Backyard Brawl

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D. Jay Talbott/Icon SMIWest Virginia hosts the Brawl on Friday at Mountaineer Field, a house of horrors that seats 60,000.

Imagine that scenario, but with 50,000 people living and dying on each play. That's what the annual Pittsburgh-West Virginia game feels like, and that's why the 102-game-old rivalry has earned the moniker Backyard Brawl.

The two schools sit just 75 miles apart, connected by a short stretch of Interstate 79. But the respective campuses couldn't be less alike.

The Pitt campus is seamlessly integrated into the center city of Pittsburgh, a classic urban setting. The Panthers must compete with professional franchises -- Pirates, Penguins and Steelers -- for a game-day draw, and the prevalence of Penn State and Notre Dame alums in Pittsburgh means the D-I stalwart can't even count on citywide support on Saturdays. In fact, when Pitt hosts the big game, the teams play at Heinz Stadium, home of the Steelers, a few miles from the university.

"If you drive down the streets of Pittsburgh the week of the game, you're not going to see signs that say, 'Let's Go Pitt' or 'Beat West Virginia,'" said Sam Sciullo Jr., author of "Tales from the Pitt Panthers" and other books about his hometown sports scene.

However, signs lauding the home team can be seen all over West Virginia during rivalry week. "It's just the geography and demographics of the situation," Sciullo said.

West Virginia hosts the 102nd edition of the Brawl at 7 p.m. ET Friday. ESPN2 camera crews will set up shop at Mountaineer Field, a convivial house of horrors that seats 60,000 screaming fans, and conveniently abuts the nearby medical center. That's 60,000 people in a town of 27,000 residents. On game day, Morgantown's cup runneth over with rival hatred.

"Down here, there are people who literally don't have one good thing to say about Pittsburgh," said John Antonik, a state native and author of "West Virginia University Football Vault: The History of the Mountaineers."

It's more than just a city vs. country thing. Because of their proximity, the two schools often run into one another on the recruiting trail as they dig for athletic gold in the coal-mining country that dominates the area.

Pennsylvania natives Mike Ditka (from Carnegie), Tony Dorsett (Rochester) and Dan Marino (Pittsburgh) all stayed home and became legendary Panthers, and Jeff Hostetler (Hollsopple) and Marc Bulger (Pittsburgh), chose to abscond south of the state line and become Mountaineers.

Pro Football Hall of Famer Sam Huff made the short trip to Morgantown from the delightfully named Edna Gas, W.Va. Stud Mountaineers linebacker Darryl Talley came down from Cleveland.

"There are plenty of guys who had big games that you've still never heard of, like Bill McKenzie and Mike Sherwood," Antonik said. "This game has a way of making stars out of players that outsiders probably never hear of."

Best of all, however, is the story of the Martha brothers. Siblings from Pittsburgh, Paul and Richie Martha literally split their parents up when they chose separate sides of the rivalry.

"I remember our mother sat on one side [West Virginia] and dad sat on my side [Pitt]," Paul Martha told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 2008. "It was tough playing against your brother and it was a very competitive game. I know how much I wanted to win. I know how much he wanted to win."

Richie Martha was a defensive back for WVU in the 1963 matchup, and his brother was the star running back for an undefeated Pitt squad. The Mountaineers' defense was grinding out what looked like a 10-6 win when Paul Martha broke free for a 46-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, sealing the victory for Pitt and likely causing an icy silence on the ride home the next day.

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