A week after their offense went flat against Oklahoma, West Virginia rebounded in a big way to close their home slate in 2023.
Led by a turnaround performance from quarterback Garrett Greene, West Virginia beat Cincinnati 42-21 on Saturday at Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown.
“Great win,” West Virginia head coach Neal Brown said. “Really just a dominant performance.”
West Virginia’s offense seemed to be destined for a rocky day following their first drive. The Mountaineers had three first downs on their first three plays, but the drive then stalled, before Michael Hayes missed a 52-yard field goal.
“We started off good then we had a penalty that kind of knocked us off the first drive then we rolled the rest of the first half,” Brown said.
That would be the lowest point for Greene and company, as West Virginia (7-4, 5-3 Big 12) scored touchdowns on four of their next five drives to end the first half. Greene was the sparkplug for those drives, using both his arm and his legs.
West Virginia got on the board on a 3-yard scoring rush from Greene, to help WVU convert a fourth down and take a 7-0 lead. On their next drive, Greene threw a pass to running back Jahiem White, who caught the pass with his fingertips, before taking it 75 yards for a touchdown.
“That probably ended up being a huge play that everyone forget,” Brown said of Greene’s first score.
The touchdown reception was the longest for West Virginia since Oct. 31, 2019, as well as their longest play this season.
“That was a really difficult catch he had on that touchdown,” Brown said.
White got the start at running back and did not disappoint, rushing for 204 yards and a touchdown, adding 75 receiving yards and another touchdown through the air as well.
Leading 14-0, West Virginia’s defense kept the pressure on, responding from a rough showing a week ago. Cincinnati 3-8, 1-7 Big 12) had 30 total yards of offense in the first quarter and had only one first down. West Virginia ended up leading by three touchdowns as CJ Donaldson scored in his ninth consecutive game on a 13-yard rush.
Cincinnati starting quarterback Emory Jones passed would be replaced by Brady Lichtenberg in the second quarter, as they combined for the Bearcats’ lone score of the first half. Lichtenberg rushed for 32 yards and passed for another 22 on the drive before Jones scored on a 1-yard rush.
The score didn’t change anything West Virginia did offensively, as Greene used his legs to rush for gains of 30 yards and 26 yards, with the second gain ending in a score as WVU took a 28-7 lead into halftime.
“That drive was mostly him. He threw two really good passes to Kole and then he had a few really positive runs,” Brown said.
To start the second half, West Virginia’s defense forced a punt, before Greene put the game out of reach. Greene this time scored on a 17-yard scamper, as the Mountaineers went in front by 28.
In total, Greene rushed for 154 yards, and passed for 210 yards. He is the second quarterback in WVU history to throw and rush for at least 150 yards in a game, joining Pat White, who accomplished it in 2006.
West Virginia’s defense was able to limit Cincinnati’s offense all afternoon. The Bearcats totaled 344 yards of offense, averaging 5.9 yards per play.
Greene almost had his second passing touchdown of the day, as he hit Kole Taylor, but the play would be called back on a tripping call against White. On the next play, Greene threw his fourth interception of the season near the goal line.
Following the turnover, Jones found Meatier for a 7-yard touchdown, his second of the game.
“They made it closer. I think it was 42-14. At one point it might have been 42-7. They did a little bit more in the fourth quarter than I would’ve liked,” Brown said.
Jones’ day for the Bearcats ended with him completing 14 of his 24 passes for 166 yards, along with 56 yards rushing. Lichtenberg had 25 yards passing and 27 yards rushing.
West Virginia wins their home finale, and finishes the season 5-1 at home. West Virginia closes out the regular season next Saturday against Baylor.
