CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2011 Pittsburgh

6–⁠7 (4–⁠3 Big East), coached by Todd Graham, then Keith Patterson (interim, bowl game).

Schedule and results

Pittsburgh in 2011, game by game: won vs. Buffalo 35–16; won vs. Maine 35–29; lost at Iowa 27–31; lost vs. Notre Dame 12–15; won vs. No. 16 South Florida 44–17; lost at Rutgers 10–34; lost vs. Utah 14–26; won vs. UConn 35–20; lost vs. No. 23 Cincinnati 23–26; won at Louisville 21–14; lost at West Virginia 20–21; won vs. Syracuse 33–20; lost vs. SMU 6–28+27−24Won 35–16 vs. Buffalo+19BuffaloWon 35–29 vs. Maine+6MaineLost 27–31 at Iowa-4IowaLost 12–15 vs. Notre Dame-3Notre DameWon 44–17 vs. No. 16 South Florida+27No. 16 South FloridaLost 10–34 at Rutgers-24RutgersLost 14–26 vs. Utah-12UtahWon 35–20 vs. UConn+15UConnLost 23–26 vs. No. 23 Cincinnati-3No. 23 CincinnatiWon 21–14 at Louisville+7LouisvilleLost 20–21 at West Virginia-1West VirginiaWon 33–20 vs. Syracuse+13SyracuseLost 6–28 vs. SMU-22SMU
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 3vsBuffaloW 35–⁠1686%
Sep 10vsMaineW 35–⁠2987%
Sep 17atIowaL 27–⁠3144%
Sep 24vsNotre DameL 12–⁠1559%
Sep 29vs16South FloridaW 44–⁠1753%
Oct 8atRutgersL 10–⁠3457%
Oct 15vsUtahL 14–⁠2661%
Oct 26vsUConnW 35–⁠2061%
Nov 5vs23CincinnatiL 23–⁠2654%
Nov 12atLouisvilleW 21–⁠1443%
Nov 25atWest VirginiaL 20–⁠2136%
Dec 3vsSyracuseW 33–⁠2074%
Jan 7Bowls & playoffvsSMUBBVA Compass BowlL 6–⁠2861%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to SMU 28–⁠6 in the BBVA Compass Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 4th in the Big East.

In program history: The 72nd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 128 on file).

Record
6–⁠7
Conference
4–⁠3 tied for 4th in Big East
AP final
Unranked
Points
315–⁠297
Coach
Todd Graham, then Keith Patterson (interim, bowl game)
Elo
1541 −60 this season
SP+ rating
5.6 No. 48 of 120; offense No. 73, defense No. 32, special teams No. 34
SRS
1.1 No. 55 of 120 in FBS
Recruiting class
No. 62
Offensive coordinators
Calvin Magee and Mike Norvell
Defensive coordinators
Keith Patterson and Paul Randolph
Offense
Multiple no huddle
Defense
3–⁠3–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense57th of 120
  • Defense35th of 120
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted56th of 120
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted45th of 120
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0540%0.9457th of 120
Defense0.0242%0.8735th of 120
Opponent-adjusted0.05 off
0.03 def		41% off
42% def		—56th off
45th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense-0.1own 312% allowed
Defense-0.1own 322% caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsTino Sunseri QB2,616 yds
Passing touchdownsTino Sunseri QB10 TD
Rushing yardsRay Graham RB958 yds
Rushing touchdownsRay Graham RB9 TD
Receiving yardsDevin Street WR754 yds
Receiving touchdownsMike Shanahan WR4 TD
InterceptionsAndrew Taglianetti DB1 INT

Top recruits in the 2011 class

Lafayette Pitts RB★★★★No. 132
Sam Collura TE★★★No. 948
Malcolm Crockett RB★★★No. 1120
Jeremiah Bryson RB★★★No. 1135
Jason Frimpong ATH★★★No. 1245

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2011 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Running backs62.70.818
Receivers42.30.787
Offensive line13.00.810
Defensive backs22.00.733
Athletes and specialists22.50.790
Whole class152.50.794

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 101

The 2011 roster

101 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2011 line; 32 have a stat line. See the roster

2011 Big East standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
Cincinnati5–⁠210–⁠325
West Virginia5–⁠210–⁠317
Louisville5–⁠27–⁠6
Rutgers4–⁠39–⁠4
Pittsburgh4–⁠36–⁠7
UConn3–⁠45–⁠7
South Florida1–⁠65–⁠7
Syracuse1–⁠65–⁠7

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.