University of Maine coach Jack Cosgrove is realistic about his team’s chances of pulling off a major upset with Football Bowl Subdivision opponent Pittsburgh on Saturday (1 p.m., Heinz Field, streamed on ESPN3).
“They have to play bad and we have to play great,” Cosgrove said.
It isn’t unprecedented. Maine beat Mississippi State in 2004 and has been competitive with the likes of Nebraska and Syracuse in the last seven years of facing FBS opponents.
The Black Bears won last week’s season opener, 28-13, over Bryant. Senior running back Pushaun Brown led the way offensively with 146 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries. But it was the intangibles that impressed Cosgrove.
“Our attitude, our effort and our discipline were the key things,” said Cosgrove, who is two wins away from his 100th career victory.
One of the most penalized teams in the Colonial Athletic Conference last year, Maine committed only two penalties in the opener. The Black Bears also had no turnovers and forced two after being minus-10 last year in turnover differential.
Maine’s special teams play and field position were also key. Senior punt returner Trevor Coston was named CAA Special Teams Player of the Week after returning five punts for 130 yards, including a 74-yard return for a touchdown.
Coston also led the defense with a pair of interceptions.
“We played like a team that understood the importance of the little things and discipline,” Cosgrove said.
Pitt, which was picked to finish second in the Big East in the preseason media poll, is coming off a 35-16 win over Buffalo.
The Panthers run a no huddle, hurry-up offense led by junior running back Ray Graham, who was named Big East Offensive Player of the Week after rushing for 201 yards and three scores against Buffalo.
Last year, Maine led Syracuse, 14-7, in the second quarter before Syracuse QB Ryan Nassib went off, throwing four unanswered touchdown passes for a 38-14 Orange win. Cosgrove admitted he was concerned with his defense wearing out against Pitt’s up-tempo offense.
“I thought it happened here, too (in the second half against Bryant), so yeah, I’m worried,” he said. “It’s tough enough with it just being the University of Pittsburgh and the strong tradition they have, the good football team they have, and the challenges that will come forward with defending a team that is bigger, stronger and faster than we are. We were disappointed with how we finished off the game Saturday. So we’ve got a concern there that we can only address in a short week. It’s going to have to happen in a hurry and it’s really going to have to happen at a high level.”
“We’ve got to play at our highest level. Our guys will be excited about this opportunity, no doubt,” Cosgrove said.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
