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Smith, West Virginia edge Texas

Oct 7, 2012 - 5:17 AM Austin, TX (Sports Network) - Geno Smith threw four touchdown passes and Andrew Buie ran for 207 yards and a pair of scores, including the game-sealing TD with under two minutes left, as eighth-ranked West Virginia earned a wild 48-45 win over No. 11 Texas.

Smith finished 25-of-35 for 268 yards for the Mountaineers (5-0, 2-0 Big 12), who got three TD receptions from Stedman Bailey. Tavon Austin caught 10 passes for 102 yards and a score.

It was a far cry from a record-setting performance like last week, when Smith set school marks with eye-popping totals of 656 passing yards and eight touchdown throws in a 70-63 win over Baylor. Smith has 24 TD passes this season without an interception.

"We knew we were going to have to carry the ball because those guys like to get after the quarterback," Smith said. "They put a nickel package out there for the entire game, kept two linebackers in the box. So we had to put an emphasis on running the ball, and we did a great job with it."

David Ash connected on 22-of-29 throws for 269 yards, including an 8-yard TD pass to Marquise Goodwin with 15 seconds remaining. West Virginia recovered the ensuing onside kick and sent the Longhorns (4-1, 1-1) to their eighth straight loss when facing a team ranked in the top 25.

"The thing I'm having trouble with is we're giving up so many rushing yards, and we're not used to that," Texas coach Mack Brown said. "We're allowing people to be two dimensional. We've got to do a better job with that."

Joe Bergeron had four rushing touchdowns for the Longhorns. His 4-yard scamper up the middle gave the Longhorns a 38-34 edge in the final minute of the third quarter.

Smith rallied the Mountaineers by converting a 4th-and-6 with an 11-yard pass to Austin to the Texas 29. Smith later ran for eight yards on 4th-and-1 to the 12. Two plays later, his 6-yard TD pass to Bailey over the middle provided a 41-38 lead with under 11 minutes left.

The Mountaineers entered the game 0-for-4 on fourth-down attempts this season, but went 5-for-5 in this game.

Ash had a right sideline pass on 4th-and-13 from the WVU 19 broken up by cornerback Pat Miller, but the Mountaineers gave the Longhorns a golden opportunity to tie or go ahead when Smith was stripped of the ball by Alex Okafor. Chris Whaley recovered at the 12.

Anthony Fera, who transferred from Penn State and sat out the first four games with a groin injury, was wide right on a 41-yard field goal try with 5:25 remaining. The Longhorns were forced into the field goal attempt when Ash failed to catch the snapped ball, resulting in a 16-yard loss on third down.

"That was my fault," Ash said. "I was letting the play clock play get down too low and I should've caught it. That one is on me."

Buie then capped a 76-yard drive with a 5-yard TD run to the left with 1:18 to play.

Bailey and Austin caught TD passes in the first quarter, while Bergeron scored on a 2-yard run.

Buie's 4-yard TD run moved WVU to a 21-7 lead early in the second, and Goodwin then fumbled the ball away. The Mountaineers failed to capitalize on the turnover, and Texas blocked a punt.

Johnathan Gray busted off left end for a 49-yard gain, and Bergeron scored from a yard out two plays later for a 21-14 margin.

Okafor forced a Smith fumble near the goal line and Jackson Jeffcoat recovered just across plane to tie the game midway through the second quarter.

Tyler Bitancurt countered by kicking a 37-yard field goal, but Bergeron scored on a 1-yard rush for a 28-24 Texas lead with 1:14 left.

Bitancurt connected from 41 yards away on the last play of the half before Fera split the uprights from 38 yards to cap the opening series of the third quarter.

Smith came back by directing an 8-play, 69-yard march, capping it with a 9- yard TD strike to Bailey in the back of the end zone.

Game Notes

The crowd of 101,851 marked the largest in the history of Darrell K Royal- Texas Memorial Stadium ... The Longhorns blocked two kicks, also a 42-yard field goal try by Bitancurt in the first quarter ... This was WVU's first road win against a top-15 team since winning at Boston College on Nov. 26, 1993 ... Smith has thrown 259 straight passes without an interception ... Buie had a career-high in attempts rushing (31) and yards.