Late rally not quite enough for Syracuse
A week after tough loss to Clemson, Orange fall to Pitt
Pittsburgh’s Darrin
Hall ran for 107 yards and two touchdowns, including the go-ahead score in overtime, as the Panthers rallied past Syracuse 4437 on Saturday.
Hall’s 3-yard burst on the opening possession of the extra period put the Panthers up and Pitt sophomore defensive back Therran Coleman picked off Syracuse’s Eric Dungey in the end zone on the Orange’s first offensive snap to give the Panthers a stirring victory.
“Our kids needed that one,” Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi said after his team ended a two-game losing streak.
Qadree Ollison ran for 192 yards and a score for the Panthers (3-3, 2-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who weathered a 75-minute lightning delay and a late surge by the Orange to beat Syracuse (4-2, 1-2) for the eighth straight time at Heinz Field.
The Orange trailed by 10 in the third quarter but pushed in front 37-34 with 5:53 left in regulation only to let it slip away while losing late for the second consecutive week.
Pitt’s Alex Kessman hit a 45-yard field goal to tie it with 8 seconds to go and Hall, Ollison and the offensive line did the rest in overtime.
“The line said, ‘Coach, keep running it, we got you,’ ” Narduzzi said.
Dungey completed 18 of 38 passes for 195 yards with a touchdown and two picks during an erratic day in which he also ran for a team-high 70 yards and a touchdown.
Syracuse head coach Dino Babers pointed to thegameasatestofhis team’s maturity following a draining loss to Acc-power Clemson last week. Early on it looked like Syracuse had finally grown up. The Orange raced to a quick 14-0 lead less than 10 minutes in.
The Panthers, however, found their footing behind a defense that kept Dungey off-balance and occasionally off his feet.
Pitt ripped off 27 of the game’s next 30 points before the delay put the game on hold.