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WATCH: Pitt's Pat Narduzzi Discusses Backyard Brawl

Pitt Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi spoke to the media about the team's 2-0 start and the upcoming matchup against West Virginia
Karl Ludwig|
Sep 6, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi arrives at the stadium before the game against the Central Michigan Chippewas at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Sep 6, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi arrives at the stadium before the game against the Central Michigan Chippewas at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

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PITTSBURGH - The Pitt Panthers are coming off a 2-0 start to the season for the second season in a row, and like last season, the Panthers will face the West Virginia Mountaineers in Week 3.

Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi spoke to the media on Monday for his weekly press conference, the first of two times he will speak this week, and he talked about the win against Central Michigan and what's ahead this weekend.

Pitt knocked off Central Michigan, 45-17, and much to Narduzzi's pleasure, the Panthers faced some adversity.

Narduzzi recapped the performance, praising the Chips as one of the top teams in the Mid-American Conference (MAC), but he said it will get tougher going forward. The first test is a West Virginia squad coming off a surprising loss to Ohio.

West Virginia is in the first season of Rich Rodriguez's second tenure, and despite the loss to the Bobcats, Narduzzi expects Rodriguez to have the Mountaineers ready to go at Milan Puskar Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Narduzzi also touched upon the series going dormant for three seasons following this season's Brawl and reiterated that he'd like the series to continue as much as possible going forward.

In a related note, WVU star running back Jahiem White has been ruled out for the season with a knee injury, Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports reported. It's a big loss for the Mountaineers. After stifling a good Chips' rushing attack, the Panthers will look to do the same against the Mountaineers - without their star player.

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Karl Ludwig
KARL LUDWIG

Karl Ludwig is a Pittsburgh Panthers on SI sportswriter. He has spent the past three years covering the Pitt Panthers for a couple of platforms. While he did not attend Pitt, he grew up in the Pittsburgh area, attending North Allegheny Senior High School and Slippery Rock University. As a student at SRU, he served as the sports editor of SRU’s student-run newspaper, The Rocket, and provided award-winning coverage in football, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer. It was at SRU that his love for sports journalism blossomed. Karl spent three seasons as the Pitt football beat writer for Pittsburgh Sports Now, following time as an intern for the Sports Now Network. His most recent coverage of the University was for Pitt Sports News of the On3/Rivals network. He’s also contributed to Athlon Sports and SB Nation’s Behind the Steel Curtain.

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