West Virginia vs. Miami: Score and Reaction for 2016 Russell Athletic Bowl

The Miami Hurricanes rolled to a 31-14 victory over the West Virginia Mountaineers in the Russell Athletic Bowl on Wednesday night at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida.

Brad Kaaya made a big impression on NFL scouts, throwing for 282 yards and four touchdowns on 24-of-34 passing. The junior has one more year of eligibility, but his performance Wednesday may encourage him to strike while the iron is hot. 

In his last college game, quarterback Skyler Howard had a forgettable night. He was West Virginia's leading rusher with 63 yards on 21 carries, yet he had only 134 yards through the air. SB Nation's Smoking Musket thought it was a fitting end to his time with the Mountaineers:

Following a sluggish start, Miami scored 21 unanswered points in the second quarter to take a 21-7 lead into halftime.

Until the final 6:30 of the half, Kennedy McKoy's six-yard touchdown run was all that separated the two teams.

Then, Kaaya threw his first of three first-half touchdown passes to Ahmmon Richards for 51 yards. The Associated Press' Tim Reynolds joked that the freshman wideout is already looking ahead to the next stage in his football career:

"

Ahmmon Richards just declared for the 2018 NFL Draft.

— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) December 28, 2016"

With 2:11 left in the second quarter, Malcolm Lewis put Miami ahead 14-7 with a three-yard touchdown reception, and Braxton Berrios padded the Hurricanes' advantage with a 26-yard touchdown catch 27 seconds prior to halftime.

The Russell Athletic Bowl's official Twitter account was taken aback by Miami's rapid turnaround:

The Hurricanes noted the team's improvement coincided with a hot streak through the air for Kaaya:

SB Nation's Spencer Hall thought Mountaineers head coach Dana Holgorsen grew increasingly angry as Miami took control of the game:

The Hurricanes opened up the second half with Kaaya's fourth touchdown of the game. After catching a quick screen, David Njoku broke a tackle and ran down the sideline before diving into the end zone.

NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah and Bleacher Report's Matt Miller are high on the junior tight end should he make the jump to the NFL:

Howard stopped the bleeding for West Virginia with a four-yard touchdown run at the 7:50 mark of the third quarter to trim the Mountaineers' deficit to 14 points, 28-14.

Michael Badgley provided Miami with a little more breathing room after connecting on a 30-yard field goal with 4:26 remaining in the third quarter. From there, the Hurricanes defense did its job, forcing a turnover on downs on each of West Virginia's next two possessions.

The Mountaineers punted with 54 seconds left, which was the final nail in their coffin.

Oakland Raiders linebacker Bruce Irvin, a West Virginia alumnus, was disappointed to see his alma mater stumble on a national stage:

The 2016 season was a nice start for Mark Richt in his first season at Miami. Neither Al Golden nor Randy Shannon made a bowl game in their first years, so Richt already has a leg up on his predecessors.

Building on that success will be the biggest thing for the Hurricanes head coach.

Fox Sports' Bruce Feldman sees an encouraging future on the horizon—albeit with some issues still to address:

The Big Lead's Tyler Duffy wondered if the Hurricanes will be one of the more overhyped teams of 2017:

"

Miami is an early favorite to be the team ranked 10-15 spots too high heading into next year.

— Tyler Duffy (@tyduffy) December 29, 2016"

According to Scout, Miami has the No. 14 recruiting class, up from No. 37 in 2016, so Richt is already making strides in that regard.

Replacing Kaaya, who will likely enter the NFL draft, won't be easy, but Miami returns a number of key players for next season. While it may be premature to put the Hurricanes in the ACC title discussion in 2017, nine or 10 wins should be the minimum expectation.

This time last year, it looked like Holgorsen's job was in jeopardy. The Charleston Gazette-Mail's Mitch Vingle reported West Virginia was contemplating whether to fire Holgorsen. 

Wednesday's defeat shouldn't reignite that conversation. Losing in a bowl game doesn't erase what was a surprisingly positive 2016 campaign for the Mountaineers.

Like Miami, West Virginia will lose its leading passer, with Howard graduating, so Holgorsen will be afforded some patience in 2017 in what will likely be more of a rebuilding year.

Postgame Reaction

After the game, Njoku announced he will enter the 2017 draft. The Palm Beach Post's Matt Porter shared his comments about the decision:

Kaaya said he plans to wait before choosing his path for next year, per Porter: "I'm not really leaning one way or the other right now. I've got some soul-searching to do."

Holgorsen is among those who sees the Hurricanes achieving big things in the future.

"It's a new coaching staff," he said, per CBSSports.com's Christopher Stock. "They're doing things the right way and coach (Mark) Richt has been doing it for a long time. I give them a lot of credit and I would anticipate them to continue to move forward."