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MORGANTOWN -- It's taken four-plus years, but that climb Neal Brown asked West Virginia fans to trust has finally begun.
In the past seven games:
They've beaten Oklahoma for the first time since joining the Big 12.
They've beaten Pitt for the first time since 2011.
They've compiled the first three-game winning streak since Neal Brown has been at West Virginia.
They've won five of their last seven games, beating Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Duquesne, Pitt and Texas Tech.
It's a huge step forward, but what's next?
"You gotta go win. The whole goal is to get into November with a chance to win your league," Brown said when asked that question as he began preparations for tonight's 8 p.m. road trip to Fort Worth, Texas, to face TCU.
The game against last season's national runner-up will be shown on ESPN2.
That's a major step forward from the Mountaineers' standpoint, and he's not quite certain it needs to be stressed upon his players at this time as they move forward from taking baby steps to giant strides.
"Now I'm not sitting in a team meeting and saying that, but it's from a staff standpoint," Brown said. "But the goal is to get into November with a goal of going to Dallas (for the Big 12 championship game)."
That may sound like talk from Fantasyland, but the recent accomplishments have come with backup quarterback Nicco Marchiol playing the majority of the Oklahoma State win last year and the Pitt and Texas Tech victories this year, which is a sign that the defense is significantly stronger and that there are aspects of the offense other than quarterback that create good offensive games.
What's more, the expanded Big 12 looks to be watered down with only Texas and Oklahoma -- both of whom leave the conference after this season -- among the top 15 teams in the rankings and with Kansas and Kansas State at the bottom of the Top 25.
TCU is knocking on the door of entering the rankings and probably could get there with a victory over WVU, so this is not a game the Horned Frogs can look past.
But this really isn't about TCU. It is about WVU proving the start to this season is not a mirage. If Brown's goal of reaching November with a chance to get to the Big 12 championship game is realistic, he has to find a way to accomplish it.
How can they carve that route toward the top out?
"To do that, you have to win your home games, which we've done so far … and you have to beat quality teams on the road," he said. "This is the first opportunity we've had in league play to do that. We didn't get it done against Penn State, but they continue to prove they are one of the top 5 teams in the country and have a real chance to make the playoffs.
"This is our next opportunity. We played well against them last year, but not good enough to win, so we have to play a little bit better to give ourselves a chance."
Last year, WVU went into the final four minutes of what would become a 41-31 home loss down by just three points, with TCU clinching the game with a touchdown with 20 seconds left.
TCU battered WVU for just shy of 500 total yards and did whatever it wanted to through the air behind Max Duggan, but the defense has improved considerably, especially against the pass and in tackling.
"They play hard and they're very physical," TCU coach Sonny Dykes said. "At least to me, that's kind of where it starts. The mentality of the football team is kind of built on that. I don't see a weakness defensively."
Coach speak? Maybe, but WVU allowed only three touchdowns in the three-game win streak and only one to Pitt and Texas Tech combined. You may question the quarterback play on those two teams, but you can't argue that you'd expect last season's defense to accomplish that.
"They're really a solid defensive football team," Dykes said. "They tackle well. They run to the ball. They understand how to leverage the ball and funnel the back to other people to make tackles. They just play a good brand of defense."
Over the past seven games WVU has allowed 17 offensive touchdowns, and 10 of those came in the Kansas State and Penn State games, both nationally ranked teams. That left only seven TDs in the other five games.
There has been nothing said this week to make anyone believe that Greene will be 100% and ready to go at quarterback this week, so the game will lie in Marchiol's hands.
Improvement would be expected from someone who has now put his first start behind him and had two weeks to work as the first-string quarterback.
"Overall, the decision making improved," Brown said on Monday. "It was not exactly what we'd like, but it improved. He just didn't get a lot of help. Our offensive skill guys have got to go help him out there. Whether that's making plays, making people miss, we've got to do a better job around him.
"But I'm pleased with his improvement. Can he be better? Yes. Will he be better? I believe so. I wasn't displeased with how he played last Saturday. He gave us a chance."
A victory over TCU would be a huge step forward in regaining respect.
"We got to prove we are a contender. We're 1-0 (in the league) but I'm not sure we've grabbed national attention yet. We have to continue to win games," Brown stressed.