MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia welcomed a former opponent Tuesday, with defensive end Joseph Boletepeli announcing he was transferring to the Mountaineers from N.C. State.
Boletepeli will have three years to play three after spending the last two seasons with the Wolfpack. A native of Raleigh, he originally signed with his hometown team in 2018 as a 3-star prospect and played in three games as a true freshman with 32 snaps.
Boletepeli was able to redshirt that season, and in 2019 as a redshirt freshman, he had 11 tackles and 1 1/2 sacks in just four games. He did not play against WVU in the Mountaineers’ 44-27 on Sept. 14 in Morgantown.
In an interesting twist, Boletepeli lost his starting position when N.C. State decided to go from a four-man front to a 3-3-5 defensive stack under Tony Gibson. Gibson was WVU’s defensive coordinator from 2014-18 before leaving for N.C. State when he was not retained by WVU head coach Neal Brown following Dana Holgorsen’s departure to Houston.
Boletepeli, at 6-foot-4 and 262 pounds, seems like a perfect fit for the bandit linebacker position in Vic Koenning’s defensive system, but can also put his hand in the ground as an edge rusher.
Boletepeli is expected to get a waiver from N.C. State that would allow him to be eligible immediately, which would be a big coup for the Mountaineers.
Schedule addition
It what was a big day for Robert Morris on Monday, publicly announcing the joining of the Big South as an associate member for football, Colonials athletic director Chris King also announced the school will face West Virginia in a nonconference game in 2025.
In other sports, Robert Morris will join the Horizon League from the Northeast Conference, and that move will be official July 1. RMU, located just outside of Pittsburgh, is currently independent in football and will join the Big South after the 2020 season.
“We are excited about elevating the profile, the brand and competitive status of this football program,” King said.
For the Mountaineers, it adds another local game for the nonconference slate. All nonconference games are booked through 2024, including rivalry renewals against Virginia Tech, Pitt and Penn State. WVU will also face Duquesne, RMU’s Pittsburgh rival, in 2023.
The game against Robert Morris fills one of two empty spots in the 2025 schedule — the Mountaineers are slated to host Pitt in the final of a four-game agreement.
West Virginia has never faced Robert Morris on the gridiron, but the Colonials have been on the schedule for other WVU sports over the years, especially in men’s and women’s basketball. On the men’s side, the Mountaineers have a 19-2 record vs. RMU, with the last meeting coming in 2011. For the women, WVU is 17-1 against RMU with the last meeting coming in 2006.
The men’s and women’s soccer teams have also played Robert Morris — the men last played in 2005 and the women in 1997.
WVU football nonconference schedules
2020
Sept. 5 — vs. Florida State (Atlanta)
Sept. 12 — Eastern Kentucky
Sept. 19 — Maryland
2021
Sept. 4 — at Maryland
Sept. 11 — Long Island
Sept. 18 — Virginia Tech
2022
Sept. 3 — at Pitt
Sept. 17 — Towson
Sept. 24 — at Virginia Tech
2023
Sept. 2 — at Penn State
Sept. 9 — Duquesne
Sept. 16 — Pitt
2024
Aug. 31 — Penn State
Sept. 7 — Albany
Sept. 14 — at Pitt
2025
Sept. 13 — Pitt
TBA — Robert Morris
2026
Sept. 5 — Alabama
Sept. 19 — at East Carolina
2027
Sept. 4 — at Alabama
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