MORGANTOWN - In West Virginia's first 10 games of the season, the Mountaineers have used the same five offensive linemen for every meaningful snap. At times that has worked out just fine, at other times, well, not so much.

Know this, though: The play of those five will be critical in Friday night's Backyard Brawl with Pitt.

Sure, that's a bit of a cliche. In all of the history of football, has a coach ever volunteered that controlling the line of scrimmage is not paramount to a team's success? No.

But in this case it rings a bit truer. And that's because the strength of Pitt's defense is up front and the supposed weakness of the Mountaineers is six inches across that line of scrimmage.

"If we don't do something to control their defensive line,'' West Virginia coach Bill Stewart said, "it could be a very long night.''

Then again, West Virginia's offensive linemen are used to long nights. And long days. And long practices.

Those five starters - tackles Selvish Capers and Donnie Barclay, guard Josh Jenkins and alternating center-guards Eric Jobe and Joe Madsen - have taken more than 650 snaps this season. The only time any of them have been replaced was at the end of a couple of easy wins.

"We've only played with five guys on every offensive rep. That's got to be a first,'' WVU offensive coordinator Jeff Mullen said. "I would really wonder how many Division I programs have played the same five guys on every rep the whole year. They're beat up. We knew going into the year they were young, so now they're young and they're beat up. That's a bad combination.''

But it's not anything that those five linemen find a bit unusual.

"We haven't used it as an excuse,'' Barclay said.

So how has West Virginia's line performed? Well, it has been hot and cold. On the one hand, the Mountaineers are running the football fairly well, ranking second in the Big East and No. 33 nationally. And quarterback Jarrett Brown hasn't been smothered, either. West Virginia is third in the league and No. 38 in the country in sacks allowed, less than 11/2 per game.

But Brown has also found himself hurried and/or flushed from the pocket more than anyone would like. And that's likely to be the case Friday night if the line doesn't do a better job. Pitt, using primarily its defensive linemen to rush the passer, is first in the country in sacks, averaging more than four per game.

"If they're relying on [their defensive line], then that just means it's up to us,'' Barclay said. "And even though they just bring the front four, they do stunt and move around and do different things.''

It would seem like the ideal time to have at least one or two backups ready to spell some of West Virginia's linemen, but Mullen insists that's not an option. While there are other quality linemen in the program, the general feeling is that most, if not all, of them are in this year's true freshman class. And none of them are ready to play.

"We're better off with a beat-up five than a fresh other guy,'' Mullen said. "And remember, they take every rep in practice, too. And we bang. You know Stew. There ain't no half-speed practice.

 "And then you add in the fact that [in recent games] you're playing South Florida and Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, some of the better lines in our league. It makes it tough.''

Those linemen, though, insist that even the mistakes they make aren't because of exhaustion or overwork. Remember, this is also a young line. Capers is the only senior and the only one of the five who had extensive starting experience before the season began. And, too, in the past year they have had to learn new techniques, particularly where it concerns pass blocking, which in West Virginia's old run-based offense was seldom even a consideration.

"It's not anything physical. It's all mental mistakes,'' Capers said. "I mean, nobody wants to come out of a game. I know I wouldn't.''

Reach Dave Hickman at 304-348-1734 or dphickm...@aol.com.