Michael Hawkins Jr. ran for a pair of scores that included a 71-yard sprint and passed for two more touchdowns as West Virginia rolled to a 52-7 win over UT Martin on Saturday afternoon in Morgantown, WV.
Hawkins completed five of his seven throws for 155 yards and finished with a team-high 96 yards on ground on just six carries. DJ Epps amassed 112 yards on two receptions, as the Mountaineers (2-0) racked up 525 total yards, 316 of those on the ground.
UT Martin (1-2) had 318 yards of offense. Backup quarterback Tate Surber passed for 137 yards, and Chris Franklin had 85 yards rushing on 12 carries for the Skyhawks, who play in the FCS.
Hawkins was on fire in the first half, passing 53 yards for a touchdown to Epps on the Mountaineers’ first possession, adding his 71-yard rushing score with 5:27 to play in the first quarter and running five yards for a third score three and a half minutes into the second.
In between, Cam Cook blasted into the end zone from two yards out as West Virginia built a 28-0 lead.
Meanwhile, the Skyhawks couldn’t get out of their own way. UT Martin turned the ball over on downs near midfield on its first possession, suffered a blocked punt on its second, fumbled the ball near the goal line on its third and missed a 36-yard field goal late in the first half.
It was the second consecutive game that the Mountaineers held an opponent scoreless before halftime.
West Virginia poured it on in the second half. Hawkins hooked up with Ryan Hawkins for a 32-yard TD on the opening possession of the third quarter. Then, Amari Latimer burst straight up the middle untouched for a 29-yard score that stoked the Mountaineers’ lead to 42-0 and sent Hawkins to the bench for the rest of the game.
Jack Cassidy booted a 35-yard field goal with 1:35 to play in the third quarter build on the advantage. Jyron Hughley hauled in a 27-yard touchdown pass from backup quarterback Kedrick Triplett with 7:07 remaining to end West Virginia’s scoring.
John Betts III finally got UT Martin on the board when he scooped up a fumble by Darius Morant at the WVU 6-yard line and carried it across the goal line for a TD.
–Field Level Media
