Irish run Weis’ offense to perfection in rout of Panthers

Weeks ago, Dave Wannstedt dared the opposition to pass against his secondary. He quickly… Weeks ago, Dave Wannstedt dared the opposition to pass against his secondary. He quickly found out that Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis was ready to take that chance.

Pitt’s head coach and his defense were schooled by Weis and his pro-style offense Saturday night as Notre Dame blitzed the Panthers 42-21 in front of an overflow crowd that saw each coach debut as the headman for his alma mater.

“I am disappointed,” Wannstedt said. “Our football team is disappointed. I must have not done a good enough job myself of not letting our guys read newspapers and magazines and think that we were probably a little better football team and a little further along than what we are today.”

Behind third-year starting quarterback Brady Quinn, Notre Dame piled up 502 yards of total offense, with junior Quinn accounting for 227 through the air, as the Irish scored touchdowns on five of its first six possessions to open up a 35-13 halftime lead and seize control of the one of the most highly anticipated home openers in Pitt history.

With poise comparable to Weis’ prodigal all-star in New England, two-time Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady, Quinn ran Weis’ offense to virtual perfection, completing 14 of his first 16 attempts and hitting all of his targets in a pivotal, 28-point Notre Dame second quarter that sent Wannstedt to his first loss and the majority of the crowd out of Heinz Field wondering how Weis got the best of their team again. Eight months before, New England marched into Heinz Field and handled the Steelers, 41-27, in the AFC Championship.

“He’s a lot more calm,” Pitt linebacker H.B. Blades said of an improved Brady. “I think it’s probably the offense, the same thing with Brady in New England. He always has his composure, and coach Weis does a great job with his quarterbacks, not putting a lot of pressure on them. They do a lot of screens just to get him into the game a little bit and get his confidence up.”

What’s more, the run-first, smash-mouth style of football Wannstedt promised to bring to the Panthers (0-1, 0-0 Big East) had to be abandoned early once Pitt fell behind. The Panthers amassed only 103 yards on the ground, led by senior Raymond Kirkley’s 64 yards, the majority of which came on a 55-yard scamper in the fourth quarter. The results paled in comparison to the ease with which Notre Dame rushed the ball, churning out 275 yards on 50 rushing attempts, led by sophomore Darius Walker’s 100 yards.

“I, really, from a fundamental standpoint, particularly on defense, did not do a good enough job of getting these guys prepared,” Wannstedt said in a dejected manner.

A crowd of 66,451 wouldn’t have pinned the Panthers as ill prepared, however, at least not right away. Junior preseason All-Big East selection Tyler Palko, who finished with 220 yards on 20-of-35 passing, led an essentially flawless opening drive that culminated in a 39-yard scoring toss to Greg Lee for a quick 7-0 Pitt lead.

Notre Dame responded immediately on its first possession. Facing a second-and-six, Quinn dropped back only to face pressure from Pitt’s Nick Williams, who came up the middle on an inside blitz. He quickly dumped a pass to his right at the knees of the speedy Walker, who scooped it and turned simultaneously as he bounced outside and evaded the Pitt secondary on his way to a 51-yard score.

But it wasn’t until after the Panthers took a brief 10-7 lead that the Irish really began to pour things on. Walker capped a nine-play, 65-yard drive by juking corner Josh Lay at the two, then sprinting to the outside on his way to a score. Fullback Rashon Powers-Neal plowed his way into the end zone on Notre Dame’s next possession to give Notre Dame a 21-10 lead.

From there, the game began to bear an eerie resemblance to the kind of games New England won regularly under Weis. Brady was barely touched, screen passes were set up perfectly and players just started making plays, but not without help from the Panthers.

Marcus Furman fumbled away the ensuing kickoff and Notre Dame recovered to set up shot at the Pitt 19-yard line. Two plays later, Quinn found wide receiver Jeff Samardzija, also a standout pitcher on Notre Dame’s baseball team, roaming the back of the end zone for his first career touchdown reception. The junior laid out to full extension to grab the pass and, as he fell to the ground, shifted the ball to his right hand to protect it from hitting the ground to ensure the catch.

By the time Pitt found the end zone again, the Panthers were on the wrong end of their season opener for the first time since 1996. What’s more, Pitt has little time to rebound with a trip to Mid-American Conference foe Ohio on Friday night, one that Wannstedt knows his team will have to start preparing for immediately.

“They’ll be in tomorrow,” Wannstedt said of his players. “We have intelligent guys and guys who are winners and when they see the film and they see where we have to improve, they’ll respond.”