Football: Wannstedt still looking for first win over Rutgers

Last season, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights knocked off then-No. 17 Pitt, racking up almost 400 yards through the air in a 54-34 romp at Heinz Field.

One year later, Rutgers (4-1, 0-1 Big East) will try to repeat the feat when it meets the Panthers (5-1, 2-0 Big East) Friday night in Piscataway.

The Scarlet Knights have always been a thorn in Dave Wannstedt’s side. Rutgers rides a four-game winning streak against Pitt into this week’s game.

“I just think that they’ve made fewer mistakes than we have,” Wannstedt said of Rutgers’ play against Pitt. “They’ve just played better than we have. That’s been the bottom line.”

Although the running game saved Pitt last week against Connecticut, repeating the ground game success might prove difficult against the Scarlet Knights. Rutgers leads the Big East in rushing defense, limiting its opposition to 2.3 yards per run.

“They move constantly with their linebackers,” Wannstedt said. “It forces you to handle it physically, but it really tests you mentally too. You’ve got to be sharp.”

Dion Lewis and Ray Graham handled the mental challenge of a 15-point deficit last week. Lewis now trails the nation’s leading rusher, Stanford’s Toby Gerhart, by eight yards.

Meanwhile, this weekend marks a bit of a homecoming for Graham. Rutgers Stadium sits 25 miles away from his hometown of Elizabeth, N.J. Wannstedt said 11 current Panthers hail from New Jersey or New York.

While Lewis and Graham both weigh in at less than 200 pounds, the Scarlet Knights bring power from the backfield. Juniors Joe Martinek and Jourdan Brooks each see a good deal of carries, and neither goes down easy.

“[Brooks] is 230 [pounds] and [Martinek] is 215 [pounds],” Wannstedt said. “You have to tackle them. They’ve got the ability to run away from you, but they can also overpower you.”

According to Wannstedt, Martinek and Brooks also aided the development of true freshman quarterback Tom Savage.

“It’s a matter of giving [Savage] confidence,” Wannstedt said. “They do a nice job of protecting him from the standpoint of they’ve got a very good running game.”

In addition, Wannstedt said that Rutgers likes “throwing in a little bit of wildcat,” using senior quarterback Jabu Lovelace.

For Pitt, quarterback Bill Stull holds a 163.5 passer rating after last week’s 24-21 comeback win over the Huskies, placing him fourth in the nation.

Wide receiver Jonathan Baldwin caught eight passes for 104 yards and a touchdown against Connecticut. As a result, Wannstedt said that the Scarlet Knights might double-team him this week.

“We’re not hung up on the idea that we have to get the ball to Jonathan,” he said. “If people are going to double cover him or do certain things to take him away, we’ve got all the confidence in the world to throw the ball to McGee or [Nate] Byham or Oderick Turner.”

Rutgers enters tonight’s game coming off a 42-0 win over Texas Southern last Saturday. With the victory, the Scarlet Knights have scored 144 points in four consecutive wins — defeats over Howard, Florida International, Maryland and the Tigers.

Pitt will likely play without cornerback Aaron Berry, who injured his shoulder against Connecticut. Safety Elijah Fields, who missed last week with an ankle injury, is day-to-day.

Although the Panthers escaped last week with a win, Wannstedt still wants the full 60-minute effort that was absent from both the Louisville and Connecticut games.

“What we went through Saturday is unusual,” he said. “I asked [the players] what they learned from that experience. I wanted to make sure that they didn’t take it for granted or think that this is how it happens.”