Pitt opens its season Saturday at Heinz Field against Bowling Green and although the Panthers have dominated teams from the Mid-American Conference -- 25-2 all time against the MAC -- this could be a very tricky game for many reasons.

The Falcons are a veteran team -- 17 of 22 starters are in their fourth or fifth year -- and they are one of the favorites to win the MAC. And they have plenty of offensive firepower, averaging 402.5 yards and 30 points per game last season.

But Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt is not worried just about Bowling Green's talent and experience. He's also concerned about trying to prepare for the Falcons' version of the spread offense. He said it is tough enough to get ready for an opener, but trying to prepare a defense for an unconventional offensive scheme makes it doubly rough.

"Their offense is completely different than what we've been practicing all spring and summer," Wannstedt said yesterday in his weekly news conference. "They'll run plays with four and five wide receivers. They will spread the field and throw the ball around a lot. We'll probably see a lot of screens so it's completely different than what we're accustomed to.

"And with no preseason games and limited scrimmages, the first game is always one of a little uncertainty because of substitutions and special teams."

Bowling Green is considered one of the first programs to run the spread -- at least in its current form -- under the offense's guru and current Florida coach, Urban Meyer in 2001. Meyer said one of the reasons he developed the offense into what it has become is because it evened the playing field some for teams with less-talented personnel to compete against the big boys.

That's why the offense is so popular in some of the non-Bowl Championship Series conferences and even has gained popularity in BCS conferences. The offense creates one-on-one matchups, forces defenses to defend the entire field and punishes a defense for missing tackles.

Wannstedt said the Falcons have played very well in recent years against BCS conference teams. Last year, they won at Minnesota, 32-21, and they have wins against Big Ten teams Purdue and Northwestern in the past five years.

"Bowling Green returns seven seniors coming on defense and five on offense, so they are a veteran team," Wannstedt said. "They're a bowl team from a year ago. They've won a lot of football games and have a great tradition. They're well-coached. If you look back at their history, they've opened up with big games on the road and won."

Although the Falcons use a spread offense, Wannstedt said it's likely the Panthers will open the game in their conventional base 4-3 defense. He said in watching films, the Falcons have shown the ability to run some different formations and expects them to change as the game progresses.

"They can come out in several different options, whether it's two backs or no backs and five receivers," he said. "We have to be prepared to adjust to whatever they do. We have to be aggressive at times but also be conservative at others. Obviously you'd like to do both but we have to just react to how they come out.

"Our team is excited to come out and play our first game, but we have to have a good week of preparation and make sure we don't get ahead of ourselves."

NOTES -- Wannstedt said starting outside linebacker Shane Murray (knee) is day to day. He is the only player questionable for Saturday. ... Junior Joe Thomas is listed as the starter at right tackle, but freshman Lucas Nix continues to make a push for playing time. "Joe Thomas came out of camp as the starter," Wannstedt said. "But Lucas Nix athletically and physically can do some things that some starters can't. As Lucas progresses, I would expect his playing time to increase." Nix, who is from Thomas Jefferson, was one of the highest-rated linemen signed by Pitt. ... Nix is one of only three freshmen that Wannstedt said definitely will play Saturday. The other two are safety Andrew Taglianetti and receiver Jonathan Baldwin. ... Bowling Green has three starters from the WPIAL: cornerback Kenny Lewis (Penn Hills), left guard Shane Steffy (Riverview) and wide receiver Marques Parks (South Fayette).