1986 West Virginia Mountaineers football team

1986 West Virginia Mountaineers football
Conference	Independent
1986 record	4–7
Head coach	Don Nehlen
Home stadium	Mountaineer Field (Capacity: 63,500)
Seasons

1986 Division I-A independents football records
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Penn State		–		–				12	–	0	–	0
No. 2 Miami (FL)		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
No. 20 Virginia Tech		–		–				9	–	2	–	1
No. 19 Boston College		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Tulsa		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Florida State		–		–				7	–	4	–	1
Army		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Southwestern Louisiana		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Southern Miss		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Temple		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Pittsburgh		–		–				5	–	5	–	1
Rutgers		–		–				5	–	5	–	1
Cincinnati		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Notre Dame		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Syracuse		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				3	–	6	–	2
Tulane		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
West Virginia		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Louisville		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Navy		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Wichita State		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
East Carolina		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Northern Illinois		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Memphis		–		–				1	–	10	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1986 West Virginia Mountaineers football team represented West Virginia University in the 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season. It was the Mountaineers' 94th overall season and they competed as a Division I-A Independent. The team was led by head coach Don Nehlen, in his 7th year, and played their home games at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia. They finished the season with a record of four wins and seven losses (4–7 overall).

Schedule

Date	Opponent#	Rank#	Site	Result	Attendance
September 6	Northern Illinois		Mountaineer Field • Morgantown, WV	W 47–14	56,665
September 13	at East Carolina		Ficklen Memorial Stadium • Greenville, NC	W 24–21	33,857
September 20	Maryland		Mountaineer Field • Morgantown, WV (Rivalry)	L 3–24	63,500
September 27	at Pittsburgh		Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA (Backyard Brawl)	L 16–48	55,129
October 4	at Virginia Tech		Lane Stadium • Blacksburg, VA (Black Diamond Trophy)	L 7–13	50,000
October 11	#1 Miami (FL)		Mountaineer Field • Morgantown, WV	L 14–58	63,500
October 25	Boston College		Mountaineer Field • Morgantown, WV	L 10–19	47,760
November 1	#2 Penn State		Mountaineer Field • Morgantown, WV (Rivalry)	L 0–19	59,184
November 8	at Rutgers		Giants Stadium • East Rutherford, NJ	W 24–17	15,101
November 15	at Louisville		Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY	W 42–19	21,834
November 22	Syracuse		Mountaineer Field • Morgantown, WV (Ben Schwartzwalder Trophy)	L 23–34	40,106
†Homecoming.

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