West Virginia Mountaineers vs Pittsburgh Panthers Football Recap

West Virginia 21, Pittsburgh 20

The West Virginia Mountaineers never make things easy for themselves. After a wild Thanksgiving weekend edition of a storied and bitter college football rivalry, they can give thanks that they didn’t blow their last best chance to win the Big East Conference.

After playing nearly flawlessly for the first three quarters of the game, Pittsburgh quarterback Tino Sunseri wilted under the relentless pressure of the West Virginia defense as the Mountaineers stormed back from a 20-7 third quarter deficit to beat rival Pittsburgh 21-20 in what could be the final edition of the celebrated Backyard Brawl. The West Virginia defensive line, kept mostly in check for much of the game, became nearly unstoppable in the game’s final quarter. Defensive end Bruce Irvin and defensive tackle Julian Miller led an attack that sacked Sunseri nine times in the game’s final 25 plays and ten times in the game.

West Virginia knew coming into this game that it needed help from outside sources in order to win the Big East. The Mountaineers lost to Louisville earlier this month, so when the Cardinals beat South Florida on Friday morning, West Virginia’s coaches and players became aware of the fact that Cincinnati would have to beat Syracuse on Saturday to keep the Mountaineers in the Big East race. West Virginia wasn’t able to win the Big East on Friday against Pittsburgh, but the ‘Eers definitely had a chance to lose any shot whatsoever at a conference crown. By desperately scrambling to pull out this pigskin passion play against Pitt, coach Dana Holgorsen’s WVU crew has given itself one more week of life. A win plus a Cincinnati triumph over Connecticut will bring an Orange Bowl berth to the heart of Appalachia.

Offensively, the Mountaineers did not get their usual gaudy passing production from quarterback Geno Smith, who was held to just 244 yards and one touchdown pass. But after being stifled early, they did get a significantly better effort from the offensive line and the running game, paving the way for two Shawne Alston touchdown runs in the second half to seal the win. West Virginia’s defense hemorrhaged in that aforementioned loss to Louisville, and it performed poorly in a separate loss to Syracuse in late October. The ability of coordinator Jeff Casteel’s defense to batten down the hatches was the lifeline West Virginia so badly needed. The Mountaineers improved to 8-3 and can clinch a share of the Big East title with a win over South Florida, while Pittsburgh can at least earn bowl eligibility with a win at home against Syracuse on Saturday.

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By: Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Senior Staff Writer