WVU tramples Wofford
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) – Adam Bednarik threw a touchdown pass and ran for another score to lead West Virginia to a 35-7 win over Wofford on Saturday night. Five different players scored for West Virginia (2-0).
The Mountaineers limited Division I-AA Wofford, which uses a mix of the wishbone and wing-T formations – to 78 yards on 45 carries and 154 yards overall. Last week the Mountaineers held Syracuse to 103 yards.
West Virginia converted 11 of 19 third downs, an area it struggled against Syracuse.
Bednarik completed all six of his passes for 90 yards and he rushed for 22 more. The sophomore led three of his team’s five scoring drives.
He found Darius Reynaud from 27 yards out in the first quarter and capped WVU’s first possession of the second half with a 3-yard TD run for a 28-0 lead.
The latter drive was set up by Jeff Noechel’s interception of Wofford’s Josh Collier. It was one of four Wofford turnovers.
West Virginia reserve Pat White led all rushers with 107 yards and became the ninth Mountaineer quarterback to surpass 100 yards in a game.
The redshirt freshman led the Mountaineers’ longest drive of the season, a 14-play, 95-yard effort capped by Jason Gwaltney’s 1-yard TD run in the second quarter. White also had a 48-yard TD run on fourth-and-1 to complete the scoring.
J.R. House came on late in the game. The 25-year old freshman played in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ organization for six years after setting several national high school passing records.
Gwaltney, a freshman, ran for 43 yards and scored his first college touchdown. Starting tailback Jason Colson ran for 44 yards and didn’t fumble a week after losing three fumbles in the Syracuse red zone.
West Virginia, which played six different tailbacks, compiled 339 yards on the ground. Brandon Myles led WVU with three catches for 57 yards.
Michael Hobbs paced Wofford with 40 yards rushing. Collier went 5-of-9 for 70 yards with two interceptions. His longest was a 48-yard completion that set up Wofford’s lone score on Hobbs’ 1-yard run.
Wofford was a replacement on West Virginia’s schedule after Central Florida backed out in February.
West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez lost to Wofford as coach at Salem College in 1988, the first season for Terriers coach Mike Ayers, now in his 18th year.