MORGANTOWN, WV — The Mountaineers sent Pitt packing with a 31–24 overtime victory on Saturday night, securing bragging rights in the Backyard Brawl for the next four years. It was a physical, emotional game filled with big plays, momentum swings, and, yes, plenty of penalties.
West Virginia finished with 6 penalties for 60 yards, while Pitt piled up 14 penalties for 118 yards — a lopsided margin that left Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi fuming after the game.
Speaking to reporters postgame, Narduzzi pointed directly at the officiating as a major factor in the loss.
“Whew. You guys watched the game, I don’t know. There was some stuff out there, but we’ll look at the videotape. Not happy with that at all. 14 penalties, a little lopsided there. Eli got punched, got his helmet ripped off, punched in the face; no call there. We had somebody get spit in the face, too, but things didn’t go our way.”
The Pitt coach’s frustration was clear — but the problem is, many of his team’s penalties were obvious and preventable.
To be fair, there were a couple of questionable calls, but the majority of Pitt’s penalties were the result of self-inflicted mistakes: false starts, holding, defensive pass interference, offsides. WVU had its share of whistles, but their six penalties were less about sloppy discipline and more about timing.
And let’s not pretend the officiating tilted everything in West Virginia’s favor. In fact, the Mountaineers caught some questionable breaks themselves:
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The end of the first half: Nicco Marchiol slid on a late hit after converting a first down. A flag was thrown, but officials waved it off because the clock hit zero. By rule, most fans expected either an untimed down or a penalty enforced on the second-half kickoff. Instead, the half was simply declared over, which bailed Pitt out.
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The Oxley sack: In the third quarter, linebacker MarShon Oxley was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct after what amounted to him standing up and walking away from the play. The penalty extended Pitt’s drive, and the Panthers scored a touchdown a few plays later.
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Targeting call: Linebacker Ashton Woods was ejected in the first half on what replays showed looked like a clean hit. Losing him was a major blow to WVU’s defense.
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No-calls on PI: Several times, Pitt’s defensive backs arrived early on pass plays and appeared to interfere with Mountaineer receivers, only for the flags to stay tucked away.
For Narduzzi to complain about penalties after committing 14 is a stretch. Yes, officiating wasn’t perfect, but Pitt’s mistakes were mostly self-inflicted, while West Virginia endured its own share of questionable calls.
In the end, none of it changes the scoreboard. West Virginia made the plays that mattered, Pitt didn’t, and the Mountaineers will hold onto Backyard Brawl bragging rights until 2029.
Final: West Virginia 31, Pitt 24 (OT).
