West Virginia
Is Trump still as popular in West Virginia as he was in 2016? – WV MetroNews
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — It all seemed to come together that May 5th night in 2016 when thousands of West Virginians rallied with then-candidate Donald Trump at the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center.
There was Trump, best known before his unlikely presidential run for his reality show The Apprentice, on a stage in West Virginia where those in the sell-out crowd were completing with him almost every familiar line he delivered during that rally.
Republican political consultant Greg Thomas remembers it well.
“It was exciting. It was awesome. It was the best political event I had ever been to. It’s the best political event I will ever go to,” Thomas said. “I was really proud to be part of that campaign, I thought it was awesome and that’s Trump at his best.”
There was something about that night that seemed to cement the relationship a majority of West Virginians have continued to have with Trump now four years removed from his only term in office. Support that seems just as strong despite Trump’s well-documented troubles.
Why?
Former Wood County Republican Party Chairman Rob Cornelius said it’s simple.
“Biden has proved the other side can’t get the job done,” Cornelius said. “Ninety percent of you are saying you aren’t better off than you were four years ago.”
Thomas sees Trump’s support in West Virginia in three groups.
He said first there are those who liked him eight years ago and still like him today because he is a disruptor. Secondly, there’s a group that don’t care much for his behavior but that like the policies that were produced in his first administration and then lastly, there’s a group, familiar to Cornelius’ description, that don’t like what the Biden administration has done.
“I think you get these groups that keep layering onto each other and that’s why I think his support is higher than it was eight years ago,” Thomas said.
Trump garnered 68% of the vote in the 2016 general election. In reelection bid four years later it was almost identical.
Act of faith
There’s strong support for Trump among conservative church goers in the Mountain State.
“It’s an act of faith,” former Charleston Mayor Danny Jones told MetroNews. “I don’t think people hold something against people forever. He’s vulgar but they just move that part over. People like President Trump because he is enemies with people that don’t like them.”
Thomas said the seemingly mismatched relationship is based on policy.
“It’s the policies. I’m as pro-Trump as anybody but there are things he says that I say, ‘I wish he wouldn’t have said that.’ If you really are a person of faith and you really care about family values, it’s the policies.”
Fairmont State University University Assistant Professor of Political Science Greg Noone said the biggest thing Trump has been able to do is to connect with people who feel like they’ve been left behind or left out of the economy.
“There’s that disaffected feeling that others are rocketing ahead and they’re being left behind,” Noone said. “I think he speaks to that on a gut base level and I think that’s the connection he makes,” Noone said.
Post-Trump
Trump will win West Virginia in November with the national race once again expected to be tight. Some are wondering where West Virginia will look post-Trump, whether that’s in November, four years down the road or eight years from now.
Cornelius called it a heavy lift because it will be difficult for anyone to match Trump.
“Politicians are boring by nature and that are risk averse, Trump is neither one of those things,” Cornelius said.
He said Trump has been popular, especially in 2016, with people who don’t usually vote. Again, he said any further GOP candidate will have a tough time matching that.
“It’s hard to find someone that interesting,” Cornelius said.
Thomas said Trump won’t always be there but if he’s reelected then he can get his policies in place that will impact the country for years to come.
Jones said Trump’s popularity, that many West Virginia candidates in this election cycle are latching themselves to, is not going to last.
“I don’t buy into it. It won’t work the next time,” Jones said. “If he doesn’t win this election he’s probably going to prison.”
Prediction
How will Trump do Tuesday?
“Sixty-eight percent,” Jones said.
Thomas said Trump will once again show how strong he is in West Virginia despite his issues. He said a large majority of West Virginians seem to be able to choose policy over person. He said that was on display during that Charleston rally eight years ago this month.
“That was Trump at his absolute best and he has those moments but he has some moments that are not his best. But that’s the thing with Trump–you’ve got to take the whole thing,” Thomas said.
Former Oklahoma quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. has committed to West Virginia, ESPN reported.
Hawkins and his brother Maliek Hawkins, a cornerback, are both expected to play for Rich Rodriguez in Morgantown next season.
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Hawkins played in nine games across two seasons for the Sooners. He threw for 950 yards and nine touchdowns. He has three seasons of eligibility remaining.
Maliek Hawkins has four seasons of eligibility left. He had previously been a top recruit himself.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — This week, West Virginia hunters will get a chance to try hunting the way the original Mountaineers did it. The Mountaineer Heritage season is open from Thursday through Sunday.
The season allows hunters to use only primitive implements. Sidelock or flintlock muzzleloading rifles or pistols are the only firearms allowed. In-line muzzleloaders are not legal for the Heritage Season nor are scopes. Archery enthusiasts are allowed only long bows or recurve bows. You’re compound bow will have to hang on its hook for this time.
“It’s a special season and it’s kind of an all encompassing big game season,” said Vinnie Johnson, Biologist with the West Virginia DNR.
The season enables hunters to kill a deer, bear, or turkey provided they hunt with one of those primitive firearms or bows. The season started several years ago and has become a big hit with sportsmen for a variety of reasons. For some it cuts the monotony of cabin fever and gives them a chance to get back into the woods well after hunting season. The season also enables hunters to go after big game with snow on the ground which doesn’t always happen during the regular fall seasons.
The snowfall could potentially make killing a bear less likely, but not always.
“It really depends on where you’re at,” Johnson explained in a recent edition of West Virginia Outdoors. “Some of our areas that are heavy bear country, there’s still a good opportunity you’re going to see a bear.”
The bumper crops of mast across the West Virginia landscape this year will also keep bears out of hibernation longer. The sunshine and warm weather forecasted into the weekend may also be a plus for keeping bears active and moving in the upcoming season.
“If there’s food on the landscape, they’re gong to be out moving around. They go into their dens when there’s no food left and they need to reserve for the remainder of the winter season,” he added.
Killing a big buck may be tricky. Some have already started to drop antlers. The season allows for either sex, but for those who have already killed two bucks from this past fall’s hunting seasons, you cannot kill another buck. If a hunter shoots an antlerless buck, which turns out to be a buck that already dropped antlers, hunters can check that as an antlerless deer.
Turkeys are also legal. Unlike deer, turkeys and bears, do not count against the bag limit from last year. However, hunters to need to have their 2026 hunting license. Although a lot of the purists like to not only hunt with an old time rifle, they also like to dress the part and will go into the woods wearing buckskins. Primitive garb or not, modern safety is still the rule and since it’s a firearms season for deer, you’ll need to wear blaze orange.
UC Bearcats coach Miller, Houston coach Sampson, players on Cougars W
UC Bearcats coach Miller, Houston coach Sampson, players on Cougars Big 12 opening win
Two teams that started the Big 12 campaign against Top 10 opponents clash in Morgantown Tuesday, Jan. 6, when the Cincinnati Bearcats face the West Virginia Mountaineers.
The Mountaineers, now coached by Ross Hodge, who came from North Texas, got whirled by the No. 3 Iowa State Cyclones on Jan. 2, 80-59. A day later, UC had plenty of chances against No. 8 Houston, but the Cougars closed in the final minutes to win 67-60.
“We’ve got to learn how to finish, but we’re right there,” UC coach Wes Miller said. “The guys in the locker room know it. We’ve got to block out the noise and get ready to play.”
Neither team will want to start 0-2 in the treacherous league and UC has not yet won in Morgantown since being part of the Big 12. UC’s last road win in West Virginia goes back to Mick Cronin’s second Bearcat team (13-19) that pulled off a 62-39 upset of the Mountaineers in 2008. Diehard fans may remember the game for a mustard-colored suit Bob Huggins wore for the contest.
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Cincinnati Bearcats were swept by West Virginia last season
Last Feb. 2, West Virginia beat UC handily 63-50. Current Bearcat Sencire Harris didn’t score for WVU in the game but had four steals. Eighteen days later in Morgantown, the Mountaineers prevailed again 62-59 with Harris scoring six points and grabbing six rebounds against his future team. UC was led by Day Day Thomas in both games with 10 and 13 points, respectively.
Cincinnati Bearcats could be without Kerr Kriisa
Kriisa, a starter for 12 of the 14 games, got hit hard by Houston after a basket and left the game holding his shoulder. He came back to hit his lone 3-pointer, then had to leave again with pain.
Kriisa was recruited to West Virginia by Bob Huggins and played in 2023-24 for the Mountaineers, averaging 11 points and shooting over 42% on 3-pointers.
“Nobody’s dealt with more injury crap than Cincinnati,” Miller said. “We’re getting resilient and we’re getting tough because of that. We’re just going to keep coming. Injuries are tough. We’ve had more than damn anybody in the last four years in all of college basketball. This team’s had its fair share and we’re still right there.”
Miller was worried about Kriisa’s injury and he couldn’t lift his left shoulder after draining his only shot.
3 keys for Cincinnati Bearcats to win at West Virginia Mountaineers
1. Bring Houston intensity to West Virginia
UC had its best crowd experience at Fifth Third Arena against No. 8 Houston with a halftime lead and a 10-point cushion early in the second half. For just the second time this season, they lost a game when they had a halftime lead.
That’s now two games where they had a Top 10 team on the ropes and couldn’t finish (No. 6 Louisville at Heritage Bank Center and No. 8 Houston). They looked like a tournament team in parts of those games, but then lost to teams who showed why they are perennial tournament players.
2. Locate Huff, Floyd
It sounds like someone looking for a law firm, but Honor Huff and Jasper Floyd are both 40% marksmen from three-point range. Huff led the country in triples last season at Chattanooga and Floyd comes from Coach Hodge’s system at North Texas. The Mountaineers average over eight made 3s per game, which is how many Houston made vs. UC Jan. 3.
The Bearcats made only six of their 3-pointers against the Cougars, after making 11 in their previous game with Lipscomb Dec. 29. UC is 5-1 when making 10 or more treys, with the one loss being Xavier. Xavier also beat West Virginia 78-68 in November, shooting a torrid 16-for-25 from the arc.
3. Keep Mountaineers below 70
West Virginia has been held to less than 70 points in four of their five losses. The exception is the 89-88 double-overtime defeat at Ohio State. UC held Houston below their average at 67 and is in that ballpark for the season. The difficult thing is all of West Virginia’s wins have been at home and Hope Coliseum could have a crowd because, well, it’s Tuesday night in Morgantown.
Tip: Tuesday, Jan. 6 at 7 p.m. at Hope Coliseum (14,000)
TV/Radio: ESPN2/700WLW
Series: WVU leads 13-12 (Mountaineers won at Fifth Third Arena Feb. 19, 2025, 62-59)
West Virginia Mountaineers scouting report
Record: 9-5
Coach: Ross Hodge, first season 9-5 (55-29 overall)
Offense: 74.9 ppg
Defense: 61.6 ppg
Projected starting lineup
(Position, Height, Stats)
Treysen Eaglestaff (G, 6’6″, 9.1 ppg)
Honor Huff (G, 5’10”, 16.6 ppg)
Harlan Obioha (C, 7′, 6.3 ppg)
Chance Moore (G, 6’6″, 12.9 ppg)
Jasper Floyd (G, 6’3″, 7.9 ppg)
Cincinnati Bearcats scouting report
Record: 8-6
Coach: Wes Miller (90-65, fifth season; 275-200 overall)
Offense: 74.6 ppg
Defense: 65.6 ppg
Projected starting lineup
(Position, Height, Stats)
Day Day Thomas (G, 6’1″, 13 ppg)
Jizzle James (G, 6’3″, 11.5 ppg)
Sencire Harris (G, 6’4″, 6.9 ppg)
Baba Miller (F, 6’11”, 13.4 ppg)
Moustapha Thiam (C, 7’2″, 11 ppg)
Cincinnati Bearcats, West Virginia Mountaineers to watch
Guard Honor Huff helped Chattanooga win the NIT and nailed a record 131 trifectas last season for the Moccasins, shooting 41.6%. Now he’s West Virginia’s top scorer and is shooting at a similar rate from beyond the arc.
In their second games as starters for this season, UC’s “Buck” Harris and Jizzle James were off against Houston, shooting a combined 2-for-14. James had just four points and Harris two.
James played 36 minutes, and it’s doubtful he can be held down for that long again. Harris was a Mountaineer last season and should have some comfort in the arena.
Rankings
KenPom.com: Cincinnati is No. 66, West Virginia No. 72
NCAA NET: West Virginia is No. 93, Cincinnati No. 95
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