Highlighting the approximately 75 miles from Morgantown to Pittsburgh, West Virginia football will wear a special Country Roads Nike uniform, when the Mountaineers and Pitt Panthers renew the “Backyard Brawl” on Thursday, Sept. 1 at Heinz Field.

 

For the 105^th edition of the “Backyard Brawl,” West Virginia’s road uniform will consist of a white helmet, jersey and pants ensemble trimmed in gold and blue. The background in the blue striping on the pants, jersey sleeves, numbers and helmet features a roadmap of Interstate 79 and the various country roads throughout the state of West Virginia.

 

Aside from the background print on the uniform, the wider gold and blue pant striping resembles the center line markings found on the roadways fans use to travel to Mountaineer games.

 

The Mountaineers’ helmet will feature the flying WV placed within the outline of the state of West Virginia, and the same logo will appear on the pants and jersey. The words Cue Country Roads surround the neck on the inside of the jersey in homage of one of the greatest traditions in college athletics.

 

The WVU uniforms are a special, one-game Nike edition to help celebrate the renewal of the “Backyard Brawl” which hasn’t been played in 11 years. The white road uniform was designed in-house by WVU Athletics in conjunction with the school’s Nike representatives. Aside from the proximity between the two schools, the theme in designing the uniform focused on the Mountaineers and their fans who can always find a country road to take them home.

 

“The football series with Pitt is one of the oldest and best rivalries in college football, and there was great sportsmanship and camaraderie between the two schools to get this game back on the schedule,” WVU Director of Athletics Shane Lyons said. “The game is a win for both schools, and we took this opportunity to showcase the renewal with a special uniform that not only highlights the country roads of West Virginia, but the proximity between the two universities connected by Interstate 79.”

 

Pitt leads the overall series 61-40-3, but West Virginia has won 16 of the last 26 contests against the Panthers. The two teams met every season from 1943-2011, and over the final 47 years, WVU posted a 25-20-2 mark. When the famed rivalry was halted in 2011 due to conference realignment, West Virginia had a three-game winning streak over the Panthers. 

 “It will be neat for our players to wear this special edition Country Roads uniform and to experience the rivalry with Pitt,” WVU coach Neal Brown said. “This game is good for college football, and I know our players and coaches are looking forward to visiting Heinz Field and renewing this historic game.”

 

West Virginia's home season gets underway on Saturday, Sept. 10 against Big 12 Conference foe Kansas. Season tickets are priced at $365, a savings of $30 off of the single game price and can be purchased at www.WVUGame.com. Aside from Kansas, the home slate features matchups against defending Big 12 champion Baylor, Oklahoma, TCU, Kansas State and non-conference opponent Towson.