# 2016 Syracuse vs. Pittsburgh football game

The 2016 Syracuse vs. Pittsburgh football game was a regular-season college football game between the Syracuse Orange and the Pittsburgh Panthers, played on November 26, 2016, at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The game held the record for the most combined points scored in an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) regulation game with 137 total points, breaking the previous record (136 points, set in a 2007 game played between Navy and North Texas) by a single point. The record was broken on November 5, 2022 when the SMU Mustangs defeated the Houston Cougars 77–63 for a combined 140 points.

## Before the game
### Syracuse

With first-year head coach Dino Babers in command, the Syracuse Orange entered their final game of 2016 with a record of 4–7, 2–5 in ACC play. The Orange had experienced ups and downs throughout the 2016 season, with peaks including wins against seventeenth-ranked Virginia Tech and rival Boston College a week later. However, the lows of the season tended to outweigh the highs, as the Orange defense had allowed at least 20 points in all but two games, and the team had suffered blowout losses at the hands of nationally ranked Louisville (No. 13), Clemson (No. 3), and Florida State (No. 17). The aforementioned loss to Florida State was Syracuse's seventh of the season, which put a bowl game out of reach coming into their final game.

### Pittsburgh

Under second-year head coach Pat Narduzzi, Pittsburgh entered this game 7–4, 4–3 in ACC play, having clinched a bowl game berth the week prior. The Panthers entered their final regular-season with a few very impressive wins on their schedule, namely an early-season win against eventual Big Ten champions Penn State and a road win against eventual national champions Clemson. These two victories proved to be the only two against ranked opponents, however, as they lost at home to No. 25 Virginia Tech on October 27. The Panthers offense had been doing its job throughout the 2016 season, scoring no less than 28 points in each of their previous 11 contests.

## Rivalry series

Coming into the game, the Pitt–Syracuse series stood 37–31 in favor of Pitt, with three ties; previously, the highest-scoring meeting in the series was a 45–28 Syracuse win in 1998, totaling 73 points. Pittsburgh had won the last three matchups; furthermore, Syracuse's last victory in Pittsburgh against the Panthers came in 2001, as their two victories in the series since then had come in Syracuse.

## Game summary
### Game information

| Game Time | Weather |
| Kickoff: 12:31 p.m. EST End of Game: 4:14 p.m. EST Duration: 3 hours, 43 minutes | Temperature: 38 °F (3 °C) Wind: W 13 mph Weather: Cloudy with showers |
| Game officials ||
| J. Heaser (referee), M. Wilson (umpire), T. Lynch (linesman), D. Short (line judge) D. Bell (back judge), C. Clougherty (field judge), G. Hocker (side judge) ||
| Sources: ||

### Scoring summary

Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | CUSE | PITT |
| 1 | 7:42 | 7 | 45 | 2:13 | CUSE | Zach Mahoney 2-yard touchdown run, Cole Murphy kick good | 7 | 0 |
| 1 | 6:29 | 3 | 65 | 1:13 | PITT | Jester Weah 59-yard touchdown reception from Nathan Peterman, Chris Blewitt kick good | 7 | 7 |
| 1 | 3:35 | 1 | 35 | 0:08 | PITT | James Conner 35-yard touchdown reception from Nathan Peterman, Chris Blewitt kick good | 7 | 14 |
| 1 | 0:28 | 10 | 74 | 3:07 | CUSE | Dontae Strickland 5-yard touchdown run, Cole Murphy kick good | 14 | 14 |
| 2 | 10:36 | 10 | 65 | 4:52 | PITT | George Aston 6-yard touchdown run, Chris Blewitt kick good | 14 | 21 |
| 2 | 6:57 | 4 | 69 | 1:40 | PITT | James Conner 9-yard touchdown run, Chris Blewitt kick good | 14 | 28 |
| 2 | 1:36 | 14 | 68 | 5:21 | CUSE | Amba Etta-Tawo 5-yard touchdown reception from Zack Mahoney, Cole Murphy kick good | 21 | 28 |
| 2 | 0:10 | 8 | 64 | 1:26 | PITT | Nathan Peterman 13-yard touchdown run, Chris Blewitt kick good | 21 | 35 |
| 3 | 11:37 | | | | PITT | Interception returned 20 yards for touchdown by Dane Jackson, Chris Blewitt kick good | 21 | 42 |
| 3 | 8:59 | 1 | 66 | 0:11 | PITT | Quadree Henderson 66-yard touchdown run, Chris Blewitt kick good | 21 | 49 |
| 3 | 7:54 | 4 | 85 | 1:05 | CUSE | Moe Neal 42-yard touchdown run, Cole Murphy kick no good (blocked) | 27 | 49 |
| 3 | 7:30 | 1 | 77 | 0:24 | PITT | Maurice Ffrench 77-yard touchdown run, Chris Blewitt kick good | 27 | 56 |
| 3 | 1:53 | 6 | 45 | 2:03 | CUSE | Amba Etta-Tawo 12-yard touchdown reception from Zack Mahoney, Cole Murphy kick good | 34 | 56 |
| 4 | 11:16 | 7 | 63 | 2:11 | CUSE | Zack Mahoney 19-yard touchdown run, Cole Murphy kick good | 41 | 56 |
| 4 | 9:33 | 3 | 78 | 1:43 | PITT | Dontez Ford 79-yard touchdown reception from Nathan Peterman, Chris Blewitt kick good | 41 | 63 |
| 4 | 7:21 | 7 | 65 | 2:12 | CUSE | Amba Etta-Tawo 7-yard touchdown reception from Zack Mahoney, Cole Murphy kick good | 48 | 63 |
| 4 | 5:06 | 5 | 44 | 2:15 | PITT | Jester Weah 6-yard touchdown reception from Nathan Peterman, Chris Blewitt kick good | 48 | 70 |
| 4 | 3:47 | 5 | 69 | 1:19 | CUSE | Amba Etta-Tawo 49-yard touchdown reception from Zack Mahoney, Cole Murphy kick good | 55 | 70 |
| 4 | 3:15 | 2 | 43 | 0:32 | PITT | James Conner 1-yard touchdown run, Chris Blewitt kick no good | 55 | 76 |
| 4 | 0:58 | 10 | 77 | 2:17 | CUSE | Amba Etta-Tawo 13-yard touchdown reception from Zack Mahoney, Cole Murphy kick no good | 61 | 76 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 61 | 76 |

### Game statistics
## Aftermath

This game was Syracuse's last of the season, as they finished the 2016 campaign with a 4–8 record. Pittsburgh improved to 8–4 and accepted an invitation to the New Era Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium. The Panthers were favored by five, but lost to Northwestern, 31–24 and finished their season with a record of 8–5.