Panthers need to right ship with fans against Syracuse

The last time Panther fans packed Heinz Field, they left with the bad taste of a 20-14 loss… The last time Panther fans packed Heinz Field, they left with the bad taste of a 20-14 loss to a 1-3 team in their mouths.

Despite being embarrassed on National television, Pitt still has an opportunity to win the Big East title. And thanks to West Virginia’s 28-7 upset of No. 3-ranked Virginia Tech, a slim hope may still remain of making the BCS.

What does that mean for our Panther football team? It means that Pitt will have to run the table if it still has any hopes of competing for a “big time” Bowl.

It also means that the team’s quest for perfection through the rest of the season starts tomorrow when the Syracuse Orangemen come to Heinz Field fresh off of a 39-14 victory over the Boston College Eagles. The Orangemen’s win over the Eagles may be considered an upset to some, but it definitely can be classified as a big win for their program.

A trend that I have noticed, especially this season in College Football is that teams do not respond well the week following an upset or a big victory.

I’m not sure if teams come out overconfident in their following game or if they used up all they had in their victory. Last weekend, Wisconsin could not give an encore performance against Purdue after knocking off then-undefeated Ohio State 17-10.

Earlier in the season, Oregon dealt Michigan its first loss of the season and did not show up the following week, as Washington State crushed the team 55-16.

Pitt needs to be able to take advantage of the Orangemen, since Syracuse is in a similar situation. No, Boston College does not carry as much clout as Michigan or Ohio State, but most college fans probably thought the Eagles would win. If not, they certainly did not expect for Syracuse to turn in such a dominant performance.

Maybe the Panthers can feed off of the fact that they were able to do something in 2002 that they had not been able to do since I was a seven-month-old baby in October 1982. They were able to beat the Orangemen at the Courier Dome; now they get Syracuse in their own backyard.

Pitt defeated Syracuse 48-24 on the strength of a rushing attack that amassed 180 yards on the ground. Another key is that the defense only allowed 275 yards of total offense.

Does anybody recognize a pattern?

The things Pitt was able to do last season that enabled them to break the curse of the Courier Dome are things it has struggled to do in the present. In the past few games, there has been virtually no running game with the exception of a sprinkling of a few big runs, and the defense has been allowing over 400 yards of total offense.

These are areas that need to be corrected in order to right the ship. Before the season, there was the hope of a Big East title and that Pitt would contend for the national championship, but somewhere along the way, the Panthers have gotten away from the basics.

In order to be a successful team, you have to be able to run the ball and play defense. Giving up 25 points in one half and letting a team back in a game when you have a 35-point lead is unacceptable for anybody who plans to compete for a championship.

It’s Homecoming on Saturday. Give Panther fans something to be excited about. From walking around campus and hearing different conversations about Pitt football, it was clear that people were down about the loss to Notre Dame. Fans need their faith restored in their football team, and last week’s second-half near-disaster didn’t help matters.

Giving Syracuse a good old fashion spanking in front of the Homecoming crowd is just what is needed to get Panther fans thinking positively about Pitt football again.