SB Nation Pittsburgh - West Virginia Vs. Rutgers: Mountaineers Use Second Half Comeback To Storm To Victory, 41-31https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48827/pitt-fv.png2011-10-29T19:31:05-04:00http://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/rss/stream/22867272011-10-29T19:31:05-04:002011-10-29T19:31:05-04:00West Virginia Vs. Rutgers Final Score: Mountaineers Use Strong Second Half To Storm To 41-31 Victory
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<p>The 4th quarter started in eventful fashion as the Rutgers passing game kept the Mountaineer defense on its heels and the Knights drove effortlessly down the field. Once stopped inside the twenty yard line, Rutgers set up a fake field goal which was almost executed perfectly, but was broken up at the last instant by Darwin Cook.</p>
<p>The Mountaineers moved the ball convincingly on the next drive behind big rushes from Dustin Garrison and Shawn Alston and a long reception by Stedman Bailey, his second big catch of the game. The drive ground its way down to the one yard line where Shawn Alston was stopped on 3rd and goal. Dana Holgorsen elected to go for it, and Geno Smith scrambled out of a broken play for a one yard touchdown dive. <span class="caps">WVU</span> kicker Tyler Bitancurt then bounced the point after off of an upright, to give the Mountaineers a 34-31 lead.</p>
<p>After playing an impressive half already the defense came up with another big play. Julian Miller opportunistically jumped on a Gary Nova fumble which slipped out of his hands, presumably an effect of the wet weather.</p>
<p>Tavon Austin single handedly made Rutgers pay for their costly mistake, first scampering for 16 yards on another toss play. Austin followed that up one play later with a 20 yard touchdown reception where he made one man miss and then accelerated towards the endzone. The Mountaineers struggled on both sides of the ball in the first half, but came up strong in the second, scoring 20 consecutive unanswered points to take a 41-31 lead.</p>
<p>The Mountaineers held on to defeat Rutgers for the 17th consecutive time. The first half was ugly, but the second featured some impressive displays from the Blue and Gold. While the offense still wasn’t as explosive as many would like, Alston, Bailey and Austin all showed great resolved and helped will the Mountaineers back into the ballgame. The defense, which surrendered a whopping 31 first half points, threw a shut out in the second frame.</p>
<p>As <span class="caps">WVU</span> returns home next week to face Louisville, a myriad of questions remain about this Mountaineer team. Its hard to say how the final five Big East games will play out, but it’s safe to say that they won’t be boring.</p>
https://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/2011/10/29/2523774/west-virginia-vs-rutgers-final-score-mountaineers-use-strong-secondAaron Hawley2011-10-29T18:40:19-04:002011-10-29T18:40:19-04:00West Virginia Vs. Rutgers: Mountaineers Trail Scarlet Knights 31-28 Entering The 4th Quarter
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<p>The third quarter got off to a slow start as both teams traded three and outs and failed to pick up the sort of momentum we saw in the first half.</p>
<p>Finally, after a 7 play drive which saw the ’Eers travel 46 yards, West Virginia found paydirt on a 19 yard touchdown toss to Stedman Bailey. Geno Smith just threw it up in the back of the endzone and Bailey tipped the ball to himself. As implausible as it seems, that “chuck it and let Stedman work things out” play has been the most successful play in the Mountaineer playbook of late.</p>
<p>The Mountaineer defense, who has performed admirably thus far in the second half came up huge with a Broderick Jenkins interception at the 44 yard line. Jenkins did an incredible job getting both feet in bounds as he hauled in Gary Nova’s errant pass. Unfortunately the Mountaineer offense couldn’t capitalize on the Rutgers mistake, going three and out once they got a hold of the football.</p>
<p>The Mountaineer defense continued to bend but not break on the next Scarlet Knight possession. The ’Eers gave up a couple of first downs as Rutgers ran the ball convincingly, but their luck ran out a few plays later.</p>
<p>Entering the fourth quarter, the Mountaineers trail by 3.</p>
https://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/2011/10/29/2523688/west-virginia-vs-rutgers-mountaineers-trail-scarlet-knights-31-28Aaron Hawley2011-10-29T17:31:00-04:002011-10-29T17:31:00-04:00West Virginia Vs. Rutgers: Scarlet Knights Lead 31-21 After High-Scoring First Half
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<p>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.</p>
<p>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.</p>
<p>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.</p>
<p>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.</p>
https://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/2011/10/29/2523555/west-virginia-vs-rutgers-scarlet-knights-lead-31-21-after-highAaron Hawley2011-10-29T16:37:14-04:002011-10-29T16:37:14-04:00West Virginia Vs. Rutgers: Scarlet Knights Lead 17-14 After Action-Packed First Quarter
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<p>Snow and ice will be the dominant themes of the day as Piscataway has turned into a winter wonderland. Early in the game, both offenses have struggled in almost all situations. West Virginia netted -1 yard on it’s two opening drives. Rutgers opened the scoring with a 40-yard San San Te field goal. Rutgers did little to earn the field position but were helped out immensely by a 26-yard Michael Molinari punt from the Mountaineers' goal line.</p>
<p>The Mountaineers bounced back into things on their third drive, finally figuring out ways to gain positive yardage. After two great plays from Dustin Garrison, one rushing and one receiving, power back Shawn Alston busted through the line for a 52-yard touchdown. Alston demonstrated how the lack of footing on the snowy field can work in the offense's favor. Once the burly back got rumbling down-field he seemed to have an advantage over the quicker players on the field who had trouble keeping their footing.</p>
<p>The weather reared its ugly head on the Mountaineers next possession when the ball slipped out of Geno Smith’s hands deep in Rutgers territory. Geno’s fumble set up a 14 yard touchdown catch by Mohamed Sanu. It appeared Keith Tandy would stop the play in its tracks, but Sanu bounced off of him and walked into the endzone. It was a typical Mountaineers defensive play. This team loves to hit but hates to tackle. This time it cost them.</p>
<p>It didn’t take long for the Mountaineers to answer, scoring on their very next play from scrimmage. Tavon Austin sprinted down the sidelines on an 80 yard end around, another example of how players can find pay-dirt even with uneven footing. Once Austin beat the initial defenders, it was impossible for anyone to catch up with him.</p>
<p>The big play theme continued on the next Rutgers drive when Mark Harrison got behind Keith Tandy for a 40 yard touchdown catch. Najee Goode was inches away from stopping the play in the backfield, but Rutgers quarterback Gary Nova got the ball out just in the nick of time. While neither team can seem to string together two first downs, both have found success with the quick strike.</p>
<p>Brad Starks returned the ensuing kickoff for 80 yards down to the Rutgers six yard line, but it was called back on a holding penalty.</p>
https://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/2011/10/29/2523442/west-virginia-vs-rutgers-scarlet-knights-ncaa-football-score-updateAaron Hawley2011-10-29T10:14:46-04:002011-10-29T10:14:46-04:00West Virginia Vs. Rutgers Odds And Ends
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<p>West Virginia, 5-2 (1-1), will be looking to quell the embarrassment of the 49-23 drubbing they suffered at the hands of Syracuse and get their season back on track against Rutgers, 5-2 (2-1), who suffered their lone Big East loss last week, 16-14 to Louisville. The winner of this game has the inside track to the Big East's (perhaps final) BCS bid.</p>
<p>West Virginia is abuzz with rumors, now confirmed, that the Mountaineers will be headed to the Big 12. Their departure date is a source of much consternation. The Big East is defending its clause and, is threatening legal action should WVU try for an early exit. That might not be a factor for the team in this particular game, but you can expect it to come up in the broadcast booth.</p>
<p><b>Who: </b>No. 25 West Virginia 5-2 (1-1) Vs. Rutgers Scarlet Knights 5-2 (2-1)</p>
<p><b>Where:</b> High Point Solutions Stadium, Piscataway, New Jersey</p>
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<p><b>When:</b> 3:30 p.m. EST</p>
<p><b>TV Information:</b> ABC, Mark Neely and Ray Bentley have the call.</p>
<p><b>Radio Information: </b>97.5 FM</p>
<p><b>Spread:</b> West Virginia by 7</p>
<p>Check in with us here on SB Nation Pittsbugh in the game's <a target="_blank" href="http://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/2011/10/29/2522686/west-virginia-vs-rutgers-mountaineers-try-to-bounce-back-on-the-road">Storystream</a> for more coverage and in-game updates.</p>
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https://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/2011/10/29/2522690/rutgers-vs-west-virginia-game-time-tv-schedule-announcers-and-moreChris Hatcher2011-10-29T09:00:32-04:002011-10-29T09:00:32-04:00West Virginia Vs. Rutgers: Mountaineers Try To Bounce Back On The Road
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<p>West Virginia looks to recover from last week's loss on the road in New Jersey against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.</p> <p><b>Who:</b> <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/teams/rutgers-scarlet-knights">Rutgers Scarlet Knights</a></p>
<p><b>When:</b> 3:30pm, Saturday October 29th</p>
<p><b>Where:</b> High Point Solutions Stadium, Piscataway, NJ</p>
<p><b>What to Watch For When The ‘Eers Have the Ball:</b> Whether quarterback <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/players/84138/geno-smith">Geno Smith</a> is on his back or standing upright. Last week's loss to the blitz-heavy <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/teams/syracuse-orange">Syracuse Orange</a> has given all Mountaineer opponents a look at WVU's glaring weakness: the offensive line. West Virginia looked completely overmatched last week and once Geno became more concerned with getting hit than making plays, the ‘Eers were sunk. WVU was forced to run many of their late game plays from the diamond formation, which stacked protection in the backfield but limited Smith's targets downfield. The result was Geno trying to force plays that weren't there, often to disastrous results. West Virginia's offensive success today will ride on whether or not the Mountaineers can protect Smith long enough for him to find the open receiver. Geno has to avoid panicking and not force throws that aren't there for the ‘Eers to succeed. Rutgers has a top ten defense, so it could be rough road ahead.</p>
<p><b>What to Watch For When The Scarlet Knights Have the Ball:</b> Whether the Mountaineers can stuff the run and pressure the pass. WVU's defensive front hasn't managed to get the best of anyone so far this year and the end result is plenty of pocket time for passers and wide open holes for runners. Whenever the Mountaineers are stuck in third and short situations, the opposition has had success picking up the first down. WVU will have to make sure that wide receiver <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/players/75542/mohamed-sanu">Mohamed Sanu</a> stays in front of them or else they could find themselves playing from behind.</p>
<p><b>The Mountaineers Will Roll If</b>: The offensive line can protect Geno Smith and move the chains on third down. Conversely, the defense will need to pressure the quarterback and get off the field on third down.</p>
<p><b>The Mountaineers Will Have Trouble If:</b> The offensive line can't pick up the blitz and the defensive line can't get a push. The Mountaineers were beaten soundly in the trenches last weekend, a trend that could be disastrous for WVU if it continues.</p>
<p><b>Thing That Makes My Blood Boil:</b> If the Mountaineers lose, and WVU fans continue to bend over backwards to find anybody to blame not named Dana Holgorsen. Last weekend's loss found the Orange rolling up forty plus points on the defense, but the anemic offense can be blamed for at least fifteen of those points. West Virginia struggled mightily to pick up first downs and the end result was a defense that was completely gassed by the fourth quarter. Amazingly though, despite absolute ugliness on offense, no one seems to think it was much of an issue and the calls for defensive coordinator Jeff Casteel's removal got a little louder. Personally, I think that's nuts. All units need play off of each other, and the defense will look tougher if the offense can put together a drive.</p>
https://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/west-virginia-mountaineers/2011/10/29/2522051/west-virginia-vs-rutgers-mountaineers-ncaa-footballAaron Hawley