West Virginia cruises, 48-28

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Pat White guided West Virginia to a romp over No. 3-ranked Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. Then, the option quarterback made his biggest pitch of the night.

White ran for 150 yards and threw for 176 and two touchdowns in a 48-28 victory. After it was over, he endorsed Mountaineers interim Coach Bill Stewart to become the permanent successor to Rich Rodriguez, who left for Michigan last month.

“He deserves it,” White said. “A great man. A great coach. All the players respect him and all the players love him. You couldn’t ask for a better man to lead us to victory today.”

An emotional Stewart wouldn’t lobby for the job, but he relished what he called “a colossal win for our program.”

“I never had a Gatorade bath,” said Stewart, a native of West Virginia who has been an assistant for most of his career. “It was special.”

The 11th-ranked Mountaineers didn’t need Rodriguez. They had White, a relentless defense and a rushing attack that raced for 349 yards, the most given up by Oklahoma in a bowl game.

The Mountaineers (11-2) said they had bonded behind Stewart and they vowed to rebound from a 13-9 loss to Pittsburgh that knocked them out of the Bowl Championship Series title game.

The Mountaineers were right on both counts, turning in an emotional effort and overcoming the loss of star tailback Steve Slaton to a first-quarter leg injury. Noel Devine replaced Slaton and ran for 108 yards and two touchdowns -- a 17-yard run and a 65-yard scamper that clinched the win in the fourth quarter.

The Mountaineers became the first of six teams to win under an interim coach in this bowl season. They improved to 2-0 in the BCS games.

Oklahoma (11-3) endured another disappointment on the same field where it lost a Fiesta Bowl to Boise State one year ago.

The Mountaineers harassed Sam Bradford, sacking the nation’s top-rated passer three times and intercepting one of his passes in the end zone. Bradford completed 21 of 33 passes for 242 yards and two touchdowns.