Oct. 6, 2008

PITTSBURGH--Pitt claimed the Big East's weekly offensive and defensive Player of the Week awards today following its 26-21 upset of the No. 10 USF Bulls last Thursday in Tampa.

Senior middle linebacker Scott McKillop was named the Big East Defensive Player of the Week, while sophomore tailback LeSean McCoy was named the conference's Offensive Player of the Week.

For McKillop, it is his third Big East weekly honor of the year and fourth of his career. Yesterday, he was also named the Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week for his USF performance.

McKillop (Export, Pa./Kiski Area) collected a team-high 12 tackles - all solo -and had two quarterback sacks, three total tackles for loss and snuffed out a fake field goal against the Bulls. He played a prominent role in grounding one of the country's most powerful offenses, including its dangerously elusive quarterback Matt Grothe.

USF entered the game averaging 464 yards in total offense, but produced just 245 against Pitt. Grothe was sacked twice by McKillop for losses totaling 24 yards with both sacks coming at critical junctures.

A strong candidate for college football's most prestigious defensive honors, McKillop ranks third nationally in solo stops (7.4 solos/game), fourth in tackles for loss (tied, 1.80 TFLs/game) and 13th in total tackles (tied, 10.40 tackles/game). He leads the Big East in each of those categories.

McCoy (Harrisburg, Pa./Bishop McDevitt/Milford Academy) earned his first conference honor of the season and second for his career.

Facing a USF defense that had only been yielding 58 rushing yards per game, McCoy ran for 142 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries (5.1 avg.). His TDs covered six and three yards, the latter providing the winning points with 4:43 left in the game.

McCoy figured prominently in the winning drive -- he set up his own winning TD run with a 19-yard burst through the USF defense to put the Panthers at the Bulls 3. It was his second consecutive 100-yard effort of the season and the ninth of his brief career.

McCoy is averaging 106.60 rushing yards per game to rank 18th nationally and second in the Big East. In five games he has totaled 533 yards on 117 attempts (4.6 avg.) and seven TDs

For more information, log on to ScottMcKillop40.com and LeSeanMcCoy25.com.

On the strength of its four consecutive wins, Pitt (4-1, 2-0 Big East) surged back into the Associated Press Top 25 this week, placing No. 24. (The Panthers are receiving votes in the USA Today coaches poll, placing No. 33.)

Pitt has a bye this week and will be back in action on Oct. 18 when it plays at Navy (4-2). The game will kick off at 3:30 p.m., and be nationally televised by CBS College Sports Network.