Syracuse holds on to beat Pitt 27-24, 1st time in 5 years

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) Eric Dungey threw two touchdown passes and ran for another and the Orange defense stymied Pittsburgh’s offense on third down as Syracuse held on to beat Pitt 27-24 Saturday.

Syracuse’s win was its first over the Panthers in five years and kept Syracuse’s bowl hopes alive. Pitt had won 11 of the last 12 in the series and was 4-0 against Syracuse since both teams joined the ACC.

Pitt (2-4, 0-2) didn’t record its first third-down conversion until 8:40 to go in the game, finishing 3-of-13.

Dungey was 33-of-49 for 365 yards for Syracuse (3-3, 1-1) and he ran for 48 more for 413 total yards. His 10-yard rushing score, which gave Syracuse a 17-13 lead with 6:59 left in the third quarter, was the ninth in his SU career, tying him with Donovan McNabb and Bill Hurley.

Pitt quarterback Max Browne was 15-of-22 for 161 yards before leaving the game with an apparent arm injury in the third quarter. Backup Ben DiNucci was 6-of-10 for 55 yards for the Panthers (2-4, 0-2).

Cole Murphy’s 38-yard field goal extended Syracuse’s lead to 20-13. Alex Kessman’s 56-yard field goal, a Carrier Dome record, brought Pitt to 20-16, but Dungey hit Steve Ishmael on a 35-yard scoring play to extend Syracuse’s lead to 27-16. Pitt made it close on a 19-yard run by Qadree Ollison and two-point conversion with 7:15 to go.

After last year’s 76-61 Pitt win – the highest scoring game in FBS history – the teams slugged it out in a defensive first half which ended in a 10-10 tie. Pitt didn’t get its first down – on a Syracuse penalty – until the last play of the first quarter. The Orange defense held the Panthers to three consecutive possessions without a first down in the opening quarter.

The Orange wasn’t much better. After an opening drive that led to a Murphy 26-yard field goal, Syracuse struggled mightily throughout much of the first 30 minutes until a 32-yard scoring play from Dungey to Devin Butler with 34 seconds left in the half to tie the game at 10. Pitt had taken a 10-3 lead on a 35-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Whitehead and 49-yard field goal by Kessman.

TAKEAWAY

PITT: Pitt’s road to a bowl game took a huge hit, with North Carolina State up next. Rafael Araujo-Lopes led the Panthers with seven receptions.

SYRACUSE: Syracuse coach Dino Babers is 36-0 when leading after three quarters. Dungey opened up the passing game, hitting six different receivers, including tight end Ravian Pierce, who had a career-high nine receptions for 99 yards. Dontae Strickland had 81 yards on 25 carries.

UP NEXT:

PITT: Pitt has a tough home matchup Saturday against the surprising NC State Wolfpack.

SYRACUSE: The Orange begin a back-breaking three-game stretch, hosting Clemson Friday night. Syracuse has road games against Miami and Florida after the Tigers.

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