After Pitt fans set aside the hate they have for West Virginia and wiped away those tears of joy triggered by the 38-31 victory, they should face the truth: There are issues that need to be addressed with this football team.

The Backyard Brawl on Thursday night had the feel of a season-ending, championship game, such were the built-up expectations and energy generated by the record crowd of 70,622. Yet, little beyond a 1-0 record vs. 0-1 was on the line in immediate terms.

There are 11 more scheduled games for Pitt to navigate. No doubt, more unexpected twists and turns, uplifting moments and disappointments will surface over the next three months, but to experience the positive and minimize the negative, Pitt has a lot of work to do.

Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi was pleased with the result. You can’t win 10 until you win one, so the season is off to a good start in a mathematical sense.

(By the way, he’s probably unaware that with a 54-37 all-time, personal record, he needs only six victories to tie the legendary Pop Warner as the second-winningest coach in Pitt football history.)

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Back to what matters: He’ll demand plenty from his coaches and players as they prepare for the Tennessee game next Saturday at Acrisure Stadium. First on the list is to improve Pitt’s defense against the ground game.

Pitt won the game. But what happens if quarterback J.T. Daniels’ pass doesn’t deflect off wide receiver Bryce Ford-Wheaton’s hands and into the belly of Pitt cornerback M.J. Devonshire? Would WVU have maintained possession and kicked a winning field goal?

Devonshire made a great athletic play, flashing his speed on the interception return. But there was an element of good fortune thrown into the mix, too.

Meanwhile, it’s a good sign that men in the coach’s office and locker room recognize the problem.

“We have to fix some things,” senior linebacker SirVocea Dennis said.

Said Narduzzi: “I’m hot, OK. I’m hot. I’m not happy about our run defense.”

Pitt’s run defense — the basis of Narduzzi’s system — was below par. In an overall sense, he believes if the defense shuts down the ground game, the opponent becomes one-dimensional and is easier to defend. A team that runs well can succeed through the air because the defense is pre-occupied with the backs.

West Virginia ran for an astounding 190 yards, led by freshman C.J. Donaldson Jr. (125 yards and a touchdown on only seven carries). And the kid was recruited as a tight end.

With the outcome in question and both teams waiting for someone to make a big play, Donaldson and Tony Mathis Jr. recorded runs of 39 and 23 yards during the Mountaineers’ tie-breaking touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.

Out of character for Pitt? No doubt.

Before Thursday, Pitt had allowed an average of only 97 yards per game on the ground over the past three seasons (126.4 for Narduzzi’s previous seven years at Pitt).

“That doesn’t usually happen,” he said. “We had two young outside linebackers playing their first game. We’ll clean that up. That’s a fact. I’m in charge of that.”

Outside linebackers Bangally Kamara and Shayne Simon were making their first starts for Pitt, perhaps experiencing more growing pains than the coaches anticipated. To be fair, Kamara led Pitt with eight tackles, and he and Simon had two pass breakups each. Dennis played well in the middle, but perhaps he could have moved outside if his backup, Brandon George, would have been available.

Of less concern is Pitt failing to get more than one sack before West Virginia’s final possession. When it mattered most, Daniels was brought down twice. Before that, however, only John Morgan got one while replacing an injured Deslin Alexandre at end.

It’s probably too early in the season to know for sure, but Tennessee might be a superior opponent to West Virginia.

The Volunteers, picked to finish third in the SEC East in the conference’s preseason poll, opened their season Thursday with a dominant 59-10 victory against Ball State. The score was 38-0 at halftime.

That score might not be meaningful to what will happen next Saturday, but Tennessee’s two backs, Jaylen Wright and Jabari Small, combined for 151 yards on the ground.

Pitt also needs a better ground game on the offensive side of the ball. Rodney Hammond Jr. was a bull (16 carries, 74 yards, no losses and two touchdowns), but he wore a boot on his right ankle postgame when he walked into the interview room.

Among the coaches’ most important tasks this week is bringing players down from the euphoria of an emotional night. Pitt’s two regular-season losses last season followed impressive victories against Tennessee on the road and Clemson at home. The two extra days might help.

“That’s something we struggled with last year,” Dennis said. “It’s really about handling success and adversity.”

If they can do that successfully — and a mature, experienced team such as what Narduzzi has built should have an advantage in that regard — Pitt could rise above the problems that surfaced in the opener.

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