Every year, there is a non-conference game that West Virginia football fans will mark on their calendar. This year, it was their home game against now number one LSU. While these opponents are exciting for the fans and players alike, one game each year is circled as the game to win for the Mountaineers. Since 1895, the Mountaineers have taken on the Pitt Panthers in what is the 14th oldest rivalry in college sports. With the conference realignment that has taken over college sports, it’s possible that the great and storied rivalry could be in its last year with Pitt (5-5, 3-2) moving to the ACC and West Virginia (7-3, 3-2) moving to the Big 12. I however, think that both schools athletic directors will do everything in their power to continue the rivalry.
This year, both schools have coaches who are about to experience their first “Backyard Brawl.” Pitt’s head coach Todd Graham has had an up-and-down first season. Graham won over the Pitt fans at his January press conference when he was introduced as the next head coach of the Panthers. Much like West Virginia’s first-year coach Dana Holgorsen, Graham likes to run a spread-type, hurry-up offense. The results have been very different for both teams so far this year. Pitt is 70th in the country in points per game and sixth in the Big East. Meanwhile, West Virginia is first in the Big East at 36.8 points per game. Did I mention these coaches have a rivalry of their own?
After a 2009 Houston-Tulsa game, won by the Cougars, 46–45, Holgorsen, then the offensive coordinator for UH, accused Graham, then coach of the Golden Hurricanes, of having his players fake injuries to slow down the fast-paced Houston attack.
The year before, Houston had defeated Graham’s team, 70–30, so it only made sense the Hurricane would try to keep Houston from lighting it up again. Though some defensive coaches will tell you they absolutely instruct their charges to fake cramps and other minor injuries to slow down rival no-huddle attacks’ momentum, Graham copped to no such behavior. That didn’t make Holgorsen happy.
“Yeah, they were cheating,” he said. “We’ve got some inside information on how they did it.
“They’ve got a signal for it. We know they’ve got a signal for it. We see it on film that they’re actually doing the signal, and then all of a sudden, one of their guys just comes down with a bunch of cramps. He falls down and then the other 10 players kind of jog over to the sideline, and they use it as a timeout.”
As you can imagine, Graham wasn’t too happy when he heard about the accusation, which was reported in the Tulsa World. His response was measured but certainly had an edge.
“I wouldn’t have any comment on that,” he said. “We do things the right way. This place is about excellence in everything that we do.”
If having the players, fans and now coaches not being fans of each other doesn’t spark interest for you, how about the stranglehold at the top of the Big East standings? West Virginia, Pitt, Louisville, Rutgers and Cincinnati are all still able to win the conference. Which of those two teams still have to play each other? You guessed it, West Virginia and Pitt.
While Graham has boasted about his defensive line being one of the top in the country all season, he knows that it’s going to be a challenge to slow down the Mountaineer attack on Friday.
“Obviously, we have a huge challenge. They have the number one offense in the league. Geno Smith is very impressive. He can make every throw, he extends plays and he is a tremendous player – one of the best in the country,” Graham said. “They have a great receiving corps. Tavon Austin and Stedman Bailey really stick out to me. Those two are as good as there are in the country. They are extremely fast and explosive. Our biggest challenge is containing their offense.”
The Mountaineer offense has been led all season by the aforementioned Smith and Bailey. Smith is 269-417 for 3,497 yards and 24 touchdowns on the season, a Big East best. Bailey has emerged as the top receiver in the conference as well with 57 receptions for 1,037 yards and 10 touchdowns.
“Dealing with the tempo is a lot easier for us because we are used to seeing it every day. There is a lot more no-huddle in this league than I thought. Louisville ran some no-huddle, so we have seen no-huddle this year,” Graham said.
While Graham may see the offense each day in practice, his team hasn’t come close to perfecting it as Holgorsen’s Mountaineers have. Pitt’s offense is lead by quarterback Tino Sunseri, a Dave Wannstedt recruit who is primarily a pro-style quarterback. Sunseri has had an up-and-down season, but more negatives than positives. Sunseri is 191-300 on the year for 2,037 yards and nine touchdowns. With those nine touchdowns however are eight interceptions.
Pitt has a talented wide receiver core with Devin Street and Mike Shanahan on the outside. Sunseri has struggled to get the ball downfield to his targets this season and has often relied on tight end Hubie Graham and the running backs coming out of the backfield. In what is a transition year for Pitt, it’s remarkable they are still in the hunt for the Big East title without having the type of players that Graham needs for his system. Next year, Pitt has four-star quarterback Chad Voytik from Tennessee and the all-time leading rusher in Pennsylvania history, Rushel Shell, who choose Pitt over Alabama, Oregon and Florida, joining the roster next season.
West Virginia’s biggest problem this year has been on special teams and stopping the run. An unfortunate injury to Pitt running back Ray Graham earlier in the year will definitely help the Mountaineer defense this week. Both teams are in the top half of the conference in pass defense, but both are also in the bottom half in run defense. The loss of Graham, still the Big East’s leading rusher, will hurt Pitt more than West Virginia’s lack of a running game. The Panthers will now lean on senior transfer Zach Brown and freshman Corey Davis to handle the workload. West Virginia will continue to give touches to Dustin Garrison, Andrew Buie and Shawne Alston.
In what is a make or break game for both teams, no one will be under more pressure than Sunseri. Sunseri is going to have to lead his team into hostile territory and win this game with his arm. As Mountaineer fans won’t soon forget the 2007 edition of the “Backyard Brawl” (known simply for it’s final score of 13-9) that cost the Mountaineers a shot at the National Championship, they know that anything can happen. If Ray Graham was healthy for this game, I’d give Pitt a better chance to win. Even though they haven’t shown it at some points this season, West Virginia is by far the fastest and most talented team in the league. If everything goes according to plan, Holgorsen will have another notch to put in his belt against Graham. West Virginia wins this one 38-24.
Photo Credits: All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks Photo
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