MORGANTOWN, W.VA. -- Last year critics pointed the finger at West Virginia's defense, claiming it was the primary reason for the Mountaineers' disappointing 4-7 record.
After Saturday's 34-14 season-opening win over Boston College, those same critics are now singing its praises.
"A lot of folks have been wondering if we forgot how to play defense," said West Virginia Coach Don Nehlen. "Well I think you've found out that we haven't forgot."
The West Virginia defense took control of the game in the fourth quarter after two huge interception returns by newcomers Shawn Hackett and Grant Wiley to give WVU its first season-opening victory since 1997.
"I could be wrong, but this is a very determined bunch of kids," Nehlen beamed.
Hackett's return of 41 yards early in the fourth quarter busted open a tight 17-14 game.
"My father always said I get interceptions but I never return them," Hackett remarked. "I just kept thinking I just got to get into the end zone for my dad!
"I've returned fumbles in high school, but never an interception," Hackett added.
In the first half, it was all West Virginia.
The Mountaineers took advantage of three first-half BC turnovers to manufacture a 17-7 halftime lead.
West Virginia opened the scoring on its first possession, driving the length of the field before settling for an 18-yard Jon Ohliger field goal.
The big play on that first drive was a beautiful 64-yard pass from quarterback Brad Lewis to Khori Ivy down the far sideline. That represented the fourth-longest non-scoring play at Mountaineer Field.
WVU made it 10-0 on a two-yard Avon Cobourne run. That touchdown was also set up by a long pass from Lewis to junior Antonio Brown, who turned in a nifty, leaping 47-yard catch down the near sideline.
The Mountaineers tacked on seven more two minutes into the second quarter when Cooper Rego found paydirt from a yard out.
That score was set up by a botched option pitch from quarterback Tim Hasselbeck to backup running back William Green. Mountaineer defensive back Ricky Sherrod recovered the fumble at the Boston College six.
Hasselbeck had a difficult afternoon, completing just 14-of-29 passes for 119 yards with three interceptions. The senior was lifted once during the second quarter and again for good midway through the fourth period.
Despite Hasselbeck's woes, the Eagles made a game of it with 1:26 left in the first half when William Green found the end zone from two yards out. Green's score was set up when BC's Ralph Parent blocked Mark Fazzolari's punt and the ball was recovered at the WVU 34.
"They don't even rush the punt and they block it," Nehlen growled. "Absolutely ridiculous. They were out double-covering our bullets and they block the punt. That gave them a score that they should have never had."
In the second half, Boston College narrowed the margin to three with 1:24 left in the third period when tight end Robert Ellis snagged a Hasselbeck pass from five yards out.
From that point on, the Mountaineer defense took over.
On second and 25 from the BC 23, Hasselbeck launched a floating pass across field that landed right into the arms of Hackett at the West Virginia 41. The junior pulled the ball in and raced to the end zone to give West Virginia a 24-14 lead.
On WVU's ensuing possession, the Mountaineers drove 50 yards in six plays to extend the lead to 27-14. The key play was a fancy 38-yard run by Cooper Rego right through the middle of the Boston College defense.
Ohliger hit his second field goal of the afternoon from 32 yards out.
The final score of the day came shortly following Ohliger's field goal. On third and eight, Hasselbeck lofted a pass out in the flat to Green, who bobbled the football. West Virginia freshman linebacker Grant Wiley plucked the ball out of Green's hands and raced 22 yards for the team's second defensive score of the afternoon.
That marked just the second time in Mountaineer Field history West Virginia has picked off two passes for scores in the same game. The last time that happened was in 1994, when safety Vann Washington returned two Louisiana Tech interceptions for touchdowns.
West Virginia produced 189 yards on the ground led by Cobourne's 132 yards on 29 carries. Rego finished the afternoon with 60 yards on 10 carries.
Lewis completed seven-of-19 passes for 166 yards.
Brown was Lewis' top target, catching two passes for 61 yards.
In many instances, West Virginia wound up stopping themselves. The Mountaineers were flagged 11 times for a whopping 127 yards.
"We made so many mistakes that had we not made them, this could have been a dominant game," said Nehlen.
The West Virginia defense held last year's second leading rusher in the Big East, Cedric Washington, to just 31 yards on 13 carries. Washington's backup, William Green, finished the afternoon with 59 stripes on 10 carries.
The Eagles could manage just 79 yards on 33 carries for an average of 2.4 yards per carry.
"I thought at times our defensive front was dominant," Nehlen admitted.
"Players make plays," said West Virginia defensive coordinator Steve Dunlap. "I'm really proud of them. They worked their tails off and gave everything they had today."
"This performance was probably the worst I've seen in my career," said Boston College Coach Tom O'Brien. "When you play that bad it has to be everybody -- not just one person."
West Virginia is 15-4-1 against Boston College since 1981, including 9-4-1 in Morgantown.
West Virginia, 1-0, will have the week off before facing Maryland on Sept. 16 at Mountaineer Field.
Boston College will play at Army on Sept. 9.
Scoring Summary
WV -- Ohliger 18 FG
WV -- Cobourne 2 run (Ohliger kick)
WV -- Rego 1 run (Ohliger kick)
BC -- Green 2 run (Sutphin kick)
BC -- Ellis 5 pass from Hasselbeck (Sutphin kick)
WV -- Hackett 41 interception return (Ohliger kick)
WV -- Ohliger 32 FG
WV -- Wiley 22 interception return (Ohliger kick)
Individual Statistics
Rushing -- BC: Green 10-50, Washington 13-31, Knight 4-9, Hasselbeck 5-minus 10, St. Pierre 1-minus 10, Total 33-79; WV: Cobourne 29-132, Rego 10-60, Brown 4-37, Johnson 3-8, Ours 1-2, Lewis 5-minus 24, Total 53-189.
Passing -- BC: Hasselbeck 14-29-119-3-1, St. Pierre 1-4-8-0-0, Total 15-33-127-3-1; WV: Lewis 7-19-166-0-0, Total 7-19-166-0-0.
Receiving -- BC: Washington 3-8, Guazzo 2-31, Dewalt 2-28, Burke 2-19, Ellis 2-16, Daniels 2-11, Hemmings 1-10, Utzler 1-4, Total 15-127; WV: Brown 2-61, Ivy 1-64, Berton 1-21, Braxton 1-15, Johnson 1-3, Cobourne 1-2, Total 7-166.
Attendance: 49,786
