Editor's Note: Beginning with No. 25 TCU and counting toward the release of the 2007 College Football Annuals, Athlon will release one spot in its Top 25 every weekday for five weeks. The No. 1 team will be revealed June 1. Check AthlonSports.com every day to see who’s next in the countdown as Athlon Sports celebrates its 40th anniversary. The 2007 versions of Athlon’s College Football Annuals hit newsstands June 5th.

No. 5: West Virginia

Under Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia is sustaining success like never before. The Mountaineers have now won 38 games over the last four years, the most in any four-year period in school history. A Big East championship and pieces of two others have also come in that time, and it’s not about to stop.

West Virginia was the nation’s second-best running team last fall with Steve Slaton and Patrick White terrorizing opponents with their speed, and both are back as juniors in 2007. Slaton ran for 1,744 yards and 16 touchdowns. White ran for 1,219 yards and 18 scores. Slaton averaged 7.0 yards per carry, White 7.4. And fullback Owen Schmitt also is back after a 351-yard, 5.4 per-carry, seven-touchdown rushing campaign.

White also can throw the ball, having finished second in the Big East in passing efficiency. Had he thrown one more pass (he needed 180; he threw 179), he would have qualified for the national chart and finished ninth in passing efficiency. He completed 66 percent of his passes for 1,655 yards and 13 touchdowns. And his favorite receiver from 2006 — wide receiver Darius Reynaud — is back for his senior year. Reynaud caught 39 balls last year with a pair of touchdowns. He is also one of the nation’s most dangerous kick returners, posting a 27.1-yard average on 30 returns with another score.

Center Dan Mozes, the 2006 Rimington Award winner, is gone, but three OL starters return. All-conference tackle Ryan Stanchek will anchor the unit.

A pair of first-team All-Big East performers — tackle Keilen Dykes and strong safety Eric Wicks — are the headliners on defense. Dykes is about a cheeseburger shy of 300 pounds and a disruptive force in the middle. Wicks posted team highs with 11 tackles for loss and seven sacks. Free safety Quinton Andrews also returns after leading the team with 80 tackles and five interceptions. Reed Williams and Bobby Hathaway are the glue in the linebacking corps.

The focal point of the schedule comes in late October-early November with a trip to Rutgers and a visit from Louisville in consecutive matchups.

Notes:
» In 2005 and 2006, West Virginia won 11 games in two straight seasons for the first time in its history. In fact, the Mountaineers had never even won 10 games twice in a row.

» West Virginia has led the Big East in rushing each of the last five years.

» The Mountaineers fielded the nation’s 13th-best rushing defense last fall, allowing 93.3 yards per game on the ground.

2007 Schedule
S.       1    Western Michigan
S.       8    at Marshall
S.     13    at Maryland
S.     22    East Carolina
S.     29    at South Florida
O.       6    at Syracuse
O.     20    Mississippi State
O.     27    at Rutgers
N.       8    Louisville
N.     17    at Cincinnati
N.     24    Connecticut
D.       1    Pittsburgh

Read the entire West Virginia preview by ordering your Athlon Sports 2007 College Football Regional and National magazines today!

Also coming to AthlonSports.com this summer:
– Top 25 Heisman Hopefuls
– Live chats with Athlon editors
– Conference-preview videocasts.

Follow the entire 2007 football season on AthlonSports.com where we preview every game from every conference in Division I-A and recap the weekend’s BCS action in conference notebooks.

Other in-season offerings:
– Fantasy Games
– Sideline Spirit Voting
– Scenes From Saturday
– Updated Athlon 119
– Much more

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