Mountaineers Handle Panthers 17-6

Morgantown, WV - The West Virginia Mountaineers (2-1) downed the Pitt Panthers (1-2) Saturday night 17-6 in front of a sold-out crowd of 61,106 rabid fans at Mountaineer Field.

West Virginia went three and out on its opening possession while Pitt took its opening possession of the game down to the WVU three-yard line pounding the football between the tackles, going 67 yards on 10 carries with Rodney Hampton Jr. carrying the load for 41 yards on the drive but the Mountaineer defense held up at three and held the Panthers to a field goal.

West Virginia quarterback Garrett Greene left the game with a lower leg injury. Still, the offense slowly chipped away at the Pitt defense, winning the early field position but unable to points on the board until Aubrey Burks intercepted Phil Jurkovec and returned it to the Pitt seven-yard line.

On the following play, Marchiol found tight end Kole Taylor out in the left flat, Taylor cut up field for the seven-yard touchdown and a 7-3 lead.

West Virginia got on the board late in the second quarter after an Aubrey Burks interception returned to the Pitt seven-yard line. On the first play, Nicco hit Kole Taylor out in the flat and into the endzone for a 7-3 lead.

Pitt responded on the ensuing drive with a 12-play 57-yard scoring drive. The Mountaineer defense had the Panthers offense facing a third and 12 but Phil Jurkovec hit Bub Means for 20 yards to keep the drive alive. The West Virginia defense held the Panthers to a 36-yard field goal.

The West Virginia defense held the Panthers to a three and out to open the second half while the Mountaineer offense drove 46 yards on 13 plays capped off by a one-yard touchdown by CJ Donaldson for a 14-6 advantage.

West Virginia cornerback Beanie Bishop intercepted Jurkovec on the second play of the following possession, returning it 40 yards to the Pitt 30-yard line. However, the Mountaineers settled for a 40-yard field goal from Michael Hayes as the Mountaineers extended their lead to 17-6 at the 1:57 mark of the third quarter.

The West Virginia defense held the Panthers off the board in the fourth quarter and cornerback Malachi Ruffin intercepted Jurkovec with 55 seconds remaining in the game as the Mountaineers take the Backyard Brawl 17-6.

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