Late Touchdown Lifts WVSU to Homecoming Victory

INSTITUTE, West Virginia -- The West Virginia State University football team won its first home game of the season in the most dramatic of fashions in front of 2,911 fans during a warm Homecoming Saturday at Dickerson Stadium at Lakin Field.

Sophomore quarterback Matt Kinnick hit freshman Tyrone Barber for a touchdown from 9 yards with 55 seconds remaining to lift the Yellow Jackets to a 32-29 Mountain East Conference victory over Notre Dame, giving State its fourth win in six games of 2015.

State (4-2, 4-2 MEC) averaged 18 points in home losses to Urbana (30-23) and Charleston (34-13), compared to 54.3 in road wins against Fairmont State (59-34), West Virginia Wesleyan (52-31) and UVa-Wise (52-45). The 32 points is the most State has scored at home in 14 games since Anderson took over in 2013.

"I think it's just a mindset," Anderson said. "We finally addressed that and talked about it. We needed to will that to happen. We needed to play well at home, and we did. This team's just going to have to fight and claw and scratch for everything they get. Two weeks in a row that's what they've done.

"Nobody on that sideline thought we were going to lose. That's why we won."

Anderson's team, which has doubled its win total of 2013 and 2014 combined, led 17-16 at halftime but failed to score in the third, trailing 22-17 with 15 minutes left. State finished with 497 yards of offense with only 57 coming in the third, but 128 in the fourth.

The Yellow Jackets were revived early in the final quarter when Notre Dame (1-5, 1-5), punting on fourth down at its own 5, saw the ball snapped over the head of 6-foot-6 punter Anton Vrebac and out of the end zone. The safety cut the lead to 22-19.

Return man Dionta Brown brought back the ensuing free kick 59 yards to the Notre Dame 19, leading to the second of three Barber scores to return the lead back to the hosts.

Notre Dame answered with a Malik Grove 79-yard pass to wide receiver Mitchell Shegos, who caught the ball at the Falcons' 28-yard line and outsprinted the defense for a 29-25 Notre Dame lead.
State linebacker Jesse Umah forced a fumble from Grove on the Falcons' next possession. The Yellow Jackets were forced to punt from the Notre Dame 37, but an offside penalty against the visitors gave State 1 yard to gain for a first down. A Barber run gave State a first down at the 34.
WVSU and Notre Dame traded scoreless possessions with the Yellow Jackets reaching the Falcons' 13 where the hosts came up short on a fourth-and-8 with 3:13 on the clock. Three plays netted 3 yards for Notre Dame, which punted the ball back to the hosts.

State started the game-winning drive with two timeouts and 47 yards separating its first winning streak since opening the 2008 season with five victories.

Kinnick, who leads the MEC in passing yards per game and is tied for second in touchdown passes, was 4-for-7 for 46 yards on the drive to conclude a two-touchdown, 370-yard day.

"This started back in fall camp when we talked to these guys about believing in each other and buying into each other," Anderson said. "Knowing that everybody has bought into being a State football player. That belief fosters itself and just goes."

Grove, who leads the MEC In total offense, threw for three touchdowns and 335, with 79 of those coming on one play in the third.

Barber ran for 102 yards on 22 carries and two TDs, while catching seven passes for 61 yards and another score.

State's Quinton Gray and Notre Dame's Mitchell Shegos came into the game first and second respectively in the league at catches per game. Gray caught seven for 131 yards and Shegos had five for 154 yards and two scores.

Linebacker Mitchell Rowell led State in tackles with 13.

The Yellow Jackets return to action on Saturday, Oct. 17 when it visits undefeated Shepherd in a noon contest.

BOX SCORE

By RICH STEVENS
WEST VIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION