It all comes down to this.

One game remains for Pitt this football season and, despite a… It all comes down to this.

One game remains for Pitt this football season and, despite a number of missed opportunities, the Panthers can still make the year a memorable one with a win in the Continental Tire Bowl. A win would mark the Panthers’ (8-4 overall, 5-2 Big East) third consecutive bowl victory and give them a nine-win season for the second year in a row. The only other time Pitt won three straight bowl games was from 1979 through 1981 and it has not had back-to-back nine-win seasons since the 1981 (11-1) and 1982 (9-3) campaigns. Standing in the Panthers’ way is Virginia, the fourth-place team in the Atlantic Coast Conference and the winner of the inaugural Tire Bowl last season.

The Cavaliers sit in a situation similar to that of the Panthers’. After finishing second in the ACC last season with a 6-2 conference record (9-5 overall), Virginia was thought by some to have an outside shot at challenging for the conference title this year.

Instead, the Cavaliers finished with a 7-5 record and were just 4-4 inside the conference in 2003, head coach Al Groh’s third season with the team. Close losses to Clemson and Florida State, along with blowouts by South Carolina and North Carolina State, set the Cavaliers back, but Pitt knows how dangerous Virginia can be.

“They have a lot of good athletes; they’re very good,” Pitt quarterback Rod Rutherford said.

By losing to Miami in its regular season finale, Pitt missed an opportunity to claim a share of the Big East title and a possible Bowl Championship Series berth – both would have been school firsts.

Rutherford knows that the Panthers missed a golden opportunity, but it’s something that the team can’t dwell on if it is to win the Tire Bowl.

“It’s difficult because you tend to get lazy,” he said of the break between the regular season and the bowl game. “You try to do a little of everything – relax, stay healthy, stay in the right frame of mind … it’s hard.”

After a poor outing against the Hurricanes, Pitt’s offense will look to get back on track against a Cavalier defense that is ranked 68th out of 117 Division I-A teams. Virginia does have two big playmakers on defense in linebacker Darryl Blackstock (six sacks and 22 quarterback hurries) and cornerback Almondo Curry (six interceptions and eight passes defensed.

And like many other defenses have this season, Rutherford expects the Cavaliers to try to come up with something to take wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald out of the game.

“They play mostly a 3-4 defense and a cover-two, cover-three type secondary,” Rutherford said. “I’m not sure what, but I’m sure they’ll do something to take [Fitzgerald] away.”

Fitzgerald, who has broken numerous team, conference and national records this season, was held in check for the first time this season by Miami. The sophomore receiver caught just three passes for 26 yards against the Hurricanes, but was able to extend his NCAA-record scoring streak to 18 games.

If Pitt is going to have success passing the football, it will have to establish some semblance of a running game. Despite running for 188 yards against Temple, running back Brandon Miree was limited to 27 yards rushing by Miami.

On the other side of the ball, the Panthers need to find a way to plug the holes in their defense. Pitt currently ranks 87th in the nation against the run and has allowed five teams to run for more than 200 yards.

Virginia has two running backs, in Wali Lundy (4.1) and Alvin Pearman (4.2), who average more than four yards per carry. Lundy leads the team, with 839 yards rushing, while Pearman is second, with 539 yards.

At quarterback, the Cavaliers are lead by senior Matt Schaub, who is a West Chester, Pa., native. Schaub has completed 70 percent of his passes this season for 2,708 yards and 17 touchdowns, while throwing just nine interceptions. On the other end of most of those passes has been tight end Heath Miller, who has 66 receptions for 751 yards and five touchdowns.

Whatever Virginia does on the field, Rutherford knows that the Panthers have to do what has been most successful for them all season long.

“We’ll try not to do too much and play our own game,” the fifth-year senior said. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to go out with a positive note.”

Notes – The Tire Bowl will be broadcast Dec. 27 at 11 a.m. on ESPN2 … students interested in going can purchase tickets for $10 at the Petersen Events Center ticket office until Dec. 19 … anyone purchasing tickets will be able to pick them up Dec. 26 at the Omni Charlotte Hotel in Charlotte, N.C.