Score Predictions for West Virginia vs. Pitt

The 108th edition of the Backyard Brawl is here, and it's the last time these two will square off until 2029. Can the Mountaineers deliver and enter conference play with a 2-1 record? Here are our picks for this week's game.

Schuyler Callihan: Pitt 24, West Virginia 20

The Mountaineers are in a bad spot offensively, and the injuries to Jahiem White and Jaden Bray just made the situation a million times worse. I do believe with a full week of prep, knowing those two guys are no longer a part of the equation, that Rich Rod will find some answers. I'm just not sure he'll be able to find enough against this really fast and athletic defensive front seven that Pitt has.

I do believe WVU can win this game, but it's going to take a clean game offensively and likely a game-changing play (or two) on defense or special teams. Pitt isn't anything special, but they're in a much better spot than the Mountaineers, who are trying to figure out what they have with over 80 new players.

Pitt wins, but WVU finds some much-needed answers offensively that make fans feel a little better about the remaining nine games.

Christopher Hall: West Virginia 31, Pitt 27

Throw out the stats and the record books, the Backyard Brawl is here.

The Mountaineers will need you to overlook the stat sheet, especially after the loss at Ohio last week. Meanwhile, Pitt has hammered its first two opponents and quarterback Eli Holstein has eight touchdowns thus far, the first Panther quarterback to have consecutive four-touchdown performance since Rod Rutherford in 2003.

The Panthers have a dynamic running back, Desmond Reid. The senior has already had a 53-yard touchdown return and an 88-yard punt return for a touchdown, both coming against Duquesne in the season opener. The Pitt defense is primed to have another season harassing the backfield. The Panthers have finished in the top two nationally in sacks per game in four of the past six seasons and currently have eight in 2025. The 2025 season was going to be an uphill battle for Rich Rodriguez in his first season back at the helm in Morgantown, and it has become grimmer after losing junior running back Jahiem White and senior receiver Jaden Bray to season-ending injuries.

The defense has been a bright spot thus far and has yet to allow a second-half touchdown this season. There’s no Mountaineer momentum heading into the Backyard Brawl, but every season we are reminded why rivalries become so heated, and this year’s Pitt, WVU matchup could add fuel to the fire. Pitt started 7-0 last season, but injuries to Holstein derailed the Panthers, and they lost six straight to end the season. After putting up video game numbers in the first two games, Pitt is eager to get into the national spotlight, but a stop in Morgantown will put an immediate halt to its momentum. There’s no rhyme or reason for West Virginia to win, but I’m taking the Mountaineers to spoil Pitt’s early-season success and steal the win with a defensive stand to hold off the Panthers 31-27.

Zach Campbell: West Virginia 24, Pitt 21

Last weekend is one to be thrown in a vault at the bottom of the sea, never again to be re-lived. For all West Virginia’s trouble throwing away a stinker of a game to a MAC team on the road a week ago, it now gets to welcome its arch-rival back to Morgantown and must climb that mountain without its biggest weapon in Jahiem White.

I could double down on stats or percentages, but let's be honest here: this is one of the great historical rivalries in the game, and reason has no home here. Rich Rodriguez will be coaching with everything he’s got, and I don’t believe a single player inside the Puskar Center has trouble understanding what this game means, at its core.

I predict a flurry of blitzes and different looks from Zac Alley’s defense and a win-by-platoon approach on offense, with the run being the primary driver. Anything can and will happen on Saturday, but I sense Rich Rodriguez will finally get to silence some of the demons of yesteryear and tame the Panthers in an absolute fist fight.

Schuyler Callihan: Pitt 24, West Virginia 20

Christopher Hall: West Virginia 31, Pitt 27

Zach Campbell: West Virginia 24, Pitt 21

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