Photo courtesy of Syracuse Athletics
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (Sports Network) - Ryan Nassib threw four touchdown passes to his tight ends and Syracuse delivered a 49-23 upset of No. 11 West Virginia on Friday, scoring more points than it ever has in the 66-year history of the rivalry.
Nassib was 24-of-32 for 229 yards, exploiting a porous Mountaineer defense with three touchdown passes to Nick Provo and one to David Stevens. He also ran for a score.
Antwon Bailey rushed for 125 yards and a touchdown for The Orange (5-2, 1-1 Big East), who outscored West Virginia 28-7 after the Mountaineers (5-2, 1-1) pulled within five points early in the third quarter.
Dorian Graham added a 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the win.
Geno Smith passed for 338 yards and two touchdowns, but was intercepted twice and sacked four times as West Virginia had its two-game winning streak snapped while losing in the Carrier Dome for the first time since 2001.
Shawne Alston's one-yard touchdown run got West Virginia within 21-16 in the third quarter, but Syracuse scored 21 straight points to put the game away, with Nassib having little trouble working against the Mountaineer secondary.
Stevens was wide-open on the left side for a 29-yard touchdown to make it 28-16 and Provo helped set up his second touchdown of the game with a 24-yard catch.
Provo was then left wide-open in the left side of the end zone three plays later for a 10-yard TD.
After safety Phillip Thomas intercepted Smith two plays into the ensuing West Virginia drive and returned it 24 yards, Provo scored his third TD after hauling in a five-yard pass and carrying it inside the right pylon one-handed.
The play, originally ruled a no-catch because referees saw Provo bobble the ball as he hit the ground, was overturned after a review.
Smith connected with Brad Starks on a 25-yard touchdown pass, but Bailey broke off a 50-yard run on the ensuing possession and scored on a three-yard rush to make it 49-23.
Syracuse's previous high score against West Virginia came in a 45-0 win in 1960. The Orange upped their lead in the all-time series to 32-27 and snapped a four-game home losing streak to the Mountaineers, beating their conference rivals for the second year in a row.
The rout started early, when West Virginia bit on a play-fake and Nassib threw to a wide-open Provo in the back of the end zone for a 7-0 Syracuse lead in the first quarter to cap a 14-play drive.
The Mountaineers' ensuing drive stalled at the Syracuse 10 and Tyler Bitancurt kicked a 27-yard field goal to make it 7-3 with 1:06 left in the first.
Syracuse responded with another 14-play touchdown drive, with Nassib busting through the line for a one-yard score to give the Orange a 14-3 lead in the second quarter.
West Virginia's Stedman Bailey won a jump-ball with cornerback Kevyn Scott on the left sideline and came down with his feet inbounds, then tip-toed to keep them in to start a 64-yard touchdown catch, but the extra point hit the left upright.
Despite being shaken up on a catch earlier in the second quarter, Graham returned the ensuing kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown, making a nice cut to the right at midfield to scamper untouched for a 21-9 Syracuse lead.
West Virginia was driving deep in Syracuse territory after that, but safety Jeremi Wilkes intercepted Smith at the goal line.