Cards’ high-powered offense awaits Pitt

A month ago, Pitt’s football morale was in shambles following a 37-29 loss at Rutgers.

Now,… A month ago, Pitt’s football morale was in shambles following a 37-29 loss at Rutgers.

Now, after clawing their way back up to .500, the Panthers know Thursday’s 7:30 p.m. game at Louisville is judgment day if they want to play in a bowl game.

The hype for this ESPN-televised matchup between the two schools by the Ohio River has been on and off since the preseason. It was ranked on the Sports Illustrated Web site as the 14th-best game to watch this season, with Bowl Championship Series hopes hinging on this game. Now, that still holds true, but there will be a lot of roadblocks along the way.

Pitt’s morale was headed for the bottom, beginning with the first half against Notre Dame, and sunk further with three losses in four games. Louisville was the preseason favorite to win the Big East, before playing a game as a conference member. But the Cardinals have been hampered by a 46-44 overtime heartbreaker to West Virginia, and, before that, an embarrassing defeat at South Florida, 45-14, which leaves them 1-2 in conference play.

Pitt is 3-1 in the Big East, half a game behind West Virginia. Still, Pitt head coach Dave Wannstedt knows the Cardinals pose a threat under third-year coach Bobby Petrino, an offensive wizard. Louisville has scored more than 60 points in three games already, scoring below 40 only twice.

“The minute you say this will be a low-scoring game, it’s a 38-35 game. Or the minute you say it’s going to be a 65-64 game, it’s a 13-10 game,” Wannstedt said. “I think both teams will have to do whatever they do best to give them an opportunity to get enough points. This is one where we want to kick a field goal at the end with no time.”

The Louisville arsenal is highlighted by sophomore quarterback Brian Brohm, who averages 300 passing yards a game so far and junior running back Michael Bush, with 813 yards and 18 touchdowns for the season.

Defensively, Pitt quarterback Tyler Palko and the Panther offense will have their hands full with Louisville senior defensive end Elvis Dumervil, who already has 20 sacks.

“[Dumervil] is obviously the most productive and the fastest [player]. This will be a real good barometer for seeing if we’re making any progress,” Wannstedt said.

“There’s no question that defensively we’ve kind of matured or evolved, progressed. I think we’ve gotten better,” he added. “I think that’s why this week will be a challenge for us,because these guys do [move the ball]. They explode. Sixty-four points per game at home, I think, is what they’re averaging.”

After giving his players a short break last weekend, Wannstedt feels the team should be close to full strength as they play their first game in 12 days, as Pitt had a bye last week.

“I think for a few of the players, it was probably good for their mind a little bit, given it was the first break we’ve had since August,” he said, “and I know physically it was good. We had a few guys that probably would have had no chance to play if we would have played on Saturday.”

“But because of the extra time off, there’s a good chance that they’ll be able to contribute in some form or fashion. It was, I think, a good thing. It gave us a couple of extra days on Louisville,” Wannstedt assessed.

Thomas Smith is the only injury concern for the Panthers, as he is listed as day-to-day with a toe injury. Wannstedt still hasn’t made a definite decision on who will start at tailback, but in all likelihood, it will be LaRod Stephens-Howling, who leads Pitt with 350 yards on the ground this season. However, it will have to be a united team effort for Pitt to upend Louisville.

“We know what type of team they are,” Wannstedt said. “They’ve played extremely well at home. This will be a big challenge for our team. And if we’re going to make anything of this season for the remaining three games, this is a great opportunity for us. That’s how I’m looking at it, and that’s how I think our football team is looking at it.

“What do we have to do this week to get it done, to play better than what we’ve played, to go out there and not turn the ball over, to go out there and not give anything up in the punting and kicking game,” he added. “It’s going to take that type of effort. If we want to beat Louisville down there, we’re going to have to play 60 minutes of high-level football. We know that, and everybody knows that.”