Defense tames Huskies in 24-0 win

On a day where Pitt’s offense struggled mightily, it was the defense and special teams that… On a day where Pitt’s offense struggled mightily, it was the defense and special teams that propelled the Panthers to a 24-0 win over Connecticut on Saturday.

The shutout victory on senior day lifted the Panthers (5-5 overall, 4-2 Big East) back to .500 and kept their postseason bowl hopes alive. The Huskies fell to 4-5 (1-4 in the conference) and have lost four straight.

The Panthers managed to score in every quarter, the highlight of which was a blocked field goal that senior defensive back Josh Lay returned 71 yards to the house.

Darrelle Revis, who recorded the block when he swooped in from the left side untouched and deflected the ball, escorted Lay the entire way. The touchdown was Lay’s first of the season and the third of his career, coming on his last game as a Panther at Heinz Field.

“Words just can’t speak for it,” Lay said after the game.

“I said reel it in-for the touchdown and he looked at me and smiled,” Revis said. “It’s a memorable moment for him.”

Pitt wins its second senior day game in a row – the Panthers topped West Virginia, 16-13, in the home finale last year – despite being beaten in nearly every offensive category.

“The score wasn’t an indication of how tough a football game it was,” Wannstedt said. “There was nothing out there that was easy.”

The Panthers’ offense had a hard time getting anything going all day. None of Pitt’s three running backs gained more than 26 yards, taking a total of 34 carries for a net 76 yards on the day.

The pass attack wasn’t clicking for quarterback Tyler Palko and the Pitt receivers, either. Palko connected on 12 of 21 attempts for 116 yards and one touchdown, a two-yard strike off a play-action fake to tight end Steve Buches. The most alarming statistic, however, is that Palko only hit wide receiver Greg Lee twice for 15 yards.

To make up for the lack of offense, the Panthers’ defense elevated its play, intercepting Huskies’ quarterback Matt Bonislawski – who got the start in a game-time decision – three times.

The most pivotal play of the game came from the defense as well. With three seconds left in the half, UConn kicked a 20-yard field goal to make the score 14-3. However, Huskies’ coach Randy Edsall took the points off the board to advance the ball closer to the goal line because of a personal foul called on Pitt.

On the final play of the half, freshman Rashad Duncan stopped Cornell Brockington just before the goal line to run the clock out and finish the half up with a 14-point lead with the shutout still intact.

After the game, Wannstedt commented on the defense’s play, especially the goal line stand before the half.

“It was huge,” Wannstedt said of the momentum the stop gave the Panthers going into half time. “Our defense just [kept] coming back and finding ways to stop them.”

As for the decision to take the points off the board, however, Wannstedt wasn’t ready to put himself into that situation, even hypothetically.

“[You] never guess another team’s coach,” he said afterwards.

Some thought the Panthers would stop themselves after quarterback Tyler Palko’s comments after last week’s loss to Louisville, questioning the effort of some of his teammates.

“We didn’t call anybody out in particularly, we weren’t happy with the effort that some people were giving,” Palko said about his and linebacker H.B. Blades’ collective criticism of the team. “I wouldn’t expect our team to respond any other way than to come out and play hard.”

The Panthers even their record and head into the annual “Backyard Brawl” with a winning season and a postseason bowl bid at stake. But if Wannstedt could have it his way, the team wouldn’t be in this position at all.

“I wish we could start over, if you want to know the truth. Just kind of turn the calendar and start training camp tomorrow,” Wannstedt said. “But we can’t and we do have a game left, a big game in Morgantown and it’ll be exciting.

“There’s not a more exciting way to finish your regular season.”

The game will be played at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, W. Va., on Thanksgiving night, and will be covered nationally by ESPN. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m.