TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Nicco Marchiol threw for two touchdowns and West Virginia scored three times on fourth downs to beat Arizona 31-26 on Saturday night.
Marchiol got his second career start after Garrett Greene was injured against Kansas State last week and was sharp, throwing for 198 yards on 18-of-22 passing. The Mountaineers (4-4, 3-2 Big 12) complemented his performance with a pounding run game, rushing for 203 yards and two touchdowns.
West Virginia also converted all four of its fourth-down chances, including its first three touchdowns, to end a two-game losing streak.
Arizona All-American Tetairoa McMillan bounced back from a quiet game against Colorado last week with 10 catches for 202 yards and a touchdown. He caught a 34-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter and quarterback Noah Fifita added a 3-yard TD run to pull the Wildcats within 31-26 after trailing by 18.
The Mountaineers never gave Arizona (3-5, 1-4) a chance to complete the rally, converting two key third downs to grind out the clock and send the Wildcats to their fourth straight loss.
West Virginia had no trouble moving the ball against Arizona’s defense early, particularly on the ground.
The Mountaineers opened with a field goal and scored the next drive on a fake when holder Leighton Bechdel went 14 yards around the left end for a touchdown.
West Virginia opted to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the 3 in the second quarter and converted when Marchiol found Hudson Clement in the back of the end zone. The Mountaineers did it again on the opening drive of the third quarter, scoring on a fourth-and-3 when CJ Donaldson Jr burst through the left side for a 20-yard TD run that put West Virginia up 24-7.
West Virginia pushed its lead to 31-13 early in the fourth quarter when Marchiol found Traylon Ray on a 54-yard touchdown pass — this time on second down.
Arizona’s offense was hit or miss.
The Wildcats put together one scoring drive in the first half, eating up nearly eight minutes of the clock before Quali Conley scored on a 1-yard run in the second quarter.
Arizona spent the rest of the time sputtering until finding a rhythm late in the third quarter, pulling withing 24-13 when broken coverage left Sam Olson wide open for a 23-yard touchdown catch.
The takeaway
West Virginia used its balance to pick up a solid road win with its backup quarterback. Arizona struggled against West Virginia’s run game and its offense came to life too late, putting the Wildcats in a difficult spot to become bowl eligible in a season where they were once ranked No. 20.
Up next
West Virginia: plays at Cincinnati on Nov. 9.
Arizona: plays at UCF next Saturday.
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