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QuotesMORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Towson's remarkable 12-game road winning streak came to an abrupt end on Saturday night as the Tigers suffered a 54-0 setback against West Virginia in front of 56,414 fans at Milan Puskar Stadium.
The loss, Towson's first on the road since October 6, 2012, drops the Tigers to 0-2 for the first time since 1991. West Virginia, which fell 33-23 to No. 2 Alabama in its season opener, improves to 1-1 on the year.
Prior to Saturday's game, Towson hadn't been shutout since November 6, 2010 at Delaware.
Towson's defense bent but didn't break early in the game. After the Mountaineers scored a touchdown on their first drive, the Tigers allowed just three points on the next two WVU possessions.
West Virginia had it first-and-goal from the Towson 2-yard line, but the Tigers halted the Mountaineers on three straight plays, capped by a
Ryan Delaire tackle for a two-yard loss on third down. WVU settled for a field goal and a 10-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The Mountaineers got into the red zone on their first possession of the second quarter, but once again the Tigers were able to hold them out of the end zone. Senior cornerback
Tye Smith broke up a
Clint Trickett pass on third down and WVU attempted another field goal. However, Mountaineer kicker
Josh Lambert didn't connect on this one, missing it wide right.
Still leading 10-0 with less than 10 minutes remaining in the second quarter, WVU's offense began to click. The Mountaineers scored touchdowns on their next three drives to go into the intermission with a 31-0 lead. Trickett connected on a remarkable 24 of 27 passes for 218 yards and a TD in the first half.
The second half picked up where the first half ended. The Mountaineers scored a touchdown on their first drive of the third quarter and their first two drives of the fourth quarter to seal the win. Trickett finished 35 of 40 for 348 yards and two touchdowns.
Towson sophomore
Darius Victor led the Tigers in rushing with 29 yards on just eight carries. Senior
Derrick Joseph had a team-high three catches, while sophomore
Andre Dessenberg had two grabs for a team-high 30 yards receiving.
Junior
Donnell Lewis recorded a career-high 15 tackles and in his first action of the season, junior
Christian Carpenter had 12 tackles. Delaire registered a sack for the second straight week and he also forced the only turnover of the game, a fumble that sophomore
Syd Holt recovered. The Tigers have no turnovers through their first two games.
Towson, which won 33-18 at the University of Connecticut last season, falls to 1-7 all-time against FBS programs. West Virginia improves to 15-0 against FCS foes.
The Tigers remain on the road next week, taking on Delaware State on Saturday at 2 p.m.
-TowsonTigers.com-
