When it comes to Pitt football, there is no bigger game than the Backyard Brawl, and this… When it comes to Pitt football, there is no bigger game than the Backyard Brawl, and this year’s matchup could determine the Big East Conference champion.

It’s the biggest game of the season for both Pitt (6-3 overall, 3-2 Big East) and West Virginia (8-2, 4-1). And although there are hundreds of storylines, head coach Walt Harris summed up the game’s significance in just a few words in his weekly press conference yesterday.

“A win, for either team, says it all,” he said. “It’s West Virginia, the Backyard Brawl. You don’t need to say anything else.”

For the Panthers, a loss would eliminate them from Big East title contention and a shot at either a BCS bowl game or the Gator Bowl, a New Year’s Day bowl that promises a huge payday.

But for Pitt to stay in the hunt for a conference championship, it must first get past a talented West Virginia team that has outscored opponents by about two touchdowns per game. Harris believes that the key to stopping West Virginia is to shut down the running game, a task that that starts with tackling.

“If we don’t tackle well,” Harris said, “we’re in for a long game.”

Harris’ concerns about stopping the running game are more than warranted. The Mountaineers have three players in the Big East’s list of top 10 rushers. Tailback Kay-Jay Harris currently leads the Big East in yards per carry with 6.0. Through nine games he has 820 yards on 137 carries.

In addition to hurting teams through the passing game, West Virginia quarterback Rasheed Marshall has proven to be a threat on the ground. He has more rushing yards in his career than any quarterback in Big East history and is currently seventh in the conference with 686 yards.

Linebacker H.B. Blades said that stopping the run is all about the defensive players trusting each other and sticking to their assignments. That, according to Blades, is the only way to limit the number of big plays.

“We just can’t have assignment breakdowns,” Blades said. “Assignment breakdowns lead to big plays in the passing game and the running game. As long as we play within the defense and everybody makes the plays that come to them, we’ll be fine.”

Pitt tailback Raymond Kirkley currently leads the team in rushing with 544 yards on 151 attempts for a meager 3.6 yards per carry. As a team, the Panthers are averaging only 106.7 yards per game and 2.8 yards per carry. Compare that to the Mountaineers, who rank fifth in the country with an average of 258.3 yards per game.

Offensively, the Panthers will have to deal with West Virginia’s unconventional defense, which utilizes five linebackers who have the ability to blitz or drop into coverage on any given play.

Sophomore quarterback Tyler Palko will be faced with the challenge of dealing with all of those linebackers. Harris continues to be impressed by Palko’s big play ability.

“He’s done a nice job,” Harris said. “He made some plays in the game [at Notre Dame], and I grade every play, and my first comment was, ‘wow,’ W-O-W with an exclamation mark. He made some plays in that game that I didn’t coach him to do. I can’t take credit for that, but that’s what good players do.”

Palko is equally confident in the job that Harris has done as head coach, and feels that his future with Pitt should not be questioned.

“I really wish that everybody in the media would take a look at the questions they’re asking about coach Harris’ future here,” Palko said. “This team is 100 percent behind him. I am his biggest supporter, and I wish the questions about his job security would be done and over with.”

Palko also recognized the significance of this game and was not shy about admitting that this is a game that he had circled on this calendar.

“I think, any rivalry game, you have that mentality,” Palko said. “Whether it’s nationally recognized or not, this is a big, big game.”

Thursday’s game will be televised nationally by ESPN. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m.