GAME NOTES: With the Big East title already wrapped up, the second-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers will now attempt to punch their ticket to the national title game, as they take on the Pittsburgh Panthers in the 100th edition of the Backyard Brawl this Saturday. The Big East crown was on the line in Morgantown last weekend and the Mountaineers punished then 20th-ranked Connecticut, 66-21, to snatch their fourth title in the past five years. The win, coupled with a Kansas loss on the same day, propelled WVU to the second ranking in the Bowl Championship Series standings and that has the program on the verge of earning a spot in the national title game. The team is already guaranteed a place in a BCS bowl courtesy of its Big East title, but with a win this weekend, there is a very good chance WVU would be headed to New Orleans to compete for the national championship. The Mountaineers come into this contest with a full head of steam, as they have won their last six outings. The team has won 10 of its 11 games this season, including all five at home. As for Pittsburgh, its has little to play for in the regular season finale, but don't expect it to go quietly against its long time rival. The Panthers sit at just 4-7 overall and they would need a win in this game to avoid their first eight-loss campaign since the 1998 season. Pittsburgh, which is coming off a 48-37 loss to South Florida last weekend, hasn't won on the road (0-4) all season and it has dropped six straight games on foreign soil dating back to a year ago. The Panthers however, do own a 59-37-3 advantage in the all-time "Backyard Brawl" series with WVU, although the Mountaineers have taken four of the past five meetings, including a 45-27 triumph in Pittsburgh last season.

The Panthers haven't been all too productive on offense this season and they rank in the bottom part of the Big East in scoring (23.7 ppg) as well as total yards (328.1 total ypg). The team though, has found some success on the ground, where it is gaining 139.9 ppg thanks to the stellar play of freshman LeSean McCoy. The talented back has rushed for 1,180 yards and 14 touchdowns, in addition to catching 32 passes for 234 yards and another score. His 14 rushing touchdowns are a school-record for a freshman, surpassing Tony Dorsett's mark of 13 set in 1973. McCoy went past Dorsett last weekend, when he rushed for 55 yards and three touchdowns in a losing cause to USF. While it wasn't his best game of the season, McCoy did move closer to breaking Terrell Willis' (1,261 yards, Rutgers) Big East record for the most rushing yards in a single season by a freshman set in 1993. Pat Bostick is another freshman at a key position for Pittsburgh, but the rookie quarterback hasn't had the same kind off success as McCoy. For the season, Bostick has completed a solid 62.2 percent of his pass attempts, but for just 159.2 ypg. He has also thrown 11 interceptions against just eight touchdowns, clearly a negative ratio. Last weekend, Bostick completed 24-of-37 tosses for 298 yards and two touchdowns, but he was picked off three times. Two of those interceptions were returned for touchdowns by USF, and that simply can't happen if Pittsburgh hopes to spring an upset of WVU.

Defensively, the Panthers have done a pretty good job this season and they even rank third in the league in total yards (308.1 ypg). The unit has fared well against both the run (132.8 ypg) and pass (175.3 ypg), but it has forced a mere 16 turnovers. Getting to opposing quarterbacks though, hasn't been an issue for Pittsburgh, which has recorded 33 sacks. Last weekend, the defense did all that it could to slow down USF, as it gave up only 352 yards in the loss. Pittsburgh forced a pair of turnovers in the game, while posting five sacks. Scott McKillop, as usual, led the way with 18 tackles and a forced fumble, while Joe Clermond notched two sacks. For the season, McKillop leads the entire Big East with 142 stops and Clermond ranks third in the conference with 9.5 sacks.

Behind their explosive ground attack, the Mountaineers are leading the Big East in scoring with an average of 41.6 ppg. The team is rushing for 310.1 ypg to rank second nationally and it has scored 44 of its 58 offensive touchdowns on the ground. Quarterback Patrick White has thrust his name into the Heisman Trophy race with his tremendous play down the stretch and he leads this dynamic ground attack with 1,144 yards behind a 7.0 yard per carry clip. He has thrown for another 1,498 yards, while totaling 26 touchdowns (14 rushing). White has been extremely accurate as well, completing 69.0 percent of his pass attempts with only four interceptions. In what could be considered the team's biggest game of the season, White ran for 186 yards and two scores and he threw for 107 yards and another touchdown in a rout of UConn last weekend. Noel Devine added 118 yards and a score on the ground for WVU, which rolled up 517 rushing yards against one of the better defensive unit's in the Big East. Steve Slaton, who finished fourth in the Heisman race last season, posted 54 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries last weekend. The speedy and talented back has now rushed for 1,042 yards and team-high 17 touchdowns this season, and he has also caught 25 passes for 347 yards and another score. With all the attention paid to the ground game, it is easy to overlook wideout Darius Reynaud, who has had a solid campaign of his own. Reynaud hauled in five balls for 76 yards and a score last weekend, and he leads the team in catches (55), receiving yards (637) and receiving touchdowns (11) for the season.

There is no drop off when it comes to the WVU defense, as the unit ranks first in the Big East in scoring (17.6 ppg) as well as total yards (298.0 ypg). The defense is holding opponents to a league-low 103.0 ypg on the ground, and it has also forced 31 turnovers. The team has even had success getting into the backfield, ranking second in the conference with 36 sacks. Last weekend, the Mountaineers forced three turnovers and logged five sacks in blowout of UConn. The defense did give up 392 total yards in the game, but many of those yards came after the contest had been already decided. Mortty Ivy headed the charge, as he registered 11 tackles, two sacks and a forced fumble. He now ranks second on the team with 76 tackles to go along with six sacks. Marc Magro and Johnny Dingle are two players that have really had a big impact on this unit and they have combined for 16 sacks and 29 TFLs on the year.

It all comes down to this for WVU, which showed it can win a big game by pounding UConn last weekend. The Mountaineers are now facing a lesser opponent, but in a year of consistent upsets, they must not overlook their long time rival. Still, WVU is just too talented for the Panthers to handle, so expect them to run away with this one behind the duo of White and Slaton.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: West Virginia 44, Pittsburgh 21