It's been 41 years since Virginia and West Virginia have met in a regular-season football game, despite the fact that the two neighboring state universities are separated by just 235 miles as the crow flies.

The Cavaliers (2-0) and Mountaineers (2-0) will end that drought on Saturday night in Charlotte — coincidentally, the site of their most recent meeting, a 48-22 win for Virginia in the 2022 Continental Tire Bowl.

Few of the players on either school's current roster were even born then, but that's not to say there's no familiarity between the two teams. Virginia head coach Tony Elliott played wide receiver at Clemson, where his offensive coordinator was Rich Rodriguez, who is now in the second season of his second tenure as WVU's head coach.

Each team is off to a strong start, but will be playing for the first time away from home, in an NFL stadium. The stakes are fairly high for an early-season, non-conference game — even if WVU fans hadn't taken exception to the Cavaliers playing "Take Me Home Country Roads" over the loudspeakers during an opening win over NC State.

That's for the internet trolls to discuss. Here are three legitimate keys to determining who'll walk out of Bank of America Stadium with a 3-0 record:

1. Stopping WVU's run game

Having played for Rodriguez, Elliott knows that his former mentor loves to keep the ball on the ground. And through two games, the Mountaineers have done so successfully.

Quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. actually leads WVU in rushing with 199 yards on 26 carries, while Cam Cook has 194 yards on 40 attempts. Each has scored three touchdowns in two games, including a 72-yard sprint by Cook against Coastal Carolina and a 71-yarder by Hawkins against Tennessee-Martin last week.

Meanwhile, the Cavaliers have allowed just 131 total rushing yards (2.4 per carry) through two games, thanks largely to a deep, experienced defensive line.

The Mountaineers love to operate at a high tempo, often without huddling. That could make it more difficult for Virginia defensive coordinator John Rudzinski to shuttle in fresh defensive linemen. It also won't help if defensive tackle Jason Hammond, who suffered an elbow injury against Norfolk State, is unavailable.

2. Getting big pass plays

Clearly, the weak link in West Virginia's defense is its pass coverage. The Mountaineers allowed five completions of 23 yards or more against Coastal Carolina and two more to Tennessee-Martin. They're giving up 271.5 yards per game through the air, ranking 123rd among 138 FBS teams.

WVU has registered seven sacks, but if Virginia's veteran offensive line can protect Beau Pribula, he'll have a chance to exploit a vulnerable secondary. Pribula has been accurate (21 of25 through two games), and this will be an opportunity to establish a rapport with a receivers room that has been the Cavaliers' biggest question mark.

It's unclear whether Rico Flores Jr. will be available as he battles a sore hamstring, but this would be an opportune time to make his Virginia debut. If not, Jacquon Gibson, Kam Courtney, Da'Shawn Martin and Ty'Lyric Coleman should have more chances to shine.

3. Who scores first?

Neither team has faced a real challenge through two games, and it's largely because both have dominated the first two quarters of their games.

West Virginia has yet to give up a first-half point, outscoring Coastal Carolina and Tennessee-Martin by a combined 52-0. Virginia has been similarly dominant, taking leads of 17-0 over NC State and 28-3 over Norfolk State into the break.

Scoring first is always helpful. In this case, it could be decisive.