The West Virginia Moutaineers may have made the largest statement on Saturday, and it wasn't who they beat, but how they did it. Trailing by seven with 16 seconds to play, Will Grier found Gary Jennings for a 33-yard touchdown pass to pull within one, but instead of forcing overtime with an extra point, they went for the win, because it was Statement Saturday. The 13th-ranked Mountaineers went for two, and Grier faked a handoff to take it in himself for the score, giving his team the lead and the 42-41 win over the 17th-ranked Texas Longhorns.
Grier threw for 346 yards and three touchdowns, helping his team improve to 7-1 overall and 5-1 in conference play. They remain in first place in the Big 12 standings, as they inch closer to their first conference championship.
The Mountaineers actually converted the two-point conversion try twice, with the first time being a completion from Grier to David Sills. Unfortunately for them, that did not count due to Texas calling timeout right before the ball was snapped. So, they were forced to do it again, which is when Grier cut left to score and earn his team a hard-fought road win. Texas head coach Tom Herman had an issue with the Mountaineer quarterback celebrating before he officially crossed the goal line. He said after the game "I thought taunting before crossing the goal line negated a score."
His own quarterback, Sam Ehlinger, had a productive day in the loss, throwing for 356 yards and three touchdowns, while also running for the end zone. The Longhorns were a top-10 team two weeks ago and sat atop the Big 12 standings, but have since dropped two in a row to fall to 6-3 overall and 4-2 in conference play.
The Mountaineers will return home next week to play host to the TCU Horned Frogs, while the struggling Longhorns head in to a tough road contest against the Texas Tech Red Raiders.
Grier threw for 346 yards and three touchdowns, helping his team improve to 7-1 overall and 5-1 in conference play. They remain in first place in the Big 12 standings, as they inch closer to their first conference championship.
The Mountaineers actually converted the two-point conversion try twice, with the first time being a completion from Grier to David Sills. Unfortunately for them, that did not count due to Texas calling timeout right before the ball was snapped. So, they were forced to do it again, which is when Grier cut left to score and earn his team a hard-fought road win. Texas head coach Tom Herman had an issue with the Mountaineer quarterback celebrating before he officially crossed the goal line. He said after the game "I thought taunting before crossing the goal line negated a score."
His own quarterback, Sam Ehlinger, had a productive day in the loss, throwing for 356 yards and three touchdowns, while also running for the end zone. The Longhorns were a top-10 team two weeks ago and sat atop the Big 12 standings, but have since dropped two in a row to fall to 6-3 overall and 4-2 in conference play.
The Mountaineers will return home next week to play host to the TCU Horned Frogs, while the struggling Longhorns head in to a tough road contest against the Texas Tech Red Raiders.
