UT Martin Falls At Big 12 Conference Opponent West Virginia

Saturday, September 12

Morgantown, W.Va.

12 p.m.

UT Martin

1-2 , 0-0

West Virginia

2-0 , 0-0

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
UT Martin	0	0	0	7	7
West Virginia	21	7	17	7	52

UT Martin Falls At Big 12 Conference Opponent West Virginia

9/12/2026 4:10:00 PM | Football

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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The University of Tennessee at Martin football squad took to the road today for the first time this season, falling by a 52-7 margin at Football Bowl Subdivision opponent West Virginia in front of 47,049 fans at Milan Puskar Stadium.

The Skyhawks (1-2) put together a trio of chunk plays in the opening quarter, averaging 7.3 yards over 20 plays. Julian Calvez hit Connie Hewitt II for a 24-yard pass on the first play of the game before Chris Franklin added a 48-yard run, setting the stage for an eventual UT Martin 1^st-and-goal from the 5-yard line. Later in the period, Tate Surber found Kaleb Costner for a 25-yard reception.

At the halftime break, the Skyhawks gained 246 total yards compared to West Virginia's 254 while UT Martin held a 13-8 advantage in first downs. Five of the Skyhawks' seven first-half drives ventured into Mountaineer territory.

In the second half, UT Martin got on the scoreboard with a defensive score. John Betts III scooped up a fumble off a West Virginia read option and returned it across the goal line from six yards out with 3:25 to go in the contest.

Trey Cotton accounted for a game-high 10 tackles today as the Skyhawk defensive unit. Quincy Hamilton and Chris Wilson (0.5 tackles for loss, one pass breakup) also made six tackles apiece to pace UT Martin.

Franklin led the way for the Skyhawk offense today, managing 85 yards on 12 carries for an average of 7.1 yards per tote. Surber took a majority of the snaps at quarterback, going 19-of-28 for 137 yards. His favorite target today was Deuce Oliver, who hauled in a game-high six catches while Costner's 36 receiving yards led nine different UT Martin players who had at least one catch.

On special teams, Max Zuluaga pinned two of his four punts inside the 10-yard line, including a 68-yard boot in the third quarter. Overall, he averaged 53.3 yards per punt while Brandon Sims successfully converted the Skyhawk PAT in the fourth quarter.

Gallery: (9-12-2026) Football at West Virginia

The Mountaineers (2-0) was led by quarterback Michael Hawkins, Jr., who combined for four touchdowns while going 5-of-7 for 155 passing yards with 96 rushing yards on six carries. Isaiah Patterson topped the West Virginia defense with eight tackles.

"This was a learning experience for our players in a good environment," UT Martin head coach Jason Simpson said. "When you play a FBS opponent, if you handle it the right way – your team will get better with that experience. I thought our guys competed – we did some good things especially offensively in the first half but it wasn't a very clean game for us and the margin for error is very small."

The Skyhawks continue their four-game road swing on Saturday, Sept. 19, heading to in-state FBS member Memphis. The 15^th all-time meeting between the two schools will kick off at the newly renovated Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium at 6 p.m.