Three MAC teams (sort of, it’s still kind of weird to think of Temple as a MAC team) face Big East teams on Saturday. Temple is looking for payback on UConn after their own refs and the Big East replay ref jobbed them last year. Akron is excited about the idea of taking out a BCS team. They don’t actually say it’s Syracuse, just a BCS team. Then there is Buffalo.

UB’s players and coaches have talked all week about the significance of the game, and how it would boost the Bulls’ standing in the Mid-American Conference and nationally. If they needed a reminder, all they have to do is think back to last Saturday when the MAC’s Bowling Green knocked off the then 25th ranked Panthers.

Several of the Bulls watched the game together last Saturday in which the Falcons defeated the Panthers, 27-17, and Bowling Green caused quite a stir.

“We got excited,” said senior left tackle Ray Norell. “Any time that a MAC school goes in and beats a Big [East] team, it’s huge. We’re hoping we can go in there and play as hard as we can and we can come out with a win, too.”

The Bulls had two reactions to the Bowling Green upset: They should be able to match up against the Panthers and the Falcons are better than they thought.

…

“Right now, our confidence is high,” [junior defensive tackle Dane] Robinson said. “Coach Gill tells us, ‘You have a right to be confident,’ not cocky because it’s only one game and there are 11 more and we have to do it consistently. Pittsburgh has some questions that need to be answered and that may be something that plays into our favor.”

Those questions. How does Coach Wannstedt expect to answer them?

“They can expect us to hold onto the football,” he said. “That would be the most important thing. We have to protect the ball and not give up any easy scores. As long as we do that, we’ll have a chance to beat everybody we play.”

That and apparently change the pregame meal seems to be the extent of the changes necessary according to Coach Wannstedt. How about scoring more points?

Bulls QB Drew Willy directed an efficient dismantling of Texas-El Paso with ample support from TBs James Starks and Brandon Thermilus and long connections with WR Naaman Roosevelt. LB Scott McKillop and the Panthers defense should be able to limit the big plays, but their offensive counterparts must stop putting them in difficult positions. Ball security will be the top priority for Pitt QB Bill Stull and RB LeSean McCoy as they challenge the Buffalo stoppers, led by hard-hitting SS Davonte Shannon.

The Trib’s Kevin Gorman does a guest commentary for Rivals.com/Pantherlair and calls buffalo crap on the turnover stuff.

The Panthers went to great lengths this week to blame their season-opening loss on turnovers, in an effort to deflect legitimate criticism about their confounding choices on critical calls and inability to score more against a team that allowed an average of 402.5 yards and 30.2 points last season:

…

If that’s not placing the blame on the players instead of the coaches, I don’t know what is. Wannstedt was emphatic this week in calling turnovers “the difference between winning and losing.” He should know, considering how turnovers have affected his record in three-plus seasons at Pitt.

The Panthers are 16-20 under Wannstedt, and most of those victories have come when the Panthers won the turnover margin. It’s not quite the simple equation as winning the turnover margin equals winning games, though.

Pitt is 3-4 when the turnover margin is even, has lost three games with a plus-margin and won one game with a minus-margin. The Panthers are 4-3 in the seven games they haven’t had a turnover, beating Connecticut in 2005, Central Florida in ’06 and Eastern Michigan and Syracuse in ’07 but losing to Nebraska and UConn in ’05 and UConn and West Virginia in ’06.

Sometimes, it comes down to what you do with the turnovers.

As much criticism as OC Cavanaugh takes for the offense, it has been pointed out that this offense is also the offense Coach Wannstedt wants. Low risk, limiting opportunities, just run clock, field position and mainly trust in the defense to control the game.

To that extent, any turnovers by Pitt’s offense are killer since they disrupt the entire game plan. And that, many — including myself — would see as a major flaw in the gameplan. Turnovers happen. Especially at the college level. Wannstedt’s gameplan depends not just on Pitt winning the turnover margin, but not turning the ball over at all. Each turnover by Pitt effects field position, running time off the clock by the offense, making the defense do more, and one less chance to score a field goal.

The prove it/disproven theme continues in this AP piece.

All week on this blog, it’s been about all the shortcomings of Wannstedt the coach coming back at once. The excuses, putting it on the players, overvaluing experience/not trusting the younger players, old NFL mentality, etc.

In Paul Zeise’s Q&A and chat from Thursday, all of these things came up and there was no disagreement from him. Zeise has also noticed the anger from the fans has reached all-time highs.

Q: Is this the angriest you have ever seen Pitt fans since you started the Q&A?

ZEISE: Actually, yes, and by a lot. I mean, I have lost track of how many e-mails, phone messages and whatnot I have received, plus you read the message boards, listen to talk radio — there is a lot of anger and I think it is three years of frustration finally boiling over. I mean, when Walt Harris had his low moments, there would be anger but at least 30 to 35 percent of the correspondence was defending him. I don’t know that I have received one e-mail this week that was even remotely positive or trying to defend the coaching staff. It has ALL been negative, so that’s why it is pretty easy to figure out that this has been as bad as it gets for the coaching staff and the program in terms of an unhappy fan base.

“Think it is three years of frustration finally boiling over.”? Nay, it is. It is so completely an overwhelming and stupefying frustration and anger. Look Pittsburgh and Pitt fans have no problem with a power running game and strong defense. Everyone gets that. It’s comforting and familiar. But when it is so clear that, it isn’t happening that way. When it is college football, not the NFL. It becomes too much to take when the head coach is the only one that doesn’t see it or can’t admit it.

Another fun fact for the Wannstedt era. In Pitt’s 13 1-A wins under Wannstedt, only 3 came against teams that finished above .500 (Cinci twice and WVU). So, for the most part, if you lost to Pitt, and were not Cinci, it was a very, very good chance that you were a bad team. I guess Buffalo will find out a lot about itself tomorrow night.

Pitt will take a shot and try to get Redshirt Senior Linebacker Adam Gunn a 6th year of eligibility. It’s an admitted longshot, but it can’t hurt to ask. Especially if they look at the tape of the injury.

Wannstedt said watching Gunn’s injury on tape was “very frightening,” especially after learning that McKillop cracked his helmet and bent his facemask on the play. “In 30-some years of coaching, I’ve had very few helmets that have been broken on the field,” Wannstedt said. “That’s an indication of the type of impact they had. I think Scott’s very lucky that he’s not hurt, too. You have to look at it from the positive side, that Adam will be fine. Right now, it’s just a setback and a disappointment. He’ll be fine once it heals.”

Yeep. Didn’t know about the cracked helmet.

That means the linebacker depth chart gets a shake-up and youth must be served. Of course DC Phil Bennett seems more concerned that Pitt failed to actually get turnovers — especially since there were opportunities.

One of the most frustrating parts for Bennett was that the defense misplayed four possible turnovers — two interceptions and two fumbles — because he had emphasized that area all summer. One critical play was a dropped interception by safety Eric Thatcher in the end zone; the Falcons scored on the next play.

He defended the play of Safety Dom DeCicco, which you do have to expect. Even if it causes some eyerolling.

QB Bill Stull gets a friendly piece in the Youngstown paper. Why? His folks are from Newton Falls (got a speeding ticket there) and Stull lived in the suburbs of Youngstown through most of elementary school.

Interesting bit in Ivan Maisel’s college football rundown stuff on scheduling and off weeks for teams. He talks to the Big East’s guy, associate commissioner Nick Carparelli about it. Pitt is the example.

2. Every school is responsible for their own nonconference schedule. In an ideal world, since we have five nonconference games, the schools will schedule them in the first five or six weeks. That leaves us a blank slate to concoct a balanced, fair, competitive schedule.

3. Pittsburgh plays Notre Dame on Nov. 1 (so much for early-season nonconference games). In an eight-team league, I’m forced to give someone else a bye then (that would be Rutgers).

4. We avoid three straight road games. If we have to do it, we include a bye. Pittsburgh plays at Syracuse (Sept. 27), at Cincinnati (Oct. 2) and at Navy (Oct. 18). Part of the problem with them [Pitt] is that this is the year they [nonconference] scheduled three home games in the first four weeks and two road games late in the season. They handcuffed us.

5. We avoid one school having a “short week” playing an opponent that has a full week or more. (Pitt and USF both have five days to prepare for their game on Thurs., Oct. 2, as do USF and Cincinnati for their game on Thurs., Oct. 30).

6. If you shortchange a school (a team without an off week playing a team that had an off week), you try to limit it once in a season. West Virginia is at Pitt on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Pitt plays at UConn on championship Saturday (Dec. 6). UConn doesn’t play on Thanksgiving weekend. We felt better because Pitt is getting an extra day to prepare. We couldn’t avoid it.

Now we know.