The Mountaineers answered quickly at the outset of the second quarter to retake the lead, 21-17, on a three-yard touchdown run from Shawn Alston, his second score of the day. The play was set up by a Julian Miller fumble recovery inside the five yard line as Rutgers quarterback Gary Nova was unable to handle a first down snap.
Rutgers retook a 24-21 lead on their next possession with a one-yard touchdown dive by Jawan Jamison. The Scarlet Knights drive was set up by two Pat Miller pass interference penalties, the second of which came on 4th and 10.
The Mountaineers couldn’t find any traction on their next drive, while Rutgers moved the ball the length of the field on their grinding drive which resulted in another touchdown for Jamison. His 14 yard scamper came on 4th and 1, before which Rutgers called back to back timeouts. Whatever the reason, it worked and allowed the Scarlet Knights to stretch their lead to 10. Rutgers has now found the end zone on four of their last five possessions.
West Virginia closed out the first half on a down note as a bad hold kept Tyler Bitancurt from being able to attempt a field goal at the buzzer.