West Virginia scored the final 10 points of the game and held off a last-minute Kansas State drive to defeat the No. 24 Wildcats 24-20 on Saturday afternoon in Manhattan, Kan.
The Mountaineers (4-6, 2-5 Big 12) snapped a five-game losing streak and kept their bowl hopes alive. It was West Virginia's fourth straight victory against K-State (6-4, 3-4).
Kansas State took over at its 8-yard line with 2:53 left in the game and two timeouts. The Wildcats drove to the West Virginia 30 with 35 seconds left, but defensive back Hakeem Bailey intercepted Skylar Thompson at the 3 to seal the victory.
Thompson, who threw for a career-high 253 yards last week against Texas, established a new mark with 299 yards on a 24-of-39 effort. But he threw two interceptions after entering the game with one all season.
Jarret Doege, a transfer from Bowling Green making his first start of the season for West Virginia, was 20 of 30 for 234 yards and three touchdowns.
Kansas State grabbed the lead on the opening possession of the second half, driving 70 yards on 13 plays, capped by a 3-yard touchdown run by James Gilbert for a 20-14 lead.
Neither team scored again in the third quarter, but Casey Legg hit a 51-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter to cut the lead to 20-17.
After West Virginia forced a three-and-out, Doege found Bryce Wheaton 10 yards behind the defense on a third-and-22 for a 50-yard touchdown and a 24-20 lead. Doege scrambled for several seconds before letting it fly.
K-State scored on its first two possessions, taking a 10-7 lead, and appeared to seize control when it forced a missed field goal following a sack. But a defensive penalty on the attempt gave the Mountaineers new life. Doege hit George Campbell for his second touchdown catch of the game to give West Virginia a 14-10 lead at the end of the first quarter.
K-State notched a late Blake Lynch field goal in the second quarter to cut the lead to 14-13 at halftime.
--Field Level Media
