Inside The Panthers

Paranoid? Pitt Closes Practice Before Backyard Brawl

The Pitt Panthers closed their practice before the Backyard Brawl for an interesting reason.

Dominic Campbell

Rodney Hammond Jr. (6) of the Pittsburgh Panthers fights his way into the end zone during the second half of the Backyard Brawl against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, PA on September 1, 2022. Pitt Vs West Virginia Backyard Brawl
Rodney Hammond Jr. (6) of the Pittsburgh Panthers fights his way into the end zone during the second half of the Backyard Brawl against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, PA on September 1, 2022. Pitt Vs West Virginia Backyard Brawl / Michael Longo/For USA Today Network / USA TODAY NETWORK

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers will host their rival in the West Virginia Mountaineers this weekend, Sept. 14, at Acrisure Stadium and are taking some extra precautions before the game.

The major one is that they put their practice indoor, despite the beautiful, sunny weather that Pittsburgh has had this past week, instead of practicing outdoors at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on the South Side.

Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi gave his reasoning for the decision to move practice indoors during his final press conference before the Backyard Brawl, which had to do with making sure no one saw what they were doing, due to fears of potential spies from Morgantown.

"Extra careful, Narduzzi said. "Paranoid. You got people in the hills and they live in the hills, binoculars. Mountaineers man, they’re up there, in the mountains right there. Hey, take nothing for granted, we were inside, you’re exactly right. Good observation, were you in the hill trying to look too?"

Pitt also shares the training facility with the Pittsburgh Steelers, who have a few WVU alumni on their team this season. This includes center Zach Frazier, who they took with the No. 51 overall pick in the Second Round of the 2024 NFL Draft, cornerback Beanie Bishop, who they signed as an undrafted free agent and guard Doug Nester, who is on the practice squad.

All three players helped the Mountaineers win 17-6 last season down in Morgantown and Narduzzi wanted to make sure to keep them out of the Panthers' side of the building, something that Bishop found hilarious.

“They lock all the doors," Bishop said. "They put our face up in the meeting of me, Doug, and Zach and they’re like if you see these guys on the side of the building, kick them out. It’s kind of crazy. I snuck over there one time in the training room and I was just messing with them. They didn’t know I went to West Virginia. I was like, so how do you think y’all going to do this week?”

Pitt and West Virginia will kickoff at 3:30 p.m. on ESPN2 to a sold out crowd, that may break the record for a sporting event in Pittsburgh.

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Dominic Campbell
DOMINIC CAMPBELL

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