PROVO, Utah (AP) — Bear Bachmeier threw for a career-high 351 yards and a touchdown to lead No. 23 BYU to a 38-24 victory over West Virginia on Friday night.
BYU (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) rolled up 517 total yards and had two takeaways. Chase Roberts had a career-high 161 yards on four catches, and Parker Kingston added a career-high 111 yards and a touchdown on four receptions.
Bachmeier’s 351 passing yards were the most for a BYU quarterback in a victory since the Cougars joined the Big 12.
“We’ve always known we can throw the ball around,” Kingston said. “It was good to get it out on film, letting teams know they can’t stack the box against us and that we have weapons on the outside, too.”
Khalil Wilkins totaled 170 yards of offense and had two interceptions in his first career start. West Virginia (2-4, 0-3) forced three turnovers but also got burned repeatedly by big plays from BYU.
“I think if we limit a lot of the explosives, I think this is a different football game,” West Virginia linebacker Chase Wilson said.
Kingston scored on back-to-back first-quarter drives to put BYU up 14-0. Therrian Alexander III jumped a route near midfield and returned an interception 49 yards to set up Kingston’s first TD on a 1-yard run. Kingston followed up by reeling in a short pass, weaving through traffic, and sprinting 54 yards for his second touchdown.
Roberts raced downfield on an 85-yard catch-and-run late in the second quarter, setting up L.J. Martin’s 4-yard TD run that extended BYU’s lead to 21-3. It was the longest pass play for the Cougars since 1996.
“You start throwing the ball a little more every game and, this game, it kind of blew up,” Roberts said. “I think now we’re a big threat in the pass game and teams got to prepare for that and that’s only going to open the box up for LJ and for our running backs. And I think we’re just a dangerous offense that’s hard to prepare for.”
West Virginia threatened briefly after Fred Perry recovered a fumbled pitch to set the stage for a 3-yard TD run from Diore Hubbard. Bachmeier answered with a 2-yard run 19 seconds before halftime to keep the Mountaineers from drawing closer.
“Man, we made him look like the Heisman winner in the first half,” West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez said.
The takeaway
West Virginia: The Mountaineers finished plus-one in the turnover margin but still couldn’t slow down BYU’s offense.
BYU: The Cougars should move up in the AP poll after finishing with more than 300 passing yards for the first time this season.
Linebacker losses
Two of BYU’s three starting linebackers did not finish the game after suffering injuries.
Jack Kelly injured his shoulder late in the first quarter while tackling Khalil Wilkins on a third-down run. Kelly wore a sling on his left arm on the sideline after the play and did not return for the final three quarters. He entered Friday’s game leading the Cougars with 19 tackles in their first four games.
“That’s the game of football. Sometimes guys get banged up. We’ll see how banged up he is and if he can even go next week,” BYU coach Kalani Sitake said.
Isaiah Glasker’s status is also uncertain. He did not play in the second half after suffering a right leg injury. Glasker could be seen limping around on the sidelines. Glasker was the team’s no. 2 tackler entering the game with 17 tackles.
Up next
West Virginia: At UCF on Oct 18.
BYU: At Arizona on Oct. 11.
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