(Any italics are my text…)
PITT (6-2, 4-1 ACC) vs. #8/9 NOTRE DAME (7-1) (Doctored up)
(Notre Dame’s new true Freshman Hunchback)
November 7, 2015 • Noon, ET
Heinz Field (68,400/Natural Grass) • Pittsburgh, Pa.
ABC National Telecast • Pitt IMG Sports Radio Network
PittsburghPanthers.com • @GoPittFootball • #NDvsPITT
LINK (PDF): Pitt Game Notes (vs. ND)
GAME STORYLINES
* Pitt and Notre Dame renew ties for the 70th time when the Panthers host their historic rival for a noon ABC national telecast at Heinz Field. Pitt owns a 6-2 mark, its best start since 2009. The Irish are 7-1 and ranked as high as No. 8 this week.
* The Panthers are looking to bounce back from a 26-19 loss to ACC foe North Carolina. The defeat halted a four-game winning streak for Pitt. Notre Dame visits Pittsburgh having won its last three games following a two-point loss at undefeated Clemson (Oct. 3).
* Close games and dramatic finishes have been the rule for Pitt and Notre Dame in recent years. The past six meetings have been decided by an average of 4.5 points. Two of those contests have gone to overtime.
* Pitt is 5-2 in games decided by single digits this year. The Panthers were 1-5 in single-digit contests last season.
* All-America candidate Tyler Boyd needs just 49 receiving yards to become Pitt’s all-time leader in that category. Boyd enters the Notre Dame game with 3,013 career yards, second only to Antonio Bryant (3,061 from 1999-2001) at Pitt.
* Tyler Boyd is already Pitt’s career receptions leader with 226. Boyd is the ACC’s active career leader and ranks second nationally with 6.85 catches per game.
* Quarterback Nate Peterman is completing 67.4% of his passes this season, the second-best percentage in the ACC and 15th nationally. Peterman has thrown 151 consecutive passes without an interception dating back to the first half at Iowa (Sept. 19).
* This season marks the 40-year anniversary of Tony Dorsett’s legendary 303-yard rushing game against Notre Dame in 1975. Dorsett’s incredible effort sparked the Panthers to a 34-20 win over the Irish at Pitt Stadium.
In a sign from Heaven this vision appeared on the building facing Notre Dame’s football field immediately after Dorsett broke the 300 yard mark. “It’s like God deserted us just because Pitt beat the crap out of our team” a scared undergrad said, “But He’ll make it right after next year’s game here at Notre Dame, I know He will. There’s no way we lose two in a row to them!!” But apparently God took the Panthers getting five points in 1976…
SERIES NOTES
Pitt and Notre Dame meet for the 70th time in a series that dates back to 1909…the Irish lead the all-time series by a 47-21-1 count…Pitt and Notre Dame have split the past eight meetings with each team winning four times since 2004…close contests have been the norm for most of the past decade…nine of the past 10 games have been decided by single digits…in the last meeting, Pitt edged the Irish, 28-21, at Heinz Field in 2013…
Pitt’s 2013 win snapped a three-game series losing streak and gained a measure of revenge for its 2012 loss, a 29-26 heartbreaker in three overtimes at Notre Dame…the Panthers are 11-26-1 at home and 10-21 on the road against Notre Dame…Pitt’s longest winning streak in the series is three games, achieved three separate times (1932-34; 1958-60; 1983, ‘86-87)…Notre Dame’s longest winning streak against Pitt is 11 games, which occurred from 1964-74…
…that streak was snapped in 1975 when Pitt defeated the Irish, 34-20 (page 36 of the Post Gazette), behind 303 rushing yards from Tony Dorsett…the 303 yards remain a Notre Dame opponent record…in four games against the Irish (1973-76), Dorsett rushed for 754 yards, an NCAA record for a player against a four-year opponent…
(Here is the recap of the 1976 ND game the season after the 303 yard performance… this game sticks in my mind more than the 303 game actually… sweet as hell! All the Pitt fans in ND stadium were looking at Hornung up in the press box and screaming “Jump! Jump!”)
…the Pitt-Notre Dame series is long on history and color…on Nov. 13, 1999, the Panthers defeated Notre Dame, 37-27, in the final game ever played at Pitt Stadium…Pittsburgh product Kevan Barlow scored two TDs, including the game’s final score on a two-yard run to close down the 74-year-old structure…
…the 2008 game at Notre Dame was an instant classic...the Panthers clawed back from a 17-3 halftime deficit to defeat the Irish, 36-33, in four overtimes…the four-overtime affair marked the longest game in both Pitt and Notre Dame history…the ‘08 game also marked the Panthers’ second consecutive victory at Notre Dame Stadium…
…in its prior visit to South Bend (2004), Pitt beat the Irish, 41-38, behind five touchdown passes from Tyler Palko, an unprecedented achievement against Notre Dame. Here’s another piece on Palko for your Pitt football pleasure, and to keep you from going back to doing what your supposed to be doing to earn that salary your getting…
SERIES IN BRIEF
Series Began: 1909
Series Overall: ND leads 47-21-1
At Pittsburgh: ND leads 26-11-1
At Notre Dame: ND leads 21-10
At Neutral Sites: DNA
OT Games: Series tied, 1-1
Last Meeting at Pitt: Nov. 9, 2013 (Pitt 28, Notre Dame 21)
Last Meeting at ND: Nov. 3, 2012 (Notre Dame 29, Pitt 26, 3OT)
Current Series Streak: Pitt has won 1 (2013)
Longest Pitt Series Win Streak: 3 games (three times, last: 1983, ‘86-87)
Longest Notre Dame Series Win Streak: 11 games (1964-74)
Largest Pitt Victory Margin: 26 points (26-0, 1936)
Largest Notre Dame Victory Margin: 58 points (58-0, 1944) (Here is the Post-Gazette account of the game; page 33)
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Television • ABC (WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh)
Sean McDonough, play-by-play
Chris Spielman, analyst
Todd McShay, reporter
Pitt Radio • 93.7 The Fan & the Pitt IMG Sports Network
Bill Hillgrove, play-by-play
Pat Bostick, analyst
Larry Richert, reporter
SiriusXM Satellite Radio
Sirius Channel 84, XM Channel 84
WPTS Radio (Pitt Student Station) • 92.1 FM
Pitt IMG Sports Network Online Audio Options
PittsburghPanthers.com via CSLive
Pitt Gameday LIVE App: iOS Android TuneIn
Finally, because this cracked me up when I watched it and because it is very well done, here is “Naptown Funk” (Naptown is Annapolis). Call me a hopelessly sentimental guy but when I see young men and women in the Military enjoying themselves I get a big smile on my face – especially considering what tough times they’ll be facing in a few years.
Plus, this might be the first time in the history of the U.S. that all five Armed Forces worked successfully with each other on something:
Plus, we already play there this year don’t we?? Maybe it’s at the place in Brooklyn i’m thinking of?
No surprise here: NCAA: UConn has lowest grad rate among Top 25 teams
Notre Dame having to join a conference.
His jist, wasn’t pro or con, it was “do we really need to hear about this, isn’t Jan-Aug time enough on these types of subjects.
I quickly fired him off a tweet, Hillgrove asked Narduzzi the direct question.
Didn’t come out of thin air.
Quit trying to make something out of nothing, and if you have a problem, you have a problem with Hillgrove, not Narduzzi.
Of course, crickets back from him.
Narduzzi also said the decision will be up to Conner and his family. It’s been almost two months since his surgery.
Two months from now, he’ll have to make another decision — whether or not to declare for the NFL Draft.”
BTW, my favorite analyst is Chris Spielman, who’s doing the game. He’s knowledgeable, not afraid to make rash statements, and one of his heroes is Hugh Green
The nd back-up kicker is from Erie – ikr.
Beat the domers and snag a few recruiting verbals this weekend.
HTP!
ND still makes my blood boil.
All of which made me wonder ….. I wonder how many recruits a great recruiter like Franklin can close on when the pedos host nd. ……. Oh, that’s right, they never play nd!!
We’ve been waiting for the offense to break out all season, this would be a great time for them to rack up some points.
Hail to Pitt!
Can he get Chaney to build a great game plan and to coach a complete game? Can he get his defense to play well enough to give up fewer big plays?
We saw how they did after a short week, how will they do with extra time to get ready?
How will they do as 8.5 point under dogs at home? How will they do on the huge stage that is always provided by ND?
The stakes are high, certainly ND has much more to lose, but will we play loose with reckless abandon, or will we come out tight?
Will we finish drives and make big plays when needed?
Will we rise to the occasion?
Hey, we need everything we can get.
I truly believe this conference is better than last year. Clemson has the opportunity to be in the playoff, FSU will still be Top 25 after their loss tomorrow and then UNC/us in Top 20 (UNC possibly Top 15), makes for a decent conference. I’m hoping Duke sneaks into the Top 25 too with a bowl win.
If it is the same guy, he should be fired or at least banned from the Pitt campus.
Looks raw – lot of tools to work with though – great athelte.
Hail to Pitt!