With the Big East conference opener less than a week away, a lot of Pitt head coach Walt… With the Big East conference opener less than a week away, a lot of Pitt head coach Walt Harris’ questions about his team have already been answered.

“I feel a lot better about our team going into the conference opener than I did the season opener,” Harris said at his weekly press conference yesterday.

The Panthers return home after a 26-20 victory over the Alabama-Birmingham Blazers Saturday night. The game was a breakthrough in some regards for the offense. After posting 196 yards in their opener against Ohio and 281last week against Texas A’M, the Panthers racked up a season-high 424 total yards.

“I think we know more about where we are offensively. I think that was a big question coming into our season,” Harris said.

A big portion of the offense came on the strength of quarterback Rod Rutherford’s arm. Rutherford finished the game with 13 completions out of 25 attempts, two touchdowns and a career-high 235 yards passing. Harris spoke favorably not only about Rutherford’s throwing, but also his decision-making.

“To be a young quarterback, a lot of the times you get antsy and you start forcing the football. Rod has really done a better job that way,” Harris said. “Most of his incompletes have not been poor decisions. Most of them have been pretty good decisions.”

Harris also spoke favorably about his running ability. Rutherford rushed 15 times for 69 yards.

“That is an exciting part of his game that he needs to call on more and it was very gratifying to see him do it a game,” Harris said.

The Panthers’ running game, most notably the performance of running back Brandon Miree, also impressed Harris. Playing on the same field where he scored his first-ever collegiate touchdown with Alabama, Miree had 32 carries for a season-high 97 yards.

“I thought Brandon Miree brought a lot to the table,” Harris said. “He was running hard. He was a welcome addition and we’re very excited that he had such a good game.”

Pitt also had a solid performance from Pitt defensive back Torrie Cox, who was named Big East Special Teams Player of the Week. The senior from Miami returned five kickoffs for 154 yards Saturday, including returns of 50 and 46 yards, and also had three tackles. Cox leads the Big East in kick returns with an average of 31.7 yards.

The Panthers are now 2-1 on the season and open their Big East regular season schedule Saturday at noon when they face Rutgers at Heinz Field.

“Rutgers has been a challenge for us over the years,” Harris said. “[Rutgers head coach] Greg Schiano has done a nice job. They present a lot of problems both defensively and offensively with what they do. We’ll have to get ourselves ready to play.”

The Scarlet Knights (1-2) stumbled out of the gate with losses to Division 1-AA Villanova and Buffalo at home, but rebounded last weekend as they blanked Army 44-0 to earn their first win of the season. Harris is not discounting their potential – in fact, he’s reminded his team of Pitt’s 1998 homecoming game in which Rutgers came in and upset the Panthers 25-21.

“They look bigger and I think they have more athletes. I think they’re getting better,” Harris said.