Football: No more traps for Panthers

There are no more mouse traps left on Pitt’s schedule. After overcoming a slow start, the Panthers rolled over Syracuse in the second half on their way to a 37-10 victory Saturday at Heinz Field.

Trap game? It certainly appeared that way as Pitt nursed a 6-3 lead late in the second quarter. However, a stellar defensive play by linebacker Greg Williams seized momentum and relieved Pitt from its malaise.

Williams intercepted a pass from Syracuse quarterback Greg Paulus and returned it 51 yards for a touchdown with 1:20 left in the first half.

Jumpstarted by the turnover, the Panthers (8-1, 5-0 Big East) outscored the Orange 24-7 in the second half to en route a comfortable victory.

Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt was well aware of the possible pitfalls when playing a lesser conference opponent with much more difficult games on the horizon, especially after handily beating South Florida 41-14 two weeks ago.

“When you have a week off and you win the way we won against South Florida, then the players go home on the weekend and everyone around them is talking about the rankings,” Wannstedt said. “It’s very difficult for 18-year-old kids to say, ‘That really is not going to influence me.’”

With Syracuse out of the way, Pitt shouldn’t have trouble focusing on its next three opponents. The Panthers will conclude the season with three huge matchups: Notre Dame, at West Virginia and No. 5 Cincinnati.

If the Panthers want to take the next step as a football program, as Wannstedt has said since becoming coach, they need to rise to the occasion in the upcoming weeks. These three marquee games are a barometer for the progress Wannstedt has made in his fifth year.

The Panthers are actually a second-half collapse away from being undefeated and in the national title picture. However, the Panthers blew a third-quarter 31-17 lead, getting out-scored 38-31 to close out the game.

Pitt will need three 60-minute performances to achieve greatness, because there are no breathers during the stretch run. The infamous concept of the next level that critics of Wannstedt have lampooned appears to be within striking distance.

Perhaps the most notable part of Saturday’s game was that Pitt avoided a loss that jaded fans would consider typical. Losing to a less talented team wouldn’t exactly be uncharted territory. Just last season, the then-No. 25 Panthers lost to Bowling Green to open the season, and, after finally re-joining the rankings at No. 17 later in the year, lost 54-34 to a 2-5 Rutgers team.

Yet, this team has done a lot to prove that it isn’t the same old Pitt team. So the question remains: what kind of team is this?

Well, the stage is set to discover that answer. There are no more mouse traps left on Pitt’s schedule­ — there are only titanic conflicts.