West Virginia University

West Virginia University is truly a symbol of the State of West Virginia. After all, the school's mascot is the Mountaineer, and the state's motto is "Montani Semper Liberi" or "Mountaineers are always free".  "Old Gold and Blue" not only describe what the players wear on Saturday, they are also the official colors of the state. And while WVU represents West Virginia in so many ways, it also stands alone as a diverse university with rich tradition and a history of academic and athletic success that reach far beyond the state's borders.

WVU Facts

Established: 1867.
Endowment: approximately $600 million.
Enrollment: nearly 30,000 students.

Colleges: 15

Degree programs: 193

Colors: Old Gold and Blue.

Mascot: The Mountaineer. Every Mountaineer mascot dons buckskins and a coonskin cap tailored to fit them personally. They also sport a rifle that fires blanks, as well as grow a beard. 

Fight Song: “Hail West Virginia!”

Alma Mater: “West Virginia Alma Mater”

Here are some basic facts from the WVU website.

Academic Facts:
WVU has produced 25 Rhodes Scholars, ranking No. 6 among American public institutions. The University also has produced 30 Goldwater Scholars, 19 Truman Scholars, five members of USA Today's All-USA College Academic First Team, and two Morris K. Udall Undergraduate Scholarship winners.
WVU is affiliated with the Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute, dedicated to the study of Alzheimer's and other diseases that affect the brain. WVU is also a leader in forensic and biometric technology research and recently became the Federal Bureau of Investigation's lead academic partner in biometrics research. The university established the first bachelor of science program in biometric systems in the world. According to a survey by the Wall Street Journal, employers ranked West Virginia University in the top 45 and WVU's Engineering program 23rd nationally for producing graduates best qualified to enter the workforce. Students attend WVU from every county in the state, every state in the country, and over 100 countries around the world.

Campus

WVU features a split campus, generally grouped into the Downtown, Evansdale, and Medical campuses.  The Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) connects these campuses and is free to everyone on game day.  The PRT is definitely a one-of-a-kind mode of transportation and is a must-see while in Morgantown. Also, unlike other campuses, WVU and Morgantown meld together, at times indistinguishable from one another with a mixture of businesses and university buildings.

Here’s a quick overview of what’s on each campus as well as campus maps:

Downtown: Educational and administrative buildings, as well as the WVU student union (Mountainlair) and main library. This is the original campus featuring the iconic Woodburn Hall, and has a more traditional campus feel. There are some newer buildings mixed in, and the campus blends into downtown Morgantown.

Things to do: See the Mountaineer statue, visit downtown Morgantown and nightlife, visit the Mountainlair, tour the campus and Woodburn Circle. View the mast of the USS West Virginia that was sunk at Pearl Harbor.

Evansdale: WVU Coliseum, Soccer Field, Baseball field. Creative arts center, agricultural and engineering facilities. Student recreation center.

Things to do: Attend a basketball, soccer, or baseball game. Tour the Coliseum and visit the Jerry West statue. Visit the WVU Core Arboretum. Tour the engineering campus. Attend a play or concert at the Creative Arts Center.

Medical: Medical school facilities and Mountaineer Field.

Things to do: Attend a football game. Walk up Law School Hill and overlook Mountaineer Field. Tailgate in the Blue Lot.

Morgantown, WV
Morgantown, WV, affectionately referred to as "Mo'town" or Touchdown City, is the "home of every Mountaineer". Fully intertwined with the city, the university features a split campus that sprawls across the rolling hills and along the north-flowing Monongahela river. A better college atmosphere is hard to come by, as literally the entire city is in someway connected to the university. There's a flying WV on every car and a "Let's Go Mountaineers!" chant around every corner. 

Check out the views around Morgantown with this great time lapse video of various aspects of the city titled “Morgantown in Motion”.

Morgantown is known as one of the best small cities in America, as discussed on NBC Nightly News.

Here is a listing of top things to do around Morgantown. Even though this list is for students, it’s worth a look: Top 10 things to do.

Athletics

Official Logo: The flying WV, an interlocked WV symbol.

Football:

In all of college football, WVU has the best record of all teams that have never won a national championship. WVU has two undefeated regular seasons (both under legendary coach Don Nehlen), but lost the 1988 National Championship Game (Fiesta Bowl) to Notre Dame and were not selected to play for the National Championship in 1993 despite their 11-0 record. Currently, WVU is behind only Texas and Oklahoma in the Big 12 for number of wins, with just over 700.
In the last decade, the football team has featured a 3-0 BCS bowl record, ten consecutive bowl game appearances, a #1 ranking in the USA Today Coaches Poll, three consecutive 11-win seasons amassing a 33-5 record, 41 consecutive weeks in the top 25, and 6 conference championships.

Stadium: Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium (Fans just say “Mountaineer Field”).

Capacity: 60,000. Was larger until added suites replaced standing room only sections.

Record Attendance:  70,222. #9 WVU defeated #4 Miami on Nov 20, 1993.

Basketball:
The basketball team won the national championship in 1942 and lost the 1959 national championship by one point to Cal.  The star of the 1959 game was Jerry West, future 14-time NBA All-Star, Olympic Gold Medalist, and NBA Logo. In the past decade, the men's basketball team won the 2010 Big East championship, and appeared four times in the sweet sixteen, twice in the elite-eight, and once in the final-four of the NCAA tournament.
WVU's current coach and former alum, Bob Huggins has over 700 career victories and is currently fourth on the active coach win list behind Coach K, Jim Booheim, and Jim Calhoun.

Arena: Coliseum

Capacity: 14,000

Record Attendance:  16,704. #6 WVU defeated Pittsburgh on February 24, 1982. 

Here’s a look at the new WVU basketball facility (they’re going to have to change those Big East logos!).

Other Notable Achievements:
The WVU Rifle team accounts for nearly 50% of all rifle national championships with 14 total of the 30 in history.

WVU's Georgeann Wells recorded the first dunk in a Women's College Basketball game in 1984. In history only five women have dunked in college basketball, and only three in the WNBA.

Now that you have your bearings set with some essential WVU info, it’s time to dig in and find out what you should do while you are visiting.

Up next: Taste of WV, our list of the best Mountaineer grub.

Or back to the guide.