Fiesta Bowl Preview: West Virginia Mountaineers vs. Oklahoma Sooners
The stage is set for the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl as West Virginia Mountaineers go up against Oklahoma Sooners at the University of Phoenix Stadium on January 2, 2008.
West Virginia Mountaineers finished the regular season 10-2 and won the Big East title for the fourth time in the past five years to earn its second trip to a BCS bowl game. The West Virginia Mountaineers will be making their second appearance in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.
The Oklahoma Sooners finished 11-2 and won the Big 12 Conference championship to earn its fifth conference title and sixth trip to a BCS bowl game. The Oklahoma Sooners will be making their fourth appearance in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl and second consecutive. The Oklahoma Sooners defeated Wyoming, 41-7, in the sixth Fiesta Bowl, lost to Arizona State, 32-21, in the second Fiesta Bowl played on New Year’s Day and lost to Boise State, 43-42, in overtime in 2007.
West Virginia Mountaineers head coach Rich Rodriguez will be making his first appearance in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Mountaineers head coach Rich Rodriguez has previously appeared in 12 bowl games as a player, assistant coach or head coach, including four consecutive New Year’s Day bowl appearances. Mountaineers head coach Rich Rodriguez has led the Mountaineers to six consecutive bowl games, back-to-back Top 10 finishes and seven-straight seasons with eight or more wins, including two straight 11-win seasons.
Oklahoma Sooners head coach Bob Stoops will be making his second appearance in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Sooners head coach Bob Stoops has previously appeared in 21 bowl games as a player, assistant coach or head coach, including nine BCS bowls. Sooners head coach Bob Stoops has led the Oklahoma Sooners to nine consecutive bowl games, including six BCS bowl appearances, three BCS national championship games and five Big 12 Conference titles.
West Virginia Mountaineers enters the game ranked No. 9 in the BCS, No. 9 in the Harris Interactive Poll and No. 9 in the USA Today poll. Oklahoma Sooners come in the Fiesta Bowl ranked No. 4 in the BCS, No. 3 in the Harris Interactive Poll and No. 3 in the USA Today poll.
West Virginia Mountaineers and Oklahoma Sooners meet for the fourth time in their history with the Oklahoma Sooners leading the series, 2-1. The West Virginia Mountaineers won the most recent meeting, 41-27, on Sept. 11, 1982, while Oklahoma won 52-10 on Sept. 16, 1978 and 47-14 on Sept. 27, 1958.
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