Pitt 24, Rutgers 17

PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Dion Lewis ran for 180 yards and two touchdowns, while Dorin Dickerson caught his eighth touchdown of the year and Pitt defeated Rutgers, 24-17, Friday night in a key Big East matchup.

Pittsburgh (6-1, 3-0 Big East) piled on 223 yards rushing against a talented Rutgers defense that had allowed only 45 yards rushing in its last three games combined. Pitt, meanwhile, held Rutgers’ ground attack to only 38 yards.

After giving up an early touchdown to the Scarlet Knights in the first quarter, the Pitt offense took the field and immediately answered. Freshman Ray Graham returned a kick 54 yards to the Rutgers’ 40-yard line, and senior quarterback Bill Stull hit Dorin Dickerson six plays later for a 7-yard touchdown that helped Pitt knot the score at 7-7.

Stull, who has 14 touchdowns against only three interceptions on the year, completed three passes to Dickerson during that drive. The tandem has now hooked up for eight touchdowns on the year.

Following Pitt’s first score, safety Dom DeCicco intercepted a first-down pass which set Pitt up with a chance to take the lead. Kicker Dan Hutchins, the reigning Big East Special Teams Player of the Week after kicking the game-winning field goal against Connecticut last Saturday, took advantage of that opportunity. Hutchins knocked in a career-long 45-yarder to give the Panthers a 10-7 lead, and Pitt didn’t surrender the lead after that.

As the Pitt defense came through with several stops, the running game thrived. Dion Lewis scored on a run from the 1-yard line in the second quarter to give Pitt a 10-point lead, then got another chance midway through the third quarter. That’s when Lewis took a handoff from Stull, broke to the right side and bolted down the sideline, outrunning several Rutgers’ defenders over the last 20 yards en route to a 58-yard score.

Lewis, who averaged 5.8 yards per carry on the night, now has four 100-yard games on the ground and nine rushing touchdowns on the year. He also received help from sophomore fullback Henry Hynoski, who ran five times for 29 yards.

Defensively, Pitt made stops when it had to. Rutgers scored early in the first quarter, but the Panthers clamped down defensively for the majority of the first half. The Scarlet Knights finished the first half with 31 yards rushing, managing only seven yards on the ground during the entire second half.

One of Pitt’s most impressive stops came at the end of the first half, when Rutgers had a first-and-goal from the 3-yard line. Junior safety Dom DeCicco made a key tackle on the first play of the drive, and Max Gruder made two nice plays in a row to limit Rutgers to a field goal. Then, the defense was called upon again in the second half.

With time running out in the third quarter, Rutgers blocked a punt and looked to change the momentum. But Pitt senior defensive tackle Mick Williams came through with a 13-yard sack, and the Scarlet Knights couldn’t recover after the loss of yards, eventually punting back to Pitt.

Rutgers finally cut Pitt’s lead to seven, but Jovani Chappel stripped Rutgers’ receiver Mohamed Sanu on fourth down with a minute remaining, and Pitt ran the clock down to finish the game.

Stull finished the game with an efficient 16-of-24 passing for 153 yards and a touchdown.

Dickerson, meanwhile, led Pitt with six catches for 42 yards, and DeCicco paced the defense with 10 tackles and an interception. Gus Mustakas, Mick Williams and Myles Caragein each added sacks.

Pitt continues Big East play next week when it hosts South Florida on Saturday, Oct. 24. Kickoff at Heinz Field is set for 12 p.m. and will be an ESPN regional telecast.