2000 Pittsburgh Panthers football team

The 2000 Pittsburgh Panthers football team represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 2000 NCAA Division I-A football season.

2000 Pittsburgh Panthers football
Insight.com Bowl, L 29–37 vs. Iowa State
Conference	Big East Conference
Record	7–5 (4–3 Big East)
Head coach	Walt Harris (4th season)
Offensive coordinator	J. D. Brookhart (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Pro-style
Defensive coordinator	Paul Rhoads (1st season)
Base defense	Multiple 4–3
Home stadium	Three Rivers Stadium
Seasons ← 1999 2001 →

2000 Big East Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 2 Miami (FL) $		7	–	0					11	–	1
No. 6 Virginia Tech		6	–	1					11	–	1
Pittsburgh		4	–	3					7	–	5
Syracuse		4	–	3					6	–	5
Boston College		3	–	4					7	–	5
West Virginia		3	–	4					7	–	5
Temple		1	–	6					4	–	7
Rutgers		0	–	7					3	–	8
$ – BCS representative as conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 2	3:30 p.m.	Kent State*	Three Rivers Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 30–7	31,089
September 9	12:00 p.m.	at Bowling Green*	Doyt Perry Stadium Bowling Green, OH	ESPN+	W 34–16	11,533
September 16	3:30 p.m.	Penn State*	Three Rivers Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)	CBS	W 12–0	61,211
September 23	3:30 p.m.	Rutgers	Three Rivers Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 29–17	30,890
October 7	4:30 p.m.	at Syracuse	Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY (rivalry)	ESPN2	L 17–24 ^2OT	40,699
October 21	12:00 p.m.	Boston College	Three Rivers Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	ESPN+	W 42–26	31,567
October 28	3:30 p.m.	at No. 2 Virginia Tech	Lane Stadium Blacksburg, VA	CBS	L 34–37	56,272
November 4	6:30 p.m.	North Carolina*	Three Rivers Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	ESPN2	L 17–20	43,872
November 11	12:00 p.m.	at No. 2 Miami (FL)	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL	ESPN2	L 7–35	47,520
November 18	12:00 p.m.	at Temple	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA	ESPN+	W 7–0	12,842
November 24	2:30 p.m.	West Virginia	Three Rivers Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (Backyard Brawl)	CBS	W 38–28	46,569
December 28	7:30 p.m.	vs. Iowa State*	Bank One Ballpark Phoenix, AZ (Insight.com Bowl)	ESPN	L 29–37	41,813
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Roster

2000 Pittsburgh Panthers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class OL 77 Bryan Anderson So RB 43 Kevan Barlow Sr WR 80 Antonio Bryant Jr WR 84 R. J. English Jr RB 37 Nick Goings Sr WR 83 Latef Grim Sr RB 32 Lousaka Polite Fr QB 12 Rod Rutherford Fr QB 10 John Turman Sr TE 83 Kris Wilson   Fr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 5 Torrie Cox So LB 51 Gerald Hayes So DE 57 Bryan Knight Jr DB 25 Ramon Walker   So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Walt Harris Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible   Injured   Redshirt Last update: 2001-02-24

Coaching staff

2000 Pittsburgh Panthers football staff
Coaching staff Walt Harris – Head coach Bob Junko – Assistant head coach/defensive tackles J.D. Brookhart – Offensive coordinator/Wide receivers Paul Rhoads – Defensive coordinator/secondary David Blackwell – Linebackers Curtis Bray – Defensive ends Kenny Carter – Running backs Bryan Deal – Recruiting doordinator/Specialists Tom Freeman – Offensive line/run game coordinator Bob Ligashesky – Tight ends/special teams			Support staff Chris LaSala – Director of football operations Sean McGowan – Graduate assistant Eric Sutulovich – Graduate assistant Mauro Monz – Graduate assistant			Strength and conditioning staff Buddy Morris – Strength and conditioning coach Chad Hutsko – Assistant strength and conditioning coach

Regular season

The previous season saw Pitt miss the post season by finishing 5–6. For 2000, Pitt looked to find a replacement at defensive back for NFL drafted Hank Poteat.

The season started out with a 30–7 win over Kent State.^[1] The Panthers then travelled to Bowling Green, winning there 34 – 16 and improving to 2-0 for the first time since 1995.^[2] Pitt then hosted Penn State for the two teams last scheduled meeting, which Pitt won 12–0. This was Pitt's first win against Penn State in 8 games and improved Pitt to 3–0, their best start since 1991.^[3] Pitt continued their winning ways with a 29–17 win over Rutgers, despite seven turnovers by the Panthers.^[4]

Pittsburgh's winning streak would come to an end at Syracuse in double overtime fashion, 17–24.^[5] Pitt would come back two weeks later with an impressive win over Boston College. BC came into the game with the second ranked passing defence in the country, but not after Pitt quarterback John Turman threw for 332 yards and five touchdown passes. Running back Kevan Barlow also contributed, running for 209 yards on 25 carries including a 45-yard touchdown run, in the 42-26 Pitt victory.^[6]

The following game required a road trip to, then ranked second in the nation, Virginia Tech. Pitt led Tech 34–27 going into the fourth quarter, due mostly to their passing attack. John Turman threw for 311 yards and 4 touchdown passes in the game. Without starting quarterback Michael Vick, Virginia Tech came back in the fourth quarter, scoring 10 points, to win the game 34–37. Pittsburgh only gained 24 yards on the ground and the defence gave up 477 yards.^[7]

Pittsburgh would then host North Carolina, who would upset the Panthers 17–20 despite holding a 407–293 disadvantage in total offense.^[8] Pittsburgh would then have to visit another top ranked team on the road with a trip to, then ranked second in the nation, Miami. Pittsburgh would have its worst offensive performance of the season, gaining only 266 yards, in the 7–35 loss. The Panthers have now lost 3 straight and their record is 5–4.^[9]

Pittsburgh clinched their first winning season since 1997 and recorded their second shutout, first time since 1987, with a 7–0 win at Temple despite 6 Panther turnovers. Wide receiver Antonio Bryant, who gained 81 yards on 6 receptions and recorded the game's only touchdown, broke the Big East record for most receiving yards in a season with 1,154 yards.^[10] Pitt would end the season 7–4, their best since 1989, with a 38–28 win over West Virginia. Pitt running back Kevan Barlow, playing in his last home game as a Panther, rushed for a career-high 272 yards and 4 touchdowns, 1,053 yards for the season. Only Tony Dorsett had rushed for more yards in a single game. Barlow also broke a record for most yards gained against a West Virginia defence.^[11]

Insight.com Bowl

Pittsburgh accepted a bid to play in the Insight.com Bowl, Pittsburgh's second bowl game under Walt Harris, against Iowa State. The contest was the first football game played at the home field of Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks, Bank One Ballpark. Pitt scored on their first possession by way of a 72-yard Antonio Bryant touchdown reception from quarterback John Turman. Iowa State would then go on to score 27 unanswered points. Pitt would score twice unanswered to start the second half, a Rod Rutherford 2-yard touchdown run and an Antonio Bryant 44-yard touchdown reception. Pitt would miss the extra point to make the score 20–27.

Pittsburgh would then give up a 72-yard punt return for a touchdown by Iowa State's JaMain Billups, 20–34. Next, Pitt's Nick Lotz would kick a 25-yard field goal to make it 23–34 with 11:08 left in the game. On Iowa State's ensuing possession, they fumbled on first play at their own 29. Kevan Barlow would score from 3 yards out with 9:45 left in the game. A failed 2-point conversion made the score 29–34.

Iowa State would add a 41-yard field goal with 4:53 left, 29–37. Pitt's comeback drive would be ended by a Marc Timmons interception at Iowa State's 12-yard line. John Turman threw for a career-high 347 yards and two touchdowns, Antonio Bryant caught 5 passes for 155 yards and 2 touchdowns, and Kevan Barlow rushed for 114 yards and 1 touchdown. Ramon Walker had 15 tackles and 2 forced fumbles.^[12]

Team players drafted in to the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Kevan Barlow	Running back	3	80	San Francisco 49ers

^[13]

Awards and honors

• Antonio Bryant, Fred Biletnikoff Award^[14]

Notes

• This was Pitt's only full season at Three Rivers Stadium as the team moved into Heinz Field the following season.

References

Notes

1. Robinson, Allan (September 2, 2000). . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
2. . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. September 9, 2000. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
3. Spangler, Todd (September 16, 2000). . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
4. . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. September 23, 2000. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
5. Kekis, John (October 7, 2000). . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
6. Robinson, Alan (October 21, 2000). . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
7. Kurz, Hank Jr. (October 28, 2000). . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
8. Robinson, Alan (November 4, 2000). . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
9. Long, Mark (November 11, 2000). . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
10. . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. November 18, 2000. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
11. Robinson, Alan (November 24, 2000). . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
12. Baum, Bob (December 28, 2000). . University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
13. . Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 25, 2010. Retrieved October 7, 2009.
14. "Information Please: Annual Awards". Pearson Education, Inc. Retrieved September 28, 2010.

Bibliography

• "2000 Season In Review." University of Pittsburgh Football Media Guide [2001]: 155–61. Print.