1976 West Virginia Mountaineers football team

The 1976 West Virginia Mountaineers football team represented West Virginia University in the 1976 NCAA Division I football season. It was the Mountaineers' 84th overall season and they competed as an independent. The team was led by head coach Frank Cignetti Sr., in his first year, and played their home games at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia. They finished the season with a record 5–6.

1976 West Virginia Mountaineers football
Conference	Independent
Record	5–6
Head coach	Frank Cignetti Sr. (1st season)
Offensive coordinator	Joe Pendry (1st season)
Home stadium	Mountaineer Field
Seasons ← 1975 1977 →

1976 NCAA Division I independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Pittsburgh			–					12	–	0	–	0
No. 17 Rutgers			–					11	–	0	–	0
San Diego State			–					10	–	1	–	0
No. 12 Notre Dame			–					9	–	3	–	0
Colgate			–					8	–	2	–	0
Boston College			–					8	–	3	–	0
Cincinnati			–					8	–	3	–	0
Memphis State			–					7	–	4	–	0
North Texas State *			–					7	–	4	–	0
Southern Illinois			–					7	–	4	–	0
Penn State			–					7	–	5	–	0
Villanova			–					6	–	4	–	1
South Carolina			–					6	–	5	–	0
Virginia Tech			–					6	–	5	–	0
Army			–					5	–	6	–	0
Florida State			–					5	–	6	–	0
Illinois State			–					5	–	6	–	0
Richmond			–					5	–	6	–	0
West Virginia			–					5	–	6	–	0
Georgia Tech			–					4	–	6	–	1
Temple			–					4	–	6	–	0
Air Force			–					4	–	7	–	0
Dayton			–					4	–	7	–	0
Louisville			–					4	–	7	–	0
Marshall			–					4	–	7	–	0
Navy			–					4	–	7	–	0
Indiana State			–					3	–	7	–	0
Hawaii			–					3	–	8	–	0
Holy Cross			–					3	–	8	–	0
Miami (FL)			–					3	–	8	–	0
Syracuse			–					3	–	8	–	0
Utah State			–					3	–	8	–	0
Northeast Louisiana			–					2	–	9	–	0
Southern Miss			–					2	–	9	–	0
Tulane			–					2	–	9	–	0
North Texas State (originally 6–5) was awarded a forfeit win after Mississippi State was found to be using an ineligible player.[1] Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 11	Villanova	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	W 28–7	33,784	[2]
September 18	No. 10 Maryland	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV (rivalry)	L 3–24	35,107	[3]
September 25	at Kentucky	Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY	L 10–14	57,703	[4]
October 2	Richmond	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	W 9–6	30,437	[5]
October 9	at Temple	Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA	W 42–0	3,777	[6]
October 16	at Boston College	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA	L 3–14	23,501	[7]
October 23	No. 10 Penn State	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV (rivalry)	L 0–33	37,672	[8]
October 30	at Virginia Tech	Lane Stadium Blacksburg, VA (rivalry)	L 7–24	39,000	[9]
November 6	at Tulane	Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, LA	W 32–28	29,237	[10]
November 13	at No. 1 Pittsburgh	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)	L 16–24	56,500	[11]
November 20	Syracuse	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV (rivalry)	W 34–28	27,848	[12]
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1976 West Virginia Mountaineers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR Tommy Bowden	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 22 Tom Pridemore Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Frank Cignetti Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/years/1976-standings.html
2. "Mountaineers roll by Villanova, 28–7". The Sunday Times. September 12, 1976. Retrieved January 26, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Terps beat WVU, 24–3". The Danville Register. September 19, 1976. Retrieved January 26, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Ramsey ramrods Kentucky by West Virginia". The Paducah Sun-Democrat. September 26, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Mounties weave by Spiders". The High Point Enterprise. October 3, 1976. Retrieved October 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "W. Virginia drubs Temple, 42–0". The Philadelphia Inquirer. October 10, 1976. Retrieved January 26, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "First period scores win for Boston College". The Hartford Courant. October 17, 1976. Retrieved January 26, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Fusina riddles West Virginia". Asbury Park Press. October 24, 1976. Retrieved January 26, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Barnes leads Gobblers over WVU". Beckley Post-Herald & The Raleigh Register. October 31, 1976. Retrieved December 14, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "WVU wins in last minute". Sunday Gazette-Mail. November 7, 1976. Retrieved October 18, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Panthers hold off WVU, 24–16". The Pittsburgh Press. November 14, 1976. Retrieved January 26, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "WVU edges Syracuse in 34–28 battle". Daily Press. November 21, 1976. Retrieved January 26, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.