Things are coming fast and furious on a lot of Pitt football
related fronts as the Panthers prepare for their last Big East football game (I
know, I know…I’ll give you some time to cry and gnash your teeth). I plan on
doing a few posts after this game to keep up to date as best that I can. Let’s give a brief of good news for ACC fans.
It was announced today that the ACC slapped Maryland with a lawsuit in North
Carolina to force the school to pay the full $50 million dollar exit fee. Perhaps more important was that this was
supported by all ACC schools…well, except for the Terps of course. We will see how that unfolds, but forcing the
full amount would be a HUGE win for the ACC to stop other teams from leaving.
Now…time to pass some notes on the South Florida Bulls. The Panthers will travel to Tampa for a
Saturday night tilt on ESPN2…don’t ask how this game got on that time slot, but
my wife is not too thrilled. The Bulls enter the game with a 3-8 record and
looking more like a MASH unit than a football team. Before we get to the numbers, we will pass
this one along to you: 3,832 yards and 27 TDs.
That is how much will be missing from the South Florida offense on
Saturday night. Senior QB BJ Daniels is
out with a broken leg and sprained ankle, while Senior RB Lindsey Lamar broke
his collarbone a few weeks ago, and WR Juniors Terrance Mitchell (head) and
Derrick Hopkins will also be missing.
That is a lot to replace and it is really catching up to the Bulls.
USF is 68th in passing, 59th in
rushing, and 97th in points for on the offensive side of the
ball. Taking over for Daniels is
Freshman QB Matt Floyd. Floyd is getting
his feet wet still and he is struggling.
Pitt has to put the pressure on so that he doesn’t start clicking on
Saturday night. In his limited play, he
has thrown for 373 yards and is still looking for his first TD, while tossing 2
picks. He has also been sacked 5 times
in limited time. When Floyd looks to
hand the ball off, Senior RB Demetris Murray is the main man. Murray has 652 yards and 6 TDs, while being
complimented by Junior RB Marcus Shaw.
Shaw pitches in with 241 yards and still in search of the end zone this
year on the ground.
Despite injuries to the receivers, when the Bulls go to the
air, their main target is still on the field.
Sophomore Andre Davis is solid and has 522 yards and 6 TDs despite the
problems at QB. With Mitchell and
Hopkins out, Senior Victor Marc has been stepping up with 19 grabs for 222
yards.
Pitt will be looking to take to the air when the defense of
the Bulls is on the field. South Florida
ranks 73rd in the country in sacks and dead last in INTs. The unit is 60th in points
against. Look, I think we can all agree
that we want to see the real Pitt Panthers step up finally. Is Pitt the team that took Notre Dame to the limit,
beat up on Rutgers, and took care of Virginia Tech with ease or are they the
team that lost to UConn and Youngstown State?
It is always fun to watch Pitt football, but ever growing bald spot is
getting bigger with this year’s team. One way to find out is to win on Saturday
and extend their season and see if the Panthers can break that 2 wins, 2 losses
streak they have going this year.
Hubie Graham and Devin Street are questionable for the
game. They would be a big help for Pitt
as the offense will look to take advantage of the lack of sacks and INTs South
Florida has generated this season. What
is my prediction for this game? Well, if you want to look back at my picks this
year, you will want me to choose USF in this game….no dice though. Pitt 24 USF 10. Let’s hope for a Backyard Brawl in NYC..as I
could actually make that game!
Of note also is that Pitt is setting up a pretty big
recruiting weekend next week with several big targets coming to town.
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