The Pittsburgh Panthers and the West Virginia Mountaineers have announced the addition of four more games to their “Backyard Brawl” football series. With the addition, the two schools will now meet each season from 2029 through 2036.
“The Backyard Brawl is more than a game: it’s history, passion, and pride passed down through generations,” Pitt Director of Athletics Allen Greene said. “Extending this rivalry ensures that student-athletes and fans alike continue to experience one of college football’s greatest traditions, and we couldn’t be more excited for what’s ahead.”
The two schools are scheduled to square off on Saturday, Sept. 13 in the 108th edition of the game at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown, W.Va. The game will kickoff at 3:30pm ET with television coverage on ESPN.
“I couldn’t be more thrilled for what this means for both Pitt and West Virginia,” said Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi. “But this goes far beyond four more games and the 75 miles separating us. This paves the way for future Panthers to carry on the history of this rivalry, while current ones get to forge new legacies for years to come. This extension isn’t just for Pitt and West Virginia, but for college football fans everywhere.”
Due to conference realignment, the two schools did not meet from 2012 through 2021, but reconnected on the gridiron in 2022 in Pittsburgh. After meeting this season in Morgantown, the Backyard Brawl will resume in 2029 at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pa.
“It’s always a great day when you can extend one of the best rivalries in all of college sports,” WVU Vice President and Director of Athletics Wren Baker said. “I want to thank Pitt Athletic Director Allan Greene for his help in extending the “Backyard Brawl,” and there is no doubt that today’s announcement is a win for not only fans of the two Universities but for all of college football.”
Pitt and West Virginia first met in the the Backyard Brawl in 1895 and have played a total of 107 games. The Panthers defeated the Mountaineers in the most recent contest in 2024 in Pittsburgh, but Pitt still leads the overall series 63-41-3.
“I think it’s one of the greatest rivalries in sports,” Rich Rodriguez said. “Obviously, the location between the two are close. There’s a lot of intensity with it, and there never seems to be any love lost between the fanbases. It’s always, to me, the biggest game on your schedule when you’re at West Virginia.”
Future Pitt-West Virginia Games
Sept. 13, 2025 – at West Virginia
Sept. 8, 2029 – at Pitt
Sept. 7, 2030 – at West Virginia
Sept. 6, 2031 – at Pitt
Sept. 11, 2032 – at West Virginia
Sept. 10, 2033 – at Pitt
Sept. 9, 2034 – at West Virginia
Sept. 8, 2035 – at Pitt
Sept. 13, 2036 – at West Virginia
Football Schedules
Fantastic. These two old rivals should always play each other. Good to hear that they have worked out this extension.
If the ACC falls apart, there’s a good chance these two schools could be in the same conference in the early 2030s.
Putting these schools back in the same conference isn´t worth blowing up the ACC and giving the SEC and Big 10 even more power.
Sure, a XII-ACC consortium could rearrange so that WVU, UC, and UCF could swap spaces with SMU, Stanford, and Cal.
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Especially if the SEC goes to 20 with FSU, Clemson, UNC, and _____.
I think it’s safe to say the Pitt Penn st series isn’t coming back until the late 30s. I hope I’m wrong.
PSU likes to rotate through local opponents in OOC play and has nothing past 2028 scheduled. So unless a B10-SEC Challenge comes about, with WVU booked up, PSU likely will rotate between Pitt and Syracuse (with some VA schools and Temple mixed in).
Local opponents are excellent with Penn State for OOC opponents.
Remember the last time Rich Rod lead the Mountaineers against Pitt? Hoping for a different outcome, but not as much on the line this time around.
What about pride and bragging rights? Doesn´t that matter more than anything in these sort of rivalry games?
Wasn’t Narduzzi just talking crap about WVU being scared to play them? Please!
Love this and everything about it.
This is great news and a great rivalry. If only it could be on Thanksgiving weekend!
Sorry Tom Big 12 just like Big 10 wants conference games on Thanksgiving weekend.