Week 1 of the 2022 college football season got off to an incredible start as fans were treated to the return of the Pitt-West Virginia rivalry. Affectionately dubbed the “Backyard Brawl,” the Mountaineers traveled into Heinz Acrisure Stadium to face the No. 17 Panthers. This ended an 11-year drought without the game and has led to everyone thinking the same question:
Why did we ever let this game stop happening?
The revival of the Brawl was everything you could possibly hope. High drama, high excitement and a thrilling finish that came down to the wire. Pitt escaped with the 38-31 victory after M.J. Devonshire picked off WVU’s J.T. Daniels for a 56-yard “Pitt Six.”
THIS. IS. THE. BACKYARD. BRAWL.
PITT SIX 🙌 @Mjdevonshirejr
📺 @ESPN #H2P » #BeatWVU pic.twitter.com/zy0EA8H4EG
— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) September 2, 2022
West Virginia made a valiant effort on the ensuing drive as Daniels’s final attempt fell incomplete after an incredible attempt by Reese Smith at the goal line.
While the game itself was a blast, it is more that the Backyard Brawl is everything that’s awesome about college football.
It’s Kedon Slovis, QB for Pitt (and USC transfer), yelling expletives about West Virginia at a pre-game pep rally. It’s Bryce Ford-Wheaton being the third generation to play for the Mountaineers in a Backyard Brawl. It’s signs in Heinz Acrisure that remind Mountaineer fans about the time Pitt ruined its shot at a title with a 13-9 upset. It’s the electric atmosphere.
All of it was perfect (sorry, West Virginia fans). Regional rivalries and unbridled anger fuel college football, and we should get this every year. Same with other faded rivalries like Texas-Texas A&M, Miami-Florida and more.
We will get three more years of the Brawl (before a three-year layoff), but that’s not good enough. We want it every year.
Make it happen.
