There have been a lot of painful moments in college football history. It's filled with them, from Kick Six in the 2013 Iron Bowl, to Michigan's loss in The Big House to FCS opponent Appalachian State in 2007. And in fact, that same year as the latter game, West Virginia had their own painful moment. But is it the worst of them all?
The Mountaineers were ranked No. 2 in the country entering the final week of the 2007 season, with archrival Pittsburgh in the Backyard Brawl staring them down. If the Mountaineers won, they were a lock to advance to the 2007 BCS Championship Game. Led by head coach Rich Rodriguez and his innovative spread option offensive attack, powered by Pat White and Steve Slaton, the Mountaineers were a deadly foe.
But the wildest things happen in rivalry games. Pat McAfee missed multiple field goals for West Virginia, Pat White suffered an injury, and the Mountaineers would fall 13-9 to their biggest rival in front of a home crowd, ending their hopes of a national championship. Rich Rodriguez would take the Michigan job after the game, and they have yet to return quite that close to a national title game.
One social media user on X recently proposed a question: what's the most painful moment in college football history. One WVU fan proposed that the 2007 Backyard Brawl, or '13-9' as it's infamously known, might be the worst of the worst.
Literally the only answer to this is in modern times is West Virginia losing 13-9 to Pitt in the last regular season game of 2007
— Three Year Letterman (@3YearLetterman) May 30, 2026
That was the one shot they were ever going to get at a national championship and they pissed it away against a 4 TD underdog who was their arch… https://t.co/KdcyMj62rd
It's hard to argue with their logic, as it was the best shot West Virginia had at a national championship in nearly two decades, and the progra hasn't close again. And the loss that prevented it came to a four-touchdown underdog and arch-rival in front of home crowd, which was book-ended with the loss of a coach.
Rich Rodriguez got his lick back when he returned to Morgantown for a second stint as head coach in 2025, beating Pitt on September 13 ( or '9-13') in double-overtime in the Backyard Brawl. But the 2007 edition of the game will forever haunt WVU fans. Let us know if you agree with the assesment of this WVU fan.
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