West Virginia’s 2-point gamble pays off with 1-point win vs. Texas

The West Virginia Mountaineers claimed a 42-41 victory over the Texas Longhorns after a successful two-point conversion with 16 seconds left.

West Virginia trailed Texas by a touchdown with just over two minutes left to play when quarterback Will Grier led the Mountaineers on a seven-play, 75-yard touchdown drive to put them within a point.

Even though an extra point would have tied the game and sent it into overtime, Mountaineers head coach Dana Holgorsen decided to go for the win in regulation instead. Grier hit David Sills for appeared to be the game-winning score, but Texas coach Tom Herman called a timeout right before the snap. West Virginia could have elected to kick it, but Holgorsen still wasn’t having it, and the offense stayed on the field where Grier took it in himself for the two-point conversion to give West Virginia a 41-41 win.

Grier led the Mountaineers with 346 yards passing with three touchdowns and zero interceptions to remain alive in the Big 12 race and keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive. The game marked the 14th time Grier had at least three touchdowns in a game, tied with Missouri’s Drew Lock for the most in the FBS since the start of last season.

The Mountaineers came in as the No. 13 team in the first College Football Playoff rankings, but this road win should see them move up a spot or two. This is also the first time since 2007 that West Virginia has had multiple road wins against AP-ranked opponents.

This is a statement win for Holgorsen and West Virginia who could be headed for a Big 12 Championship Game berth against either Oklahoma or Texas.

West Virginia and Oklahoma are now tied for the lead in the Big 12 standings. These two teams are set to play against each other in the regular season finale at West Virginia. As for Texas, with the loss this week they are now seemingly out of the conversation for a Big 12 championship but will be rooting for Oklahoma to beat West Virginia for them to have a chance to sneak in.