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An unpleasant jaunt up a steep hillside awaited West Virginia players who didn't heed coach Bill Stewart's warning about keeping words like ''Bowl Championship Series'' out of their vocabulary this week.
Stewart just wants No. 23 West Virginia (8-3, 4-2 Big East) to concentrate on beating Rutgers (4-7, 1-5) on Saturday, not whether co-leader Connecticut can secure the conference's BCS berth later that night against South Florida.
''I really don't care if I see one snap of the UConn-USF game,'' Stewart said.
West Virginia needs to win and the Huskies to lose to reach its second BCS bowl game under Stewart. The first came following the 2007 season, when Stewart took over on an interim basis for Rich Rodriguez, then got the job full time after beating Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl.
''If we beat Rutgers, we are the Big East champs, and that was our goal. The rest of that stuff is for others,'' Stewart said. ''The only thing that matters to me, this staff and these players is worrying about Rutgers and our business. We can't worry about others' business.
''I'm going to keep pounding that into these players' heads,'' he added, ''and I will run them up Law School Hill if I hear any talk come out of that locker room.''
Stewart's military-like approach has always been the task at hand. He's referred to Big East games by number, with Rutgers being ''Game No. 7,'' not one that could decide a big payout for the school in January and help determine Stewart's future salary.
Stewart hasn't received a contract extension since signing a five-year deal in September 2008. West Virginia, whose fans became spoiled by Rodriguez's four shared or outright league titles and BCS berths in 2005 and 2007, fell short of expectations in Stewart's first two seasons, finishing tied for second place each time.
But it's the boss who makes the decisions. Oliver Luck took over for Ed Pastilong as athletic director in July and has only said he needed time to review the football program.
Things bottomed out in late October after back-to-back losses to Syracuse and Connecticut, but West Virginia rebounded with wins over Cincinnati, Louisville and Pittsburgh to set up the dramatics in the final weekend of conference play.
And now comes Rutgers, which has lost 15 straight times to West Virginia and is 0-16 all-time against the Mountaineers in Morgantown. Stewart would like nothing better than to give his 20 seniors a proper sendoff in their final home game.
''I will remember this group, hopefully, with a win Saturday, as a group with their backs against the wall, when people didn't think they could do it, which stepped up to the plate and showed resolve,'' Stewart said.
Resolve won't mean much if Connecticut wins - that would probably send West Virginia to the Meineke Bowl in Charlotte, N.C., for the second time in three seasons. If both teams lose, then Pittsburgh would get the BCS berth if the Panthers beat Cincinnati.
Stewart's players aren't talking about whose TV sets they'll be in front of Saturday night.
''It would be great if we won this game and won the Big East, but we're mainly focusing on just getting the win first,'' quarterback Geno Smith said.
While West Virginia wants to finish on a high note, it can't get much lower for Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights have lost to Cincinnati 69-38 and Louisville 40-13 in consecutive weeks.
''Why we didn't execute, if I knew that I would've put the wand on it and away we go,'' coach Greg Schiano said. ''I have ideas, but you work at it and see if they work. It is kind of like being in a laboratory and experimenting and trying to see what works. We are going to keep trying.''
The way his defense is playing, Rutgers will need a charged effort to avoid its sixth straight loss. Schiano is certain of his worst finish since going 4-7 in 2004. The Scarlet Knights won't be going to a bowl for the first time in six seasons.
''It is not an easy time, I can promise you,'' Schiano said.
