No double-digit victory total is in the offing. No sixth consecutive New Year's Day bowl seems feasible, what with so many alluring Big 12 teams available for the Gator Bowl to invite.

Rather, the likeliest season ending for the West Virginia Mountaineers -- a BCS-bowl victor two of the past three Januarys -- appears to be capping off a seven- to nine-victory year in such a late-December locale as El Paso, Texas, or Charlotte, N.C. Or, as ex-nose guard Keilen Dykes used to call anything less than Jan. 1-2: "Mickey Mouse bowls."

That's what appeared to pain the Mountaineers most profoundly from their 19-15 loss at Pitt Friday, the cold fact the program had fallen below the customary elite-level 11-victory years of late.

"Definitely something I'm not used to," said senior quarterback Patrick White, who with that fourth loss in 10 starts this season equaled the sum total of his first 30 career starts.

"More than the bowl [possibilities], it stinks to lose a fourth game -- with one game left," said senior kicker/punter Pat McAfee of Plum. "We're not used to losing."

Fact is, were the Mountaineers (7-4, 4-2 Big East) to go lose Saturday night to South Florida (7-4, 2-4) -- loser of four of its past six games but winner in consecutive years against West Virginia -- such a fifth loss would equal the team's total from 2005-07.

West Virginia, whose past three losses have come by a combined 10 points and in two overtimes (Colorado and Cincinnati) plus the final minute of play (Pitt), remains coveted by the folks in the garishly colored blazers. True, a victory against the visiting Bulls on ESPN2 Saturday would slightly enhance the team's profile at 8-4 rather than 7-5 and a loser in two of its final four. But two immutable facts make the Mountaineers most attractive to bowl types: their ticket-buying, traveling fans, and White.

In the end, those reasons could cause a bowl committee to pick West Virginia first over Pitt that just beat the Mountaineers, surging Rutgers or Connecticut. Bowls with Big East tie-ins are under no obligation to invite teams in order of conference finish or better record.

With champion Cincinnati attaining the Big East's only BCS berth, the next-in-line Jan. 1 Gator Bowl is expected to pass on a Big East foe for such BCS-leftovers as Oklahoma State, Missouri or Nebraska of the Big 12. However, a potential match between rivals West Virginia and Virginia Tech, if it loses in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship Saturday, may well intrigue Gator Bowl officials.

If the Gator Bowl passes, that would then leave the Dec. 31 Sun Bowl to decide between West Virginia and Pitt. If Rutgers beats Louisville Thursday to reach the seven-victory plateau, the Sun under its tie-in must invite a Big East member over Notre Dame (6-6). That's where the fan-base/White factors could tilt an El Paso bid in West Virginia's favor.

A Sun Bowl pass on West Virginia would leave the next conference choice to the Dec. 27 Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte, where Mountaineers fans came en masse for the inaugural 2002 game and officials recently admitted a partiality toward West Virginia.

In the rare event the El Paso and Charlotte folks would pass on West Virginia, that leaves the next-in-line choice to the PapaJohn's.com Bowl in Birmingham, Ala., Dec. 29.

NOTES -- Middle linebacker Anthony Leonard of McKeesport, who missed the Pitt game due to a foot injury, "should be able to go full speed Saturday," coach Bill Stewart said yesterday. ... After throwing two interceptions early in the fourth quarter, helping to turn the game's momentum, what was White thinking on the final, failed drive in the end? "Don't throw another pick." ... West Virginia was called for four penalties on its opening 12 snaps, two of them erasing 56 yards in gains. A fourth-quarter holding penalty on Ryan Stanchek also negated a first down and caused a punt that Pitt transformed into the winning drive. "A couple of inopportune penalties broke our backs," Stewart said. "We had a drop here or there that could've won the game." Stewart declined to single out senior Dorrell Jalloh, who dropped a third-and-goal pass in the end zone -- prompting a third-quarter field goal. ... Stewart said Stanchek and guard Greg Isdaner had their best games of the season, and praised linebacker Mortty Ivy, cornerback Brandon Hogan and nose guard Chris Neild as well. ... Perhaps signaling increased usage of fullback Ricky Kovatch, among other things, the coach said: "That's what we're going to do our last two games here, we're going to get bigger, stronger, tougher running the football."