1985 West Virginia Mountaineers football team

American college football season

1985 West Virginia Mountaineers football

Conference| Independent
Record| 7–3–1
Head coach|

* Don Nehlen (6th season)

Home stadium| Mountaineer Field

Seasons

<- 1984

1986 ->

1985 Major eastern college football independents records

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| Conf. |  |  | Overall

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Team | W |  | L |  | T |  |  | W |  | L |  | T
No. 3 Penn State $  | 6  | - | 0  | - | 0 |  |  | 11  | - | 1  | - | 0
West Virginia | 4  | - | 1  | - | 1 |  |  | 7  | - | 3  | - | 1
Syracuse | 4  | - | 2  | - | 0 |  |  | 7  | - | 5  | - | 0
Boston College | 3  | - | 3  | - | 0 |  |  | 4  | - | 8  | - | 0
Pittsburgh | 2  | - | 3  | - | 1 |  |  | 5  | - | 5  | - | 1
Temple | 1  | - | 5  | - | 0 |  |  | 4  | - | 7  | - | 0
Rutgers | 0  | - | 6  | - | 0 |  |  | 2  | - | 8  | - | 1

* $ – Lambert Trophy Winner

Rankings from AP Poll
1985 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

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| Conf. |  |  | Overall

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Team | W |  | L |  | T |  |  | W |  | L |  | T
No. 3 Penn State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 11  | - | 1  | - | 0
No. 9 Miami (FL) |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 10  | - | 2  | - | 0
Army |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 9  | - | 3  | - | 0
No. 15 Florida State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 9  | - | 3  | - | 0
West Virginia |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 7  | - | 3  | - | 1
Southern Miss |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 7  | - | 4  | - | 0
Syracuse |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 7  | - | 5  | - | 0
Virginia Tech |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 6  | - | 5  | - | 0
Pittsburgh |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 5  | - | 5  | - | 1
Cincinnati |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 5  | - | 6  | - | 0
Notre Dame |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 5  | - | 6  | - | 0
South Carolina |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 5  | - | 6  | - | 0
Southwestern Louisiana |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 4  | - | 7  | - | 0
Navy |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 4  | - | 7  | - | 0
Temple |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 4  | - | 7  | - | 0
Boston College |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 4  | - | 8  | - | 0
Memphis State |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 2  | - | 7  | - | 2
Rutgers |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 2  | - | 8  | - | 1
East Carolina |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 2  | - | 9  | - | 0
Louisville |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 2  | - | 9  | - | 0
Tulane |  | - |  | - |  |  |  | 1  | - | 10  | - | 0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1985 West Virginia Mountaineers football team represented West Virginia University as an independent during the 1985 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by sixth-year head coach Don Nehlen, the Mountaineers compiled a record of 7–3–1. West Virginia played home games at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia.

## Schedule

[edit]

Date| Opponent| Site| Result| Attendance| Source

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September 7| Louisville|

* Mountaineer Field
* Morgantown, WV

| W 52–13| 62,128| [1]
September 14| Duke|

* Mountaineer Field
* Morgantown, WV

| W 20–18| 61,191| [2]
September 21| at No. 17 Maryland|

* Byrd Stadium
* College Park, MD (rivalry)

| L 0–28| 51,250| [3]
September 28| Pittsburgh|

* Mountaineer Field
* Morgantown, WV (Backyard Brawl)

| T 10–10| 62,453| [4]
October 5| Virginia Tech|

* Mountaineer Field
* Morgantown, WV (rivalry)

| W 24–9| 57,514| [5]
October 19| Boston College|

* Alumni Stadium
* Chestnut Hill, MA

| W 13–6| 32,000| [6]
October 26| at No. 3 Penn State|

* Beaver Stadium
* University Park, PA (rivalry)

| L 0–27| 85,534| [7]
November 2| at Virginia|

* Scott Stadium
* Charlottesville, VA

| L 7–27| 35,000| [8]
November 9| Rutgers|

* Mountaineer Field
* Morgantown, WV

| W 27–0| 48,373| [9]
November 16| Temple|

* Mountaineer Field
* Morgantown, WV

| W 23–10| 34,721| [10]
November 30| at Syracuse|

* Carrier Dome
* Syracuse, NY (rivalry)

| W 13–10| 33,431| [11]

* Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

[12]

## Roster

[edit]

1985 West Virginia Mountaineers football team roster

Players  | Coaches
Offense | Pos. | # | Name | Class

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WR | `1` | Grantis Bell | Fr
RB | `3` | John Holifield | Sr
WR | `7` | John Talley | So
QB | `17` | Mike Timko | So
FB | `20` | Craig Taylor | Fr
G | `75` | John Stroia | Fr
OT | `77` | Brian Jozwiak | Sr
OT | `79` | Brian Smider | Fr
TE | `81` | Keith Winn | Fr
WR | `82` | Calvin Phillips | Fr
TE | `83` | Gary Basil | So
WR | `87` | Brian Krawchyk | Sr
Defense | Pos. | # | Name | Class

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DB | `22` | Bo Orlando | Fr
LB | `30` | Fred Smalls | Sr
DT | `98` | David Grant | So
DT | `99` | Jeff Lucas | Jr
Special teams | Pos. | # | Name | Class

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K | `8` | Charlie Baumann | Fr
P | `11` | Steve Superick | Sr

Head coach

* Don Nehlen

Coordinators/assistant coaches

* * *

Legend

* (C) Team captain
* (S) Suspended
* (I) Ineligible

* Injured
* Redshirt

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Schnellenberger loses Louisville debut, 52–13". The Miami Herald. September 8, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
2. ^ "WVU holds off Duke". The News and Observer. September 15, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
3. ^ "Maryland wins, 28–0, over WVU". The Pittsburgh Press. September 22, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
4. ^ "It's all for knot; WVU catches Pitt, 10–10". The Pittsburgh Press. September 29, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
5. ^ "West Virginia rolls past Virginia Tech". The Greenville News. October 6, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
6. ^ "W. Virginia tops Eagles". Anderson Independent-Mail. October 20, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
7. ^ "Penn State blanks West Virginia". The Tyler Courier-Times. October 27, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
8. ^ "Virginia routs West Virginia". Greensboro News & Record. November 3, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
9. ^ "West Virginia mauls Rutgers". Asbury Park Press. November 10, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
10. ^ "West Virginia rush finishes off the Owls, 23–10". The Philadelphia Inquirer. November 17, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
11. ^ "Late drive cuts down Syracuse". Democrat and Chronicle. December 1, 1985. Retrieved January 30, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
12. ^ "1985 West Virginia Mountaineers Schedule and Results". Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved January 30, 2024.

* v
* t
* e

West Virginia Mountaineers football

Venues|

* Mountaineer Field (1924–1979)
* Milan Puskar Stadium (1980–present)

Bowls & rivalries|

* Bowl games
* Cincinnati
* Marshall: Friends of Coal Bowl
* Maryland
* Old Ironsides
* Penn State
* Pittsburgh: Backyard Brawl
* Syracuse
* Virginia Tech

Culture & lore|

* The Mountaineer
* Marching band
* "Take Me Home, Country Roads"
* 2007 Backyard Brawl

People|

* Head coaches
* NFL draftees
* Statistical leaders

Seasons|

* 1891
* 1892
* 1893
* 1894
* 1895
* 1896
* 1897
* 1898
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* 1903
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*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[Conf.]: Conference record
*[W]: Wins
*[L]: Losses
*[T]: Ties
*[No.]: Number