Tag: Backyard Brawl

Schedule the Backyard Brawl every year, you cowards

Pitt and WVU reminded us on Thursday night why rivalries need to be kept alive.

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.”

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.

[mm-video type=video id=01gbwy1gvyt3q7kaj3w5 playlist_id=none player_id=01evcfkb10bw5a3nky image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gbwy1gvyt3q7kaj3w5/01gbwy1gvyt3q7kaj3w5-7ea00efe4998d3a10db7d15ba8ba9203.jpg]

[listicle id=1956623]

[vertical-gallery id=1947147]

The 6 most incredible moments from college football’s Week 1 openers, including a ‘puke six’

There was a puke six and a Pitt six.

The college football season technically got underway on Saturday, with a full slate of games as an appetizer for what was to come this week. Well, this week is here, and the season officially kicked off Thursday night with plenty of great Week 1 action to hold us over until Saturday.

There were three ranked teams in action — 12 Oklahoma State, 17 Pittsburgh and 22 Wake Forest. And though none were upset, two did make for some pretty interesting moments. There was also the Penn State game against Purdue which was filled with all kinds of ridiculousness.

These are the wildest moments from Thursday’s action.

Big 12 Predictions for Week 1: Backyard Brawl takes center stage

The Backyard Brawl returns, providing a marquee matchup between West Virginia and Pitt at the top of the Big 12 schedule for Week 1.

It’s game day for the Big 12 as two teams get their seasons underway with some Thursday night football action. Not only will we get two Big 12 contests tonight, but we’ll also get games on Friday as well. A solid three days of Big 12 action.

There aren’t many great games this week. Only two games feature Power Five matchups. West Virginia goes on the road to renew its Backyard Brawl rivalry with Pittsburgh, and TCU takes on Colorado in what could be a preview of a future conference matchup.

There’s a lot to watch for as several teams break in new coaches or quarterbacks, providing intrigue to the start of the 2022 season for the Big 12.

Each week, we’ll take a walk through the Big 12 schedule and predict each game.