Player Spotlight: Dorin Dickersonq

The NFL Draft Bible Player Spotlight continues with Pittsburgh playmaking tight end Dorin Dickerson.

The former Panther nabbed 10 touchdowns this past season, on his way to being named a John Mackey Award finalist, as well as a third team All-College Football Insiders selection. His performance warranted an invite to the NFL Scouting Combine, where he hopes to improve his draft stock. Join host Bo Marchionte as they discuss his training preparation, strengths and goals leading up to April.

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Photo Courtesy of University of Pittsburgh

CFI Preview: Notre Dame @ Pittsburgh

Heinz Field, Saturday, 8:00PM ET, ABC

Overview

Charlie Weis returns to the site of his first college coaching victory when Notre Dame travels to Pittsburgh Saturday night to take on the Panthers at Heinz Field.

Much has changed for Notre Dame and Pittsburgh over the past five seasons. Weis and the Fighting Irish got off to a flying start, reaching a BCS game in each of his first two seasons at the helm.

The next three years have not been as kind. Notre Dame finished 3-9 in 2007 and 7-6 in 2008. The Irish had high hopes coming into this season but have fallen to 6-3 after last week’s 23-21 defeat to Navy. It was the first time Notre Dame has lost consecutive home games to the Midshipmen since 1961 and 1963.

Dave Wannstedt made his college head coaching career against Weis and Notre Dame in 2005. Unlike the Fighting Irish, Pittsburgh struggled initially under their new coach. After going 16-19 through Wannstedt’s first three years, the Panthers are 17-5 since.

The university’s patience with Wannstedt has paid off: The Panthers are ranked in the top ten of a national poll (#8 in the AP) for the first time since 1982, Dan Marino’s senior season.

This year’s game will feature plenty of offensive firepower for both teams. Pittsburgh is led by quarterback Bill Stull, freshman running back Dion Lewis, tight end Dorin Dickerson and receiver Jonathan Baldwin.

Notre Dame has quarterback Jimmy Clausen and two of the best receivers in college football: Golden Tate and Michael Floyd.

With so many offensive weapons for both teams, this primetime match-up could very well be a shoot-out.

Keys for a Pittsburgh Victory

1) Win the First Quarter: Pittsburgh’s home crowd will be fired-up when the ball is finally kicked-off shortly after 8pm on Saturday night. The Panthers can put themselves in a great position to win the game if they can feed off the crowd’s energy and get off to a fast start.

The Panthers have done a great job in the first quarter this season, outscoring their opponents 71-38 in the opening period.

Pittsburgh will be able to dictate the game’s rhythm if they can get off to quick lead. Early points by the Panther offense will allow the Pitt coaching staff to give the Notre Dame defense a heavy dose of Lewis and the running attack. Defensively, Pittsburgh can speed rush Clausen because they know Notre Dame will abandon the run game once they fall behind.

Most importantly, an early lead for the Panthers will be a psychological challenge to the Irish. Under Weis, Notre Dame has struggled to recover after disappointing losses. In the wake of a four-overtime defeat to Pittsburgh a year ago, the Irish were never the same, limping through the rest of the regular season with losses to Boston College, Syracuse and USC.

Last week’s loss to Navy may be the toughest yet. Should Pittsburgh build an early first quarter lead, the Irish may not have the mental fortitude to stay in the game.

2) Maintain Efficiency: Pittsburgh has been an incredibly consistent team on both sides of the ball this season. Offensively, the Panthers are well-balanced, rushing for 18 touchdowns and passing for 19. Stull leads a much improved Panther passing attack and has surprised everyone this season with his play. The senior from Pittsburgh is fifth in the nation in passing efficiency.

The Panthers also maximize their scoring chances. Pittsburgh is 17th in the nation in red zone efficiency. The Panthers have scored 37 times in 41 red zone opportunities; 27 of those scores were touchdowns.

Leadership and consistency along the offensive and defensive lines have been vital to Pittsburgh’s success. Both lines are filled with juniors and seniors. Their starting offensive linemen have played well and stayed healthy—all five have started every game.

Defensively, the Panthers get after opposing quarterbacks and do not make a lot of mistakes. Pittsburgh is 19th in the nation in scoring defense, giving up just 17.1 points per game.

Pittsburgh’s efficiency is a great asset when matched-up against a Notre Dame team that is inconsistent and undisciplined.

Keys for a Notre Dame Victory

1) Protect Clausen: The Notre Dame offensive line must do a better job of protecting Clausen. Against an undersized and less talented Navy defensive unit a week ago, the Irish gave up two sacks, one of which occurred in the end zone giving Navy a safety and two critical points with just over a minute remaining in the game.

This week the Irish face one of the most productive defensive lines in the country. Pittsburgh leads in the nation in sacks with 38. The Panthers are able to get consistent pressure up front without blitzing much. This allows their linebackers to fall back into pass coverage.

Up front, the Panthers are led by a group of experienced and highly productive players. Senior defensive tackle Mick Williams leads the team with 13 tackles for loss. Defensive end Greg Romeus has 7.5 sacks on the year. The junior from Coral Springs, Florida has made 22 consecutive starts.

Pittsburgh is not the first team that Notre Dame will face this season that gets a lot of pressure on the quarterback without blitzing its linebackers. USC is also highly disruptive without blitzing and the Notre Dame offensive line struggled mightily against the Trojans, allowing USC to sack Clausen five teams. Luckily the Irish were able to rely on their highly talented junior quarterback to lead them back into that game and almost pull out the victory.

Notre Dame needs a great game from one of its most experienced units if they’re going to steal one from the Panthers. Clausen’s effectiveness is directly related to the amount of protection he gets from his offensive line.

2) Slow Down Dion Lewis: The freshman running back has been a revelation for Pittsburgh this season. Not highly recruited out of prep school in New Jersey, Lewis has exploded on the scene, already rushing for 1,176 yards. Lewis has gone over 100 rushing yards in six of Pittsburgh’s nine games.

The Irish have struggled defending the rush this season, allowing the opposition to average 148.8 yards per game on the ground.

Notre Dame defensive tackles Ethan Johnson and Ian Williams will play the key roles in defending the run. At times this season, they and the Irish defense have been very good against the run. Notre Dame held two effective running teams, USC and Boston College, to more than 75 yards below their season averages.

However just last week, the Irish gave up 348 yards on the ground to Navy.

Notre Dame cannot allow Lewis to gash them for huge chunks of yards. Pittsburgh is very balanced on offense and once the Panthers establish Lewis, they will utilize Stull and the physical Pittsburgh receivers in play-action passes.

Notre Dame needs to implement a game plan similar to the one they used against Boston College: neutralize the Panther running attack and try to make Pittsburgh one-dimensional.

Prediction

Pitt’s doubters say the Panthers haven’t beaten anybody. Ironically, their biggest victory to this point is probably over a Navy team that beat Notre Dame last week. The Panthers will be motivated, in primetime, to show the nation that they are for real.

Notre Dame seems to be at yet another crossroads. Will the Irish recover from a disappointing loss? Will Charlie Weis be the Notre Dame coach next season?

Regardless of Weis’ job security, Clausen is too good of a quarterback to allow the game to get beyond Notre Dame’s reach. Pittsburgh’s balance and consistency will win out, but Clausen will make the game close. The Panthers will score a touchdown in the final minutes to earn a dramatic victory.

Score: Pittsburgh 42, Notre Dame 41

Photos Courtesy of Notre Dame Sports Information, University of Pittsburgh

Big East Week 8 Preview

By CHRISTOPHER MOGOLLON

South Florida 26, Pittsburgh 23

Tune in to watch two very talented defensive lines, both with more than one future NFL prospect, most notable are Greg Romeus and George Selvie. This is a difficult game to call because both teams are very similar. Each have tremendous pass rushes, hard nosed linebackers but have offenses that are prone to stalling. An important match-up in this game will be the South Florida secondary versus the Pittsburgh receivers. Last week Jonathan Baldwin was held to only one catch and others like tight end Dorin Dickerson picked up the slack. South Florida has one of the Big East's top cornerbacks in Jerome Murphy, who had his ups and downs against Cincinnati a week ago. Keep an eye on the Murhpy-Baldwin battle. Two key difference makers are freshmen Dion Lewis from Pittsburgh and USF's B.J Daniels. The talented Daniels had his freshman moments against Cincinnati, but don't be surprised if the quarterback has a breakout game this week. The Pitt defense might not do as well against the scrambling youngster. Lewis, who leads the Big East in rushing, will test the Bulls' rush defense.

West Virginia 25, Connecticut 17

The Huskies are always a tough opponent. They’re gritty and possess a consistent rushing attack. With all that has happened this week there’s going to be a little extra fight in them. The status of quarterback Jarrett Brown, who suffered a concussion from last week’s game, is critical to the Mountaineers success. He’s likely to start but his status is a game-time decision. This game will probably close up to the very end but the difference maker is Noel Devine.

Syracuse 33, Akron 21

This is a huge game for this Syracuse football team. Last year they dropped a home game versus the Zips and it was the low point of the season. It’s a must win, not only to spare the embarrassment to losing two in row to Akron but to turn around the season. After a two-game winning streak the Orange followed up with a sloppy performance against South Florida and contest against West Virginia where everythign went wrong. Off a bye week, the team should be prepared for this one. Mike Williams is quietly having an All-American caliber season leading the conference with 712 yards and 45 receptions and won’t face a defender who can cover him in this one. The defense has done a lot of shuffling especially on the defensive line, so it should be interesting to see how some of the lineup changes affect the unit plays.

Cincinnati 26, Louisville 14

Last year Cincinnati snapped a five-game losing streak to the Cardinals. Look for Cincy to make it two in row in this battle of former Conference USA programs. Defensively, the Bearcats has improved and are continuing to get better each week. Linebacker Andre Revels and cornerback Drew Fey have been playing well of late with senior safety Aaron Webster. Quarterback Tony Pike is questionable but that shouldn’t stop the Bearcats from remaining undefeated, at least not this week.

Last week: 3-1, Season 35-6

Photos Courtesy of USF Athletics Communications, Syracuse University Athletics

Big East Week 7 Preview

By CHRISTOPHER MOGOLLON

Pittsburgh 33, Rutgers 16

This one doesn't match-up for Rutgers. Sure, they’re on a four-game winning streak, they have found their running game and their defense has been a turnover machine. That doesn’t mean Rutgers matches up against Pittsburgh. The Panthers have too much up front to be stopped from getting to the quarterback and too many skill players to be contained on offense. Greg Romeus is the name on the Pittsburgh defensive line that everyone knows about, which is well deserved as Romeus comes in second in conference with seven sacks. But it’s not just him. Jabaal Sheard has been developing into a fine pass rusher himself. Defensive Tackle Mick Williams is a beast on the inside leading the conference with 10.5 tackles for a loss. Doubts on how well the Rutgers' offensive line will protect freshman Tom Savage are legitimate. The freshman tandem Pittsburgh has at running backs won’t be the only thing giving the Scarlet Knights' defense fits, as sophomore Jonathon Baldwin has been on a roll recording back-to-back 100-yard games. Along with tight ends Dorin Dickerson and Nate Byham will just be too much fire power for the Knights to handle through the air.

Connecticut 13, Louisville 6

This a bounce back game for Connecticut. Last week was an extremely tough loss, there goal line efforts and another big game for senior Andre Dixon went to waste. The defense will certainly have a much better game then they did versus Pittsburgh and could shut out the Cardinals.

West Virginia 38, Marshall 21

Over the past three years this instate rivalry game hasn’t been close, in fact the combined score is 117-36 in favor of West Virginia. Last year when they faced off, Noel Devine rushed for 125 yards, expect him to go over 100 yet again.

Last week: 3-1, Season: 32-5

Photos Courtesy of University of Pittsburgh

Big East Week Four Review

By CHRISTOPHER MOGOLLON - BIG EAST INSIDER

The Big East went 5-2 this weekend lifting the conference’s season out of conference record to 21-7. Let’s take a look at some of the top individual performances, which include a breakthrough win, as well as a defense that is surprisingly struggling.

South Florida 17, Florida State 7
No Grothe No Problem – South Florida defense leads the Bulls to the biggest of wins

A ton of credit needs to be given to South Florida’s quarterback B.J. Daniels. Anytime a freshman makes his first start on the road at a place like Doak Campbell Stadium and comes out with a victory it’s impressive. He only completed 8-of-21 passes and threw two interceptions, but Daniels displayed scrambling ability, arm strength and relentlessness. On the ground, he rushed for 126 yards on 23 carries and when the Tallahassee native did connect through the air, he made it count. Daniels completed a 77-yard pass to Theo Wilson and a 73-yard touchdown connection to Sterling Griffin. But more than anywhere else, the Bulls won this game because of their defense, specifically the front four. They took down Seminole quarterback Christian Ponder five times and held Florida St. to only 19 yards rushing. The defensive line of South Florida is an extremely deep unit as they mixed in eight different players throughout the game. Defensive ends Craig Marshall and George Selvie led the bull rush. Marshall recorded two sacks and recovered a fumble, while the two-time All-American Selvie was on Ponders’ tail every step of the way. There were a total of four turnovers forced by South Florida—all coming by way of the fumble—including a couple in the red zone. Ultimately, that was the story of the game. Any time FSU would get close to scoring they would turn the ball over, either on a fumble or on downs. A third defensive end, Jason Pierre-Paul, picked the perfect time to have a breakout game. The 6’ 6” junior had three tackles for a loss and had a key forced fumble to seal the deal in fourth quarter earning him Big East defensive player of the week honors.

Cincinnati 28, Fresno State 20
Pike to Gilyard – Bearcats survive upset bid and gain more national attention

Another win for Cincinnati and another big game for wide receiver Marshwan Gilyard. The senior extended his streak to six games with at least one touchdown reception dating back to last year, as he snagged two in the team’s win over Fresno State. His 177 yards and nine receptions leaves him atop the conference leader board in both categories. However, it was fellow receiver D.J. Woods who had the catch of the game bringing down an outstanding one-handed grab. The 6’ 1” sophomore is coming along nicely and developing into a solid number two target, giving the ‘Cats yet another weapon. Despite quarterback Tony Pike’s 300 yards and three touchdowns through the air, the offense stalled a bit after a quick start and needed the defense to survive the upset scare. Linebacker Craig Carey made a key interception that set up a Cincinnati touchdown early in the fourth quarter and on Fresno State’s final drive (which reached the Cincinnati 38-yard line), it was Aaron Webster who broke up a pass on fourth down to clinch the win.

North Carolina St. 38, Pittsburgh 31
What happened to the defense?

Nobody was more disappointing out of the Big East than the Pittsburgh defense in week four. They were supposed to be the strength of the team, but the defense was pushed around in Raleigh and a blew a 31-17 lead allowing three consecutive touchdowns by North Carolina St. late in the game. Wolfpack quarterback Russell Wilson threw for 322 yards and for the third straight game, four touchdowns. NC State gained a total of 530 yards and dominated when it came to moving the chains, converting 27 first downs compared to Pitt’s 11. This isn’t the first time this season the Panthers’ secondary has given up big yards through the air, they allowed 433 against Buffalo. Senior cornerback Aaron Berry was supposed to be the team’s lock down corner and one of the best in the Big East, but he allowed to many big plays and drew too many flags. Wilson showed no hesitation throwing the ball to his side. Cornerback Ricky Gray was also burned two times for long strikes, including a touchdown. Even after the comeback, Pittsburgh was given a great opportunity to force overtime when they recovered a botched snap on the North Carolina State eight-yard line. Four plays and zero yards later they were done. The closest they came to a tie came on a nice third down throw by Bill Stull, but Wolfpack safety Brandan Bishop knocked the potential touchdown out of the hands of tight end Dorin Dickerson. Running back Dion Lewis continues to be a freshman standout rushing for 95 yards and two early touchdowns on the day. The Panthers’ loss prevented a clean sweep of the ACC for the Big East.

Rutgers 34, Maryland 13
Here comes Rutgers..

It hasn’t exactly been against the best competition, but following their season-opening loss, Rutgers finds themselves on a three-game winning streak. The defense forced five turnovers, as linebacker Antonio Lowery had an interception and led the team with eight tackles. The player of the game was tailback Joe Martinek who rushed for 147 yards and two touchdowns versus the Terps.

Syracuse 41, Maine 24
Taking care of business

A second-half surge gave the Orange a big win. Delone Carter led the ‘Cuse with four touchdowns, three on the ground and one through the air, while senior quarterback and former Dukie Greg Paulus continues to prove his transition to football was worth it, throwing for 270 yards and two touchdowns.

Connecticut 52, Rhode Island 10
Taking care of business – the sequel

The passing game has usually been a problem for the Huskies, but this week quarterback Cody Endres led the way throwing for 289 yards and two touchdowns.

Utah 30, Louisville 14
Cardinals fail to soar

It didn’t take long for Utah to grab hold, as the Mountain West school jumped out to a 14-0 lead. Louisville could not stop the run allowing a total of 214 yards on the ground, as Utah running back Eddie Wide led all ball carriers with 129 yards. The Cardinals couldn’t run the ball with any success, as star tailback Victor Anderson was held to 22 yards.

Photos Courtesy of USF Athletics Communications & Brian Utesch/NC State