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1989 West Virginia Mountaineers football team

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1989 West Virginia Mountaineers football
Gator Bowl, L 7–27 vs. Clemson
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
APNo. 21
Record8–3–1
Head coach
Offensive schemeOption
Home stadiumMountaineer Field
(Capacity: 63,500)
Seasons
← 1988
1990 →
1989 NCAA Division I-A independents football records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Miami (FL)   –   11 – 1 – 0
No. 2 Notre Dame   –   12 – 1 – 0
No. 3 Florida State   –   10 – 2 – 0
Northern Illinois   –   9 – 2 – 0
No. 15 Penn State   –   8 – 3 – 1
No. 17 Pittsburgh   –   8 – 3 – 1
No. 21 West Virginia   –   8 – 3 – 1
Syracuse   –   8 – 4 – 0
Southwestern Louisiana   –   7 – 4 – 0
Akron   –   6 – 4 – 1
South Carolina   –   6 – 4 – 1
Virginia Tech   –   6 – 4 – 1
Louisiana Tech   –   5 – 4 – 1
Army   –   6 – 5 – 0
Louisville   –   6 – 5 – 0
East Carolina   –   5 – 5 – 1
Tulsa   –   6 – 6 – 0
Southern Miss   –   5 – 6 – 0
Tulane   –   4 – 8 – 0
Navy   –   3 – 8 – 0
Rutgers   –   2 – 7 – 2
Boston College   –   2 – 9 – 0
Memphis State   –   2 – 9 – 0
Cincinnati   –   1 – 9 – 1
Temple   –   1 – 10 – 0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1989 West Virginia Mountaineers football team represented West Virginia University in the 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season. It was the Mountaineers' 97th overall season and they competed as a Division I-A Independent. The team was led by head coach Don Nehlen, in his tenth year, and played their home games at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia. They finished the season with a record of eight wins, three losses and one tie (8–3–1 overall), and earned a Gator Bowl berth against No. 14 Clemson, where they were defeated 27–7.

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendance
September 2Ball State*No. 17
W 35–1057,866[1]
September 9at Maryland*No. 17
W 14–1045,000[1]
September 16South Carolina*No. 12
W 45–2166,015[1]
September 23at Louisville*No. 9
W 30–2139,132[1]
September 30No. 10 Pitt*No. 9
T 31–3168,938[1]
October 7Virginia Tech*No. 9
L 10–1262,563[1]
October 21Cincinnati*No. 18
W 69–347,176[1]
October 28at Boston College*No. 15
W 44–3032,000[1]
November 4at No. 16 Penn State*No. 13
L 9–1985,911[1]
November 11Rutgers*No. 19
W 21–2061,336[1]
November 24at Syracuse*No. 17
W 24–1746,757[1]
December 30vs. No. 14 Clemson*No. 17
L 7–2782,911[1]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Season summary

Coming off of its first ever 11-win season and with junior Major Harris returning to lead a potent offense, West Virginia entered the 1989 season ranked 17th in the AP Poll and with high expectations. The Mountaineers started the season accordingly, racing to a 4-0 record and to #9 in the AP Poll. In Week 5 against #10 Pitt, however, West Virginia fell victim to another memorable collapse in the Backyard Brawl. Trailing 31-9 in the 4th quarter, Pitt scored 22 unanswered points and kicked a game-tying field goal as time expired to force a 31-31 tie.[2] The Mountaineers would suffer another heartbreaking result the following week with a 12-10 home loss to Virginia Tech, as well as a 19-9 loss to #16 Penn State in State College. Despite those disappointing defeats, WVU finished the regular season at 8-2-1, a #17 ranking in the AP Poll, and a trip to the Gator Bowl to face #14 Clemson. The Mountaineers faltered, however, losing 27-7 and finished the season at 8-3-1 with a #21 ranking in the final AP Poll.[3]

Roster

1989 West Virginia Mountaineers football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
WR Reggie Rembert Sr
WR 2 Greg Dykes Sr
QB 9 Major Harris Jr
WR 11 Wes Jackson Jr
WR 16 David Miers Sr
QB 16 Chris Gray So
QB 17 James Breitbeil So
FB 20 Craig Taylor Sr
FB 36 Aaron Evans Jr
RB Eugene Napoleon Sr
G 74 Larry Cook Jr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
DB 14 Jay Darr Jr
DT 61 Mike Fox Sr
DE 87 Renaldo Turnbull Sr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Statistical leaders

All stats are courtesy of WVUStats.com unless otherwise cited.[4]

  • Passing:
Major Harris - 142/245, 2,058 yards, 17 touchdowns, 11 interceptions
  • Rushing:
Major Harris - 155 carries, 936 yards, 6.0 average per carry, six touchdowns
Garrett Ford, Jr. - 148 carries, 733 yards, 5.0 average per carry, six touchdowns
  • Receiving:
Reggie Rembert - 47 receptions, 850 yards, 11 touchdowns
  • Interceptions:
Preston Waters - 7 interceptions

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l DeVault, Mark. "WVU 1989 Schedule". WVU Stats (West Virginia University Athletics). Archived from the original on 2012-04-06. Retrieved January 12, 2012.
  2. ^ Antonik, John; Scuillo, Sam (December 1, 2007). "Tales from the Backyard Brawl". MSN Sportsnet (West Virginia University Athletics). Retrieved January 13, 2012.
  3. ^ DeVault, Mark. "WVU 1989 Schedule". WVU Stats (West Virginia University Athletics). Archived from the original on 2012-04-06. Retrieved January 13, 2012.
  4. ^ DeVault, Mark. "WVU 1989 Statistics". WVU Stats (West Virginia University Athletics). Archived from the original on 2012-05-25. Retrieved January 17, 2012.
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