ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

Pittsburgh got a big win for the Big East and most importantly for its program by nipping Notre Dame in overtime, 36-33, at South Bend. The Panthers survived three interceptions from Pat Bostick, who was forced into action because of Bill Stull's concussion last week against Rutgers. LeSean McCoy ran for 169 yards, and Conor Lee made four field goals in the overtime periods.

Pitt can now forget its loss to Rutgers and at 6-2 and it seems assured of making a bowl game for the first time under Dave Wannstedt. Of course, the Panthers were 6-6 in 2006 and stayed home, but this group has a couple of marquee wins now to make it more attractive. Don't forget about them in this Big East race, though clearly they need Stull back under center, pronto.

The next opponent for Pittsburgh, Louisville, is down 14-7 to Syracuse at halftime. This would be a disastrous loss for the Cardinals, who have worked themselves back into the Big East race the past couple of weeks. Cam Dantley has played well for Syracuse with his job on the line, completing 9-of-15 passes for 162 yards and a touchdown. The Orange have done this the past few weeks in the first half. Can they avoid another second-half meltdown?