WVU holds on for win
Mountaineers outlast Jayhawks, wind to open Big 12 Conference play on top
LAWRENCE, Kan. — Kendall Austin threw 202 yards, Martell Pettaway ran for two scores, and West Virginia held on for a 29-24 victory against Kansas Saturday to open Big 12 Conference play at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.
Kennedy McCoy added 73 yards rushing and a touchdown, and Evan Staley bounced back from an early miss to hit three field goals, as the Mountaineers (3-1, 1-0) improved to 8-1 against the Jayhawks.
The Mountaineers held Kansas (2-2, 0-1) to 377 yards total offense, one week after new coach Les Miles’ bunch had 567 yards and five touchdowns in a rare road rout of Boston College. And much of the yardage Saturday came as the Jayhawks drove frantically for a touchdown with 2:10 left in the game.
Their onside kick went out of bounds and West Virginia nearly ran out of the clock. By the time the Jayhawks got the ball back, they had time for a hook-and-ladder from midfield that came up short.
Carter Stanley led the Jayhawks with 235 yards passing and three touchdowns, but he also threw a costly interception when they were trailing 23-17 midway through the fourth quarter.
Pettaway finished the ensuing drive with his second touchdown run to make it a two-possession game.
West Virginia and Kansas had played to a first-half draw, though the real winner was the wind. It was whipping out of the south at 25 mph, making it tough for both offenses to move the ball.
The Mountaineers scored first — with the wind — on McCoy’s short plunge, then Kansas answered — also with the wind — when Stanley hit Kwamie Lassiter with a 28-yard touchdown strike.
The momentum shifted late in the first half, though. The Jayhawks had the ball, the wind and three timeouts in the closing minutes but went three-and-out and punted. West Virginia then raced 51 yards in just 49 seconds to set up Staley’s goahead field goal.
The Mountaineers kept the momentum to start the second half.
Pettway, getting his first carry of the game, picked through a couple of tackles at the line of scrimmage and cruised 23 yards for the score.