Wren Baker Talks Attempts to Extend Backyard Brawl, Other Future Scheduling Challenges

Originally posted on West Virginia Mountaineers on SI
By Schuyler Callihan | Last updated Aug 22, 2025 1:37 PM ET

The Backyard Brawl will come to a pause after this year's game on September 13th in Morgantown, and is scheduled to resume in Pittsburgh on September 8th, 2029. That three-year gap could be eliminated, but it's going to take a lot of work on both sides, as each will likely have to cancel a game to make the Brawl happen.

As of today, the ACC is playing an eight-game league schedule, but with the SEC officially moving to nine, the expectation is that the ACC will follow suit, according to Ross Dellenger of Yahoo! Sports. If that's the case, then Pitt is booked through 2028 and overbooked in 2029 by one game.

WVU athletic director Wren Baker told reporters on Friday that he has had conversations with Pitt's new AD Allen Greene about continuing the rivalry.

"A few days before those comments were made (by Pat Narduzzi at ACC media day), I actually reached out to the athletic director at Pitt to extend the series, so they knew fully well we were trying to extend the series. We're looking at a lot of things when we look at scheduling. We’re trying to build a schedule that sells tickets and does create interest. We’re trying to build a schedule that affords our team the best opportunity to have the kind of season they need to have to advance to the CFP. That’s the end goal. But we’re also trying to build a schedule that brings people to West Virginia, to Morgantown. I’m a huge believer that when you look at the economics of our state and the opportunities to create businesses in our state, tourism is one of, if not the biggest. I think it’s a responsibility of ours to promote tourism for the state. I’ll just say that we have spent hours and hours and hours analyzing scheduling opportunities. I think we have a pretty executable plan, no matter what happ ens in the next few days, and we’ll be able to execute it pretty quickly.”

On West Virginia's side of this, they could get some help from Alabama if they choose to cancel the home-and-home series, which is set to begin next season. The buyout would be $2 million, and even in an era where every dollar is precious, the Tide can afford it if they really want to axe the series. If that series comes off the books, that will create an opening for WVU in 2026 and 2027.

The Panthers have Miami (OH), UCF, and Wisconsin next year, and then Wisconsin (in Ireland), Western Michigan, and UConn in '27. Pitt would have to cancel with either UCF or Wisconsin in 2026, or else they'd be playing three Power Four non-conference games, which makes zero sense. They won't cancel the Ireland game the following year, so it would have to be either Western Michigan or UConn.

WVU has Tennessee (in Charlotte), along with Youngstown State and Akron. The Vols would probably like to keep West Virginia on the schedule because the SEC is requiring their members to play one higher-level opponent in non-conference play, and at the moment, that's the only game they have scheduled. WVU would have to go against its scheduling philosophy for a year and play two Power Four opponents if it wants Pitt on the schedule in 2028.