Morgan saved his best for the Brawl
Pitt defensive end John Morgan has appeared in 40 football games in a Pitt uniform throughout the course of his career. He may have produced his finest game as a Panther in Pitt’s 38-31 win over West Virginia on Thursday night.
“John Morgan was outstanding,” Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi said after the game.
That is undeniable.
Morgan finished with four tackles, three tackles for loss, one sack, a forced fumble, and applied pressure to JT Daniels during West Virginia potentially game-tying drive. The senior defensive end was everywhere on the field on Thursday, and he said that game in front of 70,000 fans was the most memorable one of his career to date.
“This is my senior year and being able to be that leader on the defense and playing in this magnitude of a game,” he told reporters after the game. ”I’d definitely rank it number one for sure.”
It’s hard to argue. Thursday marked the return of the heated Backyard Brawl after an 11-year hiatus. It is one of the greatest rivalries in college football, and it took center stage to open the season. Morgan had a feeling it was a big game in the lead up to it, but he said it hit him when the team ran onto the field prior to kickoff.
“I definitely think it exceeded my expectations,” Morgan said of his first Backyard Brawl. "You have to go into this type of game understanding this is a magnitude that goes back a lineage of games.”
Morgan needed to step on Thursday. Pitt’s vaunted pass rush has arguably been the best in college football over the past three years, but stars Calijah Kancey and Habakkuk Baldondo had quiet games by their lofty standards. Senior captain Deslin Alexandre left the game with an injury just before halftime.
Morgan felt he needed to do his part, and said Alexandre encouraged him, and generally that is always the expectation between he, Baldonado, and Alexandre.
“It’s like a three-man punch,” he explained. “Any of us can get it any single day.”
Following MJ Devonshire’s electric 56-yard punt interception return that gave Pitt a 38-31 lead. Pitt had to stop West Virginia one last time with 2:58 remaining protecting a one-score advantage.
“Honestly, it’s everything,” Morgan said of playing in that final drive. “That’s the moments we live for, that’s the moments you watch on film in January and you say if we get in this moment we have to seal the win. That’s when you put the target on your back saying they get the ball back, it’s do or die now. You have to be prepared and you have to work for those type of moments. It was crazy, I ain’t going to lie to you.”
On 3rd and 11 late in the contest, Morgan once again broke free from the protection and made a direct route to Daniels. He apparently knocked Daniels to the turf for his second sack of the game, but he stayed off the ground and eventually was brought down by Baldonado and David Green, who were subsequently credited with the sack.
“I thought his knee was down,” Morgan said jokingly. “I have to talk to Coach P (Charlie Partridge) and EJ (Borghetti) and call the NCAA and see if I can get that one on the stat book.”
Pitt’s pass rush ultimately finished with three sacks, 8 tackles for loss, and seven QB hurries. It took a little while to get going, but the group stepped up late and made things difficult on Daniels, who was making his first start for the Mountaineers.
“You keep giving pressure, eventually you’re going to get there,” said Morgan. “Pressure is good for us. At the end of the day if your causing pressure that means he’s looking around. I call it and say he’s looking around for ghosts.”