PLAYERS TO WATCH
–DL Jerry Tillery leads the team with 7.5 sacks through six games. Tillery routinely has won his battles at the line of scrimmage and forced opposing quarterbacks to pass the ball a second or two faster than they preferred.
–RB Dexter Williams missed the start of the season, but he looked electric in last week’s win over Virginia Tech. Williams rushed 17 times for a career-high 178 yards. He could pose nightmares for Pitt’s defense.
–WR Miles Boykin will go for his third consecutive game with 100-plus yards receiving. He has three touchdowns in his past two contests and has established clear chemistry with new starting QB Ian Book.
SERIES HISTORY: This is the 71st all-time meeting between the schools. Notre Dame leads the series 48-21-1.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “This is really about going back to the practice field, having much more of a focus on how we prepare. We have a great deal of respect for Pittsburgh and how they’ll come out to play us. We know that this is a big game for them.” — Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly
