Junior running back Jahiem White rushed for two touchdowns and quarterback Nicco Marchiol completed 17-of-20 passes for 224 yards and a TD to lead West Virginia to a 45-3 victory over Robert Morris on Saturday in Morgantown, West Virginia.
White ran for 93 yards on 18 carries. He scored both of his touchdowns in the third quarter, when West Virginia outscored Robert Morris 14-0 to take a 24-3 lead.
It was the season opener for each team and the first game for West Virginia’s Rich Rodriguez since he began his second stint as the school’s head coach. Rodriguez guided the Mountaineers to a 60-26 record from 2001 to 2007.
West Virginia’s Cam Vaughn caught seven passes for 126 yards and a TD.
Robert Morris, an FCS program, was held to 123 yards of total offense.
West Virginia led 7-0 after one quarter and 10-3 at halftime despite losing three fumbles in the first half. The Mountaineers had a 234-81 edge in total yards through two quarters.
West Virginia scored on the game’s opening drive. Marchiol capped a 10-play, 83-yard drive with a 10-yard touchdown run with 10:15 left in the first quarter.
The Mountaineers led 10-0 after Kade Hensley made a 27-yard field goal with 11:44 remaining in the second quarter, but Robert Morris trimmed its deficit to seven points when Jayson Jenkins kicked a 36-yard field goal with 3:08 left in the first half.
West Virginia pushed its lead to 17-3 on White’s 1-yard run and Hensley’s PAT with 11:21 to play in the third. White’s second TD, a 4-yard run, came three plays after the Colonials fumbled the ball away on their own 24-yard line and helped the Mountaineers build a 24-3 lead.
West Virginia added three touchdowns in the final quarter. After Marchiol tossed a 46-yard TD pass to Vaughn, the Mountaineers received a 26-yard TD run from Cyncir Bowers and a 59-yard TD run by Scotty Fox.
West Virginia had 625 yards of offense, including 393 yards on the ground.
