PITTSBURGH NOTES:
GAME STORYLINES:
√ Pitt is 7-0 for the first time since 1982. The Panthers last started 8-0 in 1981. √ The Panthers are 3-0 in ACC play for the first time since their 2021 championship season. Pitt’s last 4-0 ACC start was in 2015. √ This marks Pitt’s first-ever game at SMU. The teams have met six prior times, the initial four played in Pittsburgh and the latter two occurring in bowl games. √ The 2024 game also marks the first ACC contest between the schools. SMU is in its inaugural ACC season after previously competing in the American Athletic Conference. √ The defense has spearheaded Pitt’s past two victories. The Panthers yielded an average of only 14 points and totaled 10 sacks and five interceptions in defeating Cal and Syracuse. √ Pitt is tied for the national lead with four interceptions returned for touchdowns. √ Pitt is averaging 40.9 points per game, its highest scoring clip since the 2021 ACC champion Panthers averaged a school-record 41.4. √ Redshirt freshman Eli Holstein is the first Pitt QB to win his initial seven career starts since Dan Marino accomplished the feat over the 1979-80 seasons. √ Holstein has thrown 17 TDs, tied with Alex Van Pelt (1989) for the most by a Pitt freshman. √ Desmond Reid ranks third nationally and first in the ACC with an average of 160.17 allpurpose yards per game. √ Lou Groza Award candidate Ben Sauls has made a Pitt-record 14 consecutive field goals. That streak includes kicks of 58, 57, 53 and 50 yards.
HISTORY:
Series Began: 1938
Series Overall: SMU leads 3-2-1
ACC Series: First meeting
At Pittsburgh: Pitt leads 2-1-1
At SMU: First meeting
At Neutral Sites: SMU leads 2-0
Last Meeting: Jan. 7, 2012
(SMU 28, Pitt 6 BBVA Compass Bowl)
Last Meeting at SMU:
First meeting
Current Streak:
SMU has won 3
Longest Pitt Series Win Streak:
1 game (twice)
Longest SMU Series Win Streak:
3 games
Largest Pitt Victory Margin:
27 points (34-7, 1938)
Largest SMU Victory Margin:
22 points (28-6, BBVA Compass)
SERIES NOTES: This will be the seventh meeting between Pitt and Southern Methodist…SMU leads the all-time series, 3-2-1…this marks the first time that Pitt will play a true road game at SMU…the first four encounters were played in Pittsburgh…the two most recent contests were bowl games… the teams last met on Jan. 7, 2012, when the Mustangs won, 28-6, in the BBVA Compass Bowl (Birmingham, Ala.)…Pitt and SMU met in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas on Jan. 1, 1983, a battle of Top 10 teams won by the Mustangs, 7-3…that game featured such standouts as Pitt quarterback Dan Marino and SMU’s backfield tandem of Eric Dickerson and Craig James…prior to the 1983 Cotton Bowl, Pitt and SMU met four times between 1938 and 1948 with each game played in Pittsburgh…Pitt won the initial meeting, 34-7, on Oct. 22, 1938…the ’38 season would mark the final one for legendary Pitt coach Jock Sutherland as the Panthers finished with an 8-2 record and a No. 8 ranking in the final Associated Press poll…Pitt and SMU deadlocked, 7-7, in 1940…the tie was one of only two blemishes on the Mustangs’ record that year as they went 8-1-1 and won a share of the Southwest Conference championship… Pitt won the 1942 encounter, 20-7, before SMU notched its first victory in the series, 33-14, in the 1948 season opener for both teams…SMU would go on to win the SWC and finish with a 9-1-1 mark, including a Cotton Bowl victory over Oregon.
TEAM NOTES:
HOT START: √ Pitt is 7-0 for the first time since the 1982 season. The Panthers finished that year with a 9-3 record and ranked No. 9 by United Press International and No. 10 by Associated Press. √ Pitt last opened with eight consecutive wins in 1981. The Panthers finished 11-1 in 1981 and ranked No. 2 by UPI and No. 4 by AP. √Pitt is 3-0 in the ACC for the first time since 2021. The Panthers captured the Coastal Division that year with a 7-1 mark to earn a berth in the ACC Championship Game, where it defeated Wake Forest, 45-21. √Pitt last won its initial four ACC games in 2015—Pat Narduzzi’s initial season at Pitt. The Panthers finished 6-2 in ACC play that year and placed second in the Coastal Division. √Pitt completed an undefeated non-conference slate in 2024, the first time the Panthers achieved that feat in program history. √Pitt first began round-robin conference play in 1993 as a member of the Big East. 135 YEARS OF PITT FOOTBALL: √ The 2024 campaign marks the 135th football season at the University of Pittsburgh. The Panthers, who played their inaugural season in 1890, have a 768-560-42 all-time record (.576). √ The program’s rich legacy includes 99 first team All-Americans, 55 consensus All-Americans, 25 College Football Hall of Famers, 10 Pro Football Hall of Famers and nine national titles. YOUR 2024 PITT CAPTAINS: √ Pitt head football coach Pat Narduzzi announced four senior team captains for the 2024 season: tight end Gavin Bartholomew, linebacker Brandon George, wide receiver Konata Mumpfield and offensive tackle Branson Taylor. √ Each of the players were selected by a vote of their teammates.
SMU NOTES:
SETTING THE SCENE • SMU returns home for the first time in over a month for a top-20 matchup against Pitt on Saturday at 7 PM CT on the ACC Network. • This is just the second Top-20 matchup in Ford Stadium history, and the first since 2020. • The Mustangs have averaged 42.0 points per game during the current five-game winning streak. • Club Takeaway continues to be in business this season, forcing 17 turnovers this season, the eighth most in the nation. • The Mustangs have forced at least one turnover in six of the past seven games and in 16 of the past 18 contests dating back to 2023. • SMU recorded a thrilling victory on the road against Duke last week, with Jahfari Harvey blocking the Blue Devils’ game-winning field goal attempt and the Mustang defense stopping Duke two-point conversion attempt for the win in overtime. • SMU’s 4-0 start in conference play is a first for a team jumping into a Power-4/5 conference from a Group of Five in their first season, no other team has started 2-0. QUICK HITS • SMU is 27-5 at home in Ford Stadium since 2019. • SMU’s defense has continued to force turnovers this year, ranking eighth in the country with 17 turnovers gained, along with being second in defensive touchdowns with four. • The Mustangs have had at least seven receivers catch a pass in 24 of the past 25 games. • Brashard Smith has made an impact in 2024, ranking 10th in all-purpose yards per game with 140.6. • Collin Rogers has tallied 14 field goals this season, which is tied for ninth in the nation. • Rogers leads the nation in field goals made longer than 50 yards with six. • Kevin Jennings sits eighth nationally in passing yards per completion (14.5), and 11th in yards per pass attempt (9.3). • Jennings leads the ACC in passing efficiency rating at 174.0 in conference games only. • SMU’s 50 wins in the last six years are the most by any FBS Texas team. In addition, the Mustangs have won 23 of those on the road, tops for any team in the state since 2019. • The Mustangs are 16-2 in their last 18 games, and 15-1 in their last 16 regular season contests. • Rhett Lashlee boasts a 17-3 conference record in his career. His record in his first 20 league games on the Hilltop is the best in SMU history. • SMU has posted a record of 22-1 during Lashlee’s three seasons in charge when they score 30 or more points in a game, and have won 20 straight when hitting the magic number. THE SERIES • This the sixth meeting all time, first since 2011. SMU leads the series 3-2-1. • SMU has never hosted the Panthers, but the two teams met in the 1983 Cotton Bowl with the Mustangs taking a 7-3 victory.
ABOUT THE PANTHERS • Pittsburgh enters the game with an unblemished 7-0 record on the year, 3-0 in the ACC. • Three of Pitt’s wins have came by four points or less this season. • Last week, Pittsburgh defeated Syracuse 41-13 at home. The Panthers forced five Orange turnovers, and had two pick sixes in the first half of the rout.
THE COACHES • Rhett Lashlee is in his third season as the head coach at SMU and has a 25-10 career record. Lashlee, who served as offensive coordinator for the Mustangs for two seasons (2018-19), also served as the offensive coordinator at Miami in 2020 and 2021. A one-time finalist (2013) and two-time semifinalist (2019, 2020) for the Broyles Award, Lashlee has the distinction of being the only coach ever nominated for the Broyles Award four different times at four different schools (Arkansas State, Auburn, SMU, Miami). • Lashlee was named a finalist last season for the prestigious Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year Award, handed out the nation’s top coach as voted on by the National Sports Media Association, the Bryant Awards’ Executive Leadership Team, and the Bryant Family. The Arkansas native was also named Co-Coach of the Year by the Dave Campbell’s Texas Football publication, a finalist of the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award, and a semi-finalist for Coach of the Year Award by the Maxwell Football Club for the job he did in 2023. • Narduzzi has compiled a 72-50 overall record as the Panthers’ head coach. His 72 victories rank second all-time at Pitt, trailing only Jock Sutherland, who compiled 111 wins from 1924-38. • Since 2015, Narduzzi has directed Pitt to 46 victories in ACC play, the conference’s second-highest win total during that span, trailing only Clemson (64). MUSTANG CAPTAINS • Kevin Jennings, Jonathan McGill, Justin Osborne, Elijah Roberts, Preston Stone and Kobe Wilson were voted captains for the 2024 season. SOMETHING SPECIAL GOING ON HERE • The Mustangs have been a force in conference play over the last three seasons. • SMU has posted a 17-3 record against conference opponents since 2022, highlighted by the current 13-game winning streak. • The 13 straight conference wins breaks the program record set back from 1981 to 1982.