September 1, 2012 Week 1 · Regular Season Belt defended

West Virginia defends the belt, 69–34, at home over Marshall.

Home · Defending Holder

West Virginia 69

Away · Challenger

Marshall 34

AI-Written

Recap

West Virginia's high-powered offense was on full display in Morgantown as the Mountaineers overwhelmed Marshall 69-34 to retain the belt. The game was an offensive showcase from the opening moments, with Geno Smith leading WVU to a touchdown on the first drive capped by a Stedman Bailey 32-yard reception in the corner of the end zone. Marshall kept pace early with Rakeem Cato's offense scoring on their first drive, but West Virginia simply had too much firepower, particularly with the explosive combination of Smith and receiver Tavon Austin, who recorded a stunning 70-yard run late in the second quarter that set up another score. By halftime, West Virginia had already established control with four touchdowns, and the Mountaineers added two more in the second half to cruise to the comfortable 35-point victory.

Stedman Bailey's 32-yard touchdown reception on WVU's opening drive set the tone for West Virginia's dominant offensive performance
Tavon Austin's 70-yard rush late in Q2 demonstrated the Mountaineers' ability to break off explosive plays that Marshall couldn't contain
West Virginia's four touchdowns in the first half established an insurmountable lead that Marshall never threatened to overcome

Written by Claude from the box score and play-by-play on this page — a plain-English recap of the numbers below, not a substitute for them.

Full Box Score

Team stats

CFBD box score

West VirginiaMarshall

Total yards655545

Rushing yards331132

Passing yards324413

First downs3128

3rd down conv.5/89/19

Turnovers12

Penalties–yards5–3911–112

Time of possession26:3132:19

Full team box score from CFBD’s /games/teams data. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have team-level stats that far back.

Play By Play

Key plays

CFBD play-by-play

When	Team	Yards	Play
Q1 8:56	West Virginia	+32 yd	Geno Smith pass complete to Stedman Bailey for 32 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q1 7:01	West Virginia	+22 yd	Geno Smith pass complete to J.D. Woods for 22 yards to the Marsh 36 for a 1ST down.
Q1 4:53	West Virginia	+3 yd	Shawne Alston rush for 3 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q1 4:53	West Virginia	+0 yd	Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q2 12:33	Marshall	+24 yd	Rakeem Cato pass complete to Eric Frohnapfel for 24 yards to the WVirg 40 for a 1ST down.
Q2 11:18	Marshall	+4 yd	Travon Van rush for 4 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q2 11:18	Marshall	+0 yd	Justin Haig extra point GOOD.
Q2 9:25	West Virginia	+0 yd	Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q2 9:25	West Virginia	+24 yd	Andrew Buie rush for 24 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q2 9:00	Marshall	+40 yd	Rakeem Cato pass complete to Aaron Dobson for 40 yards to the WVirg 35 for a 1ST down.
Q2 7:11	Marshall	+34 yd	Justin Haig 34 yard field goal GOOD.
Q2 6:25	West Virginia	+6 yd	Geno Smith pass complete to Tavon Austin for 6 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q2 7:05	West Virginia	+70 yd	Tavon Austin rush for 70 yards to the Marsh 13 for a 1ST down.
Q2 6:25	West Virginia	+0 yd	Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q2 4:00	Marshall	+28 yd	Rakeem Cato pass complete to C.J. Crawford for 28 yards to the WVirg 27 for a 1ST down.
Q2 1:00	West Virginia	+0 yd	Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q2 1:00	West Virginia	+9 yd	Geno Smith pass complete to J.D. Woods for 9 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q3 15:00	Marshall	+35 yd	Justin Haig kickoff for 64 yards returned by Tavon Austin for 35 yards to the WVirg 36.
Q3 12:27	West Virginia	+21 yd	Shawne Alston rush for 21 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q3 12:27	West Virginia	+0 yd	Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q3 8:00	Marshall	+3 yd	Travon Van rush for 3 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q3 8:00	Marshall	+0 yd	Justin Haig extra point GOOD.
Q3 4:32	West Virginia	+0 yd	Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q3 4:32	West Virginia	+24 yd	Corey Smith kickoff for 65 yards returned by Andre Booker for 24 yards to the Marsh 24.
Q3 4:32	West Virginia	+28 yd	Geno Smith rush for 28 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q3 3:43	West Virginia	+0 yd	Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q3 3:43	West Virginia	+23 yd	Corey Smith kickoff for 63 yards returned by Andre Booker for 23 yards to the Marsh 25.
Q3 3:43	Marshall	+0 yd	Rakeem Cato sacked by Terence Garvin, fumbled, forced by Terence Garvin, recovered by WVirg Isaiah Bruce at the Marsh 43, Isaiah Bruce for 43 yards, to the Marsh 0 for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q3 0:18	Marshall	+29 yd	Justin Haig 29 yard field goal GOOD.
Q3 2:15	Marshall	+21 yd	Rakeem Cato pass complete to Jermaine Kelson for 21 yards to the WVirg 6 for a 1ST down.
Q4 14:24	West Virginia	+5 yd	Geno Smith pass complete to Stedman Bailey for 5 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q4 14:24	West Virginia	+0 yd	Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q4 14:24	West Virginia	+25 yd	Quinton Spain kickoff for 62 yards returned by Andre Booker for 25 yards to the Marsh 28.
Q4 13:09	Marshall	+46 yd	Rakeem Cato pass intercepted by Doug Rigg at the Marsh 49, returned for 46 yards to the Marsh 3.
Q4 13:04	West Virginia	+3 yd	Paul Millard pass complete to KJ Myers for 3 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q4 13:04	West Virginia	+25 yd	Quinton Spain kickoff for 65 yards returned by Steward Butler for 25 yards to the Marsh 25.
Q4 13:04	West Virginia	+0 yd	Tyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q4 12:30	Marshall	+20 yd	Rakeem Cato pass complete to Jazz King for 20 yards to the WVirg 22 for a 1ST down.
Q4 9:50	Marshall	+12 yd	Rakeem Cato pass complete to Tommy Shuler for 12 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q4 9:50	Marshall	+0 yd	Justin Haig extra point GOOD.
Q4 0:54	Marshall	+11 yd	Rakeem Cato pass complete to Eric Frohnapfel for 11 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q4 1:57	Marshall	+23 yd	Rakeem Cato pass complete to Tommy Shuler for 23 yards to the WVirg 4 for a 1ST down.
Q4 0:54	Marshall	+0 yd	Justin Haig extra point GOOD.
Q4 0:38	West Virginia	+30 yd	Paul Millard pass intercepted by Monterius Lovett at the Marsh 35, returned for 30 yards to the 50 yard line, MARSHALL penalty 15 yard Illegal Block accepted.

Scoring plays, turnovers, and gains of 20+ yards, pulled from CFBD’s play-by-play. This section only appears for belt games with play-by-play on file (2003 onward).

Box Score

Player stats

CFBD player stats

Passing

Player	C/ATT	YDS	AVG	TD	INT	QBR
Geno SmithWest Virginia	32/36	323	9.0	4	0	87.2
Paul MillardWest Virginia	2/3	1	0.3	1	1	1.2
Rakeem CatoMarshall	38/54	413	7.6	2	1	68.6
Blake FrohnapfelMarshall	0/2	0	0.0	0	0	11.7

Rushing

Player	CAR	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Shawne AlstonWest Virginia	16	123	7.7	2	21
Andrew BuieWest Virginia	6	80	13.3	1	24
Tavon AustinWest Virginia	3	66	22.0	0	70
Geno SmithWest Virginia	8	65	8.1	1	28
Paul MillardWest Virginia	2	-3	-1.5	0	1
Kevin GroomsMarshall	5	43	8.6	0	19
Travon VanMarshall	16	38	2.4	2	16
Rakeem CatoMarshall	4	19	4.8	0	12
Remi WatsonMarshall	6	17	2.8	0	4
Steward ButlerMarshall	10	14	1.4	0	3
Martin WardMarshall	3	1	0.3	0	3
Blake FrohnapfelMarshall	1	0	0.0	0	0

Receiving

Player	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Stedman BaileyWest Virginia	9	104	11.6	2	32
J.D. WoodsWest Virginia	7	75	10.7	1	22
Tavon AustinWest Virginia	10	53	5.3	1	15
Ivan McCartneyWest Virginia	1	52	52.0	0	52
Andrew BuieWest Virginia	4	31	7.8	0	9
Jordan ThompsonWest Virginia	2	6	3.0	0	8
Kj MyersWest Virginia	1	3	3.0	1	3
Aaron DobsonMarshall	4	72	18.0	0	40
Eric FrohnapfelMarshall	6	60	10.0	1	24
C.J. CrawfordMarshall	3	48	16.0	0	28
Tommy ShulerMarshall	5	47	9.4	1	23
Jermain KelsonMarshall	4	45	11.3	0	21
Antavious WilsonMarshall	3	40	13.3	0	19
Harold HoskinsMarshall	2	24	12.0	0	12
Jazz KingMarshall	1	20	20.0	0	20
Davonte AllenMarshall	2	18	9.0	0	14
Travon VanMarshall	4	14	3.5	0	12
Andre Snipes-BookerMarshall	2	12	6.0	0	8
Steward ButlerMarshall	1	10	10.0	0	10
Demetrius EvansMarshall	1	3	3.0	0	3

Show more stats (5 more categories)

Interceptions

Player	INT	YDS	TD
Doug RiggWest Virginia	1	46	0
Monterius LovettMarshall	1	30	0

Kick Returns

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	LONG
Tavon AustinWest Virginia	1	35	35.0	35
Andrew BuieWest Virginia	2	24	12.0	15
Stedman BaileyWest Virginia	1	17	17.0	17
Ryan ClarkeWest Virginia	1	16	16.0	16
Andre Snipes-BookerMarshall	6	125	20.8	25
Steward ButlerMarshall	1	25	25.0	25
Martin WardMarshall	1	10	10.0	10

Kicking

Player	FG	PCT	LONG	XP	PTS
Tyler BitancurtWest Virginia	0/0	0.0	0	9/10	9
Justin HaigMarshall	2/2	100.0	34	4/4	10

Punt Returns

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	LONG
Tavon AustinWest Virginia	3	19	6.3	14
Andre Snipes-BookerMarshall	1	19	19.0	19
C.J. CrawfordMarshall	1	5	5.0	5
Harold HoskinsMarshall	1	2	2.0	2

Punting

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	TB	In 20	LONG
Corey SmithWest Virginia	1	45	45.0	0	0	45
Tyler WilliamsMarshall	4	205	51.3	0	0	59

Full player stats from CFBD’s /games/players data. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have player-level stats that far back.

← West Virginia at Clemson James Madison at West Virginia →