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son, Notre Dame has employed a more balanced attack the past few games, highlighted by the Air Force contest in which five different players caught a touchdown pass. Rees trails Jimmy Clausen (2007-09) for second on the school's all-time list for career touchdown passes by only four scores. He posted underwhelming stats against Pittsburgh in 2011 (24 of 41 for 216 yards with one touchdown and one interception) and as a brief replacement for Everett Golson in 2012 (6 of 11 for 64 yards with an interception). Senior cornerback K'waun Williams leads Pittsburgh with two interceptions and will be called upon to slow Jones, who has caught a touchdown pass in six straight games. Advantage: Notre Dame Special Teams Despite having an unfortunate name for a kicker, freshman Chris Blewitt has converted 7 of 9 opportunities for Pittsburgh. Senior punter Matt Yoklic has been solid in the field position game for Chryst's squad, boasting a 43.2-yard average with 11 boots inside the 20-yard line. As far as kickoff and punt returns go, Pittsburgh's production has been middle of the road (20.2 yards per kick return and 10.4 yards per punt return). For the Irish, junior kicker Kyle Brindza has proven to be dependable on the road and in late-game situations. Considering the recent history between the two teams, he could be called upon for a last-second kick. Advantage: Even Coaching In the school's first season in the ACC, Chryst is trying to put the program together after it encountered a carousel of head coaches in recent years. At 4-4, a bowl berth is no guarantee. Kelly, meanwhile, is searching for a November surge to reach a second consecutive BCS game. He is 3-0 against the Panthers, but all three contests were close calls (23-17 in 2010, 15-12 in 2011 and 29-26 in three overtimes in 2012). Advantage: Notre Dame Redshirt junior linebacker Anthony Gonzalez ranks second on the team with 51 tackles (2.5 for loss) and has also intercepted one pass. photo courtesy pittsburgh Intangibles Last year's triple-overtime thriller will be discussed at length this week as the latest example of Pittsburgh's ✦ Page 5 ability to give Notre Dame a scare. This year, the Irish will have to win at Heinz Field, which was a difficult environment for Notre Dame in 2009 (27-22 loss) and 2011 (15-12 win). Like Kelly's previous squads, this team seems to relish playing in close games, whereas the Panthers have struggled in similar situations under Chryst. Advantage: Even Predictions Tom Loy: Notre Dame 30, Pittsburgh 13 The Irish possess too many playmakers on offense — the combination of quarterback Tommy Rees, wide receiver TJ Jones, tight end Troy Niklas and running back George Atkinson III will be too much for the Panthers to handle. If the Notre Dame defense can shutdown Pittsburgh's freshman playmaker Tyler Boyd, this should be an easy win for the Irish. Dan Murphy: Notre Dame 31, Pittsburgh 13 The Irish offense got a good jump-start from playing military academies in consecutive weeks. They head to Pittsburgh with confidence and an emerging group of ancillary weapons in the passing game. The big difference in this game will be Notre Dame's ability to get after the quarterback. Defensive end Stephon Tuitt and outside linebacker Prince Shembo should be able to post some big numbers against two young and inexperienced Panthers tackles. Andrew Owens: Notre Dame 24, Pittsburgh 10 Pittsburgh came awfully close to beating Notre Dame in each of Brian Kelly's first three seasons — the most notable of which was last year's triple-overtime thriller — but the Irish eventually prevailed in each contest. This year will be a little different. While the Irish won't blow out the Panthers, the defense will overcome injury woes to suffocate the struggling Pittsburgh running game and limit quarterback Tom Savage's opportunities through the air. Lou Somogyi: Notre Dame 27, Pittsburgh 13 This is a year of "dues." Notre Dame was "due" to have a nail-biter against Michigan State after beating it by 18 and 17 the previous two years. It was "due" to lose to Oklahoma, against whom it was 9-1. It was "due" to beat USC at home for the first time in six tries. Now it's "due" to beat Pittsburgh more handily. Any victory by more than seven points in this series qualifies as a breather.