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, last night to throw another curveball at the BCS.

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 Bowl Championship Series title game.

No way. Not in this unpredictable season, when nothing has gone according to plan and upsets have become so frequent the word itself has almost lost its meaning.

"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 Southern California, 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 than any other in major college football without winning a national title, was done.

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 yesterday 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.

Their high-powered offense struggled even before White went out. They squandered two scoring opportunities in the first quarter, missing short field goals and finished with a season-low 183 yards and nine first downs.

Pitt freshman LeSean McCoy was the star on this night, running for 148 yards on 38 carries.