Pitt Football: Notre Dame Fills Void Left By Penn State

A Pitt win today over Notre Dame will silence Dave Wannstedt's critics for the time being. A win will boost Pitt's confidence heading into Big East play.

Win or lose today, Pitt should celebrate its historic rivalry and long relationship with the Irish. Notre Dame gives Pitt its high-profile non-conference rivalry—what Penn State would have done had the Lions stayed on the schedule?

In 1889, Penn State hosted the Western University of Pennsylvania (WUP changed its name to Pitt in 1908) and won 32-0.  Then 103 years later the Nittany Lions decided they didn't need their Pennsylvania cousins anymore and abruptly ended the series creating bad blood in the process.

In 1909, Notre Dame traveled to Forbes Field in Pittsburgh and beat the Panthers 6-0—101 years later the rivalry is still going strong.

Like Penn State, the Irish wanted to end the series after their 2004 loss to the Panthers at South Bend. Penn State's rationale for dropping Pitt when it first joined the Big Ten: There was no room on the schedule. The Irish's rationale was a new scheduling configuration that would include only a few true away-games.

The Pitt athletic administration has consistently demanded of both Penn State and Notre Dame a home-and-home series of games. In the '90s Pitt was able to re-sign Penn State to a four-game home-and-home series and Notre Dame had previously signed on until 2004.

Penn State coach Joe Paterno has never been particularly fond of Pitt. After the 2000 game at Three Rivers Stadium, a 12-0 setback for Paterno, Joe cited a ticket plan that forced Penn State fans to purchase tickets to several Pitt home games, as his rationale was to end the series.

What has been particularly revealing about his antipathy towards Pitt was the abrupt end to the Pitt-Penn State men's basketball series after the Dec. 10, 2004 game and a pending non-renewal of the women's basketball series.

Paterno was badgered by the press to defend his decision to drop Pitt. While Paterno ranted on,  the Panthers were trying to sign Notre Dame up for a series of games beyond 2004. Notre Dame avoided making a commitment.

The press picked up the story and Notre Dame and the Big East weren't being depicted in a favorable light. Finally, former Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese intervened. Tranghese was the driving force behind the nine-game Pitt-Notre Dame series that resumed in 2008 and concludes in 2016. The games were to be played home-and-home.

Whereas Penn State and Pitt have very little in common these days, Notre Dame and Pitt have much to share, like a spirited men's basketball rivalry and shared voting interests in league business.

Back in the day when Pittsburgh's population topped 500,000—it's bobbing now right around the 300,000 mark—the Irish could come to Pittsburgh to recruit and slake the thunder of Irish and Italian Catholics who traveled to old Pitt Stadium to see their Catholic icon play football.

Just as Penn State had done, Notre Dame provides the Panthers with a sell-out crowd and guaranteed national television whenever they play in Pittsburgh. Pitt-Notre Dame reunites generations of Pitt fans—fathers, sons, and grandchildren—who have their special story of a Pitt upset win.

Pitt trails in the series 44-20-1.

Notre Dame has always been the big dog in this series. Every Pitt win, just as a victory over Penn State had been, is savored in perpetuity.

Notre Dame needs Pitt as well.  They can count on Pitt to side with Notre Dame whenever Big East coaches squawk about unfair advantages the Irish demand.

With Pitt, the Irish have nine pro-Notre Dame votes in the Big East.

Despite what Penn State fans write in their blogs, Pitt has moved on. Yes, it would be nice to play Penn State again, but renewing the rivalry lost its hot topic status a few years ago.

Steve Pederson, Pitt AD, admitted as much in interviews last spring. During his first tenure as Pitt AD, he was besieged by requests to renew the series. Now, during his second, he claims fans have not raised the issue.

Pitt-Notre plays a ego-boosting role in the psyche of Panther fans and illustrates for them the crankiness and unreasonableness of Penn State, especially Joe Paterno.

Despite what Nittany Lion fans believe, Notre Dame is a bigger name in college football than Penn State. If the Irish can play home-and-home games with Pitt, so can Penn State. 

Of course, that reasoning may need to be amended after 2016 Pitt-Notre Dame game. No games with the Irish are scheduled after that.