Defense and special teams struggles push Pitt to overtime loss

Pitt played its way into an offensive flexing battle against Duke Saturday, and in the end, it was a battle the Panthers couldn’t keep up with.

Led by James Conner’s career-best 263 rushing yards, the Panthers combated Duke’s high-powered offensive attack from the start. But a combination of penalties, bad snaps and a missed field goal gave Pitt (4-5, 2-3 ACC) a 51-48 double overtime loss to the Blue Devils (7-1, 3-1 ACC) at Heinz Field.

With three seconds remaining in the fourth quarter and the score tied at 38-38, Pitt kicker Chris Blewitt had an opportunity to put the Panthers above .500 with a 25-yard field goal attempt.

Blewitt booted a line drive left of the uprights, and the Blue Devils converted Pitt’s late mistakes into an overtime win.

“We shouldn’t have put him in that situation,” Conner said of Blewitt.

Conner scored two touchdowns and received a season-high 38 carries.

But Duke receiver Jamison Crowder’s All-America credentials were also on display Saturday.

Three Pitt cornerbacks – Avonte Maddox, Reggie Mitchell and Lafayette Pitts – could not keep up with Crowder, who scored two touchdowns over Maddox and Pitts in the first half. Crowder finished with nine catches for 165 yards.

With an opportunity in the overtime sessions to win or force a triple overtime, the Panthers faltered when it counted the most.

Conner banged into the end zone late in the fourth quarter to tie the game, and Pitt’s defense needed to force a punt when Duke took its next possession towards midfield.

On third down with six yards to go, Pitts and Maddox combined to put Crowder to the ground short of the sticks, and Pitt received its opportunity.

After a handful of runs by Chris James, Conner and quarterback Chad Voytik, Pitt receiver Dontez Ford caught a floating pass from Voytik that put the Panthers in field goal range with one minute left.

Duke head coach David Cutcliffe chose to ice Blewitt with two timeouts when Blewitt took the field to try what could have been the game-winning field goal, and it worked.

Pitt head coach Paul Chryst cited several problems, including airborne snaps, which contributed to the loss.

“There were lots of plays in that game, and it didn’t come down to one or two plays,” Chryst said.

After the teams traded touchdowns in the first overtime, Pitt failed to advance the ball and had to settle for a field goal, and Duke responded with a touchdown just four plays later to close out the game.

The Blue Devils galloped towards Heinz Field’s away fan section to celebrate while Pitt running back Isaac Bennett walked off the field with an arm around Blewitt.

“They found a way to win, but if anything else, I think our performance today tells us that we can play with anyone,” Pitt safety Ray Vinopal said.

The Blue Devils entered the contest ranked No. 24 in the AP poll, and they will climb the ranks in Monday’s updated poll.

The Panthers will enjoy an off-week in the coming days before traveling to Durham, N.C., to take on North Carolina Nov. 15.

“November is the most important month of the season,” Vinopal continued. “We need two more to get into a bowl game, and we have three games left. We could very easily win three games or two games and end up having a better year than last year, and it’s important to keep guys on the wagon.”