Connecticut Huskies vs Pittsburgh Panthers Point Spread Picks

Pittsburgh had Notre Dame looking desperate in South Bend last week. But, the Panthers let a big win slip away by allowing 14 late fourth quarter points, then missing a chip-shot game winning field goal in overtime. As a result, some expect them to come in flat here. But, at 4-5 their Bowl hopes are contingent on a win here at Connecticut. UCONN has not fared well this season. They have an erratic QB that makes poor decisions and an offensive line that is not very good. So, their running game has come to a screeching halt. The Huskies have scored a grand total of 33 points in their four conference games and are leaking oil. They have not scored a TD in the second half of any conference game this season and have been limited to a single field goal. This one is for the taking here for Pitt, as the Huskies just don't have any answers. The Panthers know they should have won last week and I think they come to prove it here. Play on Pittsburgh.

Both of these teams have to be disappointed with 3-4 starts, but the Huskies were expecting to be down while the Panthers have played down. Over the past month, Pittsburgh has played one good game (vs. South Florida). But the other three games were offensive nightmares. Their last game vs. Utah, at home, saw the Panthers offense struggle to 120 total yards and 0 points. Only a kickoff return for a TD and a blocked punt led to any points. The Rutgers game was not much different. Tino Sunseri threw three INT's and the Panthers were soundly beaten 34-10 with the offense limited to 271 yards. Pittsburgh QB's Sunseri and Anderson have combined to throw five TD's to ten INT's on the season. So this team can lose to anyone. Uconn had QB issues early, but Johny McEntee has won the job and while he hasn't been great, he has not beaten the Huskies like the Panther QB's have. The way to beat Uconn is through the air and Pitt just hasn't been able to do that as Ray Graham is their strength running the football. That plays right into the hands of a UConn run-stop unit that is allowing 89 yards per game at just 2.9 yards per carry. Pitt is turnover-prone and Uconn stops what they do best. Pittsburgh owns a losing record vs. losing teams over the past decade and Panthers coach Todd Graham is just 4-8 straight-up when favored on the moneyline at -175 to -400. I'm going out on a limb and calling for the upset here.