Earlier this week, I was browsing through some of the stories our athletics communications staff sends me each morning when I came across this from Yahoo! Sports: "Ranking the 2018 bowl games 1-39."
 
Four spots below the Alabama-Oklahoma playoff game was our Camping World Bowl matchup against 20^th-ranked Syracuse.
 
Then, it was brought to my attention that this bowl game will be only the 10^thtime a nationally ranked West Virginia football team will be facing a nationally ranked opponent in a bowl game – ever.
 
It will also be the first time that's happened since Dana Holgorsen's 70-33 victory over 14^th-ranked Clemson in the 2012 Orange Bowl.
 
One favorable bounce of the ball, one better break or an additional seven points and the Mountaineers would have once again been playing in one of the New Year's Six Bowls. That's how close this season was to matching the 1953, 1988, 1993, 2005, 2007 and 2011 campaigns, considered the six best in school history.
 
There were many notable accomplishments this year.
 
Quarterback Will Grier enjoyed one of the finest seasons in school history, the senior finishing among the nation's top 10 in 11 different offensive categories.
 
He was one of the top Heisman Trophy contenders right up until the final week of the season, joining Major Harris, Steve Slaton and Pat White among this very exclusive list of Mountaineer players.
 
Will was also up for the Maxwell and Walter Camp National Player of the Year awards, as well as being a finalist for the Senior Class Award, presented each year to the most outstanding student-athlete in college football. He joins center Tyler Orlosky as the only two Mountaineer football players ever to be named finalists for this prestigious award.
 
There is one other important point I want to make about Will, David Sills and several of their teammates - practically every Monday morning during their day off, they spent time at WVU Medicine Children's brightening the days of many sick kids. 
 
These guys weren't required to do this, but they did it - and they did it with the same dedication and devotion that they put into the game plan each week.
 
I'm also very proud of the fact that we had 16 players listed on the two All-Big 12 Academic teams, including 11 on the first team. This is in line with our goal of developing the "student" as well as the "athlete" at West Virginia University.
 
Returning to the athlete part, we had a school-best eight players named to the two All-Big 12 teams this year, including our first Defensive Player of the Year honoree in junior linebacker David Long Jr. It is my understanding that David's name will also be appearing on some of the All-America teams to be announced later this month.
 
Our football team spent the entire regular season ranked in the Top 25, the first time that has happened in 11 years, and we were in contention for a College Football Playoff spot right up until the next-to-last week of the regular season.
 
Later this month, we will be one of 16 football programs in the country to make a 17^thtrip to a bowl game over the past 19 years, which speaks to the great culture of success that has been established here at West Virginia University.
 
When I was growing up in Parkersburg and following the Mountaineers, I can remember hoping West Virginia was fortunate enough to go to a bowl game, let alone finish the regular season nationally ranked with All-American football players and Heisman Trophy candidates.
 
Now, we must turn our attention toward a very formidable Camping World Bowl opponent in Syracuse, which is gunning for just its seventh 10-win season in school history. 
 
This is not the same Syracuse team that we saw struggle through the last two decades, nor the one that had four straight losing seasons before Coach Dino Babers got it back on the winning track this year.
 
It is going to take a supreme effort on our part to win this football game and secure a ninth victory, which would put this team on a level with some of the other outstanding teams in school history.
 
And the only way to do this is by rolling up our sleeves and getting back to work, which I'm confident our guys will do. Preparations are vital, but our fans can be the difference maker.
 
I urge Mountaineer Nation to continue sticking behind this outstanding group of players, and supporting them down in Orlando on the 28^th. It's the perfect opportunity to celebrate a great season, and more importantly, show your support for our Mountaineer football team.
 
As always, Let's Go Mountaineers!