Late trick play ends 25-game winning streak

PITTSBURGH 35, NO. 15 UCF 34

PITTSBURGH» Wide receiver Aaron Matthews hit quarterback Kenny Pickett on a 3-yard, fourthdown touchdown pass with 56 seconds remaining and Pittsburgh stunned No. 15 UCF 35-34 on Saturday.

The Panthers (2-2) ended UCF’S 25-game regular-season winning streak on a play head coach Pat Narduzzi called the “Pitt Special” in a nod to the Philadelphia Eagles, who ran a similar play two seasons ago in their Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots.

Pitt trailed by six when Pickett drove the Panthers to the UCF 3. Running back A.J. Davis took a direct snap with Pickett going in motion. Davis handed the ball to Matthews, who rolled to his right and hit Pickett in the end zone. UCF’S last-gasp drive went nowhere.

Pickett completed 25 of 47 for 224 yards with a touchdown despite leaving briefly with a right arm injury. Maurice Ffrench and Dontavius Butler-jenkins caught touchdown passes for the Panthers, who bounced back from an emotional loss to rival Penn State last week by withstanding a 31point outburst from the Knights (3-1) in the middle of the game.

UCF quarterback Gabriel Dillon passed for 338 yards and two touchdowns but also threw his first two interceptions of the season. Gabriel Davis hauled in 10 passe for 151 yards and two scores, but the Knight’s high-tempo offense didn’t run as efficiently as it had during three blowouts to start the year.

UCF finished with 423 yards, 180 under its season average.