If WVU can play Penn State, Duquesne, Pitt on consecutive football Saturdays, why not Pitt vs. Duquesne?
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A random tweet about West Virginia opening the 2023 football season with consecutive games against Penn State, Duquesne and Pitt raised this question Wednesday afternoon (also on Twitter):
Why not Pitt vs. Duquesne in football?
Major pats on the back to West Virginia for scheduling the first three games of its 2023 football season at Penn State and home to Duquesne and Pitt. I'm also thinking Duquesne/Pitt at Heinz Field is a game long overdue. Most recently played 1939 @ Pitt Stadium. Dukes won, 21-13.
— Jerry DiPaola (@JDiPaola_Trib) May 19, 2021
The teams, both steeped in rich tradition going back decades, have met only seven times — all at Pitt Stadium — with the Panthers holding a 5-2 series edge. Duquesne won the last matchup of the two schools separated by two miles of Forbes Avenue, putting a 21-13 victory in the books on Oct. 21, 1939. The turning point was said to be a poor pass by the Duquesne quarterback that turned into a touchdown when it was tipped from one receiver to another.
After the tweet was posted, a Duquesne supporter did some research and discovered that Pitt was ranked No. 1 in the nation at the time of the ‘39 game after claiming national championships under coach Jock Sutherland in 1936 and 1937. The Dukes ended the season 8-0-1 and ranked No. 10 in the nation. Pitt finished 5-4, its worst record in 16 years.
Worth noting, Duquesne also was the only team to beat the ‘36 Pitt team, 7-0.
The series ended after that ‘39 game and never was resumed. An Associated Press story that ran in the New York Times had this to say:
“No reasons were announced for the break, which became known at a meeting between athletic directors Jimmy Hagan of Pitt and Aldo (Buff) Donelli of Duquesne.” Some trivia: Donelli coached both Duquesne and the Pittsburgh Steelers for part of the 1941 season, handling the Steelers in the morning and the Dukes in the afternoon.
The schools’ basketball teams, whose games had been marred by on-court fights, also ended their series in 1939 and didn’t meet again until 1953.
When the subject of a football “City Game” was brought up to Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi a few years ago, he didn’t totally dismiss the notion. After all, Pitt regularly plays other FCS schools, including Youngstown State five times this century. Duquesne just played YSU two years ago, losing, 34-14.