(AP) The last time West Virginia quarterback Will Grier ran for the corner of the end zone against Texas, a dive resulted in a gnarly broken finger that ended his season.

He stayed upright this time, untouched as he scrambled for a 2-point conversion that gave No. 12 West Virginia a 42-41 win at No. 15 Texas on Saturday that kept the Mountaineers in first in the Big 12 as they try for their first conference championship.

Grier's scramble for the pylon came after he threaded a 33-yard touchdown pass to Gary Jennings with 16 seconds left, a perfect throw that Jennings caught in stride in the back of the end zone behind two defenders.

Instead of going for the tie, Mountaineers coach Dana Holgorsen dialed up a game-winner. Holgorsen and Grier said the decision was made even before the final drive started.

''It was an easy decision,'' Holgorsen said. ''If you put the fate of the game in (Grier's) hands, I feel pretty good about it.... We've had this 2-point conversion in our back pocket all year.''

It still took two snaps to win it.

On the first, Grier connected with Davis Sills on a quick slant. West Virginia (7-1, 5-1, No. 13 CFP) celebrated but officials ruled the play dead because Texas had called timeout just before the snap. So Grier had to do it again.

Sills was covered the second time. Grier took a step up in the pocket, and then saw a clearing to his left because the Texas safety had dropped off into double coverage on Sills. He held the ball up as he crossed the goal line before slamming it into the stadium wall.

''I had four different options on that play,'' Grier said. ''I went with the fourth one, which was me running ... I stayed on my feet, which was good. Whatever it takes to win.''

West Virginia linebacker David Long couldn't watch.

''I turned my back. All of a sudden, I heard the crowd get silent,'' Long said. ''That told me everything I needed to know.''

Texas coach Tom Herman didn't seem to care for Grier's pre-score celebration.

''I thought taunting before you cross the goal line negated a score,'' Herman said. ''I've got to brush up on my rules and get some questions answered.''

Sills caught touchdown passes of 60 and 18 yards for the Mountaineers.

Ehlinger passed for 356 yards and three scores and also ran for a touchdown for Texas (6-3, 4-2, No. 17 CFP), which has lost two in a row after three weeks in first place in the Big 12.

''The silver lining is we play in the Big 12. We're not out of any race at this point,'' Herman said. ''We certainly don't control our own destiny.