Morgantown, West Virginia – One of the worst days in the history of West Virginia football history, December 1st, 2007, saw the Mountaineers shockingly upset by the Pitt Panthers, 13-9.
West Virginia was 10-1 and #2 in the Associated Press Top 25, and were headed to the national championship if they could have beaten their rivals, who were 4-7 and a 28 point underdog at the time.
Pat McAfee, West Virginia’s kicker/punter, missed two critical first-half field goals from 20 yards and 32 yards. McAfee, who went on to have tremendous success in the NFL and in the media after he retired, revealed that his car was vandalized and he was sent death threats following the game.
McAfee told Sports Illustrated’s Ross Dellenger that he was so distraught that he considered committing suicide.
“I don’t know if I wanted to live anymore,” McAfee said. “My life changed immediately that day. It was a terrible f***ing night, to be honest with you. It was like something out of a movie. I just drove. I got all the way to Virginia through Maryland. I was gone for a couple of days. I drove, parked, slept and kept driving. I didn’t know where I was. I didn’t know where I was headed. I didn’t know what was coming next.”
McAfee, who is now the host of the wildly-popular Pat McAfee Show, is expected to be in attendance when West Virginia and Pitt play tomorrow night in the 105th edition of the Backyard Brawl.
