Published: November 10, 2009 12:21 am      

Panthers, Irish going in different directions

PITTSBURGH — When Dave Wannstedt returned to his alma mater, he wanted to use Pitt’s football tradition as a building block for his program.

The Panthers haven’t arrived just yet, but as the nation’s No. 8 team, they’re a lot closer to where Wannstedt wanted Pitt to be than the first time he faced Notre Dame to open the 2005 season. That was his first year at Pitt, and it was the initial season for Irish coach Charlie Weis as well.

The two meet again when Pitt (8-1) faces Notre Dame (6-3) Saturday at 8 p.m. at Heinz Field. The game will be broadcast nationally by ABC, and Panthers fifth-year senior defensive tackle Gus Mustakas has anticipated this game for a while since he played in the last game the two teams met at Heinz Field.

“Actually, that was my first game here, too,” Mustakas said. “My freshman year, we were ranked around 22nd. ‘College GameDay’ was there, and we went out to a 10-0 lead. I thought, ‘Wow, we’re going undefeated.’

“But things didn’t turn out that way. They scored about 40 unanswered points on us (to win 42-21),” he said.

“Fortunately, it’s gotten a lot better for me, and the Pitt defense since then,” Mustakas added. “But I know it’s going to be crazy again here for Notre Dame Saturday night. And we’re looking forward to seeing all our fans cheering us on. So, it’s going to be a great atmosphere and a great game to play in.”

The Notre Dame series was renewed last season, and Pitt beat the Fighting Irish 36-33 in four overtimes in South Bend, Ind. The series, which began in 1909, has had many big games, most of which ended with a Fighting Irish victory. Pitt is 19-44-1 against Notre Dame.

“The Pitt-Notre Dame rivalry is big,” linebacker Adam Gunn said. “Coach Wannstedt always talks about tradition here, and Pitt-Notre Dame is a chance for us to represent our university and really continue our drive to the successful season that we’re after. Notre Dame, that’s ‘Rudy.’ They are college football.

“But we are, too. We have a great football tradition here at Pitt. So, this is a big game. When you beat them, that gives you a chance to say that you beat Notre Dame that year. They are college football. They’re the leaders of college football, so this is a chance for us to show that we are, too, now.”

The Pitt football program has come a long way since Wannstedt and Weis matched wits during that 2005 game, and the two actually appear to be going in opposite directions, with the Panthers entrance into the top 10 and Notre Dame losing at home to Navy. One major improvement for Pitt is that the team has built much more depth than it had back then.

“We had to play some freshmen in that game,” Wannstedt said. “We thought we were a heck of a lot better than we really were.

“We found out very quickly that we had work to do. I think we had good leadership then, but we were probably just a little bit ahead of ourselves. I was trying to figure out who could do what. I was with the kids for a month.”

Gunn believed that describing the difference between the Pitt program from then to now was as easy as 1-2-3, actually, 8 and 9, the Panthers’ respective rankings in The Associated Press writers’ poll and USA Today coaches’ poll.

“To be back into the top 10, where Pitt has lived for a long time back in the day, that says a lot about the program, where it was and what Coach has done,” Gunn said. “I’m the biggest supporter of everything Coach Wannstedt has done here. He’s had a big impact on us as individuals and as players.

“Just to see how far our program has come since Coach Wannstedt arrived has been tremendous. You can’t tell the future, but I know Coach Wannstedt had a vision (for) the program. And once we all had time to buy into that vision, well, here we are. So, it’s all due to the impact of Coach Wannstedt.

“(And) when you have a good team, it’s because you have better individuals on that team,” Gunn added. “You’re more trustworthy, accountable and have the desire to win. That’s what Coach Wannstedt has thrived on. And when you have guys willing to put it all on the line ... then, you’ll have a winning team.”

The Panthers and their followers are hopeful that formula will pay off with a victory against Notre Dame Saturday night.