Football begins bowl-game chase tomorrow at Rutgers

A recent string of improved performances has upped the ante for Pitt’s matchup against the… A recent string of improved performances has upped the ante for Pitt’s matchup against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at noon on Saturday at Rutgers Stadium.

Although alone in fourth place in the Big East standings at 2-2, the Panthers’ overall record stands at 4-5, leaving them two victories shy of bowl eligibility. Two wins in the final three games are required for any postseason hopes.

Left for dead a mere month ago after a traumatic loss at home to Navy, Pitt won two of its last three to keep itself in the race for a bowl bid that starts Saturday in Piscataway, N. J.

Rutgers is already bowl eligible at 6-4, but it has plenty to play for. While two games ahead in the win column, the Scarlet Knights are a half-game behind Pitt in the Big East, and a triumph would surely guarantee them a postseason berth.

Pitt had its first bye week since before the Navy game last week and took that time to prepare for the Scarlet Knights’ vaunted rushing attack and defense.

“We had a productive bye week,” coach Dave Wannstedt said at his weekly press conference. “We had an opportunity to get some work done from a team standpoint, most of it against ourselves, cleaning up a few things that we felt were necessary.

“We can’t afford to come out and start slow. We can’t afford to be flat and our players need to understand that,” Wannstedt added. “Coaches, players, everybody needs to understand the urgency of this game and come out and play as good as we can play.”

Ineffective starts have plagued the Panthers most of the season, especially in away games. Pitt is 0-3 on the road this season and has never led in those contests. The worst such occurrence was against Virginia on Sept. 29, when Pitt fell behind 30-0 before scoring.

LeSean McCoy looks to continue his blistering pace for Pitt and help the team to a good start. McCoy has surpassed 100 yards in his past four games, and his total yardage on the season is up to 1,065.

That total is now the third highest ever for a Pitt freshman running back, trailing only Tony Dorsett’s 1,686 yards in 1973 and Curvin Richards’ 1,228 in 1988. McCoy still has three games remaining to advance up the list.

Fellow freshman Pat Bostick has improved each week as well. The rookie quarterback hasn’t thrown an interception in two games, and improvement is evident in his decision-making.

But Rutgers coach Greg Schiano has earned a reputation over the last few years of coming up with creative and successful blitz packages aimed at confusing quarterbacks. This is likely to be Bostick’s first huge test as a starter.

“When they pressure, they’re going to pressure 30 to 40 percent of the time,” Wannstedt said. “They play man coverage and they’ll lock you up and they’re going to put pressure on you and they’re going to make your quarterback throw into tight coverage.”

Rutgers shocked the college football world last year, after years of being a Big East doormat, and nearly captured the Big East crown until a gut-wrenching loss in its season finale to West Virginia. Although not living up to expectations this year, Schiano’s team is still in the upper tier of the conference.

The Scarlet Knights are led by junior running back Ray Rice, who ran for a school-record 243 yards last week in a victory over Army. He has 1,500 yards on the season.

“For his size he is very powerful and he has great balance,” Wannstedt said of Rice. “He can make a four- or five-yard run that when you look at it on tape you would say that there’s no space for a back to make four or five yards.

“It’s going to be a challenge for our defense.”

That very defense is vastly improved since the Navy debacle a month ago, not giving up more than 24 points since then, with an average of 19.3 points against in those games.

Much of that can be attributed to the maturing defensive line. Joe Clermond, Greg Romeus and Tommie Duhart are leading the pass rush with their teammates harassing quarterbacks and running backs alike in recent weeks.

The defense’s ability to contain Rice could be the key for a Pitt victory on Saturday and gaining momentum for a postseason push.

Wannstedt isn’t thinking about that aspect, though.

“No. We have to try to find a way to beat Rutgers.”