Countdown to Kickoff
December 28, 2002 08:35 AM | General
December 28, 2002
CHARLOTTE – West Virginia (9-3) faces Virginia (8-5) in the Continental Tire Bowl at Ericsson Stadium in Charlotte, N.C., on Dec. 28, 2002. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. and the game will be televised on ESPN2.
Here is today’s Countdown to Kickoff:
10 – TEN of West Virginia’s 21 seniors have already completed their bachelor’s degrees. They are: James Davis, Angel Estrada, Mark Fazzolari, Arthur Harrison, Jason Davis, Tim Love, Charlie MacInnis, Mike Page, Ken Sandor and Jermaine Thaxton.
9 – West Virginia has successfully converted NINE of 24 fourth-down attempts this year for a 37.5 percentage. The Mountaineers are 77 of 193 on third-down conversions for a 39.9 percentage.
8 – West Virginia running back Avon Cobourne ranks EIGHTH in the nation in rushing with an average of 132.75 yards per game. Cobourne needs just 78 yards to crack 5,000 for his career.
7 – West Virginia has had SEVEN scoring plays covering 36 yards or longer. WVU’s longest scoring play this season was a 79-yard touchdown pass from Rasheed Marshall to Phil Braxton at Pitt on Nov. 30, 2002.
6 – West Virginia has won SIX games in the state of North Carolina. It is WVU’s 13th -ever appearance in the state and the Mountaineers’ last game came in North Carolina at Ericsson Stadium in 1999 was a 30-23 loss to East Carolina.
5 – West Virginia sophomore defensive back Jahmile Addae is one of three players in WVU history to have broken up FIVE passes in a game earlier this season against Rutgers. Addae shares the record with Harold Kidd and Vann Washington.
4 – West Virginia has won FOUR games televised on ESPN2. The Mountaineers’ last win on ESPN2 came at Virginia Tech on Nov. 20, 2002.
3 – West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez is looking for his third 10-win season as a head or assistant coach. Rodriguez won 10 games at Glenville State in 1993 and he was an assistant on Tommy Bowden’s staff at Tulane that went 12-0 and won the Liberty Bowl.
2 – The Big East is currently 2-0 in bowl games after victories by Pittsburgh in the Insight Bowl and Boston College’s win in the Motor City Bowl. The league is 10-2 in its last 12 bowl game appearances.
1 – West Virginia is vying for its FIRST 10-win season since posting a 11-1 record in 1993.
Enjoy today’s game and be sure to stop back afterward for complete post-game coverage.
