This Saturday, the (5-4) Pittsburgh Panthers will travel to Charlottesville, VA to take on the (3-6) Virginia Cavaliers. Kickoff will be at Noon EST inside Scott Stadium. Neither of these teams is going to go away easily, as I am expecting a battle in this ACC matchup. The last time these two teams played, the Panthers won 48-38.
The Pittsburgh Panthers are coming into this one after taking down #20 Syracuse, 19-9. The Panthers looked incredible on the defensive side of the field in that game, as they only allowed the Orange to record 145 total yards of offense. They will need to stay solid on defense again in this one if they want to challenge Virginia on the road.
The Virginia Cavaliers are entering this one after falling to #17 North Carolina, 31-28. The Cavaliers showed up on the offensive side of the field, as they recorded 418 total yards of offense. They will need to keep it rolling on th at side of the field if they want to give the Panthers a run for their money at home.
The Pittsburg Panthers still have a chance of playing in a bowl game, after their upset over Syracuse last week. They will now be looking to win in back-to-back games for the first time since late September. On offense, Pittsburgh is scoring 29.2 points per game and they are averaging 401.8 total yards. This is the 68th most points scored per game and the 65th most yards. Pittsburgh is currently throwing for 221.7 yards per game, which is the 84th most in the nation. Kedon Slovis will start at quarterback, as he has thrown five touchdown passes this season and six interceptions. Last week, he threw for 176 yards and one interception. He will look to get the ball to Jared Wayne, as he has led the Panthers with 674 yards this season and he has scored one touchdown. He is also averaging 17.7 yards per catch, as he is a downfield threat. The Panthers are also running for 180.1 yards per game, which is the 48th most. Israel Abanikanda is the lea d back for Pittsburgh, as he has recorded 1,086 yards this season and scored 16 touchdowns. He missed last week's matchup against the Orange, as he is now listed as questionable for Saturday's game.
On defense, the Panthers are giving up 25.8 points per game and 328.2 total yards. This is the 67th least amount of points allowed per game and the 26th least amount of yards. Moving the ball consistently on this defense has been a challenge for their opponents this season. Their secondary has continued to hold its own, as they are only allowing 218.8 passing yards per game. This is the 56th least in the country, as they only allowed Syracuse to throw for 120 yards last week. Pittsburgh is also surrendering 109.4 rushing yards per game, which is the 15th least in the nation. Their front seven has continued to rally toward the ball as a team and they haven't missed many tackles. Sirvocea Dennis continues to lead this defense, as he has recorded 63 tackle s, 6 sacks, and one forced fumble this season.
Injury Report: Gavin Thomas WR (Undisclosed) and Israel Abanikanda RB (Undisclosed) are both listed as questionable for this game. Nick Patti QB (Leg) is out indefinitely and Nate Temple DL (Leg) is listed as out for the season.