Shell's home debut not to be forgotten

The one-time top prospect out of Hopewell High in Beaver County, Pa., was playing his first home game in Morgantown the night before his 21st birthday after having played as a true freshman at Pitt and transferring to UCLA, only to leave before he ever got started and sitting out last year.

Now Shell was back at it with his twin daughters, his mother and 30 or more friends among the crowd of 56,414 in Milan Puskar Stadium.

Shell gave glimpses of what made him one of the most sought after high school athletes three years ago as he led the Mountaineers in rushing with 71 of their 251 rushing yards, four receptions for 47 yards — including a key third down reception that he broke into an 18-yard gain for a first down on the first possession — and his first WVU touchdown.

“I’m going to remember this game a long time,” Shell said.

What he may remember most is not all those good things he did, but the one bad play he made.

WVU had the ball first-and-goal on the Towson 1 when Shell’s number was called. He powered into the middle of the line, tried to jump and reach the ball over the goal line, with the ball being knocked loose and Towson getting it, before a replay showed that Shell had been stopped prior to the fumble.

“I heard from the guys on the bench. I shouldn’t have done that,” Shell said.

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WVU’s forgotten running back got a chance to make an impression and made the most of it.

Andrew Buie, who was WVU’s leading rusher two years ago, didn’t appear in the game until late yet managed to put together 70 rushing yards, just one shy of Shell, while carrying the ball just nine times for an average of 7.8 yards a carry.

Included was a 26-yard burst and a touchdown, his first in a couple of years.

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During the opening week loss to Alabama in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic Atlanta, WVU scored only one offensive touchdown mostly because of a dismal performance on third down when it converted just five of 14 and because of at least six dropped passes.

Both of those items were fixed this week, although the competition was not nearly as strong in Towson.

Interestingly, WVU coach Dana Holgorsen’s fix on the items involved did not include quarterback Clint Trickett.

“Last week we didn’t have enough success on third down. I didn’t put any of that on him,” Holgorsen said. “We had some key drops, the line kind of broke down and we didn’t finish some blocks. None of that was on him. I thought he managed the game great last week and I thought he managed it great this week. He’s in a great place.

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Watching film of Towson, a national championship finalist in the FBC last year, WVU saw the Tigers were badly depleted in a number of areas and should be no match for the Mountaineers, but the coaches also understood that some teams tend to play down to opponents and they did not want that happening in the home opener.

That was what offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson expressed to his unit as it readied itself for the game.

“You want to go out and take care of business,” Dawson said. “That was my one message: Let’s not make it a 24-17 game.”

At 54-0, the message got across.

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This ’n that:

• Saturday night’s shutout of Towson was WVU’s first since its 31-0 victory over Coastal Carolina on Sept. 4, 2010. It is the team’s 11th shutout at Milan Puskar Stadium.

It is the first time the Mountaineers have scored 50 or more points since scoring 59 against Kansas on Dec. 1, 2012, in Morgantown.

• The 54-0 margin of victory was WVU’s largest since its 80-7 win over Rutgers on Nov. 3, 2001.

• Seven Mountaineers scored a touchdown against Towson, a feat last accomplished in the team’s win over Norfolk State on Sept. 10, 2011, in Morgantown.

• Clint Trickett’s 24 first-half completions were the most for a Mountaineer quarterback in a half since Geno Smith completed 26 passes in a half against Baylor on Sept. 29, 2012/ Trickett’s 35 pass completions were the most for a WVU quarterback since Geno Smith completed 36 at Oklahoma State on Nov. 10, 2012.

• With 348 passing yards against Towson, Trickett has now thrown for 300 or more yards in three straight games, dating back to WVU’s 2013 season-ending contest against Iowa State on Nov. 30, in Morgantown; he has passed for 300 or more yards four times in his career.

• Kevin White’s career-high 10 receptions were the most for a Mountaineer since Stedman Bailey caught 11 against Kansas on Dec. 1, 2012. White finished with 101 yards receiving, his second consecutive 100-yard receiving game and the third of his career. He is the first Mountaineer to finish with consecutive 100-yard games since Bailey did so in 2012 (159 yards vs. Kansas, 121 yards vs. Syracuse).

Follow Bob Hertzel on Twitter @bhertzel