Utah @ Pittsburgh preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 2, 2010 ) Pittsburgh 24, Utah 27

THE STORY: What was once a potentially attractive midseason non-conference matchup between Utah and host Pittsburgh has simply turned into an opportunity for the victor to right its struggling ship. While neither club was ranked preseason, both received enough votes to warrant optimism for a strong 2011. It's been quite the opposite, and both are coming off lopsided defeats. Utah is winless in its first Pac-12 campaign, and the Big East's lame-duck Panthers have proven as inconsistent for first-year coach Todd Graham as they were under Dave Wannstedt.

TV: ESPNU. LINE: Pittsburgh -7.

ABOUT UTAH (2-3, 0-3 Pac-12): Things went from bad to worse when the Utes learned Monday that junior starting quarterback Jordan Wynn would have shoulder surgery and miss the rest of the season. Wynn (727 yards, six TDs) injured his non-throwing shoulder in a 31-14 loss to Washington on Oct. 1. Junior college transfer Jon Hays actually guided the Utes to a third-quarter lead against Arizona State, but finished with three interceptions as the Sun Devils reeled off 25 unanswered points in a 35-14 triumph. Utah is tied for eighth nationally with eight fumbles recovered, but has gone back-to-back games without one while its unraveling offense has turned the ball over 10 times.

ABOUT PITTSBURGH (3-3, 1-1 Big East): With Graham's high-octane success at Tulsa, Panthers fans expected some pass-happy production. Instead, Pitt ranks just 70th (27.2 points) in scoring. Junior quarterback Tino Sunseri has thrown for 1,166 yards, but only five touchdowns against seven picks and a whopping 27 sacks. Rutgers intercepted four passes while busting open a 6-3 halftime lead for a 34-10 win over the Panthers last week. The loss quickly quelled the enthusiasm of their previous week's 44-17 upset of South Florida. Junior Ray Graham has provided the offensive spark, with 899 yards (the best six-game start in Pitt history), nine scores and 6.0 yards per carry.

EXTRA POINTS

1. The Utes limited Sunseri to 184 yards and Pitt to just 266 yards overall in last year's 27-24 overtime victory.

2. Utah is 8-0 all-time against current Big East members, including 2-0 against Pitt.

3. Pitt hasn't hosted a Pac-12 team since September 1995, a 17-13 win over Washington State.

PREDICTION: Pittsburgh 22, Utah 13 – This might be a test of wills as the Panthers try to ride Graham against the nation's 19th-best rush defense (99.4 yards), but Pitt should be opportunistic enough to shut down a pedestrian Utes offense.