Mountaineer middle linebacker Lee Kpogba and safety Anthony Wilson combine, to put a hit on Tar Heels running back Omarion Hampton in the first quarter of the game at Bank of America Stadium on Dec. 27. David Pennock

SHEPHERDSTOWN — West Virginia’s football team was at its emotional best when it dismantled North Carolina, 30-10, in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.

Playing in a bowl game seemed to be a reward in the collective minds of the players who fashioned a nine-win season by defeating the Tar Heels.

And it showed once again that high-octane enthusiasm can win in college settings.

Both teams had 8-4 records coming to Charlotte. West Virginia’s 8-4 record was much more accepted by the non-playing members of the West Virginia “community.”

North Carolina’s athletics leadership wanted to play the game, but they could never transmit their emotions and wishes to the players who had to meet the ready-to-play Mountaineers.

Martinsburg High School graduate Hudson Clement makes a catch and run in the second quarter of the Mountaineer bowl game against North Carolina on Dec. 27. David Pennock

How does WVU continue to compete on the higher levels of “revenue sports” with its rivals in the Big 12 Conference?

It is a savage new landscape in the now-murky world of college athletics.

Transfer portals, name/image/likeness and athletes coming and going continue on the current merry-go-round of movement.

The status quo will only drag teams to the bottom of your league.

Schools now recruit through the still-to-be fully understood world of the NIL (Name/Image/Likeness).

Money now can now fill the pockets, shoes and clothing of college athletes. A prospective high school or junior college player can be wooed with money to come play for ol’ State U.

Competing in the NIL world is no longer just a beauty contest for colleges. “Pay me” is just as prevalent as “Who is your coach?” or “Can I graduate in four years in your business school?”

West Virginia is now using an entity called “Country Roads Trust” to help do its jousting against the ever-changing competition.

“Country Roads Trust” was founded by one-time WVU athletic director Oliver Luck and Ken Kendrick to keep the Mountaineers in the marathon run for acquiring the athletes they want.

“Country Roads Trust” has used “Big Timber Brewing” and “Swilled Dog” in-state businesses to help WVU gain a solid foothold in the NIL world.

Where else in the state could sufficient money be found to aid in finding NIL money?

Statewide businesses like Go Mart, the West Virginia Tourist Bureau, state parks (which now number 35 in the state), national parks (Harpers Ferry, Monongahela, New River Gorge and George Washington National Forest) and the technology industry could be contacted and become future NIL contributors.

As of now, Toothman Ford and the NIL Shop are already on board.

The state of West Virginia likes to acknowledge its mining, chemical, salt industry, health care, electric industry, insurance, timber, glass and pottery, oil and gas, iron and steel, aerospace and information sectors. Could some of them be future sponsors of the NIL battles against other schools?

Could outdoor recreational businesses or country clubs such as The Pines and Lakeview Golf Resort in the Morgantown area be persuaded to help?

Identifying NIL funds is going to be the same as unearthing and recruiting talented athletes has been for the last many decades of years.