‘Pitt Sucks’: WVU HC Rich Rodriguez Taunts Panthers Again

Rich Rodriguez has wasted no time re-igniting the rivalry between Pitt and West Virginia since he was re-hired as the WVU head coach in December.

Rodriguez, of course, doesn’t need to do anything to pump the Backyard Brawl, considering the series’ history and his own. But he’s taken a couple of shots at the Panthers since officially taking the job.

He used his introductory press conference to send a shot at Pitt, and as he took the court during a WVU basketball win against Cincinnati on Wednesday night, he took another shot.

“We start practice Tuesday, the spring game is open to the public, and again, buy some season tickets,” Rodriguez said into the mic. “By the way, there’s 206 days until we play Pitt. Oh, yeah, that’s right, and Pitt sucks. Let’s go Mountaineers.”

The words ignited an “Eat s***, Pitt” chant from the WVU fans in attendance.

#WVU football head coach Rich Rodriguez has a special message for WVU fans — and a Backyard Brawl countdown update! #HailWV x @GoldAndBlueNtn pic.twitter.com/1uwvSJYbmt

— Ryan Decker (@RyanDecker_) February 20, 2025

Before his introductory press conference in December, Rodriguez made an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show with former West Virginia punter and kicker Pat McAfee, and of course, the Backyard Brawl was brought up.

McAfee mentioned the Brawl taking place on Sept. 13, in the third week of the season, in Morgantown, W.Va., and Rodriguez let his feeling for the Pitt Panthers be known.

“I probably misspoke a little bit earlier when I said the two worst four-letter words are soft and lazy,” Rodriguez told McAfee. “I left out Pitt.”

And the West Virginia crowd in the background, of course, erupted with an “eat s*** Pitt” chant.

Rodriguez notably ended his first tenure at WVU with a shocking 13-9 loss at Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown, which knocked then-No. 2 West Virginia out of the national championship game picture. Rodriguez himself left soon after for Michigan, a disastrous three-year stint that ended with his dismissal.

Rich Rodriguez bounced around with head coaching stops at Arizona and Jacksonville State and other stops at Ole Miss, Hawaii and Louisiana-Monroe. He accepted the WVU job in December, returning for the second time.

Pitt won the renewal of the Backyard Brawl in 2022, a 38-31 triumph at Acisure Stadium courtesy of an M.J. Devonshire pick-six in the fourth quarter. It was the first Brawl in over a decade, and the crowd at Acrisure set a sporting event crowd record in Pittsburgh.

West Virginia won the only Brawl in Morgantown, W.Va., a 17-6 result in 2023, but the Panthers got back with a come-from-behind 38-34 win at Acrisure Stadium this season — fueled by 350 total yards and three touchdowns from Eli Holstein.

Pitt and West Virginia are scheduled to play the final game of a four-game series in September, which comes on Sept. 13. Rodriguez, when previously asked about the importance of the Backyard Brawl, said it’s the biggest game of the season for WVU every season.