Pitt gets one last non-conference tune-up Saturday when Bucknell comes to Acrisure Stadium for a noon kickoff, and the Panthers enter the matchup as heavy favorites to move to 4-0 for the second time in three seasons.
Bucknell arrives at 1-3 overall and 0-2 in Patriot League play, and the numbers tell the story of a team still trying to find its footing under first-year head coach Jeff Behrman. The Bison have struggled to generate offense, sitting near the bottom of the FCS in several key categories, while Pitt has been rolling along with far more production on both sides of the ball.
The Panthers are 3-0 and have put up 443 yards per game, 32.7 points per game and 171.3 rushing yards per game. Bucknell, by contrast, is averaging just 238 yards and 12.8 points, with a run game that has produced only 61.8 yards per contest. Pitt also owns the edge defensively, allowing 11.3 points per game and just 60.7 rushing yards per game.
Bucknell’s offense leans on the pass, with Temple transfer Christopher Dietrich serving as the central figure. He has thrown for 629 yards and five touchdowns without an interception, completing 65 percent of his passes.
His top target is Sam Milligan, a returning all-conference receiver who has 27 catches for 284 yards and three scores this season. In his Bucknell career, Milligan has 101 receptions for 1,530 yards and 18 touchdowns.
The Bison have at least shown some resistance on defense. They have allowed 20 points or fewer in each of their last three games, though that has not always translated into wins.
Last time out, Bucknell lost 20-7 to Penn after managing only 124 yards and six first downs. Dietrich went 3-of-9 for 8 yards in that game, was sacked eight times on the season entering the week, and after taking an early hit was removed at halftime.
He is listed as the backup on this week’s depth chart.
Saturday’s game also lands in the middle of Pitt’s Homecoming weekend, and it will bring several Bucknell players back to the Pittsburgh area. The Bison have five former WPIAL players on the roster. Leading tackler Brandon Biagiarelli is from Avonworth High School, freshman safety Lucas Ross played at Peters Township last year, offensive lineman Kaiyen Mbandi is from Gateway, and defensive end Charlie Meehlieb is from Elizabeth Forward.
This meeting also revives a series that has barely seen daylight in recent generations. Pitt and Bucknell have met nine times before, and this will be the first game between them since 1945.
The Panthers lead the series 7-2, and eight of the nine previous matchups were played in Pittsburgh. Pitt’s only trip to Lewisburg came in 1923.
The series has also been strangely shutout-heavy: the losing team has been blanked eight times, including Pitt’s 38-0 win in 1945.
Pitt has been almost automatic against FCS opponents. The Panthers are 23-1 in those games, with the lone loss coming in 2012 against Youngstown State under Paul Chryst. Since then, Pitt has won 13 straight against FCS teams and has outscored its last three such opponents 179-33.