WVU Downs Panthers
November 30, 2002 07:35 PM | General
AP sports
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- West Virginia turned two Rod Rutherford turnovers into touchdowns and the Mountaineers (No. 21 ESPN/USA Today, No. 24 AP), possibly headed to the Toyota Gator Bowl, held on for a 24-17 win over Pittsburgh (No. 18 ESPN/USA Today, No. 17 AP) Saturday.
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| West Virginia quarterback Rasheed Marshall runs for first down yardage during Saturday's win at Pitt. |
Led by Rasheed Marshall's playmaking and Avon Cobourne's running, the Mountaineers (9-3, 6-1 in Big East) completed a remarkable turnaround from a 3-8 season, secured at least second place in the Big East and beat their Backyard Brawl rival for the first time in three years.
Marshall, a former Pittsburgh high school star, ran for a touchdown, threw for another and set up a score with a 25-yard reception as West Virginia beat Pitt for the eighth time in 11 years.
The Mountaineers likely will play North Carolina State in the Gator Bowl on Jan. 1, with Pitt now ticketed for the Continental Tire Bowl in Charlotte.
And the Panthers (8-4, 5-2), denied their first nine-win season in 20 years, can blame only themselves for losing before the biggest crowd to see a Pitt home game in 64 years.
With the score tied at 10, Pitt turned the ball over on three consecutive possessions late in the second quarter and early in the third, and West Virginia capitalized on the mistakes to surge to a 24-10 lead.
Even then, Pittsburgh had a chance to send the game into overtime, driving from its own 7 to the West Virginia 14 as time wound down. But Rutherford was sacked on first down, then threw three consecutive incompletions into the end zone. He had Larry Fitzgerald open on third down, but the receiver slipped just as the ball arrived and it glanced off his hands.
Marshall, doing what he couldn't do in three high school tries by beating a Rutherford-led team, didn't throw often but was effective when he did. He was 5-of-9 for 123 yards, hitting Phil Braxton for 29 yards to set up Cobourne's 2-yard scoring run and Braxton again for 79 yards for the score that made it 24-10.
Rutherford's first mistake, an interception he threw directly into Angel Estrada's hands, gave West Virginia the ball at its own 36. Two plays later, Marshall hit Braxton for a first down at the Pitt 30, then slipped out of West Virginia's spread offense and behind the Pitt secondary to catch backup quarterback Danny Embick's throw to the 5.
Cobourne, who gained 104 yards in his third 100-yard game in four years against Pitt, scored two plays later.
Rutherford was intercepted again, by Brian King, just before halftime. But his biggest mistake was an errant pitch early in the third quarter that struck fullback Lousaka Polite in the helmet, with Ben Collins recovering.
Pitt had driven from its 34 to the West Virginia 15, all on running plays, before Rutherford's 20th and possibly costliest turnover of the season.
Pitt, which took No. 1 Miami to the final play before losing 28-21 in its previous game, needed just six plays to open a 7-0 lead on Rutherford's 32-yard scoring pass to Fitzgerald, who made 11 catches for 159 yards and two touchdowns.
West Virginia answered with Marshall's 19-yard touchdown run and Todd James' 42-yard field goal before David Abdul kicked a 33-yarder for Pitt.
The much-maligned Heinz Field turf, resodded for the third time this year earlier in the week, held up well and didn't seem to be a factor.
The announced crowd of 66,731 was the second-largest in Pitt history, topped only by the 68,918 for Fordham at Pitt Stadium in 1938. It also was the largest in Heinz Field's two-year history, although there were many more empty seats than for the Patriots-Steelers AFC championship game in January, when 64,704 attended.
Scoring Summary
PITT -- Fitzgerald 32 pass from Rutherford (Abdul kick)
WV -- James 42 FG
WV -- Marshall 19 run (James kick)
PITT -- Abdul 33 FG
WV -- Cobourne 2 run (James kick)
WV -- Braxton 79 pass from Marshall (James kick)
PITT -- Fitzgerald 25 pass from Rutherford (Abdul kick)
Individual Statistics
Rushing: WV -- Cobourne 25-104, Wilson 10-67, Marshall 15-30, Garvin 2-30, Braxton 1-0, Total 53-231; PITT -- Miree 25-121, Rutherford 14-49, Polite 4-17, Walker 2-8, Total 45-195.
Passing: WV -- Marshall 5-9-0-123-1, Embick 1-1-0-25-0, Total 6-10-0-148-1; PITT -- Rutherford 17-30-2-252-2.
Receiving: WV -- Braxton 2-108, Brown 2-4, Marshall 1-25, Nastasi 1-11, Total 6-148; PITT -- Fitzgerald 11-159, Wilson 2-35, Miree 2-32, Slade 1-20, Polite 1-6.
Attendance: 66,731
