Football: Defense dominates spring game

The annual Pitt Blue-Gold game marks the end of spring practice, and on Saturday at Heinz… The annual Pitt Blue-Gold game marks the end of spring practice, and on Saturday at Heinz Field it also marked a win for the defense.

The first and second team defenses looked dominant for most of the day as they limited the offense to just one touchdown. They won the game 62-24 as part of a modified scoring system that awarded defensive points for sacks, interceptions, tackles for a loss and other defensive categories.

Although defensive stars like Greg Romeus and Dan Mason looked strong once again, it was the guys below them on the depth chart that really stood out to Coach Dave Wannstedt.

“Some of our defensive lineman that are in our backup roles that we need to come through for us to be good, I thought they showed up today,” Wannstedt said.

He cited backup linemen Nate Nix and Shayne Hale in that group of players. They were tied for the team high in tackles with six each, along with linebacker Tristan Roberts. Nix also led the defense with three tackles for a loss.

Even with the defense getting the better of its counterpart for much of the day, the offense made some notable plays.

Quarterback Tino Sunseri looked Jon Baldwin’s way early and often as he led the team with four catches for 37 yards. Meanwhile, All-Big East running back Dion Lewis finished with 74 yards on only five carries, highlighted by a 52-yard dash.

“For the most part on offense we tried to get Jon and Dion the ball early,” Wannstedt said.

Sunseri Takes Over

One of the main storylines this spring is the speculation about who would emerge from the duo of Sunseri and Pat Bostick to replace senior Bill Stull as the starting quarterback.

Sunseri made a strong case for himself. Not only did he look impressive on the field this spring, taking all the first-team reps, but he also assumed more of a leadership role, which was one of his goals going into the spring.

“Just being able to go in there and look in the huddle and those guys look back at me, I feel there’s more of a trust issue,” Sunseri said. “When guys are asking what route to run and things of that nature, I’m able to tell them what route to run and where to line up.”

Sunseri finished the spring game 9 for 17 with 82 yards and scored the game’s only touchdown on a 9-yard run.

Awards Handed Out

Before the game, the team announced that receiver Greg Cross and cornerback Antwuan Reed received the Ed Conway Award for the most improved player over the course of spring practice.

The award was meaningful for Cross, but he knows that there remains plenty of work to be done.

“Getting the award was OK. I’m very humble, so it just motivates me even more,” Cross said. “I’m hungry to continue what I’ve done.”

Cross was impressive this spring and took big strides toward winning the job of the team’s No. 3 reciever, whereas Reed looks like a starter at cornerback.

Reed can also make an impact on special teams as he blocked a field goal on Saturday.

Looking Ahead

With the Blue-Gold game now over, the team is off until training camp begins in August. This time off will give key players who sat out this spring with injuries like Dom DeCicco, Andrew Taglianetti and Ricky Gary time to get healthy for the grueling schedule of August two-a-day practices.

There will be a little more urgency in those practices this year, because the Panthers will be playing in one of the most highly anticipated season openers in the nation when they take on Utah Sept. 2 in a Thursday night matchup.