MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Many of the same issues plaguing West Virginia for large stretches of the 2024 season surfaced again Saturday in a 49-35 loss to Baylor that ensures the Mountaineers of a losing record at home.
Namely, the WVU defense was picked apart and allowed five first-half touchdowns. Baylor went to the break with 335 total yards and a staggering 11.2 yards per play as quarterback Sawyer Robertson was in rhythm early and often, tailback Bryson Washington was productive throughout and a talented and versatile group of wideouts showcased impressive skill sets throughout.
When the Mountaineer defense displayed improvement in the third quarter and held the Bears scoreless on three straight possessions, West Virginia’s offense then failed to capitalize, preventing the Mountaineers from rallying from a seven-point halftime deficit as they fell to 5-5.
West Virginia’s special teams units weren’t up to their standard as well, and the Mountaineers dealt with another issue down the stretch after wideout Traylon Ray suffered a significant season-ending injury with 5:41 remaining in the third quarter.
“Traylon’s injury wasn’t good. You all can see it,” WVU head coach Neal Brown said. “We don’t need to talk about it, but it wasn’t good. It not only hurt us because he was winning a lot, but it hurt us emotionally. We had some guys that really struggled with that. It was visible on the field what the injury was. Our skill group is really close, and emotionally, that was tough to overcome.”
Brown confirmed Ray will miss what remains of the 2024 season — regular season games against Central Florida and at Texas Tech the next two Saturdays, along with potential bowl game should the Mountaineers win one of the final two contests.
On the play, Ray drew a pass interference penalty called on Baylor’s Caden Jenkins. Yet it was evident immediately the injury was anything but typical as Baylor’s medical personnel came to check on Ray, who was on the playing surface near the Bears’ sideline.
Ray was ultimately carted off the field while an air cast was applied to his lower right leg/foot area.
“His mom was here, so I’m glad. Those are tough moments,” Brown said. “We had that with [linebacker] Trey Lathan last year [at TCU]. For a 44-year-old, that’s tough. When you have 18, 19 and 20-year-olds out there, they can see it. There’s not a question of what happened. That was hard emotionally.”
For a WVU team that has struggled succeeding passing too often throughout the season, Ray has been among the most productive pass-catchers. He hauled in a 9-yard touchdown reception during the first half against Baylor, and while that was Ray’s only reception in the game, it marked his third touchdown over the last four contests after he scored once through six games.
In a late October win at Arizona, Ray hauled in a 54-yard touchdown reception — West Virginia’s longest pass play this season. A week ago, Ray brought in a 38-yard grab in a victory at Cincinnati, and the sophomore will end his second season of college football with 28 receptions for 426 yards and four touchdowns.
“It’s tough, because it’s somebody that you love and care about,” Mountaineer quarterback Garrett Greene said.
West Virginia will now try to move forward without Ray, a 6-foot-1, 195-pound native of Tallahassee, Florida — the same hometown as Greene.
Depending on the severity of the injury, which will almost certainly require surgery, Ray could be sidelined for spring football as well.
“You don’t want to see any of your teammates get hurt, especially T-Ray, because T-Ray works so dang hard,” WVU linebacker Reid Carrico said. “It really sucks, but it’s part of the game. Some guys are going to get hurt. I don’t have any update on him or anything like that, but I hope he’s doing well.”
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West Virginia’s final home game of the 2024 season comes Saturday against Central Florida and will kickoff at 3:30 p.m. ESPNU will televise the contest.
The Mountaineers (5-5, 4-3) need a victory to become bowl eligible.
The Knights (4-6, 2-5) need a win to keep bowl eligibility hopes alive entering their regular season finale the following week against Utah.