Pitt prepared for No. 8 Notre Dame

On Oct. 6, 2001, Notre Dame led Pitt by a score of 10-7 with six minutes remaining in the… On Oct. 6, 2001, Notre Dame led Pitt by a score of 10-7 with six minutes remaining in the third quarter.

The Panthers were finally driving and appeared poised to take their first lead of the game when R.J. English’s fumble at the goal line turned a Pitt touchdown into a missed opportunity.

The Fighting Irish won that day, 24-7, but since then Pitt has gone 10-3, including victories over Virginia Tech and Syracuse and the team’s first bowl win since 1989.

Tomorrow the Panthers return to South Bend, Ind., to take on the No. 8 Fighting Irish in what has turned into an important game for both teams.

Pitt is off to a 5-1 start after winning in Syracuse for the first time since 1982. Meanwhile, Notre Dame sits at 5-0 with a much-improved team.

The Fighting Irish came to the game sporting a dominant defense, scored four defensive touchdowns and set up three of the offense’s eight touchdowns off turnovers.

The Panthers are also relying on a powerful defensive unit that has forced 21 turnovers already this year.

Offensively, the Panthers are the more fruitful of the two teams, holding the edge in total offense and especially in passing offense, where they are averaging 227 yards per game to only 151 yards for Notre Dame.

A quarterback discrepancy for the Irish is afoot for this game, resulting from a shoulder injury suffered by starter Carlyle Holiday two weeks ago. Holiday’s injury forced him out of last week’s game, making way for Pat Dillingham to make the start.

The two quarterbacks have very different styles, with Holiday often running while Dillingham is strictly a passer. The Panthers were required to prepare for both possibilities at the quarterback position because there was not a decisive call on who would be starting for the Irish.

Both head coaches enter the game holding a high regard for the other team, especially the defenses.

“I see their defense as being opportunistic because they have a lot of good athletes, they play fast, play with a lot of energy and they capitalize very well,” Pitt head coach Walt Harris said. “They really seem to be enjoying playing together.”

“I think first of all you need to start with what they are doing extremely well, which is their defense,” Notre Dame coach Tyrone Willingham said in his weekly press conference. “Then their quarterback probably jumps out at me, their three receivers, their ability to perform and make plays.”

That offensive corps consists of quarterback Rod Rutherford and wide receivers Lamar Slade, Larry Fitzgerald and Roosevelt Bynes. The group of receivers has combined for nine of Rutherford’s 11 passing touchdowns this season.

“We have been progressing as a unit,” Slade said. “We’re getting better each game, and I hope we continue to get better.”

Harris did not consider the chance to avenge last year’s loss as extra motivation, but does hope that the team learned from it and that this year will have a different outcome from that experience.

Pitt is seeking its best start over seven games since it went 7-0 in 1982 with Dan Marino as quarterback. The Panthers also have the opportunity to pick up their first win at Notre Dame since 1986.

For Notre Dame, Willingham looks to become the first Fighting Irish coach to win his first six games since Ara Parseghian in 1964. After struggles in the past few years, the Irish are attempting to improve to 6-0 for the first time since 1993.

Tomorrow will mark the 60th meeting between the two schools, with the Irish holding the edge 41-17-1.

With dominant defenses making scoring tough, turnovers could once again prove to be the key to winning.

“The team that makes the fewest mistakes will win,” Harris said. “We have a lot of respect for them and are looking forward to see how we match up. We think we can match up, but we’ll have to wait until game time to find out.”