Pitt sloppy in third victory

When a team holds an opponent to 12 total yards in the first half of a game, it usually ends… When a team holds an opponent to 12 total yards in the first half of a game, it usually ends up being a blowout.

Apparently, someone forgot to tell the Panther offense.

Pitt (3-1 overall, 1-0 Big East) secured its first conference victory Saturday with a 23-3 win over Rutgers (1-3, 0-1) at Heinz Field but failed to execute in all areas of the game.

“I’m not sure what happened on offense, we know we’re better than we played,” head coach Walt Harris said. “We were inconsistent.”

The Panthers put 10 points on the board in the first half but none came from the offense. Pitt had trouble with short-yard plays, including an early 18-yard carry by Brandon Miree that set the Panthers up at fourth-and-one on the 6-yard line. But the next Miree carry resulted in no gain and a turnover on downs.

At the end of the first quarter, Pitt quarterback Rod Rutherford found receiver Roosevelt Bynes for a 51-yard gain. The drive was stunted, however, before Pitt could find the end zone and ended with a 19-yard field goal by J.B. Gibboney to give the Panthers a 3-0 lead.

Pitt extended its lead to 10-0 when Claude Harriott sacked Rutgers quarterback Ted Trump, forcing a fumble that was recovered by Gerald Hayes and returned 8 yards to the end zone for the touchdown, the first of his career.

“I was just trying to pick the ball up and get the score for our defense, for our team,” Hayes said of the play.

After an unproductive drive by the Pitt offense with just more than four minutes left in the first half, Andy Lee punted to Rutgers’ Sean Carty, who fumbled the ball. Malcolm Postell recovered the ball for the Panthers at the Scarlet Knight 14-yard line to give Pitt another chance to score before the half.

But the offense had trouble moving down the field as running back Raymond Kirkley lost a yard on the first carry of the drive and Rutherford’s pass to Larry Fitzgerald was incomplete. Rutherford was then sacked for a loss of 9 yards to set up a 41-yard field goal attempt by David Abdul.

Abdul’s kick was wide left, missing on yet another scoring opportunity and showing the continued inconsistency that has plagued the Panther kicking game.

“The kicking game was good except for the field goals and extra points,” Harris said. “It is an area of concern and it was not a good performance but it’s the best we have to offer.”

At halftime, Pitt had amassed 177 total yards to just 12 by Rutgers while holding the Scarlet Knights to minus 16 yards rushing but led by just 10.

“They came to play and we need to score on the goal line,” Rutherford said. “We need to eliminate mistakes.”

Miree, who started the game at running back but had eight of his 10 carries in the first half, was replaced by Kirkley and Marcus Furman later in the game.

“I didn’t get my groove on and I take sole responsibility,” Miree said. “I should have hit hard but was sitting back and reading.”

Miree finished the game with 27 yards while Kirkley and Furman added 25 and 22, respectively. Fullback Lousaka Polite chipped in with 19 yards on four carries, but also committed the first fumble of his career.

“We have to execute our assignments,” Polite said.

“We know we’re expected to do better and we need to pick it up,” center Chad Reed said of the offense. “We can’t turn the ball over.”

Pitt opened up a 17-point lead in the second half when Rutherford connected with Lamar Slade in the end zone to complete a 31-yard pass. Rutgers scored its only points of the game with 1:06 left in the third quarter when Ryan Sands kicked a 20-yard field goal to make the score 17-3 in favor of Pitt.

Backup quarterback Tyler Palko entered the game with 6:26 remaining and completed his only pass attempt of the game, finding Fitzgerald for a 6-yard gain. Palko followed with a rush for 8 yards and Furman carried the ball twice, finding the end zone for the first touchdown of his career and putting the Panthers up 23-3.

Postell recorded two interceptions late in the game, first at the Rutgers 49-yard line and then at the Rutgers 18 with just 14 seconds left to play.

“I was lucky enough to be in the right place,” Postell said. “I just went hard to the ball.”

While questions still surround the offense and the kicking game, the defense put in another solid performance, holding Rutgers to minus 3 yards rushing and 164 total yards.

“Our defense was great all day,” Harris said. “They gave a dominant performance and were a key part of the victory.”

Rutherford finished with a career-high 255 yards while completing 12 of 25 passes and throwing for a touchdown. Bynes led the receiving corps with 69 yards on three catches while Fitzgerald added 64 yards, including a career-long 33-yard pass in the third quarter.

Lee, who averaged 41.1 yards on seven punts, was named Big East Special Teams Player of the Week for his efforts. Lee leads the conference with a 44.1-yard average.

For Rutgers, Trump completed 18 of 45 attempts and was intercepted twice, while Aaron Martin led the receivers with 41 yards on five catches. The Scarlet Knights utilized running back Markis Facyson, who carried the ball 15 times, picking up just 24 yards.

“It was an outstanding victory for our football team in overcoming ourselves,” Harris said.

The question, though, remains whether the offense can gel in time for Saturday’s matchup against Toledo.

“They’re going to come around and surprise a lot of people,” cornerback Torrie Cox said. “We know this is a big year for us.”