West Virginia Mountaineers vs Iowa State Cyclones Match Player Stats On Nov 26, 2016

The Sports Xchange
Nov 26, 2016

AMES, Iowa -- Skyler Howard threw five touchdown passes, four on bombs, and freshman running back Martell Pettaway made the most of a late-season debut as No. 18 West Virginia buried Iowa State 49-19 on Saturday.

Showing no hangover from last week's loss to Oklahoma that knocked West Virginia out of the Big 12 title race, the Mountaineers (9-2, 6-2) piled up 613 yards.

Howard's 12-of-21 passing accounted for 330 of those, including touchdowns of 71 and 40 yards to Shelton Gibson, who gained 161 yards on three catches.

Howard also tossed a 48-yard score to Marcus Simms and a 34-yarder to Ka'Raun White, ruining senior day for Iowa State (3-9, 2-7).

Pettaway, a fourth-string running back slated for a redshirt season until being pressed into action Saturday, ran for 181 yards and a touchdown on 30 carries.

West Virginia scored 21 points off four Iowa State turnovers, including the league-leading eighth interception by cornerback Rasul Douglas, who also forced a fumble.

Jacob Park finished 23-of-44 passing for 371 yards for Iowa State, and David Montgomery ran for 141 yards on 21 carries. Both players lost second-half fumbles when WVU outscored the Cyclones 28-3.

Alert to an Iowa State onside kick, West Virginia capitalized on Howard's touchdown White for a 7-3 lead. Kennedy McKoy followed with a 3-yard touchdown, set up by Gibson's 50-yard grab to make it 14-3.

Iowa State crossed midfield on its first nine possessions but scored only one touchdown -- on Kene Nwangwu's 97-yard kick return.

Mike Warren lost a fumble at West Virginia's 46, and Allen Lazard couldn't bring in a low fourth-down pass at the 39. The Cyclones settled for Cole Netten field goals of 32, 28, 40 and 31 yards during the stretch.

NOTES: West Virginia turned to RB Martell Pettaway Pettaway after losing its top three RBs. Justin Crawford left with a right leg injury after seven carries for 29 yards. RB Kennedy McKoy exited after two carries and RB Rushel Shell did not dress. ... Mountaineers TE Trevon Wesco's first career catch resulted in a a 6-yard fourth-quarter touchdown. ... Iowa State failed to qualify for a bowl for the fourth consecutive season. The Cyclones also fell short of their first three-game Big 12 winning streak since 2005.