West Virginia rolled Robert Morris 45-3 in the season opener. It wasn’t pretty in the first half, but the Mountaineers made the Colonials look every part of an FCS school. WVU ranks third in offensive yards and ranks highly in yards allowed. Overall, it was a solid first outing.

There are things to clean up, like turnovers, but those should be an easy fix. If not, they’ll definitely hurt a lot more against a tougher opponent, like Ohio this week.

Some have called Ohio a “trap game” because next week is the Backyard Brawl against Pitt. It’s easy to look past this game, especially with the rumors of College GameDay coming to Morgantown if Pitt and WVU are 3-0.

WVU must tread lightly. Ohio is one of the better Group of Five schools. The Bobcats won 10 games in each of their last three seasons and won the MAC Conference last year. They’re a good program.

Luckily for WVU, Ohio hasn’t beaten a Power Four school recently. Last year, Ohio lost to Syracuse and Kentucky, and recently lost to Rutgers.

However, the Bobcats played all three of those schools close and beat Iowa State two years ago. It’s definitely possible WVU gets upset.

Quarterback Parker Navarro is a huge reason for Ohio’s success. Rich Rodriguez called him “one of the best quarterbacks in the county.” Navarro’s stats back up his claim.

He threw for 2,423 yards and 13 touchdowns, and he rushed 1,054 yards and 18 touchdowns. Navarro does it all for Ohio. In his first game against Rutgers, he threw for 239 yards, three touchdowns and rushed for a touchdown. Defensive coordinator Zac Alley has his work cut out for him.

Running back Sieh Bangura, who’s back after a quick trip to Minnesota, is also someone to watch for on the ground.

The defense isn’t something to overlook either. The Bobcats have a tough secondary, led by physical safety Adonis Williams Jr. WVU’s offense put up big numbers against Robert Morris, but that was an FCS school. Ohio’s defense is tougher, especially in a road environment.

The spread has danced around 2.5 to 3.5 points in favor of the Mountaineers. WVU is also 4-0 against the Bobcats, with the most recent meeting being in 2001. History and the sportsbooks are on WVU’s side.

Still, it won’t be a cakewalk. If any players get caught looking toward the Pitt game, WVU will be shocked in Athens. Rodriguez doesn’t think any of his players are looking ahead, though.

“If they’re thinking about anything other than Ohio, they need to go somewhere else,” Rodriguez said. “It’s as simple as that. I don’t even think about Saturday. Right now, I want them to think about how to get through Tuesday’s practice.”

Given Ohio’s history with Power Four schools, it’s going to be a challenging game. It’ll be a lot closer than a lot of WVU fans think. This isn’t any run-of-the-mill Group of Five school.

Will WVU win? I think so, but narrowly. If any players look ahead, it’ll be a “trap game,” squandering the hope of College GameDay coming to Morgantown for the Backyard Brawl. WVU fans weren’t too happy with Rodriguez’s first-half performance against Robert Morris, so a loss to Ohio would be detrimental.

If another coach were coaching, maybe WVU fumbles. But I don’t think Rodriguez lets that happen.

Prediction: West Virginia 24, Ohio 17