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November 3, 2015

(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)

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.

Real TD Jesus

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:

 





Never under estimate the power of positive thinking. If Pitt does not give up any big plays and limits their mental mistakes, they can beat Notre Dame. Pitt’s defense will have to contend with Notre Dame’s hurry-up offense that will require discipline and stamina. Admittedly, this is a non-conference game but playing Notre Dame on national TV is a big deal. I believe Pitt will play their best game of the year this Saturday.

Hail to Pitt!

Comment by MariettaMike 11.05.15 @ 3:38 pm

Pitt has yet to play a complete game this season. Can we dare hope that this is the week?

Comment by Dr. Tom 11.05.15 @ 3:46 pm

@tedsptman, thanks. I was figuring in the time frame. I just thought someone may have dropped out. Tourney with Michigan and Marquette, I’m great with that.

Plus, we already play there this year don’t we?? Maybe it’s at the place in Brooklyn i’m thinking of?

Comment by Dan 11.05.15 @ 4:45 pm

We are playing in the Gotham Classic around Christmas break if memory serves me correct. Don’t know the first opponent. And SMU is nothing to shake off either. Yes, they have lost scholarships for next year but that just means they can’t recruit anyone or many as they will be eligible for the post season as well.

Comment by tedsptman 11.05.15 @ 4:58 pm

Doesn’t the hoops season start tomorrow?

No surprise here: NCAA: UConn has lowest grad rate among Top 25 teams

link to espn.go.com

Comment by Jackagain 11.05.15 @ 5:18 pm

Ya gotta love this guy….Narduzzi: Notre Dame should have to join a conference

link to triblive.com

Comment by Jackagain 11.05.15 @ 5:21 pm

@Jackagain, the one beat writer, I can’t think of his name, Sam Werner, there it is, anyhow he tried giving a small amount of grief, very small, but yet had to Tweet about Narduzzi talking about
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.

Comment by Dan 11.05.15 @ 5:27 pm

“But coach Pat Narduzzi said on his radio show Wednesday that he believes Conner might be well enough to play in the final couple games. He didn’t define the word couple, however, and after Saturday there are only four games remaining in the season — five if Pitt finds a way to win the Coastal Division of the ACC.
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.”

link to blog.triblive.com

Comment by Jackagain 11.05.15 @ 5:32 pm

Pat Narduzzi implementing a familiar recruiting blueprint at Pitt

Comment by Jackagain 11.05.15 @ 6:16 pm

Woops…loaded before I could place the link:

link to insider.espn.go.com

Comment by Jackagain 11.05.15 @ 6:16 pm

Pitt will WIN. Pitt will WIN. Just keep thinking it and Pitt will WIN. H2P! Beat the Domers. May all the subway alums go back to the Grotto and pray that they may beat Pitt next time. I hope Pitt supporters show and Heinz isnt filled with Irish or Catholics. Maybe Pitt can offer free tickets to Martian Atheists? 🙂

Comment by TX Panther 11.05.15 @ 6:26 pm

I’m Catholic and I hate ND

Comment by JLE 11.05.15 @ 6:46 pm

A lot of us Catholics hate ND

Comment by Old Pitt Grad 11.05.15 @ 7:22 pm

I’m Catholic myself…well born into it. And I’ve always hated Notre Dame. But I like the Irish cause they drink…yes I know a stereotype. I still wish I’d find that Leprechaun guarding his pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. I’ve always dreamed of capping him and taking his gold. Fuck that Leprechaun.

Comment by TX Panther 11.05.15 @ 7:32 pm

You guys are good Catholic boys… Got me reminiscing of the ” good Catholic girls” back in my hometown during my youth. Aww confession does the soul good. Think I will put Rudy in the DVD player …

Comment by BigB 11.05.15 @ 9:16 pm

For you younger Blstherites 2 local boys playing for the Irish won The Heisman.. Johnny Lujack- Connellsville and Leon Hart- Turtle Creek

Comment by BigB 11.05.15 @ 9:30 pm

Not Catholic but my best friend was and loved ND — which of course made me them all the more.

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

Comment by wbb 11.05.15 @ 9:32 pm

I hate nd because their fans are some real smug pricks. I hate philly & wvu fans much more, but I at least respect them & understand where they’re coming from.

Comment by Nick 11.05.15 @ 10:47 pm

There are no local Pittsburgh players on the current nd FB roster. Let’s hope it stays that way – keep the 412 Crew at home.

The nd back-up kicker is from Erie – ikr.

Beat the domers and snag a few recruiting verbals this weekend.

HTP!

Comment by Erie Express 11.06.15 @ 5:14 am

Pittman: the mental image of your dad’s impromptu prayer invocation is as clear as if I was there. Your dad was a great man, would loved to have had a beer or six and listened to his stories. Someday if I’m ever held in a fraction of the esteem you have for your dad I would be honored.

ND still makes my blood boil.

Comment by Old School Panther 11.06.15 @ 5:49 am

ND did have one of the best announcer. Lindsey Nelson. Loved hearing him call any sport.

Comment by notrocketscience 11.06.15 @ 7:30 am

Time to predict the outcome after playing these pricks. Come on guys new thread needed, get on the stick.

Comment by Dr. Tom 11.06.15 @ 7:42 am

I keep reading about all the recruits here Sat for the nd game. Great opportunity to close the deal on some.

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!!

Comment by Savannah Panther 11.06.15 @ 7:44 am

Beat Notre Dame, it can be done. If Pitt can get their freshman QB rattled it should be good for an interception or two.
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!

Comment by Grizzly1 11.06.15 @ 8:14 am

Erie — maybe not now, but a delusional kid, class of ’17 at North Allegheny, has committed to the domers. Maybe Saturday’s win will plant some seeds of doubt.

Comment by PetePitt73 11.06.15 @ 8:21 am

This will be a very interesting game. So far has gotten a B+ on his report card, but now the challenge really begins. How does he and his guys handle their first real adversity? How do they overcome the doubt that exists after the last game?

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?

Comment by gc 11.06.15 @ 8:57 am

Narduzzi’s report card

Comment by gc 11.06.15 @ 8:58 am

Notre Dame arrived last night. Saw a ND faithful saying he didn’t like them having two days in Pittsburgh, anytime they go two days to a game they come out sluggish!!

Hey, we need everything we can get.

Comment by Dan 11.06.15 @ 9:09 am

Huge game for Pitt recruiting wise, recruits will be more impressed with a win over ND in front of 65,000 then winning the coastal at Duke in front of 25,000 and two home games against Louisville and Miami in front of 40,000.

Comment by John 11.06.15 @ 10:12 am

Big opportunity to assert not only us into the Top 25 picture but the ACC in general. Based on the first CFP ranking, the ACC Coastal is obviously not getting much respect since the top team, UNC, is unranked. IF we win and so does UNC, Pitt will be Top 25, UNC will be Top 20.

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.

Comment by Timmeh 11.06.15 @ 10:43 am

So this is the second time that a big Pitt announcement has been teased and goes nowhere.

If it is the same guy, he should be fired or at least banned from the Pitt campus.

Comment by gc 11.06.15 @ 10:57 am

Only 582 tickets available on stubhub, and they are pricey. Maybe we will get over 65,000.

Comment by gc 11.06.15 @ 11:57 am

There will also be BB recruits at the game.

Comment by HbgFrank 11.06.15 @ 12:51 pm

The staff needs to lock up Hudson, will be one of the best kids in the class.

Comment by bj 11.06.15 @ 3:13 pm

Anyone watch MacVittie’s highlight film thus far? Kid looks pretty impressive. Honestly he kind of reminds me of a mix of Voytik and Peterman. He’s tall, can really throw it and he can run pretty fast.

Comment by JJ 11.06.15 @ 4:12 pm

Duke is ranked and UNC will be ranked come Sunday.

Comment by Jackagain 11.06.15 @ 4:30 pm

@Comment by JJ 11.06.15 @ 4:12 pm

Looks raw – lot of tools to work with though – great athelte.

Comment by BostonsCommon 11.06.15 @ 4:36 pm

MacVittie’s 40 time of 4.51 is very impressive. More impressive the kid shows escapability in the pocket with quick decision making.

Comment by Dr. Tom 11.06.15 @ 4:45 pm

Starky is right again…

link to triblive.com

Comment by Jackagain 11.06.15 @ 5:10 pm

JJ, I have been posting all along that MacVittie will take over the reins as RS FR starter in 2017. Not only does he have all of the skills, he is a Jim Chaney guy

Comment by wbb 11.06.15 @ 6:17 pm

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