West Virginia had this one in hand for most of the night in the College Football 27 sim, then watched Oklahoma State rip it away in the final minute with a scoop-and-score that flipped everything on its head.
The Mountaineers opened fast and kept landing punches. Matt Sieg set the tone with a 34-yard interception return for a touchdown, and West Virginia kept building from there.
Mike Hawkins Jr. hit DJ Epps on a 27-yard scoring strike, and Hawkins added a 10-yard rushing touchdown in the second quarter. Cam Cook chipped in a 7-yard touchdown run in the third, and with a 31-21 cushion, WVU looked positioned to finish the job.
But Oklahoma State kept answering. Drew Mestemaker was sharp throughout, throwing for 333 yards and four touchdowns while also adding a rushing score. He connected with Wyatt Young from 3 yards out, then found Donovan Green for scores from 75 and 9 yards, and later hit Chris Barnes on a 10-yard touchdown pass to put the Cowboys ahead 35-34.
That set the stage for the finish. West Virginia still had a chance after falling behind, and Jack Cassidy drilled a 41-yard field goal to push the Mountaineers back in front 34-28 before the final swing. Then came the play that changed everything: LaDainian Fields scooped up a fumble and returned it 46 yards for a touchdown with 1:01 left, giving Oklahoma State a 42-34 win.
Hawkins finished 20 of 30 for 250 yards, a touchdown and an interception, while also rushing 13 times for 55 yards and a score. Cook added 92 rushing yards on nine carries, though he also lost a fumble, and DJ Epps caught the touchdown pass from Hawkins. Defensively, Sieg led the way with nine tackles and the pick-six, Tyler Stolsky had eight tackles, Kamari Wilson added seven, Keyshawk Robinson had six, and Ben Cutter finished with five tackles and a tackle for loss.
For Oklahoma State, Mestemaker went 21 of 29 for 333 yards, four passing touchdowns and one interception. Caleb Hawkins ran for 132 yards on 14 carries, and Chris Barnes finished with five catches for 64 yards and a touchdown.
It was the kind of finish that stings twice over for West Virginia: first for giving up a 10-point second-half lead, and then for losing on a scoop-and-score with the game right there in front of them. The Mountaineers were still close enough to force a field-goal try, but the turnover turned a possible escape into a brutal defeat.
In Other News...
WVU Gets Much Needed Relief Ahead Of Oklahoma State Game
West Virginia got a little breathing room on the injury front ahead of its Big 12 opener against Oklahoma State, with the latest availability report bringing some encouraging signs for a roster that has been managing several minor knocks. Cornerback Nick Taylor was added as probable because of a minor injury, but the Mountaineers also cleared two players from the list, a useful bit of housekeeping as they get closer to kickoff.
The receiver room looks steadier, too, with Jaden Bray and Prince Strachan both listed as probable. Bray is working back from a recent hip injury, while Strachan is positioned for an expanded role, giving West Virginia a little more flexibility as it heads into a conference game that should offer an early read on how ready the offense is to handle its depth challenges. [Read more 🡒]
Nick Saban Just Put More Weight On WVU's Big 12 Opener
Nick Saban added an unexpected layer of attention to West Virginias Big 12 opener this week when the Alabama coach and Mountaineers native weighed in on the matchup during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. Saban backed West Virginia to beat Oklahoma State, pointing to his confidence in the Mountaineers running game and noting the pride people in the state have in the team and coach Rich Rodriguez.
The pick carries a little extra intrigue because Saban had gone against West Virginia a week earlier when he chose Virginia over the Mountaineers. Now his latest nod gives Saturdays game a bit more buzz, even if it changes nothing about what West Virginia still has to handle on the field as it opens conference play. [Read more 🡒]
Phil Steele Just Added Fuel To West Virginia's Biggest Early Test
Phil Steele is already looking at West Virginias first real Big 12 measuring stick and likes what he sees. The longtime college football analyst said he expects the Mountaineers to handle their conference opener against Oklahoma State, pointing to a team he believes has enough balance on both sides of the ball to make an early statement. He singled out the kind of players who can swing a September game and framed West Virginia as a program with the pieces to start league play on the right foot.
Oklahoma State, meanwhile, comes into the matchup carrying some recent questions, and Steele also pointed to the bigger picture around the Cowboys performance against Oregon. For West Virginia, the intrigue is less about reputation and more about whether the preseason confidence holds up when the games start counting in Big 12 play. A win here would do more than validate an analysts prediction - it would immediately alter the tone around a Mountaineers team trying to establish itself early. [Read more 🡒]