(Neal Brown postgame Zoom conference)
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — A Tykee Smith interception and a Leddie Brown touchdown run in double overtime allowed West Virginia to get past Baylor 27-21 at Milan Puskar Stadium.
Smith’s interception along the back line of the end zone stymied the Bears on their first play of double overtime after the teams traded touchdowns in the first extra session. Four plays later, Brown plowed his way across the goal line, giving West Virginia their second victory of the season.
Cue Country Roads! Leddie Brown rushes it in to give the Mountaineers a 27-21 double-overtime victory over Baylor!#HailWV | #TrustTheClimb pic.twitter.com/Nlqr4GY3IT
— WVU Football (@WVUfootball) October 3, 2020
“Last week was a grind it out game that we found ways to lose and this week we found ways to win,” WVU head coach Neal Brown said. “It is not always going to be like that. The offense is going to have to bail out the defense at some point. Today, it was the other way around. A lot of credit to our offensive guys for regrouping, not getting down and finding the way to put the ball in the end zone twice in overtime.”
West Virginia won despite committing a dozen penalties, costing them 102 yards. West Virginia also turned the ball over four times.
West Virginia opened the game with a clinical opening drive. The Mountaineers marched 70 yards on 15 plays in 6:09. Jarret Doege capped the drive on a 1-yard quarterback keeper.
But West Virginia would turn the ball over three times in the opening half. Doege was sacked and fumbled and he also threw a pair of interceptions. Baylor missed a pair of field goals following the first two WVU turnovers but they capitalized on the third. A 5-play, 30-yard drive was all that was needed for Baylor to even the score at 7-7. Charlie Brewer found R.J. Sneed on a 7-yard hookup in the end zone.
Baylor was 0-for-3 on field goal attempts in the first half. A 51-yard attempt with one second left in the second quarter was blocked.
The Mountaineers broke the stalemate with 1:37 to go in the third quarter after the teams combined for seven consecutive possessions ending in punts. An 11-play, 72-yard drive ended when Leddie Brown broke the plane from a yard out after a replay review. WVU led 14-7.
Junior cornerback Dreshun Miller came up with his first big play as a Mountaineer. His interception early in the fourth quarter put the brakes on a promising Baylor drive at the WVU 37-yard line.
Baylor evened the score with 1:19 to play. After an unnecessary roughness penalty on Tony Fields II gave the Bears a free first down, Brewer hit Josh Fleeks in stride for a 34-yard touchdown reception. The PAT evened the score at 14-14.
In overtime, West Virginia possessed the ball first and faced 4th-and-1 at the 16. Doege connected with tight end Mike O’Laughlin on a 10-yard pass to set up 1st-and-goal at the 6.
“This was a little bit of an offseason study for me — if you get the ball first, field goals do not win in overtime,” Brown said. “There are numbers with a couple data companies we use.
“We knew when we got the ball 4th-and-1 there, Jarret had a really good suggestion.”
On the next play, Doege hit Bryce Ford-Wheaton in the end zone to give WVU a 21-14 lead.
“Today wasn’t (Ford-Wheaton’s) best day. But he showed growth. A year ago, I wouldn’t have been able to find him on the bench somewhere. Today, he was in the huddle.
“He made a difficult catch in the end zone there. I am proud of him. As far as a receiver group, we have to play better.”
Baylor needed just one play to respond as Brewer hit a wide-open Ben Sims on a 25-yard scoring strike, sending the game into the second overtime session.
“We figured they were going to try to take another shot,” Smith said of his interception in double overtime. “They wanted to keep the momentum going. Then I saw the running back running straight down the middle.”
Brown said his game-winning touchdown was his first ‘walk-off’ winning play at any level. “I was just happy,” Leddie Brown said. “I was just happy for my team. My team depends on me a lot and I was just happy I could come through and make that play.”
West Virginia outgained Baylor 345-256 and held Baylor to just 27 rushing yards.
“I was really pleased with our defense overall,” Neal Brown said. “I think Coach (Jordan) Lesley and Coach (Jahmile) Addae did an excellent job with the game plan coming in. Brewer is hard to play against because he ad libs and makes plays with his feet.
“Our thought our front seven played well. We gave up a few passes but we also made several plays in the pass game.”
Doeg completed 30-of-42 passes for 211 yards with a touchdown and a pair of interceptions. Leddie Brown toted the ball 27 times for 93 yards and a pair of scores.
For the third consecutive game, Fields led West Virginia in tackles with ten stops. He also had a sack and two tackles for loss. For the second consecutive meeting with Baylor, Fairmont Senior graduates Darius and Dante Stills dominated up front. They combined for 7 tackles (4.5 for loss). Darius had 2.5 sacks.
“(Darius) was a captain for the game today,” Neal Brown said. “That is voted upon by our staff. To get in that position means you are in a position of trust. I was proud of him. And he was emotional after the game. He was spent. When you invest that much, you are going to be a little emotional. So I am proud of him.”
“Sometimes the game comes down on us and we like that,” Darius Stills said. “On defense, we thrive on pressure. We know that if the ball is in our hands or the game is in our hands, we will get the job done. I am proud of our boys today. We got the job done.”