Utah Defeats West Virginia, 30-14, in Dallas

Tuesday, December 26

Dallas, Texas

11:30 AM

University of Utah

7-6

West Virginia

7-6

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

UTAH

West Virginia

12/26/2017 3:56 PM | Football

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DALLAS, Texas – The University of Utah football program posted a 30-14 win over the West Virginia Mountaineers, finishing the season 7-6 overall.

The Utes held the Mountaineers to just 153 yards of total offense, including 29 yards rushing and just six first downs. Utah had a balanced game offensively with 197 rushing yards and 165 yards through the air, finishing the game with three rushing scores and three field goals.

Tyler Huntley finished the game 12-for-26 (0 TD, 0 INT) for 165 passing yards, adding 57 rushing yards and two rushing scores. Zack Moss led the Utes in rushing with 150 yards for his fifth game with 100-plus yards on the ground, also scoring his 10^th rushing touchdown of the season.

Darren Carrington II racked up 62 yards on four receptions with Raelon Singleton adding 52 yards on two catches. Wrapping up things on special teams was Matt Gay, kicking in three field goals and scoring 12 points.

Utah struck first after the Ute defense forced a three-and-out to get the ball on their own 17-yard-line. Just three plays later, Moss broke free for a career-long 58-yard rushing touchdown to put the Utes up 7-0 with 11:37 on the clock in the first quarter.

Donavan Thompson and Kavika Luafatasaga led the Utes in tackles with six each with Lowell Lotulelei contributing four tackles that included 1.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss. Cody Barton and Julian Blackmon were also key contributors against the Mountaineers with Barton recording two fumbles recoveries and Blackmon coming away with his fourth interception of the year. Blackmon was named the game's Most Valuable Player.

The Utah defense was stingy in the first quarter, holding West Virginia to just 38 yards of total offense, including -3 rushing. The Mountaineers were only able to convert on one third down in the first quarter, punting three times.

It was the Utah defense that stepped up again, holding WVU to just a field goal to start the second quarter. The Mountaineers were able to knock in a 28-yarder with 13:09 left to play, cutting the Utah lead to 7-3, ending an 11-play, 67-yard drive.

Utah extended its lead with 5:46 left in the second quarter after the Ute specials teams came up big. Cody Barton came up with a fumble recovery on a WVU punt return, giving the Utes the ball back on the Mountaineer 13-yard-line.

With the Utes in scoring territory, Utah got to the two-yard-line with Huntley sneaking it into the end zone for the two-yard score, putting the Utes up 14-3. It was a quick scoring drive, taking 1:19 off the clock for three plays and 13 yards.

The Utes wasted no time getting another three points on the scoreboard after Matt Gay punched in a 29-yard field goal with 1:08 remaining in the second quarter. The field goal gave Utah a 17-3 advantage heading into halftime, ending a nine-play, 56-yard drive.

West Virginia took advantage of a special teams play after Utah fumbled the ball on a punt to put up a field goal in the third quarter, converting a 28-yarder to make it 17-6 with 6:43 left. It would be the only points of the quarter after both teams struggled to get going offensively.

Utah scored right out of the gate in the fourth quarter with Huntley finding the end zone for the second time in the game, scoring on another two-yard quarterback keeper to give Utah a 24-6 lead with 13:59 remaining in the game.

It didn't take long for Utah to add to its stat line after Barton recovered his second fumble of the game to give the Utes the ball back with 13:16 on the clock. The Utes started its drive on the West Virginia 15-yard-line, eventually giving Gay the go-ahead 26-yard field goal to make it 27-6 at the 11:38 mark.

The Utes made it a 24-point game with 4:15 left to play in the game when Gay sent in his third field goal of the game, recording a 24-yarder to give Utah a 30-6 lead. After a Julian Blackmon interception put the Utes on the WVU 26-yard-line, Utah was able to score on its eight-play, 20-yard drive.

West Virginia scored its only touchdown of the game late, after Ka'Ruan White was found in the end zone for an 18-yard reception, making it 30-14 with 1:58 on the clock. It would be the last points of the game after Utah was able to run out the clock and claim the 30-14 victory.