Shanna Rose. I WV Sports Chat
ATHENS, Ohio- Ohio University upset West Virginia University 17-10 on Saturday afternoon at Peden Stadium.
The Mountaineers offense made numerous mistakes and struggled to get going the entire game.
Parker Navarro completed 22-of-31 passes for the Bobcats for 247 yards and one touchdown. He threw three interceptions. Chase Hendricks finished with 121 yards and one touchdown on eight catches.
“It starts with me,” WVU head coach Rich Rodriguez said. “I told the guys I failed them this week. I thought we had a good week of practice and we were ready to play, and we weren’t.
Jahiem White got the Mountaineers on the board first with a 32-yard run into the end zone and Kade Hensley’s PAT gave WVU a 7-0 lead.
Ohio responded with a field goal after a roughing the passer penalty on WVU. The Bobcats couldn’t find the end zone and Brack Peacock hit a 43-yard field goal.
The Mountaineers went three-and-out on their next three possessions before Ohio scored two more touchdowns.
The Bobcats went 71 yards in 12 plays to take a 10-7 lead when Sieh Bangura ran into the end zone from the 1-yard line.
WVU’s offense continued to stutter. With 1:19 remaining in the half, Navarro connected with Hendricks for a 31-yard touchdown reception to give Ohio a 17-7 lead.
In the third quarter, the Mountaineers got the ball first and quarterback Nicco Marchiol connected with Jaden Bray for a 45-yard pass into Ohio territory. Hensley made a 38-yard field goal to pull WVU within a touchdown.
The Mountaineer defense picked off Navarro on the next three possessions but each time WVU’s offense failed to capitalize on the miscues.
While the Bobcats were deep in the Mountaineers’ territory when Darrian Lewis got in front of the receiver and intercepted Navarro. WVU went three-and-out to foil the pick.
Linebacker Ben Cutter grabbed the next interception. Nicco Marchiol was replaced by Jaylen Henderson but a penalty moved the Mountaineers back to third-and-long before Henderson was sacked.
Linebacker Chase Wilson grabbed a tipped pass but once again WVU couldn’t turn It into points.
“They forced turnovers and gave plenty of opportunities,” Rodriguez said about the defense. “We missed a couple of tackles here and there and gave up a couple of things on third down, but they played hard and played well enough for us to win.”
In the closing minutes of the game, the Mountaineers’ offense started to get going but Marchiol was picked off by Ohio’s Cameron Hollobaugh.
The Bobcats drained the clock, and WVU’s final drive stalled once more.
Marchiol completed 15-of-26 passes for 178 yards and had one interception.
Bray led the Mountaineer receivers with 69 yards on four catches before getting injured.
In the second quarter, White was injured and helped to the tent before being carted off the field later in the quarter.
WVU looks to regroup after a sluggish offensive outing as they host rival Pitt next Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET in Morgantown.
Photo Credit: WVU Athletics
