West Virginia 55, Norfolk State 12
When: 1:00 PM ET, Saturday, September 10, 2011
Where: Mountaineer Field, Morgantown, West Virginia
Temperature:
72°
Head Official:
Todd Lapenta
Attendance:
51911
By SportsDirect Inc.
Geno Smith threw for four touchdowns as No. 19 West Virginia turned a potential upset into a rout with a big second half in a 55-12 victory over FCS foe Norfolk State on Saturday.
The Mountaineers got receiving touchdowns from five different players and scored twice on the ground.
First-year head coach Dana Holgorsen came to West Virginia with a reputation as an offensive guru and the players seemed to grasp his offense in the third quarter with four quick scoring drives. Vernand Roberts gave the Mountaineers the lead for good with a 3-yard scamper, capping a three-play, 66-yard drive that took just 1:09.
West Virginia went 80 yards in five plays, 60 yards in six plays and 49 yards in four plays on their other third-quarter touchdown drives. Smith’s 39-yard touchdown pass to Ivan McCartney capped a two-play, 48-yard drive lasting 40 seconds in the fourth.
Smith finished with 372 yards on 19-of-33 passing before taking a seat early in the fourth.
Norfolk State could not find the end zone in the first half but had no problem kicking from long range. Everett Goldberg slammed home a 50-yard field goal in the first quarter while Ryan Estep converted tries from 39, 39 and 40 yards in the second, sending the Spartans into the break with a 12-10 lead.
Top Game Performances
Rushing
Norfolk State |
|
West Virginia |
N/A |
Player |
Vernard Roberts
|
- |
Attempts |
17 |
- |
Yards |
64 |
- |
Avg Yards |
3.8 |
- |
Touchdowns |
1 |
- |
Long |
0 |
Receiving
Norfolk State |
|
West Virginia |
N/A | Player |
Devon Brown
|
- |
Receptions |
4 |
- |
Yards |
109 |
- |
Avg Yards |
27.2 |
- |
Touchdowns |
1 |
- |
Long |
0 |
Team Stats Summary
|
Yards |
Scoring |
Defense |
Team |
Tot |
Rus |
Pas |
TD |
FG |
INT |
Sck |
FF |
Norfolk State |
285 |
88 |
197 |
0 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
West Virginia
|
533 |
102 |
431 |
7 |
2 |
0 |
0.0 |
0 |