1989 Pittsburgh Panthers football team

1989 Pittsburgh Panthers football
1989 Pittsburgh Panthers football
John Hancock Bowl champion
John Hancock Bowl, W 31–28 vs. Texas A&M
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 19
AP	No. 17
Record	8–3–1
Head coach	Mike Gottfried (4th season; regular season); Paul Hackett (interim, bowl game);
Offensive coordinator	Paul Hackett (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple pro-style
Defensive coordinator	Bob Valesente (1st season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Pitt Stadium
	Seasons ← 1988 1990 →

The 1989 Pittsburgh Panthers football team represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season.

1989 Major eastern college football independents records
v t e	Conf.					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 15 Penn State $	6	–	0	–	0	8	–	3	–	1
No. 17 Pittsburgh	4	–	1	–	1	8	–	3	–	1
No. 21 West Virginia	3	–	1	–	1	8	–	3	–	1
Syracuse	3	–	3	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
Temple	1	–	4	–	0	1	–	10	–	0
Rutgers	1	–	5	–	0	2	–	7	–	2
Boston College	1	–	5	–	0	2	–	9	–	0

$ – Lambert Trophy Winner Rankings from AP Poll

1989 NCAA Division I-A independents football records
v t e	Conf.			Overall
Team	W	L	T	W		L		T
No. 1 Miami (FL)		–		11	–	1	–	0
No. 2 Notre Dame		–		12	–	1	–	0
No. 3 Florida State		–		10	–	2	–	0
Northern Illinois		–		9	–	2	–	0
No. 15 Penn State		–		8	–	3	–	1
No. 17 Pittsburgh		–		8	–	3	–	1
No. 21 West Virginia		–		8	–	3	–	1
Syracuse		–		8	–	4	–	0
Southwestern Louisiana		–		7	–	4	–	0
Akron		–		6	–	4	–	1
South Carolina		–		6	–	4	–	1
Virginia Tech		–		6	–	4	–	1
Louisiana Tech		–		5	–	4	–	1
Army		–		6	–	5	–	0
Louisville		–		6	–	5	–	0
East Carolina		–		5	–	5	–	1
Tulsa		–		6	–	6	–	0
Southern Miss		–		5	–	6	–	0
Tulane		–		4	–	8	–	0
Navy		–		3	–	8	–	0
Rutgers		–		2	–	7	–	2
Boston College		–		2	–	9	–	0
Memphis State		–		2	–	9	–	0
Cincinnati		–		1	–	9	–	1
Temple		–		1	–	10	–	0

Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 2	7:00 p.m.	Pacific (CA)	No. 23	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 38–3	35,421	^[1]
September 9	12:00 p.m.	at Boston College	No. 23	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA		W 29–10	31,000	^[2]
September 23	7:30 p.m.	No. 10 Syracuse	No. 13	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)	ESPN	W 30–23	45,762	^[3]
September 30	7:30 p.m.	at No. 9 West Virginia	No. 10	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV (Backyard Brawl)	ESPN	T 31–31	68,938	^[4]
October 7	12:00 p.m.	at Temple	No. 8	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA	JP Sports	W 27–3	24,982	^[5]
October 14	12:00 p.m.	Navy	No. 9	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	JP Sports	W 31–14	50,467	^[6]
October 28	5:00 p.m.	at No. 1 Notre Dame	No. 7	Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)	ESPN	L 7–45	59,075	^[7]
November 11	2:30 p.m.	No. 7 Miami (FL)	No. 14	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	CBS	L 3–24	52,528	^[8]
November 18	12:00 p.m.	East Carolina	No. 19	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 47–42	21,862	^[9]
November 25	2:30 p.m.	No. 22 Penn State	No. 19	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)	CBS	L 13–16	57,158	^[10]
December 2	7:00 a.m.	vs. Rutgers	No. 24	Lansdowne Road Dublin, Ireland (Emerald Isle Classic)	ESPN	W 46–29	19,800	^[11]
December 30	12:30 p.m.	vs. No. 16 Texas A&M	No. 23	Sun Bowl El Paso, TX (John Hancock Bowl)	CBS	W 31–28	44,887	^[12]
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Personnel

1989 Pittsburgh Panthers football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
OL	`69`	Dan Anderson	So
OL	`73`	Bill Cherpak	Sr
OL		Jeff Christy	So
RB	`32`	Glenn Deveaux	So
OL	`72`	Chris Goetz	So
WR	`19`	Brian Jackson	So
RB	`26`	Derrick Lewis	Fr
OL	`62`	Roman Matusz	Sr
OL	`60`	Scott Miller	So
TE	`41`	Dave Moore	So
RB	`22`	Ronald Redmon	Jr
RB	`27`	Curvin Richards	Jr
C	`55`	Bryan Schoch	Jr
TE	`86`	Eric Seaman	So
OL	`51`	Chris Sestilli	Fr
QB	`12`	Scott Stark	Sr
TE	`88`	Lionel Sykes	Jr
WR	`80`	Olanda Truitt	Fr
RB	`35`	Ricky Turner	So
WR	`81`	Henry Tuten	Sr
QB	`10`	Alex Van Pelt	Fr
RB	`29`	Adam Walker	Sr
RB	`40`	Jermaine Williams	Fr
WR	`2`	Reggie Williams	Sr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DL	`96`	Richard Allen	So
DL	`74`	Jon Baker	Jr
DB	`16`	Robert Bradley	Sr
LB	`58`	Curtis Bray	So
DB	`23`	Dave Coleman	So
DB	`31`	Dan Crossman	Sr
LB	`46`	Craig Gob	Jr
DL	`90`	Mark Gunn	Jr
DL	`92`	Keith Hamilton	Fr
DB	`3`	Alonzo Hampton	Sr
DB	`24`	Doug Hetzler	Jr
LB	`48`	Ricardo McDonald	So
DB	`5`	Louis Riddick	Jr
DL	`89`	Tom Sims	Jr
DL	`91`	Carnel Smith	Sr
DE	`93`	Marc Spindler	Jr
DB	`45`	Barry Threats	Fr
LB	`7`	Prentiss Wright	Jr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
K	`27`	Ed Frazier	So
P	`25`	Brian Greenfield	Jr
K	`4`	Jeff Van Horne	Sr

Head coach

Mike Gottfried

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Frank D'Alonzo (DL)
Paul Hackett (OC/QB)
Larry Kirksey (RB)
Tommie Liggins (TE)
Bill Meyers (OL)
Buddy Morris (Str + Cond)
Scott O'Brien (ST)
Nick Rapone (DB)
Bud Ratliff (RC)
Sal Sunseri (LB)
Bob Valesente (AHC/DC)
Frank Cignetti Jr. (GA)
Frank Gansz Jr. (GA)
Mike McCarthy (GA)
Thomas McConkey (GA)
Skip Peete (GA)
John Stone (GA)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Season summary

Pacific

At Boston College

Syracuse

At West Virginia

At Temple

Navy

At Notre Dame

#7 Pittsburgh Panthers (5–0–1) at #1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Pittsburgh	7	0	0	0	7
Notre Dame	2	15	21	7	45

at Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, Indiana

Date: October 28, 1989
Game time: 5:00 p.m.
Game attendance: 59,075
TV: ESPN
Recap/Box

Game information

First quarter

PITT – Ronald Redmon 8-yard pass from Alex Van Pelt (Ed Frazier kick), 9:32. Pittsburgh 7–0. Drive: 12 plays, 68 yards.
ND – Safety, Alex Van Pelt downed in end zone, 6:07. Pittsburgh 7–2.

Second quarter

ND – Rodney Culver 1-yard run (run good), 13:22. Notre Dame 10–7. Drive: 36 yards.
ND – Pat Terrell 54-yard interception return (Craig Hentrich kick), 3:05. Notre Dame 17–7.

Third quarter

ND – Ricky Watters 2-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 8:15. Notre Dame 24–7.
ND – Raghib Ismail 50-yard run (Craig Hentrich kick), 4:53. Notre Dame 31–7.
ND – Rodney Culver 1-yard run (Billy Hackett kick), 0:49. Notre Dame 38–7.

Fourth quarter

ND – Steve Belles 13-yard run (Billy Hackett kick), 4:12. Notre Dame 45–7.

Top passers

PITT – Alex Van Pelt – 16/33, 170 yards
ND – Tony Rice – 1/7, 29 yards

Top rushers

PITT – Curvin Richards – 15 rushes, 47 yards
ND – Raghib Ismail – 18 rushes, 74 yards, TD

Top receivers

PITT – Lionel Sykes – 6 receptions, 65 yards
ND – Raghib Ismail – 1 reception, 29 yards

Miami (FL)

#7 Miami (FL) at #14 Pittsburgh

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• Hurricanes	10	3	9	2	24
Panthers	0	0	0	3	3

Date: November 11
Location: Pitt Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Game attendance: 52,528
Game weather: 49 °F (9 °C), Light rain, Wind SSW 14 mph (23 km/h)
TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz, Pat Haden, John Dockery

East Carolina

Penn State

vs Rutgers

John Hancock Bowl (vs Texas A&M)

Team players drafted into the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Marc Spindler	Defensive end	3	62	Detroit Lions
Dean Caliguire	Guard	4	92	San Francisco 49ers
Alonzo Hampton	Defensive back	4	104	Minnesota Vikings
Tom Sims	Defensive tackle	6	152	Kansas City Chiefs
Chris Goetz	Guard	9	227	San Diego Chargers
Carnel Smith	Defensive end	11	290	Indianapolis Colts
Roman Matusz	Tackle	11	298	Chicago Bears

^[13]

References

↑ "Pitt rips Pacific". The Palm Beach Post. September 3, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Pitt depth on defense ices Boston". The Houston Post. September 10, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Pitt hands Syracuse 1st loss". The Akron Beacon Journal. September 24, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Pitt rallies from 22 back to tie". Wisconsin State Journal. October 1, 1989. Retrieved February 2, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Van Pelt's 3 TD passes enough for Pittsburgh to get by woeful Temple 27–3". The Atlanta Journal & Constitution. October 8, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Sluggish Pitt wrecks Navy with infantry". The Patriot-News. October 15, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Pittsburgh proves no match for No. 1 Notre Dame". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. October 29, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Hurricanes sweep through No. 14 Pitt". St. Petersburg Times. November 12, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Richards runs to the rescue in Panthers' 47–42 victory". The Pittsburgh Press. November 19, 1989. Retrieved March 5, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Penn State's 16–13 win over Pitt gives the boot to team's critics". The Baltimore Sun. November 26, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Pitt tops Rutgers in Dublin". The Philadelphia Inquirer. December 3, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Pitt edges Aggies 31–28 in Hancock". San Angelo Standard-Times. December 31, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "1990 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on December 20, 2007. Retrieved November 7, 2012.

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[1] "Pitt rips Pacific". The Palm Beach Post. September 3, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[2] "Pitt depth on defense ices Boston". The Houston Post. September 10, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[3] "Pitt hands Syracuse 1st loss". The Akron Beacon Journal. September 24, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[4] "Pitt rallies from 22 back to tie". Wisconsin State Journal. October 1, 1989. Retrieved February 2, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[5] "Van Pelt's 3 TD passes enough for Pittsburgh to get by woeful Temple 27–3". The Atlanta Journal & Constitution. October 8, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[6] "Sluggish Pitt wrecks Navy with infantry". The Patriot-News. October 15, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[7] "Pittsburgh proves no match for No. 1 Notre Dame". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. October 29, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[8] "Hurricanes sweep through No. 14 Pitt". St. Petersburg Times. November 12, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[9] "Richards runs to the rescue in Panthers' 47–42 victory". The Pittsburgh Press. November 19, 1989. Retrieved March 5, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.

[10] "Penn State's 16–13 win over Pitt gives the boot to team's critics". The Baltimore Sun. November 26, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[11] "Pitt tops Rutgers in Dublin". The Philadelphia Inquirer. December 3, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[12] "Pitt edges Aggies 31–28 in Hancock". San Angelo Standard-Times. December 31, 1989. Retrieved June 4, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[13] "1990 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on December 20, 2007. Retrieved November 7, 2012.

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1	10:38	MIA	Huerta 20-yard field goal	MIA 3–0

1		MIA	McGuire 8-yard run (Huerta kick)	MIA 10–0

2		MIA	Huerta 27-yard field goal	MIA 13–0

3		MIA	Huerta 27-yard field goal	MIA 16–0

3		MIA	Dawkins 9-yard pass from Erickson (pass failed)	MIA 22–0

4	12:06	PITT	Frazier 29-yard field goal	MIA 22–3

4	10:19	MIA	Safety, Van Pelt tackled in end zone	MIA 24–3