Pitt's offensive line has protected quarterback Bill Stull well this season, but it will be under fire for the entire game Friday night when the Panthers (5-1, 2-0 Big East) visit Rutgers (4-1, 0-1).

That's because the Scarlet Knights under coach Greg Schiano depend heavily on a variety of pressure packages and exotic blitzes.

Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said that means that the Panthers' offensive linemen will need to be sharper on the mental and recognition aspects of their job Friday than the physical part because the Scarlet Knights do many things to disguise their intentions.

"Probably 50 percent of the time they are going to bring some form of pressure, meaning one or two extra people [rushing the passer]," Wannstedt said. "And they combine that with movement among their linemen on the majority of their plays. So, very rarely do they just sit still and say 'here we are, come block us.'

"If you see that every week and are working on it, it is a little bit easier. It takes a little bit of adjustments in practice time and film time to see it and recognize it. [On Friday] if only one guy sees it or recognizes it, that doesn't do us any good.

"We have to be able to coordinate how we block it between our linemen, our backs and tight ends. Our biggest challenge is being mentally sharp."

Schiano's defensive philosophy is much different than Wannstedt's (Wannstedt doesn't like to blitz and wants to create pressure with his front four), even though Schiano worked for Wannstedt for a few years with the Chicago Bears.

"I don't know [why Schiano's philosophy has changed so much since working with Wannstedt]," Wannstedt said "His first or second year at Rutgers, he went to a lot more movement and pressure stuff than we did in Chicago or that he did with Butch [Davis] at Miami. Why that is -- I don't know, we never talked about it."

The Panthers have a lot of defensive packages they can use, but they have played primarily in their base 4-3, which Wannstedt said is the sign of a good defense or, at least, a defense that is playing well.

"Any time you can play with four [up front] and cover with seven, you are going to play pretty good defense," Wannstedt said. "You are not going to have to take many chances. It is just a matter of philosophy. We've played some nickel last week and some of our buck last week, but it really depends on our matchups."

Wannstedt said yesterday there are a lot of unsung players on the team, and one of them is senior center Robb Houser. "Robb has been great, he's had a very good year," Wannstedt said. "I wish he could be here for a couple more." ... The weather Friday night in New Jersey is supposed to be cold and rainy, and yesterday the Panthers practiced outside in preparation for that. "We're expecting the worst. We practiced with wet balls and that stuff," Wannstedt said. "But we've played in some rain this year [against North Carolina State and Navy], so we're not too concerned about it."

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