WVU falls at No. 15 Oklahoma
Oklahoma cornerback Jordan Thomas intercepts a pass intended for West Virginia wide receiver Shelton Gibson in the fourth quarter Saturday in Norman, Okla.
West Virginia running back Rushel Shell, top, goes over teammates and Oklahoma defender Jordan Evans for a touchdown in the second quarter Saturday.
NORMAN, Okla. – West Virginia’s Big 12 opener made its non-conference dominance look like something of a mirage Saturday.
No. 15 Oklahoma rolled past the 23rd-ranked Mountaineers 44-24 in the conference opener for both teams.
West Virginia (3-1, 0-1) entered the game leading the nation in scoring defense and turnover margin, but those numbers changed dramatically against the Sooners. The Mountaineers gave up 24 points in the first half, one more than they allowed combined in wins over Georgia Southern, Liberty and Maryland.
Baker Mayfield passed for 320 yards and three touchdowns, Dede Westbrook caught five passes for 107 yards and Durron Neal had 87 yards receiving for the Sooners (4-0, 1-0).
“They’ve got receivers that can play,” West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen said. “You’d better get used to it, because it’s going to happen again and again and again.”
Skyler Howard threw three interceptions and lost two fumbles for the Mountaineers, who committed just two turnovers in their first three games. Wendell Smallwood ran for 111 yards for West Virginia, which had its moments but made too many mistakes.
Oklahoma linebacker Eric Striker had 13 tackles, including two sacks and three tackles for loss. He forced a fumble in the fourth quarter that Jordan Evans returned 41 yards for a touchdown. Jordan Thomas intercepted two passes and Evans had nine tackles, two for a loss.
“It comes down to their defense was better than me,” Holgorsen said. “I’m the one calling the plays. Just didn’t do a very good job in the fourth quarter of calling plays the way that we need to in order to beat these guys, so this one falls on me.”
West Virginia’s Karl Joseph, who entered the game leading the nation with four interceptions, snagged another Saturday.
The chippy contest featured a combined 245 yards in penalties and plenty of pushing and shoving. During pregame warmups, players from both teams were seen jawing at each other.
“They came in, and it was really disrespectful, and I really didn’t approve of it,” Westbrook said. “You don’t come into someone’s house and disrespect us the way that they did. And we pretty much showed them with our game.”
Mark Andrews’ 17-yard touchdown reception from Mayfield with 8:45 left in the first quarter was the first score West Virginia allowed in the first half of a game this season.
Mayfield connected with Sterling Shepard for a 28-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter, and Joe Mixon’s 25-yard scoring run late in the first half sent the Sooners into the break with a 24-7 lead.
The Mountaineers closed the gap in the third quarter. A spectacular touchdown grab by Jovon Durante cut Oklahoma’s lead to 24-14. A fumble by Westbrook led to a short Josh Lambert field goal that made it 24-17 midway through the third quarter.
After the Sooners took a 27-17 lead, West Virginia went for it on fourth-and-2, and Howard kept on the read option and strolled 50 yards for a touchdown. Mayfield responded with a 71-yard scoring strike to Neal to put the Sooners up 34-24.
West Virginia tried to keep up, but Striker stripped Howard, and Oklahoma’s Evans scooped the ball up and ran it back for a touchdown to put the Sooners ahead by 17 with just under 10 minutes to play.
“We forced some things in the fourth quarter, and you can’t do that against a defense like this,” Holgorsen said.