GAME-BY-GAME RECAPS GAME 1 [ SEPTEMBER 4, 2011 · MORGANTOWN, W.VA . ] #24
WEST VIRGINIA
34
MARSHALL 13
I
Mountaineer Football
[ TAVON AUSTIN ]
n a bizarre evening in the Mountain State, Dana Holgorsen’s debut as West Virginia’s 33rd head football coach got off to a winning start with a 34-13 victory over Marshall. With West Virginia leading 27-13 at the 4:59 mark of the third quarter, both teams had to leave the field and seating area as Milan Puskar Stadium was evacuated due to severe rain and lightning. After a three hour and three minute delay, the game resumed until the 14:36 mark of the fourth quarter, when lightning forced the teams off the field again. Both delays totaled four hours and 22 minutes, before the game ended with West Virginia coming away with the victory. Marshall struck first with 10:18 left in the opening quarter when Andre Booker returned a punt 87 yards for a quick 7-0 lead for the Herd. The Mountaineers responded with a 10-play, 71-yard drive that ended with a Tyler Bitancurt 27-yard field goal, cutting the deficit to 7-3. West Virginia would go on to put the next three scores on the board. First, quarterback Geno Smith hit Ivan McCartney with a four-yard strike to end another 10-play drive. Then Smith directed a 13-play scoring march and connected with Stedman Bailey on a 15-yard toss, before Bitancurt came on again and connected on a 43-yard field goal for a 20-7 Mountaineer advantage late in the second quarter. Marshall responded with a 10-play drive of its own that went for 72 yards, and the Herd got a 24-yard field goal from Tyler Warner as the half expired to cut the West Virginia lead to 20-10. The Thundering Herd again cut into the West Virginia lead at the 5:14 mark of the third, when Warner converted on a 21-yard field goal attempt to pull the Herd within seven at 20-13. But West Virginia quickly erased the Marshall momentum on the ensuing kickoff, as Tavon Austin returned the Herd kick 100 yards for a score and a 27-13 West Virginia advantage. It was the second kickoff return of Austin’s career, and he became just the sixth Mountaineer in school history to record a 100-yard kickoff return. Soon after the Austin return, the rain came and the sky lit up as severe weather blanketed the entire state. When play resumed, West Virginia went on the offensive again and basically put the game away when tailback Vernard Roberts rushed in from one-yard away for a 34-13 advantage. The second delay lasted one hour and 19 minutes before both school administrations and conference offices determined it was in the best interest of the student-athlete to end the 3:30 pm game at 10:24 p.m. West Virginia was led by quarterback Geno Smith, who passed for 249 yards on 26 completions and two touchdowns. Bailey hauled in five catches for 76 yards, while Najee Goode led all tacklers with seven. Marshall received 115 yards passing from true freshman Rakeem Cato, as he completed 15-of-21 passes. Tron Martinez led the Herd ground game with 76 yards rushing, while Antavious Wilson led the Herd receivers with 64 yards. Marshall’s defense was paced by defensive backs Darryl Roberts and Devin Arrington with six tackles each. Statistics for the shortened contest showed West Virginia with 42 yards rushing and 249 passing for 291 yards of total offense. Marshall finished with 72 yards on the ground and 115 in the air for 187 yards of offense., With the win, West Virginia improved to 11-0 all-time against Marshall and 8-0 all-time against the Thundering Herd in Morgantown. In the latest “Friends of Coal” Bowl series, West Virginia improved to 6-0 against Marshall.
SCORING AND STATISTICAL SUMMARY 1 2 3 4 F Marshall 7 3 3 0 13 West Virginia 3 17 7 7 34 1st MAR Andre Booker 87 punt return (Tyler Warner kick) WVU Tyler Bitancurt 27 FG 2nd WVU Ivan McCartney 4 pass from Geno Smith (Bitancurt kick) WVU Stedman Bailey 15 pass from Smith (Bitancurt kick) WVU Bitancurt 43 FG MAR Warner 24 FG 3rd MAR Warner 21 FG WVU Tavon Austin 100 kickoff return (Bitancurt kick) 4th WVU Vernard Roberts 1 rush (Bitancurt kick)
MAR WVU
First Downs 9 17 Rushes/Yards 23/72 26/42 Passing Yardage 115 249 Passes 15/21/0 26/35/0 Punts 5/224/44.8 2/100/50.0 Fumbles/Lost 1/0 1/0 Return Yardage 87 46 Penalties/Yards 7/35 2/15 Time of Possession 20:33 24:51 WVU RUSHING: Buie 15-30; WVU PASSING: Smith 26-35-0-249; WVU RECEIVING: Bailey 5-76, McCartney 5-31, Brown 4-42; WVU TACKLES (TFL/QS): Goode 7 (1/0), Miller 6 (1/0), Tandy 5 (1/0); WVU INTERCEPTIONS: None. MAR RUSHING: Martinez 10-76; MAR PASSING: Cato 15-21-0-115; MAR RECEIVING: Dobson 6-22, Wilson 4-64; MAR TACKLES (TFL/ QS): Roberts 6, Arrington 6; MAR INTERCEPTIONS: None. ATTENDANCE - 60,758
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