Cincinnati Vs. Pitt: Panthers Fall On Last-Second Missed Field Goal

After starting off fast, Pitt fell short against the surging Cincinnati Bearcats on Saturday night, 26-23. Pitt led 16-13 at halftime and after an early second half touchdown, took a ten point lead. Unfortunately, though, that would be the end of the scoring for Pitt as they watched Cincinnati score 13 unanswered points on their way to the win.

For quarterback Tino Sunseri, it was a tale of two halves. In the first half, he outplayed Cincinnati’s Zach Collaros and looked sharp. Sunseri was 10-14 for 124 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions to Collaros’ 11-16 for 106 yards and one interception. The second half was an entirely different story, though.

Sunseri threw for only 94 more yards the rest of the way. He did throw a touchdown pass, but also threw a pick while having several balls nearly picked off. Sunseri also took several sacks and made poor decisions down the stretch as he was unable to lead Pitt to any more points after that early touchdown just after halftime.

Pitt was clearly at a disadvantage, playing without Ray Graham. They relied on the tandem of Zach Brown and freshman Issac Bennett. By getting into a game for the first time this season, Bennett’s redshirt has officially been lost. The duo ran for only 80 yards, but Pitt was determined to utilize the passing game a bit more as they only ran 17 times. Part of that, though, was also dictated by the fact that Pitt was playing from behind on their last few drives and throwing the ball more.

One beneficiary of that was wide receiver Devin Street, who had his second 100-yard game of the season catching eight passes for 118 yards.

For the Panthers, playing from behind resulted in the same outcome as the Iowa and Notre Dame games. When Pitt has needed a late drive to win a game, they’ve been unable to make enough plays. The Panthers did at least get close for a long Kevin Harper attempt, but pinning your hopes on a 50+ field goal at the end of a game is a bleak proposition.

Pitt played well against Collaros forcing him into two interceptions, but couldn’t shut down Isaiah Pead who, with the injury to Ray Graham, clearly is the best back in the Big East. Pead ran for 118 yards on the night and Pitt had a hard time containing him.

At 4-5, Pitt is not only far back out of the Big East race, but getting to bowl-eligible status is still a question mark. Playing Lousiville, West Virginia, and Syracuse to finish the season, the Panthers will face three teams with winning records. To make matters worse, two of those games (West Virginia and Louisville) will be on the road.

There’s still a chance to make an impact this season, but hopes of winning the Big East championship may have ended with the loss to the Bearcats.

Cincinnati Vs. Pitt Game Recap: Bearcats Relentless On Way To 26-23 Win

The Pittsburgh Panthers dropped an important game to the Cincinnati Bearcats Saturday night to determine the leader in the Big East standings, 26-23. Though the Panthers held a 10-point advantage in the third quarter, the Bearcats fought back and scored the final 13 points of the game.

The Bearcats started off the scoring on their first possession just over a minute into the game with a Tony Miliano field goal. The remainder of the first quarter was a field goal stalemate, with Cincinatti kicking two and Pitt kicking one, making the score 6-3 at the end of the first frame.

The Panthers scored twice out of the gates in the second quarter, putting 10 points on the board in less than 30 seconds after a Kevin Harper field goal and a 4-yard rushing touchdown by Tino Sunseri after a Zach Collaros interception. But as was the theme of the game, Cincinnati answered on a Zach Collaros 7-yard rushing touchdown to tie the game at 13. But the Panthers were able to kick another field goal going into half.

The third quarter started out promising for Pittsburgh, who came out of the locker room and scored on the opening possession of the second half on a 4-yard touchdown pass by Tino Sunseri to open the game up and extend the Panthers lead to 10. But again, the Bearcats refused to go down, tying the score 23-23 just before the end of the third.

The only score of the fourth quarter came just seconds in as Tony Miliano put the Bearcats up 26-23. That kick provided the final margin, as the Panthers were just unable to put together a full drive. A late interception by Sunseri also hurt the Panthers cause. With the win, the Bearcats take the top spot in the Big East at 7-1 (3-0), while the Panthers move back under .500 to 4-5 (2-2).

For more coverage of this game and all things Pittsburgh, stay tuned to SB Nation Pittsburgh.

Cincinnati Vs. Pitt Score Update: Sunseri And Pitt Try To Shut The Door, But Bearcats Hang In

Despite a Tino Sunseri touchdown pass that put the Panthers up 10 early in the third quarter, the Cincinnati Bearcats responded again with a field goal by Tony Miliano and another Zach Collaros rushing touchdown, his second of the night.

The game has gone back and forth to this point, as the two teams hit only field goals in the first quarter to enter the second with Cincinnati holding a 6-3 lead. The second quarter saw Pitt pull ahead on field goal and a Sunseri touchdown run, but his opposite number in Collaros answered with his own touchdown run. The Panthers relied on another Kevin Harper field goal to put them up 16-13 at the break.

The third quarter started off with a bang, as Sunseri directed the team 60 yards downfield in just five plays for an opening drive touchdown that extended their lead to 23-13. However, as they have done all night, the Bearcats responded with a 32-yard Miliano field goal and the Collaros rushing touchdown from 3-yards out with just over a minute remaining in the third quarter.

Stay right here on SB Nation Pittsburgh as this one comes into the final turn.

Cincinnati Vs. Pitt Score Update: Field Goals Are The Story Of First Half

The Pittsburgh Panthers are looking to grab the top spot in the Big East today after another puzzling loss by the West Virginia Mountaineers earlier today to the Louisville Cardinals. The Panthers however are locked in a battle with the Cincinnati Bearcats at the moment, leading 16-13 at the half.

The Bearcats struck first with a field goal just over a minute into the game. The Panthers however were quick to answer just over three minutes later with a 52-yard Kevin Harper field goal to knot the score at 3-3. The field goal flurry continued on the next Cincinnati possession when Tony Miliano hit another field goal to put the Bearcats up 6-3. Not to be outdone, Harper kicked another field goal to end a long drive early in the second quarter to tie the game back up at 6-6. Then the Panthers, gifted with a Zach Collaros interception, used a 4-yd TD run by Tino Sunseri to jump out to a 13-6 lead.

Cincinnatti, however, roared back with an 85-yard drive capped by Collaros TD rush from seven yards out with just under six minutes left in the first half. The Panthers wrapped up the scoring though on another field goal by Harper with just over a minute left in the half to make the halftime score 16-13 in the Panthers favor.

Aside from the performances of Harper and Miliano, both quarterbacks have been efficient despite Collaros' ill-advised throw. Isaiah Pead has topped the 100-yard mark for the Bearcats on the ground, but the Panthers have yet to get it going in that department.

Stay tuned for the second half here on SB Nation Pittsburgh.

Cincinnati Vs. Pitt Score: Bearcats Lead 6-3 At End Of First Quarter

As the first quarter draws to a close, the Cincinnati Bearcats lead the Pitt Panthers by a score of 6-3. Things started off badly for Pitt, as Cincinnati’s Isaiah Pead scampered down the right sideline on the second play from scrimmage, juking a Pitt defender in the process, en route to a 53-yard gain. That set up a 27-yard field goal by Tony Miliano on 4th and 1.

Pitt, too, managed a field goal (a 52-yarder by Kevin Harper) on its opening drive that was led by a 19-yard run from Devin Street.

Ralph Abernathy returned the ensuing kickoff 35 yards, however, and Cincinnati quarterback Zach Collaros completed a 27-yard pass to Anthony McClung, leading to another field goal by Miliano.

The two teams then traded punts as the quarter ended. Pitt has the ball to begin the second quarter.

For more on the Pitt Panthers, be sure to check out Cardiac Hill.

Cincinnati Vs. Pitt Game Time, TV Schedule And More

The Pittsburgh Panthers (4-4, 2-1) host the No. 23 Cincinnati Bearcats (6-1, 2-0) on Saturday, Nov. 5 at Heinz Field. A victory assures Pittsburgh first place in the Big East standings, while a loss would only extend the Bearcats' lead.

Cincinnati hasn't met defeat in nearly two months, as its lone loss came on Sept. 10 against the Tennessee Volunteers, 45-23. It averages 41 points per game, which ranks No. 10 in the country among FBS teams.

Pitt, meanwhile, is coming off a 35-20 win against Big East rival Connecticut Huskies. In a fine performance, Tino Sunseri threw for 419 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score.

Game date, time: 7:00 pm ET, Saturday, Nov. 5

Location: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh

TV channel: ESPNU

Spread: Cincinnati favored by 3

Series history: Pittsburgh leads, 6-2

For further reading, news, discussion and more, visit Panthers blog Cardiac Hill and Bearcats blog Down the Drive. Here’s the complete Week 10 college football TV schedule, and stay tuned to SB Nation’s college football news hub for more.

Cincinnati Vs. Pitt: First Place On Line At Heinz Field