| 2016 Syracuse vs. Pittsburgh football game | |
| Subheader: | Conference game |
| Football Season: | 2016 |
| Visitor Name Short: | Syracuse |
| Visitor Nickname: | Orange |
| Visitor School: | Syracuse University |
| Home Name Short: | Pittsburgh |
| Home Nickname: | Panthers |
| Home School: | University of Pittsburgh |
| Visitor Record: | 4–7 |
| Home Record: | 7–4 |
| Visitor Coach: | Dino Babers |
| Home Coach: | Pat Narduzzi |
| Visitor 1Q: | 14 |
| Visitor 2Q: | 7 |
| Visitor 3Q: | 13 |
| Visitor 4Q: | 27 |
| Home 1Q: | 14 |
| Home 2Q: | 21 |
| Home 3Q: | 21 |
| Home 4Q: | 20 |
| Date: | November 26, 2016 |
| Stadium: | Heinz Field |
| City: | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Referee: | Jeff Heaser |
| Attendance: | 34,049 |
The 2016 Syracuse vs. Pittsburgh football game was a regular-season college football game between the Syracuse Orange and the Pittsburgh Panthers, played on November 26, 2016 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The game held the record[1] for the most combined points scored in an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) regulation game with 137 total points,[2] breaking the previous record (136 points, set in a 2007 game played between Navy and North Texas) by a single point.[3] The record was broken on November 5, 2022 when the SMU Mustangs defeated the Houston Cougars 77–63 for a combined 140 points.[4]
With first-year head coach Dino Babers in command, the Syracuse Orange entered their final game of 2016 with a record of 4–7, 2–5 in ACC play.[5] The Orange had experienced ups and downs throughout the 2016 season, with peaks including wins against seventeenth-ranked Virginia Tech and rival Boston College a week later. However, the lows of the season tended to outweigh the highs, as the Orange defense had allowed at least 20 points in all but two games, and the team had suffered blowout losses at the hands of nationally-ranked Louisville (No. 13), Clemson (No. 3), and Florida State (No. 17). The aforementioned loss to Florida State was Syracuse's seventh of the season, which put a bowl game out of reach coming into their final game.[6]
Under second-year head coach Pat Narduzzi, Pittsburgh entered this game 7–4, 4–3 in ACC play, having clinched a bowl game berth the week prior.[7] The Panthers entered their final regular-season with a few very impressive wins on their schedule, namely an early-season win against eventual Big Ten champions Penn State and a road win against eventual national champions Clemson. These two victories proved to be the only two against ranked opponents, however, as they lost at home to No. 25 Virginia Tech on October 27. The Panthers offense had been doing its job throughout the 2016 season, scoring no less than 28 points in each of their previous 11 contests.
See main article: article and Pittsburgh–Syracuse football rivalry. Coming into the game, the Pitt–Syracuse series stood 37–31 in favor of Pitt, with three ties; previously, the highest-scoring meeting in the series was a 45–28 Syracuse win in 1998, totaling 73 points. Pittsburgh had won the last three matchups; furthermore, Syracuse's last victory in Pittsburgh against the Panthers came in 2001, as their two victories in the series since then had come in Syracuse.
| Game Time | Weather | |
|---|---|---|
| Kickoff: 12:31 p.m. EST End of Game: 4:14 p.m. EST Duration: 3 hours, 43 minutes | Temperature: 38F Wind: W 13 mph Weather: Cloudy with showers | |
| Game officials | ||
| J. Heaser (referee), M. Wilson (umpire), T. Lynch (linesman), D. Short (line judge) D. Bell (back judge), C. Clougherty (field judge), G. Hocker (side judge) | ||
| Sources:[8] [9] | ||
| Stat | style= | Syracuse ! | style= |
|---|
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Syracuse | Passing | Zack Mahoney | 43/61, 440 yards, 5 TD, 1 INT |
| Rushing | Moe Neal | 8 carries, 91 yards, 1 TD | |
| Receiving | Amba Etta-Tawo | 13 receptions, 178 yards, 5 TD | |
| Pittsburgh | Passing | Nathan Peterman | 9/18, 251 yards, 4 TD, 1 INT |
| Rushing | James Conner | 19 carries, 115 yards, 2 TD | |
| Receiving | Jester Weah | 4 receptions, 99 yards, 2 TD |
This game was Syracuse's last of the season, as they finished the 2016 campaign with a 4–8 record. Pittsburgh improved to 8–4 and accepted an invitation to the New Era Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium. The Panthers were favored by five,[10] but lost to Northwestern, 31–24[11] and finished their season with a record of 8–5.