No. 6 WVU cruises past I-AA Eastern Washington

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) -- Steve Slaton was in high school the last time he was out of his uniform, watching the game from the sideline in the second half.

Slaton ran for 105 yards and two first-quarter scores and called it a day as No. 6 West Virginia went to its bench often in a 52-3 win over Division I-AA Eastern Washington on Saturday.

"I think we played everybody who ever suited up in a Mountaineer uniform," said West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez, laughing. "Seriously, we probably played 80 guys."

Four of them were quarterbacks.

Pat White directed a second-quarter touchdown drive before the QB parade began. Jarrett Brown threw for a TD and ran for another, while Nate Sowers and Markell Harrison also ran for scores.

By the time West Virginia (2-0) built a 21-3 lead early in the second quarter, Slaton and White were done for the day with a short turnaround to Thursday night's home game against Maryland.

Slaton followed up a 31-carry, 203-yard effort last week against Marshall with just eight carries Saturday, the fewest since he had 11 against Virginia Tech as a freshman last October.

"The point was really just to save me for Maryland," Slaton said. "I hate to come out of any game. But as long as we win it really doesn't matter.

"I think everybody wants to play, and this was a chance for everybody to get in and see what they have to offer."

Eastern Washington (0-2) offered little.

The Eagles were a late addition to West Virginia's schedule after Buffalo opted out of a contract with the Mountaineers in February. Eastern Washington was paid $450,000.

West Virginia thanked the Eagles by outgaining them 591-185, including 394 on the ground.

"If I was a West Virginia fan, I'd be awfully proud of the product that you have," Eastern Washington coach Paul Wulff said.

Slaton needed just two carries for his first score and he went untouched on TD runs of 49 and 17 yards. He went to the bench afterward and didn't return, removing his uniform after halftime.

White soon followed. On West Virginia's third series, he drove the Mountaineers 65 yards with Owen Schmitt covering the final 7 for a score.

Brown threw a 5-yard TD pass to Brandon Myles just before halftime and scored on a 7-yard run to start the second half for a 35-3 lead.

Sowers and Harrison added TD runs of 8 and 1 yards, respectively, in the fourth quarter.

"That was one of our goals," Rodriguez said. "We've got to get another guy ready, especially as much as we run Pat White."

Eastern Washington protected the ball this week, unlike last week in a 56-17 loss at Oregon State in which the Eagles had four first-half turnovers that led to scores. But they were no match for a West Virginia defense using four new starters in the secondary this season.

Eastern Washington crossed midfield twice, both in the first half. Matt Nichols completed 13-of-25 passes for 90 yards before being replaced early in the fourth quarter.

Much of the Eagles' offense came during a 15-play drive that led to a short field goal early in the second quarter. Eastern Washington ran eight plays from inside the 10 and twice was called for delay of game inside the 5.

"For us, we're just trying to build for our nine-game (I-AA) season," Wulff said. "That and it's a good payday for our program. This kind of gave us a little flavor of how to play at a high, high level."

Eastern Washington, playing a ranked opponent for only the second time in school history, made just its fourth trip east across the Mississippi River, the second time to Morgantown. Eastern lost to Fairmont State in the 1967 NAIA championship game at old Mountaineer Field.

The crowd of 59,504 was the largest ever to see Eastern Washington play, topping a 2002 game at Arizona State by more than 20,000.

<font color="#8B0000" size="1">[ September 11, 2006 01:52 AM: Message edited by: Rogue Angel ]</font>