MORGANTOWN, W.Va.  – A come-from-behind drive in the fourth quarter fell just short as the Rutgers football team (1-4, 0-1 BIG EAST) dropped its conference opener at West Virginia (3-2, 1-0 BIG EAST) 24-17 on Saturday afternoon at Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown, W.Va.

Kenny Britt tied his previous record for most receptions in a game with 12.

Junior WR Kenny Britt (Bayonne, N.J.) had a career day, tying his previous record for most receptions in a game with 12. The 151 yards he gained also marked the eighth 100-yard receiving performance of his career which set the all-time record in Rutgers history.

 RU and WVU traded a pair of three-and-outs to start the first quarter until West Virginia broke open the scoreless tie with 25-yard touchdown pass from Pat White to Tyler Urban.

The Mountaineers added to their point total in the second quarter with a 40-yard field goal from Pat McAfee. WVU drove down to the Scarlet Knights' 15 yard line but an illegal block penalty stalled the drive, forcing a third-and-17. West Virginia settled for the three points after a Noel Devine carry netted just seven yards.

Rutgers put points on the scoreboard on its next possession with a 10-play 56 yard drive which ended with a field goal from freshman PK San San Te (Conover, N.C.). Britt deviated from his normal pass-catching duties during the scoring drive as he completed a 28-yard pass to sophomore RB Mason Robinson (Somerville, N.J.). The pass, the first of Britt's career, put the Scarlet Knights in WVU territory with RU marching 17 more yards until Te's three-point conversion.

West Virginia scored a touchdown (14-yard pass from White to Jock Sanders) on its final possession of the second quarter to increase its lead to 17-3, however, the Scarlet Knights responded with a score of its own to pull within three (17-10) just as the first half came to a close.

With 53 seconds remaining in the second quarter, Rutgers went to its quick offense and drove the ball 56 yards on five plays. Senior QB Mike Teel (Oakland, N.J.) found Britt on three-consecutive pass attempts for 56 yards, but a false start penalty during the drive, negated five of those yards. Teel made up for the five yards himself as the signal-caller rushed up the middle for his first career touchdown on the ground.

WVU added to the seven-point lead in the third quarter with a 14-play, 68-yard drive which culminated in a one-yard touchdown carry by Jarrett Brown to make the score 24-10. Brown, who had been sharing time in the backfield, replaced White at quarterback after the senior suffered an injury on the prior play.

The Scarlet Knights kept West Virginia from increasing the lead on its next possession, forcing the Mountaineers to punt the ball away. On the ensuing possession, Rutgers drove 58 yards on 13 plays, ending with touchdown pass from Teel to junior WR Tim Brown (Miami, Fla.). The 14-yard TD reception was the second of the season for Brown and cut West Virginia's lead to seven (24-17).

The Mountaineers took over possession with just over six minutes remaining in the contest and attempted to run out the remaining time as they attempted five consecutive rushing plays which consumed 4:24 off the clock. On third down with four yards for another critical first down, Rutgers came up with a big stop as senior DE Jamaal Westerman (Brampton, Ontario) and junior LB Damaso Munoz (Miami, Fla.) tackled WVU's quarterback one yard shy of the first down.

West Virginia elected to go for the one yard on fourth down and the Scarlet Knight defense again showed its grit as junior DE George Johnson (Glassboro, N.J.) came up with a crucial tackle for a nine-yard loss. Rutgers received the ball on the WVU 45-yard line and proceeded with its final drive, however, RU was unable to move the chains and the Mountaineers held on for the win.

The Scarlet Knights return to action on Oct. 11 at Cincinnati. The game is slated for a 12:00 p.m. kickoff with television coverage on SNY in the New York television market and WPHL-17 in Philadelphia and South Jersey.

POSTGAME NOTES

Team Notes

Rutgers had its three-game BIG EAST road opening game win streak snapped with a 24-17 loss at West Virginia.

The Scarlet Knights are 3-5 in conference road openers under head coach Greg Schiano.

The Rutgers defense held West Virginia to its second-lowest total of the season in total offense (333).

Player Notes

With his first completion of the game, senior QB Mike Teel (Oakland, N.J.) passed Ray Lucas (6,643 yards from 1992-95) and Mike McMahon (6,793 yards from 1997-2000) and moved into third place on the Rutgers career total offense chart. He ended the game with 181 total offensive yards and has 6,821 yards of total offense for his career.

Teel also recorded his first career rushing touchdown with a five-yard TD run in the final minute of the second quarter.

Junior WR Kenny Britt (Bayonne, N.J.) became Rutgers' all-time leader in career 100-yard receiving games with his eighth career 100-yard game today. He finished the game with 151 yards on 12 catches. He entered the game tied with Tres Moses (2001-05) and Marco Battaglia (1992-95) for the top spot with seven career 100-yard receiving games.

Britt also moved up on the career receiving yards list with 151 yards against the Mountaineers. He passed Clark Harris (2,015 yards from 2003-06) and Jim Guarantano (2,065 yards from 1989-92) and moved into fourth place in career receiving yardage with 2,085 yards.

Britt also passed Shawn Tucker (115 receptions from 2002-06), LJ Smith (1999-2002) and Reggie Funderburk (1993-97) and moved into eighth place on the Rutgers career receptions list with his 12-catch day against the Mountaineers. He now has 124 career receptions. 

His 12 catches against WVU tied his career high, previously set against Louisville on Nov. 29, 2007. It is also tied for the second-most in a game in Rutgers history, one shy of the school record.

Britt attempted and completed his first career pass in the second quarter against the Mountaineers. He completed the pass to sophomore RB Mason Robinson (Somerville, N.J.) for a 28-yard gain. 

In two career games in Morgantown vs. West Virginia, Britt has totaled 22 receptions for 270 yards and one touchdown.

Senior FS Courtney Greene (New Rochelle, N.Y.) finished the game with 13 tackles, including 11 solo and two assisted stops. With his totals in the game, he moved up on two of Rutgers' tackle charts. Greene moved into seventh place on the career solo tackles list with 193. He also moved into sole possession of sixth place in Rutgers history in career total tackles with 336. His 13-tackle performance at WVU was one shy of his career high.

After connecting on a 23-yard field goal in the second quarter, redshirt freshman PK San San Te (Conover, N.C.) has now successfully converted his last four field goal attempts.

True freshman OL Art Forst (Manasquan, N.J.) made his collegiate debut against West Virginia at right guard for the Scarlet Knights.