Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) -
CINCINNATI: The Bearcats had a bye this past weekend after opening the season
with wins in the first two games. Up next Cincinnati will face off with
Virginia Tech in a neutral site game at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland.
CONNECTICUT: In the second of an early two-game road trip the Huskies fell
30-24 to Western Michigan at Waldo Stadium. The Huskies have not recorded a
win on the road since a 17-3 victory over Buffalo last September. Lyle McCombs
climbed up the ranks of the top rushers in the conference with his best game
of the season, as the sophomore gained 119 yards on 23 carries. McCombs is now
ranked third in the conference in rushing yards. Chandler Whitmer threw for
333 yards and three scores on 28-of-44 passing. Whitmer's efforts came despite
constant pressure from the Broncos' defense as he was sacked six times in the
game. Geremy Davis had a strong game as he has established himself as
Whitmer's favored receiver. Davis caught nine passes for 123 yards and a score
in the contest. He has now caught 17 passes for 236 yards this season which is
ranked seventh in the Big East. Connecticut has had one of the best defenses
in the league this season but the Huskies struggled against Western Michigan
surrendering a season-highs in yards (330) and points (30). Part of the issue
was the Huskies' inability to penetrate the Broncos' offensive line as the
squad managed only two tackles for loss after entering the game ranked first
in the nation in the category (10.67 per game). Connecticut returns home to
Rentschler Field next weekend as the Huskies host Buffalo.
LOUISVILLE: It wasn't as easy a game as they may have liked but the Cardinals
remained undefeated through the first four games of the season with a 28-21
win on the road over FIU. The Cardinals effort kept them even at No. 19 in the
most recent AP Top 25. Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater looked flustered for the
first time this season as despite throwing for two touchdowns and 194 yards he
also tossed a pair of interceptions and had more incompletions (17) than he
had through the first three games. Bridgewater had gone 96 straight passes
this season without an interception before being picked off in the first
quarter. With Bridgewater struggling the Cardinals were out-gained for the
first time this season although by a slim 326-323 margin. Running back
Senorise Perry contributed in all aspects of the game with a team-high 99 all
purpose yards. Perry, who rushed for 74 yards in the game, is currently fourth
in the conference in rushing. Right behind him is teammate Jeremy Wright, who
had only 43 yards against FIU. Sustaining long scoring drives continues to be
a trend for Louisville as the squad had three scoring drives of at least 12
plays and 70 yards while going 4-for-4 with four touchdowns in the red zone.
Louisville will again be on the road next weekend when the Cardinals take on
Southern Miss in Hattiesburg.
PITTSBURGH: After dropping its first two games of the season, the Panthers
have rebounded after a 55-10 rout of Gardner-Webb, giving the squad wins in
consecutive weeks. It is the first time the Panthers have won back-to-back
games since taking the first two games of last season. Pittsburgh is now 11-1
all-time against FCS competitions although the lone loss came this season in a
31-17 setback to Youngstown State on opening weekend. The Panthers finished
the game with 626 total yards, which was the most in a contest by the Panthers
since 1997. Pittsburgh had 537 total yards last weekend against Virginia Tech
and has now accumulated 500 or more yards in consecutive games for the first
time since 1992. Quarterback Tino Sunseri completed 18-of-24 pass attempts for
344 yard and three scores in the game. He is currently ranked second in the
Big East in passing yards while leading the conference in quarterback rating
(166.8). Wideout Mike Shanahan moved up to second in the conference in
receiving yards (368) after a career-high 144 receiving yards, which included
a pair of touchdowns. Ray Graham ran for 94 yards on eight carries in the game
with the majority of that coming on a 78-yard run in the first quarter. It was
the second longest rush of his career for the current second-ranked rusher in
the Big East. Pittsburgh's defense was punishing against Gardner-Webb,
allowing only 127 yards and 2.5 yards per play. Pittsburgh will get a chance
to move over .500 when it travels to the Carrier Dome to play Syracuse next
weekend.
RUTGERS: No longer is Louisville the only ranked team in the conference as
Rutgers moved into the top-25 with a 35-26 win on the road over Arkansas. The
Scarlet Knights are now ranked No. 22 marking the first time they have reached
into the national rankings since 2009 and only the sixth season in program
history in which they have earned a national ranking. First year head coach
Kyle Flood is the first Rutgers head coach to begin his career 4-0 since John
Bateman in 1960. Rutgers rallied from an early 10-0 deficit to earn the win
behind the arm of Gary Nova who threw for 397 yards and five touchdowns on 25-
for-35 passing. His touchdown, yards and completion totals were all career-
highs. For the fourth time in as many games Jawan Jamison finished with 100
yards rushing in the win. The running back carried the ball 33 times for 118
yards and is currently ranked at the top of the Big East in rushing yards
(501). His total is nearly 150 yards more than the second best rusher. Brandon
Coleman now leads the conference in receiving touchdowns after he caught a
pair of scores in the win. Rutgers controlled the clock in the game with 39:02
time of possession. The offense needed to step up with the usually vaunted
Rutgers' defense allowing a season-high 492 yards against Arkansas. Khaseem
Greene recorded seven total tackles in the game and is now ranked 10th in
school history in the category. The Scarlet Knights had only one sack in the
game but allowed only 2-of-11 conversions on third down. Rutgers has a bye
next week before playing its second conference game of the season against
Connecticut.
SOUTH FLORIDA: For the second consecutive week the South Florida Bulls wound
up on the losing end, as they fell 31-27 on the road to Ball State. The Bulls
led 27-24 after a 99-yard drive was capped off with a 29-yard touchdown pass
from B.J. Daniels to Lindsey Lamar, but the Bulls couldn't hold off the
Cardinals to escape with the win. Daniels threw for 312 yards and three
touchdowns but was also intercepted twice, while completing 19-of-30 pass
attempts. A 58-yard pass to Terrence Mitchell in the second quarter gave
Daniels his fourth 50-plus yard pass of the season. Daniels was also the
team's leading rusher with 75 yards on the ground. Lamar caught a pair of
touchdown passes while totaling 80 yards receiving. Lamar also ran the ball
well in the game with 55 yards on 11 carries. The Bulls ran for 206 yards as a
team. The loss came despite an impressive 11-for-16 conversion rate on third
down by the Bulls, as they twice settled for field goals in the red zone. The
Bulls lost also came despite a 518-413 edge in total yards. South Florida did
not record a sack or a tackle for loss in the game. It won't be an easy task
for the Bulls as they attempt to bounce back next week with a matchup at home
against No. 4 Florida State.
SYRACUSE: Despite a historical day for wideout Alec Lemon, the Syracuse Orange
were unable to get a win on the road with a 17-10 loss to Minnesota. Lemon
became Syracuse's all-time leader in receptions with a nine-catch performance
for 106 yards in the losing effort. He has caught a pass in 19 consecutive
games dating back to 2010. Syracuse is now 1-3 on the season with the only win
coming against Stony Brook of the FCS. Ryan Nassib topped the 600-completion
mark for his career by connecting on 21-of-31 passes for 228 yards, but the
senior quarterback was also intercepted twice in the game. Even with the
performance Nassib still leads the Big East in passing yards (1,367) this
season and is currently third in completion percentage (66.3). Conference-
leading receiver Marcus Sales caught a touchdown pass but had only 32 yards
receiving in the loss. The Orange actually out gained Minnesota by a 350-337
margin but turned only 2-of-3 chances in the red zone into points while
converting only 4-of-13 attempts on third down. Siriki Diabate finished the
game with a team-high 10 tackles which was also a career-high. Defensive end
Micah Robinson had the first sack of his career. It was the only one by the
Orange in the contest. The Orange are off next week giving the squad two weeks
to prepare for its Big East conference opener at home against Pittsburgh.
TEMPLE: In a battle of Keystone State rivals the Owls fell 24-13 in Happy
Valley to Penn State. The loss was the 23rd straight loss for the Owls in the
series and the 30th including the seven losses that were vacated from Penn
State due to the NCAA sanctions brought down early this year. Temple has not
beaten Penn State since 1941. The Owls gained only 237 total yards in the game
and are currently ranked last in the Big East in offensive production
averaging 276.3 yards per game. Temple has been particularly poor in the
passing game with 363 yards through the air after accumulating 124 against
Penn State. Quarterback Chris Coyer made his seventh straight start under
center but completed only 50 percent (13-of-26) oh his passing attempts, while
also tossing a touchdown. Coyer also rushed for a team-high 64 yards making
him responsible for 188 yards of the teams total offensive production. Montel
Harris and Matt Brown combined for only 49 yards on 14 carries, while Harris
was the team's leading receiver with 42 yards on three receptions. The Owls'
pass defense, which ranked 22nd in the nation entering the game, was lit up
for 318 yards by Penn State quarterback Matt McGloin. A bye week will give
Temple extra time to recover from its second straight loss and to prepare for
its Big East conference opener against South Florida.
The Sports Network