Published: November 28, 2009 01:59 am      

Mountaineers beat Pitt on final play

MORGANTOWN — Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium was a cold place to be Friday night. But with the turkey and trimmings all long-since consumed — and a representative of the Gator Bowl in the press box — the facility heated up very quickly.

A new Mountaineer hero rose to the top left a definite impression. Freshman kicker Tyler Bitancurt made four field goals including the game-winning 43-yarder with no time remaining to give West Virginia a unforgettable 19-16 win over No. 8 Pittsburgh in the 102nd edition of the Backyard Brawl.

“That was a heck of a football game,” said West Virginia head coach Bill Stewart. “(Pittsburgh head coach Dave Wannstedt) was a gentleman after the game and I appreciate that.”

Many coaches encourage their kicker before a big kick. Stewart did not.

“I didn’t say a word,” Stewart said. “I looked at everybody but him. (Holder Jeremy) Kash came right up to me and I said, ‘Just knock it in big fella.’”

Nonetheless, Bitancourt responded.

“I was trying to keep as many thoughts out as possible,” Bitancourt said. “In my head I was saying, ‘I’m going to make this kick.’ And I kicked it through.”

Bitancourt’s clutch kick followed a 10-play, 42-yard drive led by quarterback Jarrett Brown. Playing his final game at Mountaineer Field, Brown ran three times for 21 yards and completed a key pass to Alric Arnett for 11 yards to put WVU in Pittsburgh territory.

“I came over to the sideline and talked to coach Miller on the phone,” Brown said. “He told me, ‘Just get your mind right for a two-minute drill.’ And I did. But we were ready for that situation.”

Brown ended the night 19-for-31 for 164 yards. More importantly, he did not turn the ball over and managed the game in a way that gave the Mountaineers an opportunity to win.

“I thought Jarrett handled the clock well. He managed the game well and made no bad major decisions,” Stewart said. “Jarrett Brown played very, very solid, very, very well and I’m really happy for him.”

“I thought the defense played really great and that made it better for me,” Brown said. “Just try to manage the game, not try and force things, we thought they were playing so well we would just take what the defense gave us.”

West Virginia’s defense bent, but they did not break. For times, the Panthers entered Mountaineer territory. They only managed three field goals. They also intercepted a pair of Pittsburgh quarterback Bill Stull’s passes.

"It was good. It was good — and it was really, really good,” Stewart said. “I’m proud of the way our defense kept us in the game.”

The first half was a tale of missed opportunities. The Panthers earned the first scoring chance, using nine plays and 4:38 to drive the ball to the West Virginia 29. Dion Lewis gained 30 of his 158 yards on the drive. But it ended with nothing as Dan Hutchins pushed his 46-yard field goal attempt wide right.

The Mountaineers spent the early part of the first quarter trying to overcome penalties. They spent the later part of the period piecing together a drive. Taking the ball on their own 40 with 5:31 left in the first quarter, they utilized Jarrett Brown’s abilities running and throwing the ball.

After the first quarter turned into the second, West Virginia found themselves on the Panthers’ 3. But a third-and-goal quarterback draw gained just one yard. Stewart decided to go for it on fourth down instead of trying a chip-shot field goal. Brown rolled out to his left, but was flushed from his moving pocket and dropped for a nine-yard loss.

A second foray into Pittsburgh territory stalled on the Panthers’ 28. Again, Stewart cast aside the possibility of a field goal attempt to go for a first down on a fourth-and-9. Called on to throw again, Brown was flushed from his pocket again and his scramble only gained one yard.

The Panthers took the momentum and launched a drive of their own. They traveled 54 yards in 11 plays and 4:23, moving to the WVU 19. Hutchins scored the game’s first points with a 37-yard field goal.

Bill Stull completed three passes for 45 yards on that drive. But just before the half he made a throw he wanted to have back. Facing a third-and-4 on his own 35, the Pitt quarterback was errant on his throw. Keith Tandy intercepted it on the Panthers’ 46 and gave the Mountaineers a golden scoring opportunity by returning it to the Pitt 40.

With 1:03 left in the first half, the Mountaineers moved the ball down to the Pitt 3. But with no timeouts and just nine seconds on the clock, Stewart chose a field goal attempt and Tyler Bitancurt made a 20-yard chip shot.

West Virginia began the second half with another drive into Pittsburgh territory. The key play of the march was a 24-yard pass from Brown to fellow senior Wes Lyons. The drive ended on the Pittsburgh 26 and Bitancurt converted a 44-yard field goal attempt to give the Mountaineers their first lead of the game.

But the lead did not last long. Pittsburgh retaliated with a drive of their own that stalled on the Mountaineers’ 13. Lewis did more than keep the drive alive, taking a fourth-and-1 pitch to the outside for 30 yards to the West Virginia 20. Hutchins made a 30-yard field goal to level the score again.

Until this point, Noel Devine had been a non-factor with only 34 yards on 10 carries. On the next play from scrimmage, he became one. Taking a handoff in the spread, the junior darted through a hole in the line, then found more running room down the left sideline. He turned on the jets and outraced the Panthers for an 88-yard touchdown.

“Woody Hayes, Frank Kush, Don Nehlen, trap — they don’t even have it anymore,” Stewart said when asked what the play call was on Devine’s touchdown. “I’m probably the only coach that calls a trap now in modern-day football. So you’re looking at a genius!”

The Mountaineers extended their lead to 16-6 thanks to a Bitancurt 39-yard field goal. The Panthers cut the lead to 16-9 with 7:37 left in the contest following another long drive and a 36-yard field goal by Hutchins.

The Panthers got the ball back with 4:08 left on their own 25. Stull immediately went to work. First he hit Jonathan Baldwin for 15 yards, then he hit Mike Shanahan for 10 yards to put the ball at midfield. On the next play, Stull floated a perfect pass to Baldwin for a 50-yard touchdown to tie the game and set up the heart-stopping finish.

West Virginia (8-3, 4-2) ends their regular season with a trip to Rutgers next weekend.

“We’re undefeated at home for the first time since ’93 and the senior class has got a signature win,” Stewart said. “And I’m real proud of that.”

— Contact Jed Lockett

at jlockett@bdtonline.com

*****

Pittsburgh....................0 3 3 10 — 16

West Virginia..............0 3 10 6 — 19

Second Quarter

Pitt—FG Hutchins 37, 3:21.

WVU—FG Bitancurt 20, :05.

Third Quarter

WVU—FG Bitancurt 43, 9:18.

Pitt—FG Hutchins 30, 4:52.

WVU—Devine 88 run (Bitancurt kick), 4:34.

Fourth Quarter

WVU—FG Bitancurt 39, 10:05.

Pitt—FG Hutchins 36, 7:37.

Pitt—Baldwin 50 pass from Stull (Hutchins kick), 2:54.

WVU—FG Bitancurt 43, :00.

A—56,123.

Pitt WVU

First downs 15 18

Rushes-yards 29-146 43-205

Passing 179 164

Comp-Att-Int 16-30-2 19-32-0

Return Yards 9 12

Punts-Avg. 3-45.3 5-43.2

Fumbles-Lost 0-0 0-0

Penalties-Yards 2-20 6-46

Time of Possession 29:47 30:13

———

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—Pittsburgh, Lewis 26-155, Graham 1-(minus 1), Stull 2-(minus 8). West Virginia, Devine 17-134, R.Clarke 10-29, Brown 13-21, Starks 2-13, Sanders 1-8.

PASSING—Pittsburgh, Stull 16-30-2-179. West Virginia, Brown 19-31-0-164, Team 0-1-0-0.

RECEIVING—Pittsburgh, Baldwin 8-127, Shanahan 2-17, Lewis 2-14, Dickerson 2-12, McGee 1-6, Hynoski 1-3. West Virginia, Arnett 7-71, Sanders 3-15, Austin 3-12, Lyons 2-44, Starks 2-16, Urban 1-4, Devine 1-2.