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Robbie Kalland & Chip Patterson really know how to rile up a state. In their article posted on CBSSports.com, the duo selected the team they feel is playing the best football entering the 2016 season.
“With the college football season rapidly approaching, we got to wondering: What is the best team from each state of our union?
Specifically, this is not a list of the programs that have had the most all-time success in each state, but rather a look at what teams we believe are playing the best right now.”
When the duo got to West Virginia, the Mountaineers fell short of the requirements. Robbie and Chip ultimately chose Marshall as the team playing the best in West Virginia.
West Virginia: Marshall — WVU is a good team, don’t get us wrong, but it’s hard to argue with Marshall’s success under Doc Holliday, particularly the last few years. He and the Herd have amassed a 33-8 record with a 10-3 mark in 2015. Meanwhile, Dana Holgorsen and the Mountaineers are 36-28 since his arrival with a 8-5 record one season ago. The Herd are Thundering through the state right now.
Now, if you want to go strictly by record, then yes Marshall has played better over the past 5 years. Having only lost 8 games since 2011, Marshall has certainly garnered a better record, but does a better record mean you are playing better?
Marshall has only played four ranked teams since 2011, losing all four games. The Thundering Herd played #24 West Virginia, #13 Virginia Tech and #19 Houston in 2011 along with #11 West Virginia in 2012. After the first game of the 2012 season, Marshall has not played a ranked team in 50 straight games. By comparison, WVU played four ranked teams last year alone and has played 20 ranked teams since 2011. Would WVU have a better record if it had avoided 16 ranked teams on its schedule?