RALEIGH, N.C. -- Phillip Sims ran for
one touchdown and threw for another, and Virginia routed North Carolina
State 33-6 on Saturday to snap a six-game losing streak.
Kevin Parks rushed for 115 yards and a late 31-yard touchdown for the Cavaliers (3-6, 1-4 Atlantic Coast Conference).
Their defense more than doubled its
season total for takeaways with five while holding N.C. State to 19
yards rushing, and their offense rolled up 446 total yards to lead
Virginia to its first ACC win.
Sims was 8 of 10 for 115 yards with a
38-yard touchdown pass to Tim Smith and a 1-yard TD run that started the
scoring for Virginia. Backup Michael Rocco added an 18-yard touchdown
pass to Darius Jennings.
Mike Glennon finished 23 of 46 for a
season-low 197 yards with four turnovers -- three interceptions and a
fumble. The Wolfpack (5-4, 2-3) has 19 turnovers in their four losses.
Glennon's 2-yard touchdown pass to
Mario Carter with 6:30 left helped N.C. State avoid its first home
shutout since it lost 37-0 to Maryland in 2007.
A Virginia defense that entered with
four takeaways all season was dominant all day with six sacks, three
picks, two fumble recoveries and a safety which came when Will Hill
wrapped up Glennon in the end zone as he intentionally spiked the ball
into the turf. That made it 16-0 with 3:17 before the break.
Virginia extended its lead to 23-0 on
its first possession of the second half, when Smith got behind Dontae
Johnson and Sims found him in the end zone. Drew Jarrett kicked a
33-yard field goal on the second play of the fourth to make it 26-0.
Parks then broke his long touchdown run with 4:28 left.
This one could have been even worse had Virginia not blown a golden opportunity moments before halftime.
Jake Snyder recovered Glennon's fumble
at the Wolfpack 19 with 38 seconds left. Virginia lined up to go for it
on fourth-and-goal from the 1, but receiver Jake McGee was called for a
false start, and Ian Frye pushed a 22-yard field-goal attempt wide
right.
The Cavaliers jumped on N.C. State
early, scoring on their first offensive series and leading 14-0 after
one quarter. That turned out to be a bad omen for a slow-starting N.C.
State team that fell behind by multiple scores in the first quarters of
each of its previous three losses.
Sims led the Cavaliers methodically
downfield on their first drive and capped it by scoring on a rollout
from 1 yard out less than 5 minutes in. It came two plays after he
dropped a sure-thing touchdown pass from tailback Perry Jones in the end
zone on a trick play, then crumpled to the grass in embarrassment.
Two series later, it was Rocco's turn
to lead a scoring drive. He found a wide-open Jennings at the left pylon
to give Virginia its first two-score lead since Sept. 29 against
Louisiana Tech.
