2009 Pittsburgh Panthers football team The 2009 Pittsburgh Panthers football team represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season . The season was the fifth under head coach Dave Wannstedt . The 2009 season marked the team ' s ninth at Heinz Field and the University ' s 120th season overall . The 2009 season saw the introduction of a new offensive coordinator , Frank Cignetti , Jr . Pitt got off to a 9 - 1 start with impressive wins over Navy , Notre Dame for the second consecutive year , and Rutgers for the first time since 2004 . Pitt was ranked number 9 in the AP and BCS polls and was off to its best start since 1982 . However , Pitt lost the final two regular season games , including a last second loss by a field goal at West Virginia and a one - point loss at home for the Big East championship to undefeated Cincinnati , to finish the regular season at 9 - 3 ( 5 - 2 Big East ) for the second consecutive year . The Panthers rebounded by winning the Meineke Car Care Bowl over North Carolina , 19 - 17 , to achieve its first ten - win season since 1981 . Pitt ranked number fifteen in the final 2009 AP rankings with a 10 - 3 record . In addition , Pitt players garnered many post - season accolades in 2009 , including Big East Offensive Player and Rookie of the Year in Dion Lewis , and Big East Co - Defensive Players of the Year in Mick Williams and Greg Romeus . Previous season . The 2008 season saw the Panthers begin the year in the rankings , # 25 in the AP Poll , their first preseason ranking since 2003 . However , the Panthers lost their opening game at home to a lowly - regarded Bowling Green team that finished 2008 with a 6 – 6 record and without a bowl invitation and saw their coach fired the day after their last game . However , the Panthers seemed unfazed by their opening - game defeat and went on to win five straight games , including a home win against Iowa and a road win on a Thursday night at then - # 10 South Florida , who later finished the regular season 7 – 5 and unranked . The win at South Florida vaulted the Panthers back into the polls , but their stay was short - lived when , two weeks later , they lost at home to a then - 1 – 5 Rutgers team , whose win over the Panthers was the beginning of a run that saw the Scarlet Knights finish 8 – 5 . Quarterback Bill Stull suffered a concussion in the Rutgers loss was forced to sit out the Panthers next game , a 36 – 33 road win over Notre Dame in which the Panthers , led by quarterback Pat Bostick and running back LeSean McCoy , came back from a 17 – 3 halftime deficit . The Panthers followed up their victory over Notre Dame with a 41 – 7 victory over Louisville . The Panthers lost their next game on the road to league - leading # 19 Cincinnati , who indeed went on to win their first Big East championship in football . The Panthers closed out the regular season with two victories , a 19 – 15 win at home against West Virginia and a 34 – 10 road victory over Connecticut . Immediately following the Panthers ' victory over the Huskies , bowl officials were on hand to invite the Panthers to the 2008 Sun Bowl , where the Panthers faced Oregon State in El Paso on December 31 . Both teams struggled offensively in the game , and the Panthers were shut out for the first time in 12 years , falling to the Beavers 3 – 0 . Preseason . On February 5 , 2009 , the day after National Signing Day , it was made public that offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh would be leaving the Panthers to again pursue a career in the NFL . Cavanaugh ' s move to the Jets to become their new quarterbacks coach was not officially announced until February 9 . The Panthers took only two weeks to find their new offensive coordinator , Frank Cignetti , Jr . Cignetti took a pay cut by accepting the offer from Pitt , but he cited the local cost of living and proximity to his own and his wife ' s families as major reasons for leaving California for Pitt . Cignetti has a reputation for developing quarterbacks and will be expected to do the same at Pitt where senior Bill Stull , Pitt ' s returning starter , and the passing game increasingly struggled down the stretch last season . The other primary candidates for the Panthers ' offensive coordinator position were former Panthers head coach Walt Harris and New York Jets wide receivers coach Noel Mazzone . Linebacker Adam Gunn was granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA and will play in 2009 , medical clearance pending . He was injured in the 3rd quarter of the 2008 season opener against Bowling Green when he collided with fellow linebacker Scott McKillop . Shane Murray , who was injured during the preseason in August 2008 and started at linebacker along with Gunn in 2007 , will also be back with the Panthers in 2009 . The returns of Gunn and Murray from injuries and Greg Williams , who started in place of Gunn in 2008 , give the Panthers a stable of experienced linebackers headed into the 2009 season . The NCAA released the 2009 Academic Progress Rate ( APR ) scores , which measure " a school ' s ability to retain its athletes and keep them eligible from semester to semester , " on May 7 . The 2009 scores are data from the 2004 – 05 to 2007 – 08 academic years . The Panthers football team finished with the fifth best APR scores in the 8 - team Big East , with a score of 944 out of a possible 1 , 000 . Recruiting . All players who signed with Pitt had verbally committed to the University within the year prior to signing a binding National Letter of Intent on national signing day . The Panthers also added one player who is not designated as a recruit , tight end Andrew Devlin , who transferred to Pitt in May and had been recruited by Coaches Wannstedt and Gattuso two years earlier in 2007 when had initially decided to play for the Virginia Cavaliers . He chose to transfer to Pitt after a change in offensive scheme would have forced him to change position to defensive with the Cavaliers . Half of the Panthers new signees played high school football in Pennsylvania , and nine of those ten players were first - team all - state selections in 2008 . The Panthers were expected to bring in players to add depth to the team – not necessarily an instant impact in 2009 – because the Panthers are no longer a struggling team in need of immediate performers . After signing day this class was not rated as a star - studded class that would be expected to provide an instant impact , but many of the players are viewed as players able to significantly contribute in the future . The players most expected to make an impact in the future are wide receiver Todd Thomas , tight end Brock DeCicco , running back Raymond Graham and linebacker s Shane Gordon and Dan Mason . As of February 5 , the 2009 recruiting class was ranked as the 47th best class nationally by Rivals . com – much lower than previous Wannstedt recruiting classes – and 28th best by Scout . com . Dave Wannstedt dismissed the criticism of his recruiting class as the low reviews of his class were a result of the low number of scholarships that the Panthers were able to offer due to the low number of graduating Pitt seniors in 2008 as well as a down year for high school seniors in western Pennsylvania . Spring practices . Spring camp opened for the Panthers on March 19 . Coach Wannstedt outlined his priorities heading into camp as determining the starters at running back and quarterback as well as the lineup at the various linebacker positions , most importantly in the middle . The annual Blue - Gold game , the final scrimmage of spring camp , was played at Heinz Field on April 11 . The University wanted to make it into a more appealing event for families and casual fans . As a result , they created various programs at the game , which was titled the " Pitt Spring Football Festival " in order to emphasize the various activities , which included a series of 20 - minute " chalk talks " with coaches Wannstedt , Cignetti , and Bennett ; an autograph session with former Panthers who went on to the NFL ; and on - field drills with current players . Total attendance for the event was announced at 6 , 160 . As expected , the defense controlled most of the play throughout , defeating the offense 54 – 23 , using a modified scoring system . The offense scored only one touchdown , a 54 - yard , play - action pass from Bill Stull to Jonathan Baldwin . Bill Stull was the most effective of all the quarterbacks , going 12 of 17 for 132 yards with the touchdown and an interception . Freshman Dion Lewis , who enrolled early in January 2009 , led the offense on the ground with thirty - four yards on twelve attempts . The defense , after allowing a touchdown and a field goal on the offense ' s first and second possessions , respectively , finished with three interceptions and six sacks the rest of the way and didn ' t allow the offense to score again . The defense held the offense to a net of sixteen rushing yards on thirty - seven carries . The game was broadcast live locally on WPCW in Pittsburgh and was replayed nationally on April 18 on the NFL Network . The Ed Conway Award , which is given to the most improved players of the spring , was co - awarded to quarterback Pat Bostick and linebacker Max Gruder prior to the Blue - Gold Game . Off - field issues . Seniors T . J . Porter , a wide receiver , and Tommie Duhart , a defensive lineman , officially left Pitt ' s football team at the end of the spring semester ; both had been suspended from spring practices and did not participate . Duhart , along with senior cornerback Aaron Berry and sophomore offensive lineman Wayne Jones , was suspended on April 7 from the remainder of spring practices as well as the Blue - Gold game due to an unspecified " violation of team policy " . Porter had been suspended from the team indefinitely after being cited for driving on a suspended driver ' s license and driving while intoxicated , his second DWI in under ten months . According to a statement issued by coach Wannstedt , both Porter and Duhart plan to transfer elsewhere . A criminal complaint was filed against sophomore wide receiver and Aliquippa native Jonathan Baldwin on April 19 , a day after the incident , in which Baldwin was charged with " indecent assault , harassment and disorderly conduct " following an incident with a female on a university - owned bus . Later in a non - jury trial in January , 2010 , Baldwin was found not guilty on all charges . Sixth year senior Adam Gunn , who only weeks earlier had been granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA , was arrested in an incident that also involved former Panther Austin Ransom following an incident outside of a Pittsburgh night club . As a result of the charges against him – " misdemeanor charges of resisting arrest and failure to disperse , as well as summary offenses of disorderly conduct and public drunkenness " – Gunn was suspended from the team indefinitely pending the result of his hearing . All charges against Gunn were withdrawn at his preliminary hearing on June 16 . According to Gunn ' s attorney , all charges were withdrawn due to the fact that " he employed no weapons , assaulted nobody and simply attempted to flee the scene " . Fall practice . The first official fall practice will open on Tuesday , August 11 . Award watchlists . Lombardi Award : Mackey Award : Jim Thorpe Award : Rankings . The official preseason rankings are normally released in August of the same season , but various publications annually release early projections throughout the spring and summer . The Panthers have received mixed reviews from such publications . Phil Steele ranked the Panthers at # 23 . The " Sporting News " picked the Panthers to win the conference , but " Athlon Sports " , who left the Panthers out of their early rankings , project the them to finish in fourth place . The Congrove Computer Rankings , a computer program that determines a team ' s ranking based upon projected regular season results , ranked the Panthers at # 12 and predicted an 11 – 1 regular season record . The Panthers began the season unranked and just outside of the Top 25 in both the AP Poll and Coaches Poll . The Panthers found themselves in the " others receiving votes " category of the major polls throughout the first half of the season , and they officially moved into the Top 25 rankings in all four of the major polls following their October 16 victory at Rutgers . The Panthers climbed several move positions in each poll the following week as a result of their victory over South Florida . Schedule . The official Big East schedule was released on March 6 , and the Panthers ' schedule includes five nationally televised games . The times of the two weeknight games on the schedule , at Louisville and at Rutgers , were announced with the initial release schedule . The Panthers ' home intraconference games include Cincinnati , Connecticut , South Florida , and Syracuse ; the away games include West Virginia , Louisville , and Rutgers . The Panthers nonconference games had been scheduled well in advance of the 2009 season , but the conference games took longer to schedule due to the difficulty some Big East teams had when trying to schedule their own nonconference opponents . The scheduled times for Pitt ' s first three games of the season were announced on July 7 . A month later , on August 7 , it was announced that the game against NC State was scheduled for 3 : 30 pm and to be broadcast nationally by ESPNU . On October 26 , the Syracuse game was announced as a noon kickoff for ESPNU , and on November 2 , the Notre Dame game was announced as an 8 : 00 p . m . prime time telecast on ABC . Game notes . Youngstown State . The 2009 season opener against Youngstown State was the Penguins ' first trip to Pittsburgh since 2005 , when they were defeated by the Panthers by a score of 41 – 0 in the first - ever meeting between the schools . In this , the second matchup between the schools , the Panthers again won handily , this time by a score of 38 – 3 . The Panthers were led by true freshman running back Dion Lewis , who had fifteen carries for 132 yards in the first half . Their Panthers played both of their top two quarterbacks . Bill Stull , a fifth ‑ year senior and the returning starter , played for the entire first half and a portion of the third quarter and was booed by the home fans on several occasions , likely because of his on ‑ field struggles dating back to the previous season . Redshirt freshman Tino Sunseri played the remainder of the game . The Panthers outgained the Penguins on the day . Buffalo . The Panthers traveled to Buffalo to take on the Bulls , who were coming off a 23 – 17 Week 1 win at UTEP , in a game that was both the Panthers ' first - ever trip to Buffalo and first road game of the season . The Panthers defeated the Bulls 54 – 27 and took advantage of four Bulls turnovers , which led to 27 Panther points , with linebacker Greg Williams returning one fumble 50 yards for a touchdown . The Panther offense gained 381 yards and committed no turnovers . Dion Lewis had his second straight 100 - yard rushing game , gaining 236 total yards and scoring two touchdowns , including an 85 - yard touchdown run , and Dorin Dickerson finished with eight catches for 71 yards and three touchdowns . The Panthers ' 54 points was the highest offensive output during Dave Wannstedt ' s tenure at Pitt , which began in 2005 ; it was Pitt ' s highest output since scoring 55 points against Temple in 1999 . However , the Bulls gained 500 yards of total offense on the day , and Buffalo quarterback Zach Maynard , who was making only his second career start , threw for 400 yards , a Buffalo record dating back to their re - ascension to Division I - A / FBS in 1999 , and four touchdowns , which tied a Buffalo record during the same time , connecting with wide receiver Naaman Roosevelt on touchdowns of 67 and 54 yards . Pitt was penalized 11 times for 119 yards . Panthers starting free safety Andrew Taglianetti , who recovered a fumble in the first quarter , left the game with a torn ACL in his left knee and is taking a medical redshirt for the season . Navy . The Panthers and Midshipmen face one another for the third consecutive season and have traded road victories over the previous two meetings , the Panthers winning 42 – 21 in Annapolis in 2008 and the Midshipmen winning 48 – 45 in overtime in Pittsburgh in 2007 . The 2009 meeting was much lower scoring , the Panthers coming out on top 27 – 14 . The win saw the Panthers improve their record to 3 – 0 , the team ' s best start since 2000 . The Midshipmen were expected to pass the ball with greater effectiveness under new quarterback Ricky Dobbs , but Navy was held to 89 passing yards . Navy led the nation in rushing yards per game during the previous four seasons as well as through the first three weeks of 2009 , but were held to only 129 rushing yards against the Panthers , significantly lower than their 240 - yard average coming into the game . The Pitt offense was much more effective than the Midshipmen , outgaining them 369 – 218 . Bill Stull , who saw limited action in the second half , finished the day 17 - for - 24 with 245 yards through the air , including 20 to himself when he caught his own tipped pass out of the air and scrambled downfield , almost scoring a touchdown ; he almost scored a touchdown on the play but turned the ball over when he fumbled and Navy recovered at their own one yard line . Stull was 12 - for - 14 with 189 yards and one touchdown in the first half . Dion Lewis didn ' t quite have the same strong statistical performance , compiling 79 yards and one touchdown on the ground , but Navy linebacker Ross Pospisil complimented Lewis after the game , saying that he " thought Dion Lewis was almost as a good as McCoy " , referring to LeSean McCoy ' s 156 - yard , three - touchdown game against Navy in 2008 . True freshman middle linebacker Dan Mason made his first start and made 11 tackles , including two sacks , which earned him Big East Defensive Player of the Week honors . NC State . Pitt ' s trip to NC State was the Panthers ' first trip to Raleigh since 1988 when the Panthers lost to the Wolfpack , 14 – 3 , and the first overall matchup between the schools since the 2001 Tangerine Bowl , where the Panthers defeated the Wolfpack 34 – 19 . Coming into the game , Pitt held a 5 – 2 – 1 advantage over NC State , dating back to the schools ' first matchup in 1952 . The Panthers seized an early advantage in the game , jumping out to a 10 – 0 lead within the first six minutes of the game . The Panthers received the opening kickoff and were set up just across midfield after a Cameron Saddler return ; the Panthers then scored the opening touchdown after only a four - play drive that was aided by a 15 - yard personal foul penalty against NC State . The Wolfpack went three - and - out , and the Panthers second possession ended with a 35 yard field goal by Dan Hutchins . Going forward through the third quarter , both teams moved the ball on offense with relative ease and at which point the Panthers offense would fail to continue to produce . The teams ultimately combined for 830 total yards by the end of the game . NC State ' s Russell Wilson led the way , throwing for 322 yards and four touchdowns while also rushing for 91 yards . Wilson came into the game holding the NCAA record for pass attempts without an interception , and he increased his record by not throwing an interception against the Panthers . The Panthers had built a 14 - point lead near the end of the third quarter after Bill Stull connected with Jonathan Baldwin for a 79 yard pass , but the Panthers never scored again as NC State scored three consecutive touchdowns for the 38 – 31 win . The Wolfpack ' s come - from - behind scores came on drives of 45 , 83 , and 71 yards . South Florida . The October 24 game against South Florida was Pitt ' s homecoming , and the Panthers were seeking their first 7 – 1 start since 1982 . The game was expected to be close and competitive , but the Panthers dominated throughout , winning 41 – 14 . Pitt jumped out to a 31 – 7 lead by the end of the first half , in which Pitt scored on all five of its offensive possessions – four touchdowns and one field goal . Bill Stull , who finished 18 of 25 for 245 yards and two touchdown passes , wasn ' t sacked on the day and completed his first 11 passes of the game . Following the game , Stull gave the credit for the team ' s success on offense to his teammates , citing their ability to both block Bulls defenders as well as get open for passes . Dion Lewis continued his strong freshman campaign by adding yards and two touchdowns , topping 1 , 000 for the season in the process . Cincinnati . The winner of the 2009 River City Rivalry will win the Big East Conference and earn the conference berth in the Bowl Championship Series , while a Pitt loss could drop the team to third in the conference if West Virginia defeats Rutgers . Pitt leads the all - time series against Cincinnati , 7 – 1 , with the Bearcats first win coming in 2008 . Postseason . Awards . Several Panthers earned accolades following the close of the regular season with ten players earning first - or second - team honors in the Big East Conference . Additionally , tight end Dorin Dickerson was one of three finalists for the Mackey Award , which was won by Aaron Hernandez of Florida . Offensive line coach Tony Wise was also named the Offensive Line Coach of the Year by FootballScoop . com . All - Americans . Dickerson was also named as a first team 2009 College Football All - American by the Football Writers Association of America and CBS Sports . Dickerson was the third All - American from Pitt in four seasons and the first All - American tight end from Pitt since Mike Ditka in 1960 . CBS Sports also named Dion Lewis as their Freshman of the Year and a second - team All - American . Dickerson and several other teammates were also named to various other All - America teams . Big East Conference awards . The Big East Conference awards were awarded by vote among conference coaches and were announced on December 9 . True freshman Dion Lewis won two major conference awards , Offensive Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year , the first player to win two Big East awards since Michael Vick of Virginia Tech in 1999 . Additionally , voting for the conference ' s Defensive Player of the Year award finished in a tie between the Panther duo of Mick Williams and Greg Romeus , who shared the award . The Panthers on the all - Big East first and second teams are :