College football season is finally here, and we are less than a week away from West Virginia football opening their season at Milan Puskar Stadium.
And if you live in Morgantown -- or if you plan on making the trip into the city for the game this upcoming weekend -- you better be prepared for a madhouse.
You see, this could be the biggest football game in Morgantown in quite some time. While Pitt’s return to Milan Puskar in the Backyard Brawl last season for the first time in over a decade had an electric atmosphere, neither Pitt nor WVU were looked at as real contenders for much at the time.
But now, WVU comes off a 9-4 season and are mentioned amidst the dark horse picks for Big 12 champion. Meanwhile, their opponent this go-round is No. 8-ranked Penn State, who is looking for their first-ever College Football Playoff bid with the new 12-team system in place this season
Penn State is notorious for their rabid fanbase -- a 2022 study ranked the Nittany Lions as the fourth-largest fanbase in college football, and last season they ranked second-overall in average home game attendance in 2023. Their home stadium was also ranked by The Athletic this year as the third-toughest stadium in the sport.
Penn State doesn’t have the home-field advantage in this game, but this is a very regional rivalry. The Nittany Lions are located in State College, Pa., which sits less than a three hours from Morgantown. It's quite an easy trip to make, and it is almost a guarantee that the program’s fans turn out in droves for this nearby Power Five matchup.
For the first-time ever, FOX is bringing their pre-game show Big Noon Kickoff to Morgantown for this Week One battle which has also been named as a must-watch non-conference matchup for the 2024 season. It will be the first time a major college football kickoff show visits Morgantown since WVU clashed with TCU in a Top 25 matchup in 2014, which brought ESPN College Gameday to town.
In addition, WVU football alum and College Gameday analyst Pat McAfee will also visit town on Friday. While McAfee will join the Gameday crew in College Station, Texas on Saturday, he’ll bring his massively popular Pat McAfee Show to Morgantown the day beforehand. McAfee’s show, which broadcasts to a national audience on ESPN and YouTube, typically visits the College Gameday location each week for a live show on Fridays during the season. But this time, McAfee will differ from his normal routine to bring the spotlight to his alma mater.
All this will likely combine to create an electric and rowdy atmosphere in Morgantown next weekend which is likely to be among the top environments across the sport this season, and one of best in Morgantown in years. With the national college football spotlight shining bright on the city next week and excitement surrounding the program the highest it’s been in during the Neal Brown era, next week is the prime opportunity for WVU to show it is back to being a contender as we enter a new age of the sport.