#H2P... PITT IS IT! - A Pitt Panthers Dynasty (NCAA 14)

[dfsJunkie]

Wow, huge win! And it wasn't even really that close. Way to pull that one out.

[moose141]

Quote: Originally Posted by Deuce2223

Congrats on the win and division championship. Hopefully it will carry over to next week and we will see Pitt as ACC Champion. I felt like Miami's play calling early in the 4th Quarter with a chance to tie the game was horrible. The QB and the RB on both run plays had a chance to cut it up the middle for the score but kept trying to run the ball to the outside. If they had scored there and tied the game then we wouldn't have seen the 107 yd INT return and it would've been a totally different ball game.

Thanks Deuce! Absolutely, we would love to pull out the ACC title, as this really felt like my best team ever and with so many departures about to happen on the defensive side of the ball, I think we could see a big regression next season unfortunately. If we can pull off the win next weekend, then who knows, maybe we sneak in and have a shot at the big dance.

Definitely the first play when Miami ran the read option their QB should have scooted up the middle to score, but he's not much of a runner and was probably scared of getting hit. The one on second down was I think just good defense as Ford took away the outside edge, letting Stocker come up and make the tackle in the middle of the field. For sure though, those are the little plays that really make or break a game. If they score there and make it 21-21, then really who knows how the game might've went from there!

Quote: Originally Posted by dfsJunkie

Wow, huge win! And it wasn't even really that close. Way to pull that one out.

It was a gigantic win for sure. That was the first time against Miami that it hasn't finished in a one score game, although to be honest the game was much closer than the final scoreline indicated. They actually outgained us in total offense, and really moved the ball well on us, we just came up with a couple of gigantic plays that ended up swinging the entire game, which is what you need to do to win. The four biggest plays were huge swings: the Keyes 50 yard TD catch and run, the Stocker 107 yard Pick 6, the Hamlin INT, and the Ford Pick 6 all were just giant plays that swung the momentum and ultimately the game in our favor. Thanks for the comments!!!

[moose141]

National News and Notes: Week 14
Report by Matt Schmidlin | December 1, 2019

-- All three unbeatens across the nation capped off their regular season with a victory, as LSU, Ohio State, and UAB all will enter championship week without losses on their resume. The Tigers and Heisman favorite Joe Burrow (250 total yards, 4 TDs) smoked Arkansas, while the Buckeyes look on a collision course for a playoff matchup with their former signal caller after a win against archrival Michigan behind four TDs from Dwayne Haskins. The Blazers still hope to crash the playoff party after beating Southern Miss, setting up their chance to state their claim in the C-USA title game.

-- Alabama knocked off Auburn to finish their season 11-1, hoping to potentially claim the final spot in the playoff picture should some results fall their way, as their only loss came to #1 LSU by just three points. The Crimson Tide emerged victorious, 34-21, thanks to a gigantic performance from Senior QB Jalen Hurts, who is hoping for one last chance at college football's biggest prize.

-- The Big XII picture got slightly clearer, as only 3 or the 4 contenders still have a chance to claim the title following Saturday's action. Should Kansas State beat Texas, they will claim the title and likely a playoff spot at 11-1. If Texas beats the Wildcats and Oklahoma knocks off Oklahoma State, the Longhorns would claim the Big XII. However, if Oklahoma State beats Oklahoma and Texas knocks off Kansas State, there would be a 3-way tie at the top between Kansas State, Texas, and Oklahoma State and obscure tiebreakers would come into place to decide the title. The best chance for a Big XII school to make the playoff would be a KState win, but things could get very murky if any other scenario takes place.

-- NC State's 31-24 victory over Wake Forest claimed the ACC Atlantic crown for the Wolfpack, and likely ended Wake QB Kendall Hinton's Heisman campaign, as Hinton won't get a 13th game to rack up even more stellar numbers. The redshirt senior had a great send off in the loss, racking up 336 total yards of offense and 3 TDs in the losing effort.

[Tearz49ers]

The win over Miami symbolizes where you have this program going, the fact it's the first time it hasn't ended in a single score and rather by eighteen clear points is a big momentum shift for your team in the ACC.

[moose141]

Quote: Originally Posted by Tearz49ers

The win over Miami symbolizes where you have this program going, the fact it's the first time it hasn't ended in a single score and rather by eighteen clear points is a big momentum shift for your team in the ACC.

For sure! It's great to see the consistency that we have shown, not yo-yoing like we did in the second year of the dynasty. That said, this is definitely a year where we need to make the most of the talent level that we have, because the defense will definitely take a step backwards next season. What is a shame is the fact that this year almost feels like a missed opportunity right now, because that second loss to Louisville really looks horrible on the resume after they ended up finishing the season at 5-7.

[moose141]

National News and Notes: Week 15
Report by Matt Schmidlin | December 8, 2019

-- The Big XII has managed to muddy the playoff waters even further. The murkiest scenario possible emerged from yesterday's action, as Texas beat Kansas State handily, 52-21, and Oklahoma thrashed Oklahoma State, 48-14, clinching the conference title for the Longhorns through the head to head tiebreaker with Kansas State. However, it leaves the Big XII champion with a 10-2 record (and actually four 10-2 teams overall), hardly providing strong evidence for a playoff berth. If any more mayhem is produced on championship Saturday, the playoff committee could have some interesting choices to make.

-- Navy salvaged a fairly dismal campaign by beating their archrivals Army, 37-17, in their annual showdown. The win for Navy pushed them to 5-7 on the season, while Army will be disappointed with the loss but does finish the season 9-3 and will be bowling somewhere.

-- Arkansas State capped off another sensational year, narrowly beating Texas State to finish the regular season 11-1 and seal the Sun Belt title for the second time in three years. The Red Wolves have been one of the nation's most successful teams over the last four seasons, compiling a 42-9 record since 2016, including a 34-4 mark in the last three seasons.

UP NEXT: Conference Championship Week Preview

[moose141]

Conference Championship Week Preview
Report by Matt Schmidlin | December 10, 2018

With Kansas State faltering and losing the Big XII title to Texas, there aren't any playoff spots locked up at this point. Two of last year's semifinalists are still in the hunt, while multiple schools that narrowly missed out last season are looking to seal their trips to the national semifinals. Let's take a look at the eight games that will determine conference bragging rights and set the playoff field.


ACC Championship Game -- Charlotte, NC
#8 Pittsburgh 10-2 (7-1)
#6 NC State 11-1 (7-1)

NC State looks to be a win and they're in playoff contender, as the #6 ranked Wolfpack take on defending ACC champions Pittsburgh. The Panthers look to state their case for a return to the CFP with a convincing win, hoping that some other results will fall their way to give them an opportunity despite their pair of losses. The game sets up to be a low scoring struggle, as both team's feature top-6 ranked defenses in terms of yardage allowed per game across the nation.



American Championship Game -- Houston, TX
UCF 10-2 (7-1)
#11 Houston 11-1 (7-1)

UCF has seen a resurgence in the past two seasons. After finishing 1-11 in 2016 and 2-10 in 2017, the Knights went 7-6 in 2018 and now enter conference championship week with an 8 win swing over the course of just two seasons. They will face #11 Houston in the American title game, who has been dominant offensively this season but untested, somehow managing to face three FCS schools on their non-conference slate. The matchup should be a fun one under center, with Pitt transfer Ben DiNucci leading a potent UCF pass game against the sensation dual threat D'Eriq King of the Cougars.



Big Ten Championship Game -- Indianapolis, IN
#24 Wisconsin 9-3 (7-2)
#2 Ohio State 12-0 (9-0)

After being snubbed for last year's playoff and finishing in the #5 seeding, Ohio State looks to be a shoo in for the tournament this campaign, no matter what the result of this game is. The Buckeyes will be missing HB Mike Weber, but are led by junior QB Dwayne Haskins and will have HB Antonio Williams in the backfield, who has been a stellar deputy so far this season as Ohio State has fielded the #3 ranked offense in the nation. Alex Hornibrook has led a solid Wisconsin offense, but will have to take on the country's #8 ranked defensive unit. Wisconsin's biggest hope will be to play takeaway, as they ranked top in the country in turnover margin.



Conference USA Championship Game -- Birmingham, AL
Western Kentucky 6-6 (6-3)
#3 UAB 12-0 (9-0)

The Blazers have been a Cinderella story all season, and despite their unbeaten record will most likely need some results to fall their way to have a chance at a playoff berth. The Blazers will likely come out guns blazing (pun intended), as QB John Jacobs has led the nation's second most prolific passing attack, trailing only top ranked LSU and likely Heisman winner Joe Burrow.



MAC Championship Game -- Detroit, MI
Western Michigan 9-3 (7-1)
Ohio 10-2 (8-0)

Ohio looks to repeat as MAC champions and complete their most dominant season in school history since their 1968 Tangerine Bowl squad that went 10-1. Quinton Maxwell helms the 5th-ranked aerial attack against a stingy Western Michigan defense that is ranked 4th against the pass this season, while being tied with Wisconsin at the top of the country in turnover margin.



Mountain West Championship Game -- San Diego, CA
Boise State 9-3 (7-1)
San Diego State 10-2 (7-1)

After a surprising down year last season, Boise State has been revived under new HC Jonathan Smith and former Cal transfer QB Ross Bowers. The Broncos will head away to SoCal to take on San Diego State and their prolific rushing attack, currently clocking in at #9 in the national rankings for yardage.



PAC-12 Championship Game -- Los Angeles, CA
Oregon 9-3 (7-2)
#5 UCLA 11-1 (8-1)

UCLA will look to not let a playoff berth slip through their fingers for the second straight year, after they saw any chance of making the playoff in 2018 slip through their fingers with a weak schedule and PAC-12 championship loss to eventual national champions Washington. The Bruins likely will sneak in with a win, and will have the benefit of starting QB Devin Modster returning to lead the nation's #2 ranked offense on Saturday. On the flip side, Oregon has been massively underrated this season, fielding both a top-15 offense and top-30 defense this year, though they will be missing star QB Justin Herbert for this contest to injury. Junior QB Sam Miller will start for the Ducks in his place.



SEC Championship Game -- Atlanta, GA
#14 Georgia 10-2 (7-1)
#1 LSU 12-0 (8-0)

LSU finds themselves in their third straight SEC title game, having lost to Tennessee in 2017 and then beaten the Vols last season. This year the Tigers will take on the Georgia Bulldogs, who look to play spoiler to the Tigers, who have entered the SEC championship with a perfect record in each of the last three seasons. LSU fields a pair of Heisman contenders in QB Joe Burrow and HB Nick Brossette in the nation's top ranked offense, while their defense is no slouch either, with the 5th best defense against the run and the #20 ranked unit overall. The Bulldogs will have their hands full if they hope to derail the Bayou juggernaut.



Conference Championships Already Determined:
Big XII - #7 Texas 10-2 (8-1), Sun Belt - #18 Arkansas State 11-1 (8-0)

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
Check out this past week's #PANTHERNATION recap show where we discussed and previewed all eight conference title matchups in the back half of the episode.

[moose141]

ACC CHAMPIONSHIP PREVIEW
Report by Matt Schmidlin | December 12, 2019

What: #9 Pitt (10-2, 7-1) vs. #6 NC State (11-1, 7-1)
Where: Bank of America Field, Charlotte, NC
When: Saturday, December 14, 2019, 8:00 PM EST

Game Line Pres. by FanDuel: NC State (-3.5)
ESPN Prediction: NC State

Last Meeting (2009): 38-31 NC State
All Time Series: 5-3-1 Pitt
Dynasty Series: First Meeting

What to Watch

Looking in a Mirror

After sporting one of the nation's most prolific rushing attacks last season, as the Pitt Panthers survey their upcoming opponents, the NC State Wolfpack, they see a lot of themselves in their attack.

"They love to pound the football," Pitt HC Pat Narduzzi said. "It's a smashmouth style of football that we know a lot about, and so hopefully we will know how to defend it. We've done well against the run this year, but this will be our guys' toughest test on that front, no doubt about it."

While Pitt fields the nation's best run defense, allowing just a shade under 100 yards per game (99.2), they haven't come up against an attack like this. Under first year coach Tom Herman, who came over from Houston after Robert Prunty took the USC job this past offseason, the Wolfpack have leaned on their best player, workhorse senior halfback Johnny Frasier. Frasier has put together a sensational season, averaging 108.8 yards per game while adding 13 touchdowns on the ground, as he has tallied his second 1000-yard rushing season of his career. He has been the model of consistency, as he has tallied 3283 yards on the ground in his career while never carrying for a single carry longer than 19 yards, which is incredible when you think that Frasier has 556 career carries and a very solid 5.9 yard average.

"The guy does not go backwards," Narduzzi said. "He is a big bruiser, and he plows through the line and gets solid chunks on basically every carry. Our job will just be to make those chunks as small as possible so that they have to adjust and find some other way to try and beat us."

While Frasier is the main man for the Wolfpack, they have plenty of other options to run the football. Sophomore HB Edwin Baker has added 756 yards (63.0 YPG) on the season, while QB Jakobi Myers has the ability to beat you with his legs as well as his arm. The senior adds 47.3 YPG to the Wolfpack ground game, while passing for 187.2 YPG as well. The one area where Myers has been prone to mistakes though is through the air, as he has thrown 13 INTs on the season to go along with his 24 TDs. The Panthers have multiple INTs in each of their last three contests, and will hope to snag a few more to derail the Wolfpack's playoff hopes.

Defense Wins Championships

Both defenses that will be on display on Saturday night are among the nation's best, each ranking inside the top-6 based on yardage allowed.

The Panthers field the nation's top run defense and #6 defense overall, which will match up nicely against the Wolfpack ground and pound game. Conversely, NC State trots out the #2 overall defensive unit, reknowned for being stellar against the pass (#2-ranked), who will face off against the more aerially inclined Pitt Panthers. Both schools also ranked in the top-10 nationally in terms of turnover differential, meaning either one of these defenses could find a way to steal a victory for their squad.

What to Expect on the Field on Saturday



Who do you think comes out on top: Pitt or NC State?