WVU rebounds from first loss in 48-21 victory over Kansas
West Virginia University rebounded from its first loss of the season in a big way with a 48-21 victory over Kansas in Big 12 action on Saturday night on Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium.
“Good to be 7-1,” West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen said. “It wasn’t a clean game but you never take a win for granted.
“We didn’t start great offensively. They were squeezing hard. I mean, they were down in the box. We decided to get big and run the ball. It took us a couple of series to figure out what their plan was defensively.”
WVU’s defense held the Jayhawks’ offense in check and the Mountaineers’ rushing attack took over on offense. WVU ran for 341 yards on 47 carries and scored three touchdowns.
“I thought we ran the ball pretty good considering what they were doing defensively,” Holgorsen said. “We were trying to run the clock in the second half but it seemed like that clock stood still. Is it midnight?”
The No. 14/15 Mountaineers (4-1, 7-1) took advantage of a Kansas penalty on the opening kickoff when the Jayhawks’ Steven Sims Jr. was penalized for taunting. WVU started its initial possession on its own 40. Quarterback Skyler Howard hooked up with Shelton Gibson on the second play from scrimmage to the Kansas 18.
The visitors didn’t do themselves any favors with nine penalties for 104 yards.
The Jaykawks’ defense held in the red zone and Mike Molina’s 35-yard field goal at 13:19 of the first quarter gave the Mountaineers a 3-0 lead.
WVU’s offense got going on its fourth drive when Kennedy McCoy ran 44 yards to the Kansas 30, and Howard capped the five-play, 77-yard drive with a 22-yard run at 2:20 of the first and a 10-0 lead after the first of six PATs for Molina.
Howard scored his second rushing touchdown at 8:27 of the second on a 33-yard run and a 17-0 WVU advantage. Howard rushed for 64 yards on 11 carries and two touchdowns.
WVU was without starting running back Rushel Shell III due to injury and Justin Crawford started, but the true freshman McCoy showed he can get the job done when needed. McCoy gained 127 yards on 18 attempts.
West Virginia stopped Kansas quarterback Montell Cozart on a fourth-and-two from the WVU 29 at 5:59, and the Mountaineers increased their lead to 24-0 on the ensuing drive when Howard threw a seven-yard pass to Daikiel Shorts with 3:04 left in the second quarter. Crawford got into the act on the drive with 56 yards on five carries, including a long of 37.
Shorts had 104 yards receiving after pulling in seven catches and one touchdown. Crawford was the game’s leading rusher with 129 yards on 13 carries and one touchdown.
Gibson pulled in a 19-yard touchdown pass with 40 seconds left in the first half for a 31-0 WVU lead. The five-play, 56-yard drive took 52 seconds to complete.
The running game allowed the offense to not be one dimensional, but Howard was 16-of-27 for 260 yards and three touchdowns. Gibson pulled in four receptions for 102 yards and two touchdowns.
Kansas (0-6, 1-8) got on the board at 11:01 of the third quarter when Ke’aun Kinner scored on a two-yard run for a 31-7 West Virginia lead. The 29-yard drive was set up after WVU fumbled and the Jayhawks recovered.
Crawford (27-yard run) and Gibson (32-yard reception) added touchdowns for the Mountaineers in the second half and Molina connected on a 39-yard field goal.
Carter Stanley came in at quarterback for Cozart in the third quarter and led the Jayhawks on two scoring drives, but West Virginia had a comfortable lead at that point.
WVU’s Rasul Douglas continued his strong play at cornerback as the senior intercepted two passes for a team-leading five this season.