West Virginia's Ben Cutter (15) dislodges the ball from the grasp of Ohio University's Sieh Bangura during an NCAA football game, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Athens, Ohio.
West Virginia's Ben Cutter (15) dislodges the ball from the grasp of Ohio University's Sieh Bangura during an NCAA football game, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Athens, Ohio.
MORGANTOWN -- West Virginia University football fans enter Week 3 doing their best impressions of Charlie Brown, with the scribble mark above their heads.
The scribble mark represents frustration with what's occurred the first two weeks of the season, especially last Saturday's 17-10 loss to the Ohio Bobcats.
WVU coach Rich Rodriguez has been doing his best impersonation of Charles M. Schulz by trying to erase those scribble marks over heads by addressing the elephants in the room.
The Mountaineers' Saturday matchup is the 108th edition of the Backyard Brawl against the Pitt Panthers.
Rodriguez and the Mountaineers understand there are still unknowns and uncertainty surrounding WVU entering Saturday's game.
The question marks I mentioned last weekend proved factual, with WVU struggling to contain Ohio quarterback Parker Navarro and the offensive line failing to jell.
Let's dive into a few questions around the meeting between the Mountaineers and Panthers leading into Saturday's 3:30 p.m. kickoff.
Can WVU tackle vs. Pitt?
I lost count of the number of times Mountaineer defenders missed a tackle last Saturday against the Bobcats.
WVU's Fred Perry recorded a game-high 10 tackles. However, according to defensive coordinator Zac Alley, the defensive back probably missed an additional nine tackles.
Alley didn't hold back when asked about the missed tackles situation with the defense.
"I felt like it was technique from our side," Alley said. "We had them dead to rights, unblocked. I counted five times where we had an unblocked defender in [Navarro's] face on the snap of the ball. We weren't under control and did not come into position to be able to tackle him."
Ohio averaged 5.4 yards per play, including 3.8 yards per rush, against West Virginia.
Pitt presents strengths that are similar to Ohio's -- an elusive and physical quarterback in Eli Holstein and a dynamic running back in Desmond Reid.
Can WVU slow down Pitt's offense?
Disclaimer: The Panthers' first two games were against Duquesne, a Division I FCS club, and Central Michigan, which finished 4-8 last season. All due respect to both, but the Panthers won the games by an average of 40 points, beating the Dukes by 52 points, 61-9, and the Chippewas by 28, 45-17, and the Panthers' average of 53 points per game is tied for eighth nationally.
Pitt's offense features Holstein, who's tied for 27th in the FBS in passing yards per game (259.5) and eighth in passing touchdowns (eight).
Add Reid, who rushed for more than 960 yards last year, to the mix and that's a dangerous one-two combo, similar to what Ohio had with Navarro and Sieh Bangura.
WVU's defense is going to need another big game from Perry, along with its linebacking corps.
Who will assume RB No. 2 duties?
Shocker, right? Who would've thought this would be a question after what was announced this week with Jahiem White?
White, who started the first two games, suffered a leg injury against Ohio last weekend. It was then reported on Monday that he's expected to miss the remainder of the season due to his injury.
Rodriguez said Tuesday that he's been impressed with Clay Ash and Cyncir Bowers.
Bowers is the lone running back between the two to score a rushing touchdown.
Rodriguez also mentioned Diore Hubbard as another viable option for the Mountaineer rushing attack.
WVU will be going toe-to-toe against a Pitt defense that's fifth nationally in rushing defense, allowing 34.5 yards per game.
