LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -Maybe one day Pat White will sit down, crack open the record book and think about all he’s rewritten over the last four years.
Just not yet.
West Virginia still has two games left, and the do-everything quarterback who has helped redefine the position isn’t quite ready for the ride to end.
So forgive White if he’s not ready to celebrate, even after breaking the NCAA record for most career rushing yards by a quarterback in West Virginia’s 35-21 win over Louisville on Saturday.
Instead, White passed the praise on to his teammates after they helped him pile up 322 total yards and account for all five touchdowns as the Mountaineers kept their hopes for a Big East title alive. White’s 200 yards rushing gave him 4,292 in his career, surpassing the record of 4,289 held by former Missouri quarterback Brad Smith.
ive linemen. I might even call the ones that graduated.”
It was typical White, who said he’ll wait until he’s done playing to savor exactly what he’s accomplished. Right now, the Mountaineers (7-3, 4-1 Big East) are simply trying to focus on getting a little payback on Friday against Pittsburgh.
“We’ve still got some games to play,” White said. “I know it might not look like it, but we’ll be excited to play.”
White and his teammates won’t lack for motivation. The Panthers ended West Virginia’s hopes for a berth in the national championship game when they upset the Mountaineers in the season finale last year.
“Both teams want it,” White said. “Both teams will be going after it hard.”
If the Mountaineers can execute the way they did in dismantling the crumbling Cardinals (5-6, 1-5), White won’t have much trouble padding his record. He scored on touchdown runs of 66, 43 and 7 yards as West Virginia rolled up 376 yards on the ground and left Louisville coach Steve Kragthorpe sounding like a lot of coaches who have tried to stop White through the years.
“We knew coming into the game we had to stop Pat, but we didn’t do that,” Kragthorpe said.
Nobody really has over the last four seasons.
ewart’s decision to limit some of White’s touches to try and keep him healthy.
Needing a win to keep his team’s hopes of a Big East title alive, Stewart decided to give the ball to his superstar and let him do his thing.
“I just took some of (the media’s) advice and just put the ball in No. 5’s hands,” Stewart joked.
White didn’t let his coach or his teammates down. Louisville’s defense had been much improved against the run this season, but White continued to terrorize the Cardinals by consistently getting outside and racing through the Louisville secondary.
“When we got the ball we felt we had some plays that would work with Pat and Noel (Devine),” Stewart said. “The people of West Virginia have been waiting to see that and that’s what we did. We were able to get the edge with Pat.”
White finishes his career against Louisville with 1,115 yards of total offense and 12 touchdowns – seven rushing and five passing – while leading West Virginia to a 3-1 record against one of its biggest league rivals.
“He’s just a winner,” said offensive lineman Don Barclay. “He lives the game. It’s an honor to block for him. He has that knack for making a play and getting into the end zone.”
lp to get the automatic Bowl Championship Series berth that goes to the Big East champion.
West Virginia needs to beat Pitt and South Florida and hope No. 16 Cincinnati loses to Syracuse on Saturday to head to a BCS game for the third time in four years.
Add A Comment