MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — His first drive at West Virginia culminated with a touchdown run, and Charles Sims looked quite at home.
His first half at West Virginia, however, ended with the Mountaineers trailing by 10 and in danger of losing to an FCS team at home.
“Those games happen,” said Sims, the transfer from Houston who compiled 67 yards rushing by intermission yet saw WVU down 17-7 to William & Mary. “You’ve just got to know how to fight through adversity. You’ve got to come back, keep a straight head and just go out and compete.”
West Virginia competed plenty in the second half, pulling out a 24-17 victory that allowed Sims to enjoy his debut.
After closing the afternoon with 120 yards on 23 carries—the third-most attempts in his college career—he checked his cell phone and knew he had to call his mother back in Texas.
“I got in the locker room and saw I had like 50 text messages,” Sims said through an aw-shucks grin. “I’ll read them all tonight when I get home.”