course, debates the top players at each position.

With strict parameters in place, Chris and Mike close the decade by looking back on WVU football through the years. Today's episode picks and, of course, debates the top players at each position.

All the FBS coaching vacancies are filled, and right in time for today's guest to kick up his feet and enjoy the holidays ... for as long as his phone will let him. Join Mike and Zach Barnett from FootballScoop.com for a trip around the industry, trends to look for in the future, thoughts on Neal Brown and how Mike can make it to the top of a program in five short years.

Neal Brown's first signing date has arrived, and the West Virginia coach closed strong with expected and coveted signatures. Chris and Mike review the day's events, detail the top players, trends and storylines and anticipate what's next for the Mountaineers.

West Virginia University Law student Tyler Gordon, fresh off his Dr. Pepper Challenge win and $100,000 in tuition prize, joins the podcast to discuss his journey to Indianapolis, his strategy leading up to the competition, what it was like to win, and then a full-on discussion about Mountaineer football and his Trust The Climb mentality.

We're two weeks from Christmas and one week from the first day of the early signing period ... which has quickly become the main signing period. Chris and Mike discuss how WVU will finish, what happens during an official visit, where the roster needs a boost, what kind of player can help the most and how quickly things may change. In addition, the basketball team took its first loss, but there's s...