Pitt HC Pat Narduzzi on Facing WVU in Backyard Brawl: ‘Oh, boy. It’s a Rivalry’

PITTSBURGH – “Oh, boy. It’s a rivalry.” That’s how Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi started talking about the upcoming Backyard Brawl.

And despite sitting at 2-0, granted with two home wins over lesser competition, Narduzzi knows the records don’t matter when it comes to West Virginia vs. Pitt. With the 108th edition of one of college football’s oldest rivalries coming up on Saturday, Narduzzi was asked about his thoughts on the Mountaineers during his weekly press conference on Monday.

“Oh, boy. It’s a rivalry. I’ve been in a lot of rivalry games throughout my career. It is just another one of those rivalries. It just happens to be Pitt versus West Virginia,” he said.

Having faced West Virginia in each of the past three seasons, Narduzzi knows what the Backyard Brawl is all about and how it often means even more to the fans than the players on the current teams.

“There is a lot of hatred in the game. I think the fans hate each other. I think it goes way, way back. I think there’s for whatever reason lots of scars that they have, they haven’t got over them yet,” he said.

But Narduzzi doesn’t want his team to lose track of the task at hand and worry about the history or what fans may bring up about the past.

“For us as a football team, all the things in the crowd and the stands, what happens when you’re driving on the bus, doesn’t really matter. It’s what happens on that football field that is going to matter,” said Narduzzi, who enters the game 2-1 against WVU. Another win for Pitt and Narduzzi and the Panthers own bragging rights for several years until the rivalry enjoys a reboot in 2029.

“The team that’s going to stay focused best on the task at hand is winning the football game. That’s what we’re going down there to do, is trying to win a football game.”

It’s all about which team is more focused for Narduzzi.

“We’re not going to get into what the fans felt 35 years ago, 40 years ago. What happens on September 13th will be the key.”

Of course, if history says anything about the rivalry, it’s that an underdog and undermanned West Virginia team reeling from a tough loss could certainly find the motivation and intensity to earn a victory.

Unfortunately for West Virginia, oddsmakers aren’t too optimistic and their chances of making that happen with a big win over their arch rival.

WVU is listed as a 4.5-point home underdog to the Pitt Panthers in the Backyard Brawl, set for this Saturday. Both FanDuel and DraftKings agree with the line opening the week at -4.5 in favor of Pitt.

Kickoff against Pitt is set for 3:30 p.m. this coming Saturday from Milan Puskar Stadium.

Find more coverage of the WVU football program at WV Sports Now.