PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Two months ago, a four-point loss to Rutgers -- a hotly disputed loss, no less -- might have been a reason for optimism concerning the Pitt football team. After all, the Scarlet Knights were a Top-10 team in September. But, by mid-November, and four losses later, Rutgers ranks as just another Big East fraud, an also-ran in a conference whose high hopes have come crashing down.

So this 20-16 loss yesterday at Rutgers Stadium doesn't look so good. It's just another defeat, the sixth of the season, thus assuring a third consecutive non-winning year. With South Florida and fifth-ranked West Virginia still to be played, another losing season looms.

What was so disappointing about this defeat was the inability of an offense that once seemed thick with promise to mature as the season progressed. If anything, it has gone backward. The Panthers mustered only 268 yards of total offense and had one drive of more than 45 yards. The running game managed 110 yards against a defense which had allowed 156 a game.

Pitt's defense played superbly, and middle linebacker Scott McKillop heroically, but the offense, presented with numerous excellent scoring chances, wasn't up to the challenge.

Starting quarterback Pat Bostick was benched at the end of the first half after completing 3 of 10 passes for 35 yards and taking three sacks. LeSean McCoy gained 60 yards on 22 carries.

The one positive note for the offense was quarterback Kevan Smith, who entered the game to start the second half and completed 7 of 11 passes for 81 yards and looked nothing like the faltering redshirt freshman who last played Sept. 22 against Connecticut. But even Smith's story had a sad ending. He sustained a shoulder separation late in the fourth quarter and, although there was no official diagnosis, such injuries usually are season-ending when they occur in November.

To Pitt's credit, it refused to use the questionable pass-interference penalty called in the end zone against Oderick Turner with 11 seconds remaining as an excuse. If the penalty had not been called, Turner's catch would have been a touchdown pass that would have won the game.

"It shouldn't come down to the last play," said coach Dave Wannstedt.

McKillop, who had 16 tackles, 1¹/₂ sacks, an interception, 2 fumble recoveries and a forced fumble, said, "You can't put the game in the referee's hands. You've got to take care of the game yourself."

Pitt's offense simply could not do that, although repeatedly presented with exceptional field position by the defense.

• An interception on Rutgers' second possession by Kennard Cox gave the Panthers the ball on the Scarlet Knights' 23. The offense got 7 yards on three plays, and Conor Lee kicked a 33-yard field goal.

• McKillop's forced fumble and recovery gave Pitt the ball on the Rutgers' 12, from where it needed six plays and two minutes, 14 seconds to score a touchdown.

• McKillop's interception gave the Panthers the ball on the Rutgers' 31. The offense could move only to the 17, from where Lee missed a 31-yard field goal.

• A forced fumble by linebacker Shane Murray, recovered by McKillop, gave Pitt a first down on Rutgers' 21 in the third quarter. But the offense gained 6 yards on three plays, and Lee kicked a 32-yard field goal.

Concerning the Panthers' inability to move the ball, there was little doubt where Wannstedt felt the blame rested.

"We're doing everything we can to run the ball, but you have to make plays in the passing game," he said.

Commenting on Bostick's play, he said, "I thought there were three or four balls that were behind guys or in the dirt. I didn't see many plays where we had a chance to catch it and run with it."

When Smith was injured, Bostick returned and led the Panthers from their 40 to the Rutgers' 6, completing four passes before the pass-interference penalty.

Pitt's defense faltered twice in the first half, allowing a 53-yard touchdown pass from Mike Teel to Kenny Britt and a 28-yard touchdown run by Ray Rice.

That shouldn't be enough to cost a team a game, but the way Pitt's offense functioned, sadly, it cost them this one.