PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – We’re not here to argue the Backyard Brawl is the top rivalry in college football, just that it is one of the Top 25 rivalries in college football.
Recently ‘The Athletic’ ranked the best 25 matchups, Pitt-West Virginia didn’t make the list. There are numerous teams on their multiple times, Alabama for example for games against Auburn, Tennessee and LSU.
The challenge for the authors of the story is to re-evaluate the list. Start by attending a Backyard Brawl. Go to Morgantown on September 13th and by the end of the night, it will be on the Top 25 list. Feel the atmosphere, experience the tailgates, listen to the witty repartee between the fan bases.
We know it’s not perfect, there is reason for skepticism for the uneducated.
· The Penn State factor-if you are over the age of 40, Pitt-Penn State was the marquee game for the Panthers, and Penn State for that matter. The games, coaches and players are legendary. If you are a Penn Stater you couldn’t spell the ‘s’ word without two ‘t’s’ and a Hail to Pitt would end with Penn State (stinks).
· The teams aren’t in the same conference. While Pitt and West Virginia have played 107 times, they are no longer in the same conference as they were when they battled in the Big East.
· Because they aren’t in the same conference, it’s nearly impossible to play the final game of the season. Part of what makes Ohio State-Michigan, Alabama-Auburn special is they play the final game of the season with conference implications and often national ones.
That happened in 2007 with Pitt at WVU in one of the most memorable upsets this century.
· The series is not continual, this year the teams are finishing up a four-year contract. There is another four-year series starting in 2029. While there has been open talk from both universities about extending the series or trying to add matchups between now and 2029, nothing has been put on paper.
All of that being said, there are several traits of a great college football matchup.
Close games
· six of the last eight were decided by a single score.
Big comebacks
· Panthers won last year trailing by 10 with 4:55 to play in the game.
· In 2011, it was WVU and Geno Smith coming back from 10 down with six minutes to play.
Big performances
· Mountaineers quarterback Pat White ran for 220 yards beating the Panthers in 2005 and then ran again for 220 yards at Pitt in 2006.
· MJ Devonshire had a Pick 6 late in the fourth quarter for a 38-31 win in 2022 and Kevan Barlow ran for 272 yards and four touchdowns in a 38-28 Panthers win in 2000.
Big upsets
· In 2007, LeSean McCoy rushed 38 times for 148 yards leading the Panthers to a 13-9 win at second-ranked WVU costing the Mountaineers a birth in the national championship game.
All components of a great rivalry. It’s what the Backyard Brawl is. It should be on the list.