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GameScouting Report

• The matchup: Eastern Michigan (0-0) vs. Pitt (0-0), today, 6 p.m., Heinz Field. Pitt is favored by 21.
• TV/Radio: WWSW-FM (94.5); WBGG-AM (Fox Sports Radio 970); SIRIUS Channel 119.
• Pitt: Is 9-1 in its past 10 openers. The lone loss in that stretch was in 2005 to Notre Dame. ... Has played Eastern Michigan only once, a 66-30 win in 1995. ... Is 24-2 vs. Mid-American Conference opponents but is only 2-2 in past four such games. ... Is 7-0 vs. MAC competition in opening games. ... QB Bill Stull will make his first career start.
• Eastern Michigan: Runs a spread, read-option offense similar to West Virginia's. ... Finished 1-11 last year. ... Has had only one winning season in past 17 years, 6-5 in 1995. ... Has never beaten a team from one of the six major conferences, though Eagles did defeat Connecticut in 2000 when the Huskies were in Division I-AA. ... Has had 11 consecutive losing seasons. ... Is the alma mater of Steelers backup quarterback and former Steel Valley High star Charlie Batch.
• Hidden stat: Eastern Michigan is 0-5 the past five times it has opened the season on the road.

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Pitt defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads believes preparing a game plan to stop a spread formation team such as Eastern Michigan was much more difficult five or six years ago because that offense is so prevalent these days.

The Eagles will visit Heinz Field tonight for a 6 o'clock kickoff and figure to give the Panthers some fits because spread formation offenses put constant pressure on defenses. That's because the offense is based on a simple concept: Spread the defense out and create one-on-one matchups in the open field for skilled-position players, enabling them to take advantage of their speed and athleticism.

When that offense first appeared on the college scene, so few teams ran it that defenses didn't spend much time working on stopping it. Now, however, it has become so popular, Rhoads said working on defending it in spring practice and training camp has become almost mandatory.

The Panthers, for instance, will play at least six games against teams that are either exclusively or largely spread formation teams. The Panthers have spent several periods at each practice working against it.

Understanding how to stop spread offenses is only half the battle -- actually doing it is the other. Rhoads said the Panthers' success tonight will likely depend on players making plays.

"Our guys have played teams like West Virginia, and that helps because they understand and respect the spread offense," Rhoads said. "They know how dangerous it can be if we aren't disciplined, if we aren't hustling and working hard and playing together as a football team.

"Really, the breakdowns occur when we aren't disciplined. It is all a matter of getting into space and, with respect to that, 1 extra yard, that's all this offense needs to bust a big play.

"If our guys are not disciplined, if they aren't going full speed to the ball or don't make the tackle once they get there, it can turn into a touchdown. Like I said, when you are talking about open space, there isn't likely going to be another player in close proximity who is able to cut the play off."

Eastern Michigan has another dimension in its spread offense, as it is a read-option team. That basically means the quarterback reads the defense at the line of scrimmage, then calls the play based on what he sees.

The quarterback, in this case Andy Schmitt, also has the option to run or pass on every play, so he must be a good athlete. Spread offenses generally call for one-back formations, so the quarterback in this case serves as a second running back.

Schmitt rushed for 461 yards and four touchdowns last season, and he is the team's leading returning rusher.

Rhoads admitted he is a little nervous about how his defense will respond tonight, not just because the read-option offense can be so tricky, but because he is asking a group of first-year starters at linebacker to play disciplined, assignment-oriented football. Both starting outside linebackers, Shane Murray and Adam Gunn, are converted safeties who have little experience at linebacker.

"I should be nervous," Rhoads said. "But based on camp, I have a lot of confidence that they'll be ready to go. I know they'll have some butterflies and be jittery, early, just like me. But I think they'll settle down quickly. They are a disciplined group, they are a smart group, and I think the non-experience will become less and less of a factor as the game moves on."

NOTE: There will be a fireworks show following tonight's game.