Mestemaker Picks Apart WVU Secondary, Leads OSU on Second Half Comeback

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Just like old times for a Rich Rodriguez-led WVU football team, the Mountaineers ran all over the field under the lights on a Saturday night in Morgantown. However, unlike those old times, it was not enough to lead West Virginia to a victory, falling to Oklahoma State 38-24, as the Cowboys exploded through the air in the second half.

With the crowd going wild and trying to ignite the Mountaineers, quarterback Michael Hawkins took off on the first play of the game. He ran nine yards, but momentum from his big gain was quickly squandered. West Virginia would have to punt, handing the ball to Oklahoma State and Drew Mestemaker, who then proceeded to march the Cowboys up the field, at least until a penalty forced a punt.

Hawkins, and more so his co-star Cam Cook, forced to the energized packed house to their feet. Cook exploded up the middle for a 75-yard run, breaking his previous high for the new WVU high for the longest play from scrimmage. Hawkins would then punch the ball in.

And just as important as West Virginia’s explosive offense, the Mountaineer defense stepped up again, this time holding the Cowboys’ attack to a 30-yard field goal.

The Mountaineers responded by churning more yards, mostly on the ground, and Hawkins running in his second short touchdown. With 11:52 left in the opening half, WVU was sitting on 182 yards of offense, with 166 rushing, and a 14-3 lead. Oklahoma State did kick another field on their answer possession, but failing to put a touchdown on the board handed another win for Zac Alley’s defense, who stopped the Cowboys on consecutive plays at the goal line.

But with WVU flirting with a third touchdown, Hawkins threw his first interception, granted one aided by a deflected pass. Mestemaker capitalized off the turnover, showing his NFL arm strength on a clutch a 21-yard pass to get Oklahoma State into scoring range. Mestemaker would then find Justin Bowick and the end zone, bringing the score to 14-13 with 1:25 to go before halftime.

A chaotic shift of momentum opened up the second half. First, Mestemaker completed a bomb for 52 yards. But just a few plays later, Kamari Wilson picked up the deflated crowd and picked off Mestemaker to grab the ball back for the Mountaineers. A third touchdown thanks to Hawkins’ legs would follow. At that point in the third quarter, Hawkins had 97rushing  yards and WVU had 280 as a unit.

Answering the challenge, Mestemaker led the Cowboys to a second touchdown and a successful two-point conversion to tie the game. He was 14-for-19 for 244 passing yards with 9:33 remaining in the third quarter.

More work from Hawkins and Cook, who got his total to 167 by that point, resulted in a field to reclaim the advantage, ever so slightly, 24-21. To no surprise, Mestemaker fired off 48-yarder on the Cowboys’ ensuring drive, which then found its way to the end zone on the next play, which put Oklahoma State in front 28-24. A failure to convert a fourth and one got Oklahoma State’s offense back on the field at the start of the final 15 minutes on the clock.

But after churning most of the fourth quarter, Mestemaker found Wyatt Young, who racked up 192 receiving yards, in the back of the end zone, putting the game out of reach at 38-24. The Cowboys tacked on a field goal following a turnover on downs, winning the game 41-24.

With the loss, WVU is now 3-1 on the year, but 0-1 in the conference standings. Next up is a trip to Iowa State on Saturday, Oct. 3.

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