AMES, Iowa — Even as Will Grier’s touchdown-slinging reputation precedes him, it’s the other quarterback who makes West Virginia-Iowa State intriguing Saturday.
True freshman Brock Purdy dazzled in his first extended action by accounting for 402 yards and five touchdowns when the Cyclones upset then-No. 25 Oklahoma State 48-42 on the road.
Now Purdy goes for an encore against No. 6 West Virginia (5-0, 3-0) in a Big 12 showdown in Ames. It’s another validation opportunity for the rookie who spurned scholarship offers from Texas A&M and Alabama.
“He’s got a cannon,” said Iowa State receiver Tarique Milton, who caught a 60-yard scoring pass from Purdy last week.
“Having him back there doing what he does helps our offense,” said Cyclones running back Sheldon Croney. “He gives us another threat, another guy the defense has to pay attention to. All the things he can do with the ball in his hands — pass with the ball and run with the ball — helps everyone else on the offense.”
Iowa State (2-3, 1-2) had been averaging fewer than 18 points per game when Purdy sparked last week’s barrage in Stillwater. Some wonder whether he can be as successful in his second appearance, now that West Virginia has studied his first game.
“We’ve been here three years,” coach Matt Campbell said. “We have a vast playbook; we do a lot of things. … We’ll continue to grow offensively as we continue to find an identity to who we are and who we want to become.”
Grier likely wants to burn film of his past game, a four-turnover anomaly that included three end-zone interceptions. Yet he also threw four touchdowns and West Virginia downed Kansas 38-22.
“It’s going to be important for us to not hurt ourselves and finish drives,” said Grier, who ranks sixth nationally in passing efficiency and second in passing yards per game.
West Virginia has won all three meetings in Ames, most recently 49-19 in 2016, which was Campbell’s first season with the Cyclones. Since then his teams have gone 4-2 against ranked opponents, fair warning to a Mountaineers team that stands as the final unbeaten in the Big 12.
“I know Matt has kind of taken over the play-calling, and he’s obviously as good of a coach as there is out there, so they’ll keep getting better with it,” West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen said.
“I think they’ve found a good, young quarterback that can make plays. (Purdy) ran around, he can make guys miss. He was accurate when he was throwing the ball.”
Cyclones running back David Montgomery produced back-to-back 100-yard performances against Akron and TCU before missing last week’s win over Oklahoma State. His return could be pivotal this week considering he tore through West Virginia for 141 yards in 2016 and 115 more last season.
“He’s an All-American, NFL-type player, and he’s been banged up as of late,” Holgorsen said. “But we’re expecting him to play.”
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