Mountaineers Down Dukes

Morgantown, WV - West Virginia junior quarterback Garrett Greene threw for 240 yards and four touchdowns in the first half while redshirt freshman Hudson Clement hauled in five receptions for 177 yards and three touchdowns in the Mountaineers (1-1) 56-17 win over the Duquesne Dukes (1-1) Saturday night.

The West Virginia defense held Duquesne to a three and out on the game's opening drive, but on a short punt, the ball ricochet off Jacolby Spells on a bounce and the Dukes recovered at the WVU 46-yard line.

Five plays later, Darius Perrantes hit DJ Powell from 38 yards out for the early 7-0 advantage.

After pinning Duquesne back at the nine and regaining possession following a punt at the Dukes 46, the Mountaineer chipped away at the Duquesne defense until Jaylen Anderson popped a 15-yard run, then Garrett Green hit Hudson Clement for a 14-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at seven with 5:43 in the first quarter.

West Virginia grabbed the lead on its ensuing possession with Greene and Clement hooking up for a 38-yard toss and catch, and the Mountaineers capped off a 94-yard drive with an eight-yard touchdown run for a 14-7 advantage to begin the second quarter.

Duquesne added a field goal with 8:14 remaining in the first half. Then, lightning moved into the area and the game was delayed for an hour and 54 minutes.

When play resumed, Greene and Clement hooked up for a 70-yard touchdown, and then Greene found Clement again on the following drive from 46 yards out as West Virgnia took a 28-10 lead with 3:57 remaining in the half.

Greene recorded his fourth touchdown of the half, hitting Preston Fox down the season into the endzone for the 22-yard touchdown pass as the Mountaineers took a 35-10 lead into halftime.

redshirt freshman Nicco Marchiol took the reins of the offense in the second half, and on his third drive of the game, he hit tight end Kole Taylor down the left side line for 29 yards before Jahiem White burst through the line for a 19-yard touchdown run and the Mountaineers held a 42-10 lead with 4:40 remaining in the third quarter.

West Virginia added a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter after an interception from Avery Wilcox as he returned it 34 yards to the Dukes 20-yard line. Five plays later, Marchiol took into the endzone from a yard away for a 49-17 lead.

The Mountaineers drove 67 yards on in the final minutes of the fourth quarter with 50 yards coming from the ground and DJ Oliver punched it in with a five-yard touchdown run for a 56-17 advantage.

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