MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia, in freefall throughout October, entered the winnable portion of its schedule (or as some would argue, the must-win portion) and downed Texas Tech 31-26.
A recap of the live-game updates:
— West Virginia overcame a dropped pass by Jovon Durante on the game’s first play (deja vu all over again) and eventually faced fourth-and-1 at Tech’s 39. Skyler Howard’s sneak barely earned the first down, but WVU was penalized for illegal formation and chose to punt on fourth-and-6.
— Pinned at its 4 by Nick O’Toole’s punt, Texas Tech went three-and-out.
TOUCHDOWN: Rushel Shell 5-yard run (9:45) WVU leads 7-0: After KJ Dillon’s 13-yard punt return to the 36-yard line, the Mountaineers didn’t have far to go for the game’s first score. This time, Durante caught an 11-yard pass and Howard ran for 11 more on a draw, before Shell scored his first TD since Oct. 3 at Oklahoma. (Drive: 5 plays, 36 yards in 1:39)
TOUCHDOWN: Jakeem Grant 10-yard pass from Pat Mahomes (5:09) Game tied 7-7: Mahomes went 4-for-4 for 48 yards on the drive, and he even caught a throwback pass. He kept alive the third-and-goal scoring play by evading the rush and rolling right, where Grant did his part by working back toward the sideline. The 5-foot-7 receiver made a quick spin after the catch and dove in between two defensive backs. (Drive: 10 plays, 66 yards in 4:28)
— Howard threw behind Shelton Gibson on a slant and was stopped on a third-and-3 draw. West Virginia went three-and-out and O’Toole mishit a 36-yard punt.
— Texas Tech began with a false start and punted after a three-and-out. What a punt it was, though—Michael Barden netting 49 to force Dillon’s fair catch at the WVU 9.
TOUCHDOWN: Wendell Smallwood 16-yard run (13:29) WVU leads 14-7: That was quite a drive, even if it was against one of America’s worst defenses. Texas Tech Nigel Bethel had a shot at a pick-six only to see Howard’s pass Ka’Raun White, who turned it into a 30-yard gain. Howard also made a crucial third-and-14 pickup to Jordan Thompson, before Smallwood ran untouched for the score. (Drive: 11 plays, 91 yards in 3:58)
— Two defensive penalties on the Mountaineers (unnecessary roughness on Kwiatkoski and holding on Dillon) helped Texas Tech into scoring range. On fouth-and-6 at the 24 Kingsbury eshewed the field goal, but Mahomes threw high for Keke Coutee on a bubble screen that appeared well established.
— West Virginia wasted Shell’s longest run of the season, a 43-yarder, when the drive bogged down in the red zone and Josh Lambert missed a 35-yard field goal.
— After Justin Stockton’s 32-yard catch, Tech looked primed for a score. But Mahomes made a bad decision on a third-down rollout, throwing across his body and being intercepted by Daryl Worley at the 3. That showed why Mahomes has been picked off 13 times this season, most in the Big 12.
— WVU “converted” a third-and-long when Bethel was flagged for grabbing Gibson’s jersey on a deep incompletion. Forced to punt three plays later, O’Toole shanked a 23-yarder allowing Tech to take possession at the Mountaineers’ 38.
TOUCHDOWN: Reginald Davis 9-yard pass from Mahomes (0:35) Game tied 14-14: The Red Raiders overcame a holding call thanks to nice running by DeAndre Washington. Then Davis beat Rasul Douglas on a third-down fade for the score. (Drive: 8 plays, 38 yards in 2:15)
FIELD GOAL: Josh Lambert 39-yard kick (0:00) WVU leads 17-14: If there’s any defense susceptible to giving up points in virtually no time, it’s Texas Tech. Howard flipped a 17-yard pass to White before Shell added runs of 10 and 14 yards. Howard’s spike at the 3-second mark brought on Lambert for the final play of the half. (Drive: 5 plays, 41 yards in 0:28)
— Grant’s 40-yard kick return staked Texas Tech to prime field position but it resulted in zero points as Ed Muldrow sacked Mahomes. That made three Texas Tech drives into the WVU territory that netted nothing. A silver lining for Tech was Barden, who pooched a punt to the WVU 1.
— After two Smallwood runs netted 23 yards and breathing room, Howard threw an interception straight to Justis Nelson at the WVU 46. It appeared he was expected Durante to curl instead of continuing the slant.
FIELD GOAL: Clayton Hatfield 34-yard kick (8:36) Game tied 17-17: DeAndre Washington netted 17 yards on two carries but didn’t touch the ball on the rest of the series. When Mahomes overthrew Tony Brown on third-and-8, Kingsbury sent on the kicking unit. (Drive: 10 plays, 30 yards in 2:23)
TOUCHDOWN: Shell 3-yard run (4:40) WVU leads 24-17: After Howard hit White on a 14-yard screen, WVU dialed up a receiver pass from William Crest that led to a pass interference flag on Tevin Madison (grabbing Daikiel Shorts from behind). Shell carried on four of the final five snaps, surpassing the 100-yard mark on an angry-looking run whereby he popped Jah’Shawn Johnson at the goal line. (Drive: 10 plays, 65 yards in 3:56)
— Texas Tech picked up a first down thanks to a Mahomes scramble-pass to Ian Sadler for 13 yards. But an even better improv by Mahomes was squandered when Coutee dropped a potential 20-yarder. For such a high-scoring unit, the Raiders receivers have been painfully inconsistent.
— Howard’s slant pass to Thompson was tipped by defensive back J.J. Gaines leading to a diving interception by defensive lineman Breiden Fehoko at West Virginia’s 17. (Fehoko must have good hands in order to wear No. 4.)
FIELD GOAL: Hatfield 34-yard kick (14:56) WVU leads 24-20: After Mahomes scrambled to the 4, the defense delivered two big TFLs. Shaq Petteway dropped Washington for minus-2 and Noble Nwachukwu registered a third-down sack. (Drive: 7 plays, 7 yards in 2:33)
TOUCHDOWN: Howard 3-yard run (11:28) WVU leads 31-20: The Mountaineers ran it seven times in eight plays to build a two-score cushion. Smallwood eclipsed 100 on a 28-yarder and Shell converted a physical third-and-3 run inside the 10. That led to Howard’s keeper on the zone read. (Drive: 8 plays, 59 yards in 3:21)
TOUCHDOWN: Washington 17-yard pass from Mahomes (6:47) WVU leads 31-26: On a methodical march that hasn’t been Tech’s methodology this season, Washington kept the drive alive by running 11 yards on a fourth-and-1 pitch. Then the running back gave Mahomes an outlet valve on the touchdown pass, lunging across the goal line barely ahead of a big hit from Kwiatkoski. The 2-point try failed when Mahomes fumbled at the 1. (Drive: 13 plays, 81 yards in 4:36)
— West Virginia ran 16 plays to kill the final 6-plus minutes, using solid running and two personal fouls against Texas Tech. FINAL: West Virginia wins 31-26
PREGAME
Injury updates: Senior cornerback Terrell Chestnut (shoulder) is not dressed, nor is left tackle Yodny Cajuste (foot). Expect Rick Rumph to start in Chestnut’s spot, and on the offensive line, Marcell Lazard gets his first start at right tackle as Marquis Lucas shuffles to the opposite side.
Saving Holgorsen: On the MetroNews “Gameday” show (that’s airing from 9 a.m. through 6 p.m.), I estimated a 4-1 finish probably keeps Dana Holgorsen in charge of the program for another year—unless the loss in that scenario comes against Kansas.
Holgorsen is scheduled to earn $2.8 million this year, and the salary climbs to $2.9 million over the final two years of the deal. He’s due a $75,000 retention bonus on Dec. 8, three days after the regular-season finale at Kansas State.
Prediction: My pick is West Virginia 43-40, because each team follows fairly severe home/road splits. Texas Tech barely won at Kansas and got pantsed at Oklahoma (63-27) and Baylor (63-35). The Red Raiders haven’t given a solid road performance since kicking Bret Bielema’s ass in Fayetteville.
Fatigue could factor in with Texas Tech playing for a 10th consecutive week. The Red Raiders, in a scheduling quirk the Big 12 needs to evaluate, have two byes during the season’s final three weeks.
“They do look a little bit wore down,” Holgorsen said.