National Sports

Hawkins accounts for 4 TDs in West Virginia's 52-7 win over UT Martin

AP Photo/John Roby

By JOHN RABY AP Sports Writer

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) -- Mike Hawkins Jr. threw two touchdown passes and ran for two more scores to lead West Virginia to a 52-7 victory over UT Martin on Saturday.

The Mountaineers are 2-0 for the first time since 2018 and remain unbeaten all-time against teams from the Championship Subdivision.

A week ago, West Virginia looked listless on both sides of the ball after halftime of a 31-24 win over Coastal Carolina. On Saturday, the defense continued to struggle at times and remains a big concern with nothing but Power Four competition ahead the rest of the season.

At least the offense was solid throughout, compiling 316 yards on the ground.

Hawkins threw a 53-yard scoring toss to DJ Epps on the opening drive of the game and he had TD runs of 71 and 5 yards for a 28-0 halftime lead. Hawkins threw a 32-yard scoring toss to tight end Ryan Ward on the first drive of the third quarter.

"We definitely came out hot (and) just kept that going," Hawkins said. "It's all about just having our guys on the same page and just knowing where they're going to be. I felt pretty efficient as a whole. I felt way more comfortable today."

Hawkins, a transfer from Oklahoma, completed five of seven passes for 155 yards and rushed for 96 yards on six carries.

""I thought he saw the field well," West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez said. "I thought he was really sharp."

UT Martin coach Jason Simpson lamented that West Virginia scored 28 first-half points in a little under 8 minutes of possession time. He said Hawkins is "extremely fast" and "it's hard to tackle him one-on-one."

Hawkins was replaced by backup Scotty Fox Jr. midway through the third. Epps finished with two catches for 112 yards. Freshman quarterback Jyron Hughley closed the scoring with a 27-yard scoring pass to Kedrick Triplett in the fourth.

A week after carrying the ball 30 times for 142 yards, West Virginia running back Cam Cook played a secondary role Saturday, rushing 10 times for 52 yards, including a 2-yard TD run. Cook led the nation a year ago with 1,659 yards at Jacksonville State.

Tate Surber completed 19 of 28 passes for 137 yards for UT Martin (1-2).

John Betts III got UT Martin on the board with 3:25 left in the game, returning a fumble six yards for a touchdown.

Late arrival

UT Martin's team buses got stuck in traffic and didn't arrive at the stadium until 75 minutes before kickoff.

The takeaway

UT Martin: The Skyhawks have yet to throw a TD pass in three games. The offense had its chances, but Julian Calvez fumbled the ball away inside the West Virginia 5, a 54-yard TD pass from Surber to Makhia Sherrard was called back by penalty, and Brandon Sims missed a 36-yard field goal.

West Virginia: The Mountaineers' defense looked out of sorts in the first half, allowing 246 yards, including three plays of at least 24 yards and seven plays of at least 10 yards.

"I didn't think we were particularly sharp defensively," Rodriguez said. "It seemed like we were a little bit off at times. There's a lot to work on."

Up next

UT Martin plays at Memphis next Saturday night.

West Virginia faces No. 25 Virginia in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Saturday night.

___

Sign up for Top 25 poll alerts here, visit the Top 25 here and see AP's full college football coverage here