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Belt / 2012 season / Reign #282 · Game 1,450 of 1,640
September 15, 2012 Week 3 · Regular Season Neutral site Belt defended

West Virginia defends the belt, 42–12, at a neutral site over James Madison.

Home · Defending Holder
West VirginiaAP No. 9 42
AT
Away · Challenger
James Madison 12

AP poll, week 3: James Madison unranked at West Virginia No. 9 · No. 1 that week: Louisville. The belt vs. the polls →

Belt context

Where this game sits in the lineage

West Virginia came in 255 days into reign #282, which began with a win over Clemson, with one defense already behind it; this was its second defense. West Virginia went on to defend it 3 more times before Texas Tech took it on October 13, 2012, 283 days after the reign began.

For James Madison this was its first shot at the belt; it had never held the belt. It still hasn’t; this remains its only belt game.

This is the only time James Madison and West Virginia have met with the belt on the line.

AI-Written

Recap

West Virginia's dynamic passing attack, led by Geno Smith and his trio of receivers Stedman Bailey, Tavon Austin, and Dante Campbell, overwhelmed James Madison from the opening moments. The Mountaineers scored touchdowns on four of their first five possessions, with Smith connecting with Bailey for scores of 9 and 3 yards in the first quarter alone, establishing complete offensive control. James Madison's defense could manage only a 33-yard field goal in the second quarter and a safety in the third quarter when Shawne Alston was tackled for a loss in the end zone, but the Dukes' struggling offense and one critical interception by Tyler Anderson in the third quarter sealed their fate. West Virginia's superior efficiency—zero turnovers compared to James Madison's one—and dominant passing game made this a one-sided affair that saw the belt stay firmly in Morgantown despite James Madison's time-of-possession advantage.

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 VirginiaJames Madison
Total yards569300
Rushing yards121188
Passing yards448112
First downs2815
3rd down conv.4/86/19
Turnovers01
Penalties–yards3–257–41
Time of possession24:1935:31

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
WhenTeamYardsPlay
Q1 10:16West Virginia+0 ydTyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q1 10:16West Virginia+20 ydCorey Smith kickoff for 65 yards returned by Dejor Simmons, tackled by K.J. Dillon for 20 yards to the JMads 20, tackled by K.J. Dillon.
Q1 10:16West Virginia+2 ydShawne Alston rush for 2 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q1 6:39West Virginia+36 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Stedman Bailey for 36 yards to the JMads 9 for a 1ST down.
Q1 6:29West Virginia+9 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Stedman Bailey for 9 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q1 6:29West Virginia+0 ydTyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q1 3:20West Virginia+35 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Tavon Austin for 35 yards to the JMads 30 for a 1ST down.
Q1 1:38West Virginia+3 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Stedman Bailey for 3 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q1 1:38West Virginia+0 ydTyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q2 10:15West Virginia+4 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Dante Campbell for 4 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q2 11:03West Virginia+24 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Tavon Austin for 24 yards to the JMads 3 for a 1ST down.
Q2 12:31West Virginia+29 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Stedman Bailey for 29 yards to the JMads 46 for a 1ST down.
Q2 10:15West Virginia+20 ydCorey Smith kickoff for 59 yards returned by Jeremiah Wilson for 20 yards to the JMads 26.
Q2 10:15West Virginia+0 ydTyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q2 1:02James Madison+33 ydCameron Starke 33 yard field goal GOOD.
Q3 12:02James Madison+20 ydJordan Anderson rush for 20 yards to the WVirg 3 for a 1ST down.
Q3 13:13James Madison+24 ydJordan Anderson rush for 24 yards to the WVirg 28 for a 1ST down.
Q3 9:33West Virginia+27 ydCorey Smith kickoff for 66 yards returned by Dejor Simmons for 27 yards to the JMads 41.
Q3 9:33West Virginia-1 ydShawne Alston rush for a loss of 1 yard to the WVirg 0 for a SAFETY.
Q3 4:37West Virginia+30 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Stedman Bailey for 30 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q3 4:37West Virginia+36 ydCorey Smith kickoff for 64 yards returned by Dejor Simmons for 36 yards to the JMads 37.
Q3 4:37West Virginia+0 ydTyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q3 1:42James Madison+0 ydJustin Thorpe pass intercepted by Tyler Anderson at the WVirg 0, returned for no gain for a touchback.
Q3 3:35James Madison+33 ydJustin Thorpe pass complete to Brian Barlow for 33 yards to the WVirg 24 for a 1ST down.
Q3 0:30West Virginia+30 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Andrew Buie for 30 yards to the JMads 19 for a 1ST down.
Q4 14:56West Virginia+7 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Tavon Austin for 7 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q4 14:56West Virginia+0 ydTyler Bitancurt extra point GOOD.
Q3 1:00West Virginia+27 ydGeno Smith pass complete to Andrew Buie for 27 yards to the WVirg 47 for a 1ST down.
Q4 14:56West Virginia+20 ydCorey Smith kickoff for 65 yards returned by Jeremiah Wilson for 20 yards to the JMads 20.
Q4 0:49James Madison+20 ydJauan Latney rush for 20 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.
Q4 0:49James Madison+0 ydCameron Starke extra point GOOD.

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

West Virginia

PlayerC/ATTYDSAVGTDINTQBR
Geno Smith34/3941110.55094.0
Paul Millard4/9374.1003.5

James Madison

PlayerC/ATTYDSAVGTDINTQBR
Justin Thorpe6/13715.5010.0
Michael Birdsong4/10414.1000.0

Rushing

West Virginia

PlayerCARYDSAVGTDLONG
Shawne Alston14624.4119
Andrew Buie7314.409
Geno Smith2189.0011
Tavon Austin11414.0014

James Madison

PlayerCARYDSAVGTDLONG
Jordan Anderson17754.4024
Justin Thorpe14443.1015
Jauan Latney3248.0120
Hykeem Brodie8243.009
Michael Birdsong4133.306
Dejor Simmons382.7012

Receiving

West Virginia

PlayerRECYDSAVGTDLONG
Stedman Bailey1317313.3336
Tavon Austin1111310.3135
Andrew Buie59018.0030
J.D. Woods22713.5015
Ivan McCartney3196.3015
Connor Arlia11414.0014
Kj Myers166.006
Dante Campbell144.014
Jordan Thompson122.002

James Madison

PlayerRECYDSAVGTDLONG
Brian Barlow24623.0033
Marquis Woodyard3248.0010
Ryan Dixon3196.308
Hykeem Brodie11414.0014
Derek Hart199.009
Show more stats (4 more categories)

Interceptions

West Virginia

PlayerINTYDSTD
Tyler Anderson100

James Madison

No recorded stats in this category.

Kick Returns

West Virginia

PlayerNOYDSAVGLONGTD
Stedman Bailey11919.0190
Tavon Austin188.080

James Madison

PlayerNOYDSAVGLONGTD
Dejor Simmons410125.3360
Jeremiah Wilson35819.3200

Kicking

West Virginia

PlayerFGPCTLONGXPPTS
Tyler Bitancurt0/00.006/66

James Madison

PlayerFGPCTLONGXPPTS
Cameron Starke1/1100.0331/14

Punting

West Virginia

PlayerNOYDSAVGTBIn 20LONG
Corey Smith12424.00024

James Madison

PlayerNOYDSAVGTBIn 20LONG
David Skahn728240.30049

Full player stats from CFBD’s /games/players data, split out by team. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have player-level stats that far back. Linked player names go to that player’s stat line in every other belt game they’ve appeared in.

Sources Box score at ESPN · Game record: College Football Data (id 322590277) · This game in the downloadable dataset