Big East Spring Game Results (April 15)

Pittsburgh played their Blue-Gold Saturday but did not keep score. They played for almost two hours and first year head coach Paul Chryst says the Panthers have to continue to work hard. “I saw some good things,” Chryst said. “We also had some things we’ll need to clean up and some mistakes we’ll need to eliminate. I think we’re working hard. There are some areas where we are getting better. We just have to keep working hard and then have a great summer and an important fall camp. We’re not where we want to be by any means but I think it was a productive spring.”

Sophomore running back Isaac Bennett finished off a strong spring with 23 carries for 121 yards. Tino Sunseri, who has started 26 games in a row, was 13-27 for 147 yards. He threw a touchdown pass and had one interception. Junior safety Jason Hendricks collected 10 tackles with two being for a loss. Senior safety Andrew Taglianetti had an interception that he returned 30 yards for a touchdown. Senior kicker Kevin Harper had a solid day making 4 of 5 field goal attempts including a pair of 47 yarders.

At Lincoln Financial Field the Cherry squad topped the White squad 17-10 in Temple’s annual spring game. Kenny Harper, a sophomore running back, was the star of the game scoring two touchdowns, one for each squad. More than 2,500 fans attended the game. Harper had 48 yards on the ground and a touchdown for the White team, and a 1 yard touchdown run for the Cherry team. Senior kicker Brandon McManus also scored for both sides with a pair of field goals in the first quarter of play. He kicked a 53 yarder for the Cherry team and a 34 yarder for the White side. The score was 3-3 after the opening quarter thanks to him. Junior quarterback Clinton “Juice” Granger was 14-20 for 125 yards while junior Chris Coyer completed 6-15 for 116 yards and a touchdown. Robbie Anderson, a redshirt freshman, was the leading receiver on the day with 43 yards on 3 receptions.

Cincinnati was forced to cancel Bearcat Bowl VI due to inclement weather. The school announced the game will not be made up.

Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium was the site of the annual Wendy’s Wonderful Kids Spring Game on Saturday as Louisville wrapped up it’s spring sessions. The First Team offense beat the Second team offense 28-24 behind sophomore quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s solid afternoon. Bridgewater was 19-21 on the day for 257 yards and three touchdown tosses. Head coach Charlie Strong liked what he saw. What he continues to do is get better,” said Strong. “The thing about him is he is so easy to coach. A lot of times with guys that have had success so early, they get so full of themselves that they don’t want to listen, whereas with Teddy, he’s in the film room.”

Senior QB Will Stein was 17-26 for 178 yards and a touchdown. John Wallace, a redshirt freshman kicker, made a 52 yard field goal in the second quarter. Scott Radcliff was the leading receiver on the day. The senior caught nine balls for 119 yards and Strong says he just finds a way to get open. “In the position he plays, he is going to get a lot of catches,” commented Strong. “He catches the ball and moves the chains. The thing about him is he makes the tough catches. He doesn’t have to run away from anybody, he just has to get open. Where he’s placed is a lot of matchup. It’s him on a linebacker or him on a nickelback. We feel like we can win that battle and it’s an easy throw for the quarterback because he’s an inside receiver. He can just see the lanes open up.”

Ray Blanchette covers the Big East for the Saturday Blitz. . He also writes for Outside The Redzone. Follow along at www.outsidetheredzone.com. Blanchette is the owner of Blanchette Sports Holdings. Follow along with them at www.blanchettesh.elementfx.com or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=100003521034703&sk=wall or on Twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/BlanchettSports