West Virginia freshman quarterback Pat White has been almost unstoppable in relief of Adam Bednarik this season.
Now he'll get the chance to work his magic as a starter.
Head coach Rich Rodriguez said Monday that he expects White to get his first collegiate start for the No. 20 Mountaineers (6-1, 3-0) in Saturday night's game at South Florida (3-3, 1-1).
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
"More than likely Pat is probably going to start,'' said Rodriguez.
"Adam's got a sprained foot and we're not sure if he's going to be able to play at all.
"Even if he can, he's going to miss a lot of reps in practice this week. Pat's probably going to be the guy.''
White was certainly "the guy'' Saturday night as he replaced an injured Bednarik with about 10 minutes left in the Louisville game and WVU looking up from a 24-7 deficit.
All he did was lead three straight scoring drives in the final eight minutes to force the game into overtime.
White kept two of those drives alive with clutch fourth-down scrambles, converting one fourth-and-10 situation by weaving through the Cardinal secondary for 17 yards.
"We have a lot of confidence in Pat,'' smiled Rodriguez. "With his feet, he gives us another weapon back there.''
White then masterminded a trio of 25-yard touchdown marches in the overtime periods and capped his stirring performance with a perfectly-thrown sprintout pass to Dorrell Jalloh for what proved to be the winning 2-point conversion in the third extra frame.
Although no one could have expected a Mountaineer offense that was held to just 52 yards and zero points in the first half to explode for 342 yards and 46 points over the final two quarters and overtime, White's dazzling performance should not have been a surprise.
He came in for an injured Bednarik at Maryland to lead four scoring drives and produced back-to-back touchdowns against Virginia Tech when Bednarik aggravated a shoulder injury in the first half.
The 6-2, 185-pound southpaw has completed 31-of-52 passes for 372 yards and 3 TDs while running the ball 53 times for 304 more yards.
He became only the 10th WVU quarterback to post a 100-yard rushing game in the win over Wofford and his 48-yard touchdown run against the Terriers is still the longest of the season for a Mountaineer.
White certainly has a fan in South Florida coach Jim Leavitt, who raved about the freshman signalcaller during Monday's Big East coaches' teleconference.
"We were watching the tape of that game,'' said Leavitt, "and I was so impressed by his presence when he came into that game.
"He's got a fourth-and-10 and he runs for it and gets it. That's a huge play!
"Then he throws for the 2-pointer, looks off his receiver and finds the guy in the back of the end zone.
"I'll tell you what. That guy is good.''
White, of course, didn't do it alone.
True freshman tailback Steve Slaton set a school record with six touchdowns - including all three six-pointers in overtime - while running 31 times for a career-high 188 yards.
Not only was Slaton the runaway choice for Big East Offensive Player of the Week, he earned National Player of the Week honors from the Walter Camp Football Foundation.
Senior safety Mike Lorello was the Big East Defensive Player of the Week. Lorello had 11 tackles, six solo stops, one tackle for loss, three pass break-ups and an interception.
Now he'll get the chance to work his magic as a starter.
Head coach Rich Rodriguez said Monday that he expects White to get his first collegiate start for the No. 20 Mountaineers (6-1, 3-0) in Saturday night's game at South Florida (3-3, 1-1).
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
"More than likely Pat is probably going to start,'' said Rodriguez.
"Adam's got a sprained foot and we're not sure if he's going to be able to play at all.
"Even if he can, he's going to miss a lot of reps in practice this week. Pat's probably going to be the guy.''
White was certainly "the guy'' Saturday night as he replaced an injured Bednarik with about 10 minutes left in the Louisville game and WVU looking up from a 24-7 deficit.
All he did was lead three straight scoring drives in the final eight minutes to force the game into overtime.
White kept two of those drives alive with clutch fourth-down scrambles, converting one fourth-and-10 situation by weaving through the Cardinal secondary for 17 yards.
"We have a lot of confidence in Pat,'' smiled Rodriguez. "With his feet, he gives us another weapon back there.''
White then masterminded a trio of 25-yard touchdown marches in the overtime periods and capped his stirring performance with a perfectly-thrown sprintout pass to Dorrell Jalloh for what proved to be the winning 2-point conversion in the third extra frame.
Although no one could have expected a Mountaineer offense that was held to just 52 yards and zero points in the first half to explode for 342 yards and 46 points over the final two quarters and overtime, White's dazzling performance should not have been a surprise.
He came in for an injured Bednarik at Maryland to lead four scoring drives and produced back-to-back touchdowns against Virginia Tech when Bednarik aggravated a shoulder injury in the first half.
The 6-2, 185-pound southpaw has completed 31-of-52 passes for 372 yards and 3 TDs while running the ball 53 times for 304 more yards.
He became only the 10th WVU quarterback to post a 100-yard rushing game in the win over Wofford and his 48-yard touchdown run against the Terriers is still the longest of the season for a Mountaineer.
White certainly has a fan in South Florida coach Jim Leavitt, who raved about the freshman signalcaller during Monday's Big East coaches' teleconference.
"We were watching the tape of that game,'' said Leavitt, "and I was so impressed by his presence when he came into that game.
"He's got a fourth-and-10 and he runs for it and gets it. That's a huge play!
"Then he throws for the 2-pointer, looks off his receiver and finds the guy in the back of the end zone.
"I'll tell you what. That guy is good.''
White, of course, didn't do it alone.
True freshman tailback Steve Slaton set a school record with six touchdowns - including all three six-pointers in overtime - while running 31 times for a career-high 188 yards.
Not only was Slaton the runaway choice for Big East Offensive Player of the Week, he earned National Player of the Week honors from the Walter Camp Football Foundation.
Senior safety Mike Lorello was the Big East Defensive Player of the Week. Lorello had 11 tackles, six solo stops, one tackle for loss, three pass break-ups and an interception.
