Pitt's Pat Narduzzi on Backyard Brawl: 'It's why you coach football'

The details escape Pat Narduzzi, but he remembers being involved in only one true rivalry game as a player.

“Shoot, when I was in college, our rivalry was Rhode Island versus Brown in front of 7,000 people,” he said.

He remembers Brown having a good team in the 1980s, but he said, “It wasn’t really a rivalry. There wasn’t much to it. Not like we see now.”

You can multiply that crowd of 7,000 by 10 and you might come close to the number of people who will shove their way into Acrisure Stadium on Saturday for the 107th renewal of the Backyard Brawl. Two years ago, Pitt defeated West Virginia, 38-31, with a record Pittsburgh sports crowd of 70,622 witnessing the drama. Pitt avoided an upset when M.J. Devonshire broke a tie by returning an interception 56 yards with less than three minutes to play.

This year, Pitt (2-0) is hoping to carry momentum of its come-from-behind victory against Cincinnati into the Brawl. The Panthers have a chance to start 3-0 for only the second time in Narduzzi’s 10 seasons as head coach.

Meanwhile, West Virginia (1-1) has won four of its past five games against Pitt, including the 17-6 victory in Morgantown, W.Va., last year.

“You know, I think every year adds another flavor (to the rivalry),” said Narduzzi, who first learned about passionate rivalries when he was defensive coordinator at Michigan State preparing to play Michigan. “There’s another scar that has to be repaired, regardless of what it is.”

Narduzzi does not need to educate his players on the importance and intensity the Backyard Brawl brings to the field and TV screens. He said 73 players on this year’s team were in Morgantown last year; perhaps 50 were part of the team in 2022.

“I know from 2007 what a rivalry game was, just with that (Michigan State/Michigan) game, and knowing what’s on the line and the people you affect … the Pitt fans and the Pitt faithful, the Panther Pitt (student section). Everybody is into it.

“There’s maybe not many more important rivalry games in the country. This is the one that people in Pittsburgh live for. Hey, this game this weekend is why you play the game of football. It’s why you coach football. This is it.”

There’s plenty at stake for Pitt, other than bragging rights and erasing the embarrassment of last season. With Youngstown State up next Sept. 21, Pitt has a chance to go through its nonconference schedule undefeated for the first time in program history. (Pitt played only one game out of conference in the covid year of 2020, a victory against Austin Peay.)

Of course, there’s no sense talking to Narduzzi about the opportunity to make a little history. You know, that one-game-at-a-time thing that coaches insist their players follow.

“We didn’t talk about (West Virginia) at all (in preseason or during the first two game weeks),” he said. “We’re focused on Game 1, Game 2. The focus (Sunday) night at the end of that team meeting at 8:30 turned to West Virginia. Just (Sunday) night.”

Narduzzi said he has plenty of respect for Neil Brown, WVU’s 44-year-old coach who’s run the program since 2019 with a record of 32-30.

West Virginia opened this season on both ends of the scheduling spectrum, losing to No. 8 Penn State, 34-12, and defeating Albany of the FCS, 49-14. The Pitt game will be WVU’s first away from home.

“I think you can throw every record out,” Narduzzi said. “We could be 0-2. They could be 0-2. It doesn’t matter. This will be a knock-down-drag-out battle. They’ll be ready; we’ll be ready.”

Narduzzi is 1-1 against Brown, who calls the plays on offense for the Mountaineers.

“I have a ton of respect for him as a football coach, as a scheme guy. He does really good stuff,” he said.

Like Narduzzi, Brown has made ample use of the portal, with 11 transfers on the two-deep defensive lineup. The way Narduzzi sees it, that’s not good news for WVU opponents as the season progresses.

“They have a lot of new guys over there that I think when you look at that, they’re going to get better every week and fit into their scheme,” he said.

Notes: Pitt running back Desmond Reid, who leads the nation in average all-purpose yards per game (244), is the first player in school history with 100-yard rushing and receiving statistics in one game. He ran for 148 and caught passes for 106 against Cincinnati. … Reid was one of four Pitt players named ACC players of the week, including quarterback Eli Holstein (rookie), kicker Ben Sauls (specialist) and Konata Mumpfield (wide receiver).