University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Notre Dame edges Pittsburgh 14-6
10/12/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Notre Dame edges Pittsburgh 14-6
10/12/2002
South Bend, IN (Sports Network) - Arnaz Battle hauled in 10 receptions for 101 yards and a touchdown to lead eighth-ranked Notre Dame over Pittsburgh, 14-6, at Notre Dame Stadium in the 60th all-time meeting between the two teams.
Carlyle Holiday completed 16-of-25 passes for 145 yards with a touchdown and an interception for the Irish (6-0), who won their first six games for the first time since 1993, when they won their first 10 contests and ascended to No. 1 in the polls. Holiday played in his first game since injuring his shoulder three weeks ago against Michigan State.
Ryan Grant also scored a touchdown on 42 yards on the ground, as the Irish extended their winning streak to seven games, their longest since a seven-game run at the end of the 2000 campaign.
Rod Rutherford, who was sacked eight times, tossed for 313 yards on 19-of-43 passing with an interception for the Panthers (5-2), who had a four-game win streak halted and fell for just the second time in their last 13 contests. Lamar Slade finished with 127 yards receiving on seven catches, as the Panthers have dropped 10 of the last 11 meetings with Notre Dame and haven't won in South Bend since 1986.
On the first drive of the game the Panthers marched 74 yards downfield on 11 plays and got on the board with a 29-yard field goal by David Abdul. Rutherford kept the drive going on his own 39 when he hit Kris Wilson for a 52-yard reception on a crucial 3rd-and-9 play.
After failing to score in the opening quarter, the Irish grabbed a 7-3 lead on an 11-yard touchdown reception by Battle with 9:51 remaining in the second quarter. Battle was able to bring his knee down in the left corner of the end zone on the Holiday pass into tight one-on-one coverage. Holiday and Battle also hooked up on 23 and 22-yard catches earlier in the drive.
The Panthers trimmed the Irish advantage to 7-6 with only 23 seconds to play before the intermission courtesy of a 24-yard field goal by Abdul. Slade hauled in a 24-yard pass to put the Panthers into Notre Dame territory and then caught a 20-yard reception down to the Irish 10 to set up the score.
With only 7:08 left in the game the Irish completed the scoring on a one-yard touchdown run by Grant. The Irish started the drive at the Pittsburgh 12 after Glenn Earl recovered a fumble by Rutherford.
On their last drive of the game, the Panthers started from their own 20 and advanced the ball all the way down to the Notre Dame 21, large in part to a 24-yard reception over the middle by Slade on a 3rd-and-10 earlier in the drive. However, Rutherford, who was rolling out under heavy pressure, was intercepted by Preston Jackson to seal the victory for the Irish.
Notre Dame's Tyrone Willingham became just the third head coach to win his first six games for the Irish, joining Jesse Harper and Ara Parseghian.
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