West Virginia is No. 2 of a kind

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- The curse of No. 2 claimed another victim.

West Virginia is out of the national title race. Ohio State is in.

In a season defined by upsets, Pittsburgh came up with an enormous one, beating the second-ranked Mountaineers, 13-9, Saturday night to throw another curveball at the Bowl Championship Series.

A win away from playing for the national championship, the Mountaineers were expected to roll over rival Pittsburgh (5-7) on their way to New Orleans for the BCS title game.

“I thought we were ready,” said West Virginia Coach Rich Rodriguez, speaking slowly and struggling to get through his postgame news conference. “We picked an awful time to have our worst offensive game in years.”

No. 2 had already lost six times this season, five times to unranked teams. In a year when Appalachian State beat Michigan and 41-point underdog Stanford beat USC, West Virginia (10-2) losing the 100th Backyard Brawl as a four-touchdown favorite shouldn’t be all that shocking.

Especially after the Mountaineers lost Heisman Trophy contender Pat White to a dislocated thumb in the second quarter. White tried to play in the fourth quarter, but he couldn’t conjure a comeback.

When Pitt punter Dave Brytus ran out of the end zone for a safety on the final clock-killing play, West Virginia, a program that has won more games then any other in major college football without winning a national title, was done.

Fans sat stone-faced. The Panthers did some dancing on the WV logo at midfield. Some West Virginia players took offense, and there was a push or two. Most of the Mountaineers just trudged off slowly.

Sitting at home in Columbus, Ohio, the Buckeyes got the last upset they needed to get themselves back in the national title game.

In fact, they got it twice. No. 1 Missouri lost in the Big 12 championship game, 38-17, to Oklahoma, making the BCS a total mess heading into selection Sunday.

Almost a month ago, Ohio State was No. 1 and in control of the BCS title race when it lost at home, 28-21, to Illinois.

The Buckeyes beat Michigan a week later to lock up the Big Ten then watched week after week as the other contenders went down.

They needed one more to fall Saturday and West Virginia was first to oblige.

The Mountaineers will have to be content with their second BCS bid in the last three seasons and a trip to the Orange or Sugar bowls.

“The whole thing was just a nightmare,” Rodriguez said. “It was a flat-out nightmare.”