MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia looks to get back to its winning ways this afternoon when it faces surging Kansas State at noon at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kansas.
 
The Wildcats (6-3, 3-3) have won three straight over Texas Tech, TCU and Kansas after dropping three in a row to Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and Iowa State.
 
K-State began the year with three consecutive wins over Stanford, Southern Illinois and Nevada.
 
"They're playing their best football of the year," West Virginia coach Neal Brown said earlier this week. "They're playing well in all three phases."
 
West Virginia's record is now 4-5 following last Saturday's disappointing 24-3 home loss to Oklahoma State. WVU, 2-4 in Big 12 play, had won two straight over TCU and Iowa State after dropping three in a row to Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Baylor.
 
The Mountaineers began the season with a loss to Maryland, followed by a pair of victories over Long Island and Virginia Tech.
 
West Virginia has a five-game winning streak in series play against the Wildcats, including victories in the last two in Manhattan by scores of 28-23 and 24-20. Last year, WVU topped Kansas State 37-10 in Morgantown.
 
Kansas State won the first four games against the Mountaineers after West Virginia joined the Big 12 in 2012.
 
"Defensively, we've got to eliminate explosive plays and offensively, we've got to be able to run the ball," Brown said.
 
Here is today's Countdown to Kickoff:
 
10 – TEN Mountaineer defenders have tallied at least one TFL in two games, including five who have at least one tackle for loss in three games this season.
 
9 – West Virginia has won NINE times on Nov. 13, the last time being a 37-10 win over Cincinnati in 2010.
 
8 – WVU has had 10-plus tacklers in EIGHT of nine games this season, including several games with multiple 10-plus tacklers.
 
7 – Junior Casey Legg ranks SEVENTH nationally this week in field goal percentage by successfully converting 93.8% of his 16 attempts this season.
 
6 – The Mountaineers have passed for more than 250 yards in a game SIX times so far this season.
 
5 – West Virginia has won FIVE straight against Kansas State after dropping the first four meetings to the Wildcats after the Mountaineers joined the Big 12 in 2012.
 
4 – West Virginia has produced FOUR games with more than 500 yards of total offense since Neal Brown took over the Mountaineer program in 2019.
 
3 – Over the last THREE seasons, WVU's defense has held opposing teams to fewer than 250 yards passing 21 times, fewer than 200 yards 13 times and fewer than 150 yards seven times.
 
2 – West Virginia has had a pair of 100-yard receivers TWICE this season. Isaiah Esdale and Winston Wright Jr. did it against Texas Tech and Bryce Ford-Wheaton and Wright Jr. did it against Iowa State.
 
1 – The Mountaineer defense has recorded at least ONE interception in 20 out of the last 25 games.
 
Saturday's game will kick off at noon and will be televised nationally on FS1 (Eric Collins and Petros Papadakis). Mountaineer Sports Network radio coverage begins at 8:30 a.m. on stations throughout West Virginia and online at WVUsports.com and the popular mobile app WVU Gameday leading into regular network coverage with Tony Caridi, Dwight Wallace and Jed Drenning at 11 a.m.
 
The broadcast is also available on satellite radio at Sirius channel 98 and XM channel 380.