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Mountaineers Come Back To Beat Herd

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The Associated Press

Published: September 9, 2007

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Pat White and Steve Slaton eventually wore down Marshall.

White threw for two touchdowns and ran for another, Slaton rushed for two scores and No. 3 West Virginia used a 42-point second half to beat Marshall 48-23 Saturday.

Held to three first downs and 118 total yards in the opening half, heavy favorite West Virginia (2-0) scored on its first three possessions of the third quarter and handed Marshall its worst home loss since it opened Joan C. Edwards Stadium opened in 1991.

Slaton, held to 2 first-half yards, erupted after West Virginia went to a power running game. Behind the blocking of fullback Owen Schmitt, Slaton finished with 146 yards and scored on runs of one and 18 yards. White ran for 125 yards.

Swapping home venues from a year ago made a big difference for the Mountaineers, who were playing in Huntington for the first time since 1915.

This one wasn't as lopsided as that 92-6 blowout or even West Virginia's 42-10 rout last year in Morgantown. Still, the Mountaineers improved to 7-0 all time against their cross-state foe.

PITTSBURGH 34, GRAMBLING 10: LeSean McCoy ran for three touchdowns on his first four carries in the first quarter and Kevan Smith threw for 202 yards and a score in his first career start, helping Pittsburgh quickly open a 21-point lead during its victory over Grambling State.

Smith became the second Pitt quarterback to win his initial start in as many weeks, throwing a 50-yard touchdown pass to tight end Nate Byham in the second quarter and connecting with Oderick Turner on a 61-yard completion in the third quarter that led to a Conor Lee field goal.

CONNECTICUT 38, MAINE 0: Tyler Lorenzen threw for two touchdowns and ran for another as Connecticut beat Maine.

Lorenzen, a junior-college transfer starting his first home game, completed 17 of 26 passes for 186 yards and one interception. He also rushed for 35 yards.

Donald Brown ran for 87 yards on 20 carries, and Terence Jeffers had two touchdown receptions for the Huskies (2-0), who racked up 379 yards on offense.

IOWA 35, SYRACUSE 0: Jake Christensen threw for 278 yards and four touchdowns and Iowa held Syracuse to five first downs and pounded the Orange.

Tony Moeaki had three TD catches and Kenny Iwebema blocked two field goals for Iowa (2-0), which handed Syracuse (0-2) its worst loss under third-year coach Greg Robinson. The Orange have lost their last three games by an average of 32 points, dating back to last year's 38-7 defeat against Rutgers.

The Hawkeyes led 28-0 by halftime, aided greatly by the Orange's poor tackling and inability to move the football. Iowa, which held Syracuse to 103 yards total offense, has not allowed a touchdown through two games.

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