Despite an overall miserable 4-8 season, WVU football did enjoy a couple big moments during Rich Rodriguez’s return season in 2025. No moment was a bigger deal and meant more to Rodriguez and the program than beating Pitt in the Backyard Brawl.
West Virginia’s win over their arch rival even earned the Mountaineers some recognition as a national writer looks back on the season. ESPN’s Bill Connelly placed the 2025 Backyard Brawl and all of its significance on his list of the top 100 games from the 2025 college football season.
Ranking WVU’s 31-24 overtime win at No. 27 on his list, below is what Connelly had to say about the game:
“Rich Rodriguez’s first season back in Morgantown wasn’t a thriller, but in his first Backyard Brawl in charge since the devastating loss of 2007, he and the Mountaineers exacted some revenge. A 21-0 run had given Pitt a 10-point lead deep into the fourth quarter, WVU drove 87 yards in the final three minutes, tied it with 11 seconds left, took the lead in OT with a Tye Edwards touchdown and forced a game-clinching four-and-out.”
WVU quarterback Nicco Marchiol celebrates with his dad after leading the Mountaineers to a comeback win over Pitt in the 2025 Backyard Brawl. (WVSN photo by Kelsie LeRose)
And even though more was expected out of the year, vanquishing the demons from the past against Pitt was a necessity. So in that regard, mission accomplished for Rodriguez, who will now have to wait until 2029 when another installment of the historic rivalry starts back up, to see the Panthers again.
West Virginia Mountaineer players with Rodney Gallagher out front celebrate after defeating Pitt in the 2025 Backyard Brawl. (WVSN photo by Kelsie LeRose)
But with Pitt not on the 2026 schedule, Rodriguez’s second season at the helm will be about one thing: making the West Virginia Mountaineers great again.
This story initially appeared on our partner site West Virginia Sports Now.
