Pitt Football: Running Diary v. FSU

By Nate Barnes & Tyler Pecyna | Sports Editor and Assistant Sports Editor

11:15: FINAL — FSU 41 (1-0), PITT 13 (0-1)

11:13: Florida State takes over on downs after four Pitt incompletions. Back-ups are in to close out the game.

11:05: Devin Street, with his back flat on the ground, squirts water into his mouth while his left leg is stretched by a trainer. Moments earlier, he and Savage connected on a 52-yard throw that has the Panthers at FSU’s eight. Street leaves the field on his own power to applause of the few remaining fans in the student section.

10:56: Yoklic’s 56-yard punt halts a drive that was stalled by two sacks. With under seven minutes remaining in the game, the Heinz Field yellow seats are littered with crimson and speckled with navy.

10:48: TOUCHDOWN, FSU. Winston is still very dominant. The freshman’s 10-yard touchdown toss to O’Leary is his fifth score of the game — and he’s yet to turn the ball over. Drive: nine plays, 49 yards over 5:28. FSU-41, PITT-13 — TP

10:38: END OF THIRD—Pitt goes three and out after the FSU field goal, Shaw returns Yoklic’s punt 26 yards into Pitt’s territory on the 49-yard line. FSU 34, PITT 13

10:33: FIELD GOAL FSU—-Aguayo makes a 29-yarder after Pitt finally gets some pressure on Winston in the backfield. FSU 34, PITT 13

10:28: TIMEOUT FSU, 3:36 3RD–Jason Hendricks forced Winston to fumble on an option-keeper but it went out of bounds. FSU on its own 42. Florida State is out of timeouts.

10:24: FIELD GOAL PITT—Blewitt makes a 39-yarder to cap a 11-play, 52-yard drive. Tyler Boyd had over half of those yards. Between three rushes, two kick returns, and one reception Boyd has 126 total yards. FSU 31, PITT 13

10:19: Announced attendance is 65,500, a sellout. The first Pitt sellout since Sept. 11, 2011 when Pitt played Notre Dame.

10:15: Tyler Boyd takes his third carry of the night for 16 yards, is Pitt’s leading rusher with 54 yards. Pitt on the FSU 28.

10:08: FIELD GOAL FSU—-Pitt manages to stop FSU on third down in the red zone, Roberto Aguayo kicks a 21-yard field goal. FSU 31, PITT 10.

10:02: Pitt kicks off, and Winston finds Shaw who runs after the catch for 41 yards. FSU currently on Pitt’s 28. 

9:37: END OF FIRST HALF — PITT-10, FSU-28. Panthers had an opportunity to make up some ground on Boyd’s first kick-off return. He had a clear lane, but was tripped up by the Florida State kicker at the Panthers’ 35. Seminoles’ sideline, beaming with confidence, was cleared in a matter of seconds.

9:32: TOUCHDOWN, SEMINOLES. In a matter of three plays and 1:18, Winston drives the Seminoles 41 yards, resulting in a touchdown completed to junior WR Rashad Green. PITT-10, FSU-28

9:28: Seminole DB Terrence Brooks intercepts Savage at Pitt’s own 41. Savage’s throw was for Scott Orndoff, but Brooks anticipated the pass and dove ahead of the intended target. The play was reviewed by officials for a few brief moments before confirmation arrived.

9:20: TOUCHDOWN, SEMINOLES. Winston scampers to his left for a five-yard touchdown run. The scoring drive: 14 plays, 78 yards over 7:05; just over two minutes remain in the first half. PITT-10, FSU-21

9:17: Winston, absolutely picking apart Pitt’s defense, has completed 14-of-15 throws for 179 yards and two touchdowns. A recognized dual-threat QB, he’s also escaped the few moments of pressure Pitt has sent his way.

9:08: FIELD GOAL, PITT. Kicker Chris Blewitt brings the Panthers to within four with a 28-yard boot. The field goal capped a drive that lasted 11 plays, 69 yards and 4:23. PITT-10, FSU-14

9:05: Pitt timeout, 9:26 left in the first half. Pitt, with the ball at the Florida State 11, faces third-and-five.

9:02: Panthers driving, enter the red zone after starting on their own 20. The drive has been highlighted by Boyd’s 20-yard run to the left side.

8:55: TOUCHDOWN, FLORIDA STATE. Winston completes an eight-play, 81-yard drive in just under four minutes with a two-yard scoring pass to O’Leary. PITT-7, FSU-14

8:48: Tom Savage’s first quarter of play as Pitt’s QB: 4-8, 58 yards, one touchdown and one interception. — TP

8:46: END OF FIRST QUARTER. FSU driving, has the ball on the Pitt 40 after starting on its own 19. PITT-7, FSU-7.

8:42: Pitt starts on its own 25, but gets only three yards in a three and out. Matt Yoklic punts 53 yards to the FSU 19.

8:37: TOUCHDOWN, FLORIDA STATE. Savage throws an interception to Jalen Ramsey at the FSU 45, and Ramsey returns it to the Pitt 24. Two plays later, Jameis Winston completes a pass to tight end Nick O’Leary, who beat corner K’Waun Williams. PITT-7, FSU-7

8:32: Pitt timeout, 5:05. Panthers are driving, out to the 38-yard line after starting on their own nine. Tom Savage completed a seven-yard toss over the middle to Garner on third and six.

8:29: James Conner makes his debut in the backfield, and rips off back-to-back nine-yard carries to get Pitt away from its end zone. First down at the 27.

8:25: Pitt stops FSU on the Panther 45, halts a shovel pass from Winston to Kevin Benjamin on third and one. Seminoles punt, Pitt has the ball on its own nine-yard line.

8:21: Tom Savage, per Pitt Athletics, is the first quarterback on record to throw a touchdown pass for and against Pitt.

8:17: TOUCHDOWN PITT. 10-yard rush from Bennett gets Pitt in the red zone, Street catches a 16-yard pass from Savage over the middle, and Manasseh Garner scores from four yards out on a pass from Savage. Extra point is good, PITT-7, FSU-0

8:14: Tom Savage completes a pass to Devin Street for 31 yards on third and 10, then Tyler Boyd takes an end-around for 18 yards to the FSU 30.

8:11: Lafayette Pitts returns the opening kick 15 yards, Panthers start their first drive on their own 19 yard-line.

8:09: Pitt wins the coin toss and defers. The Panthers choose to receive. 

7:58: Chance of more rain during tonight’s game is at 40 percent, and game time temperature is announced as 73 degrees. Kickoff is about 10 minutes away. – NB

7:43: Both teams are on the field for warm-ups, we are under 30 minutes to game time. Panther Pitt has been full for about an hour, and seats are starting to fill in around the stadium. – NB

Pitt football is slated to kick off against Florida State at 8:10 after a spell of inclement weather. Check back throughout the game for updates right here. 

On Twitter, you can follow Sports Editor Nate Barnes at @NateBarnes_TPN and Assistant Sports Editor Tyler Pecyna at @tyler_pecyna for in-game news and notes.