1988 Pittsburgh Panthers football team

1988 Pittsburgh Panthers football
Conference	Independent
Record	6–5
Head coach	Mike Gottfried (3rd season)
Offensive coordinator	Mike Dickens (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple pro-style
Defensive coordinator	John Fox (3rd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Pitt Stadium
Seasons ←  1987 1989  →

1988 Major eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 5 West Virginia $	5	–	0	–	0			11	–	1	–	0
No. 13 Syracuse	5	–	1	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
Pittsburgh	3	–	3	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Temple	2	–	3	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Rutgers	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Penn State	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Boston College	1	–	5	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
$ – Lambert Trophy Winner Rankings from AP Poll

1988 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Notre Dame		–		–				12	–	0	–	0
No. 2 Miami (FL)		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
No. 3 Florida State		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
No. 5 West Virginia		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
Southern Miss		–		–				10	–	2	–	0
No. 13 Syracuse		–		–				10	–	2	–	0
Army		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
Louisville		–		–				8	–	3	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Northern Illinois		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Pittsburgh		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Southwestern Louisiana		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Akron		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Penn State		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Tulane		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Temple		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Tulsa		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Boston College		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Cincinnati		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
East Carolina		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Navy		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1988 Pittsburgh Panthers football team represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 1988 NCAA Division I-A football season.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 3	7:00 p.m.	Northern Iowa		Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 59–10	35,755	[1]
September 17	7:00 p.m.	No. 18 Ohio State		Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	ESPN	W 42–10	56,500	[2]
September 24	12:00 p.m.	No. 11 West Virginia	No. 16	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (Backyard Brawl)	JP Sports	L 10–31	55,978	[3]
October 1	12:00 p.m.	at Boston College		Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA	JP Sports	L 31–34	32,000	[4]
October 8	7:00 p.m.	No. 5 Notre Dame		Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)	ESPN	L 20–30	56,500	[5]
October 15	1:30 p.m.	Temple		Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 42–7	32,832	[6]
October 22	1:30 p.m.	Navy		Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 52–6	34,230	[7]
November 5	12:00 p.m.	Rutgers		Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	JP Sports	W 20–10	20,051	[8]
November 12	3:30 p.m.	at Penn State		Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry)	ESPN	W 14–7	85,701	[9]
November 19	1:00 p.m.	at NC State		Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC	JP Sports	L 3–14	39,300	[10]
December 3	4:30 p.m.	at No. 18 Syracuse		Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY (rivalry)	ESPN	L 7–14	49,860	[11]
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Coaching staff

1988 Pittsburgh Panthers football staff
	Coaching staff Mike Gottfried – Head coach Jack Harbaugh – Assistant head coach/tight ends Mike Dickens – Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks John Fox – Defensive coordinator/secondary Tommie Liggins – Run coordinator/running backs Steve Coury – Wide receivers Frank D'Alonzo – Defensive line Bill Meyers – Offensive line Scott O'Brien – Special teams Sal Sunseri – Linebackers			Support staff Alex Kramer – Administrative assistant Bud Ratliff – Recruiting coordinator Paul "Rocky" Alt – Graduate assistant John Cervino – Graduate assistant Bill D'Ottavio – Graduate assistant Frank Gansz, Jr. – Graduate assistant Skip Peete – Graduate assistant			Strength and conditioning staff Buddy Morris – Strength coordinator Ray Oliver – Conditioning

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Roster

1988 Pittsburgh Panthers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class OL 69 Dan Anderson Fr OL 73 Bill Cherpak So FB 44 Jeff Christy So RB 32 Glenn Deveaux Fr OL 72 Chris Goetz Jr OT 62 Roman Matusz Jr OT 71 Tom Ricketts Sr C 55 Bryan Schoch So G 77 Mark Stepnoski Sr QB 10 Alex Van Pelt Fr RB 29 Adam Walker Jr WR 2 Reggie Williams Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DL 96 Richard Allen Fr DB 23 Dave Coleman Fr DB 31 Dan Crossman Jr DE 92 Burt Grossman Sr DL 90 Mark Gunn So CB 25 Cornell Holloway Sr LB 48 Ricardo McDonald Fr LB 55 Jerry Olsavsky Sr DB 5 Louis Riddick So DT 98 Tony Siragusa Sr DL 89 Tom Sims Jr DL 91 Carnel Smith Jr DE 93 Marc Spindler So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class P 25 Brian Greenfield So K 4 Jeff Van Horne Jr	Head coach Mike Gottfried Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Team players drafted into the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Burt Grossman	Defensive end	1	8	San Diego Chargers
Tom Ricketts	Guard	1	24	Pittsburgh Steelers
Mark Stepnoski	Center	3	57	Dallas Cowboys
Vernon Kirk	Tight end	9	242	Los Angeles Rams
Cornell Holloway	Defensive back	10	256	Cincinnati Bengals
Brandon Derry	Linebacker	10	258	Pittsburgh Steelers

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References

1. "Pitt romps 59–10 over Northern Iowa". Sunday News. September 4, 1988. Retrieved May 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
2. "Bucks can't stop Pitt option attack". The Marion Star. September 18, 1988. Retrieved May 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Ex-Panthers help WVU batter Pittsburgh, 31–10". Fort Myers News-Press. September 25, 1988. Retrieved February 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
4. "TD passes rally Eagles past Pitt". The Palm Beach Post. October 2, 1988. Retrieved May 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Irish running game tramples Pitt, 30–20". The Orlando Sentinel. October 9, 1988. Retrieved May 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Pittsburgh stops Temple cold, 42–7". The Philadelphia Inquirer. October 16, 1988. Retrieved May 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Pitt's army sinks Navy, 52–6". The Pittsburgh Press. October 23, 1988. Retrieved May 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Pitt sinks sluggish Rutgers, 20–10". The Star-Ledger. November 6, 1988. Retrieved May 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
9. "Lions lose to Pitt on botched field goals". The Daily Item. November 13, 1988. Retrieved May 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
10. "N.C. State's revived defense stops Pittsburgh". The Charlotte Observer. November 20, 1988. Retrieved February 2, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Syracuse tops Pitt". The Journal News. December 4, 1988. Retrieved May 30, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
12. "Quick Facts". Pitt Football 1988. University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. 1988. p. 2. Retrieved January 15, 2012.
13. "Coaches". Pitt Football 1988. University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics. 1988. pp. 5–14. Retrieved January 15, 2012.
14. "1989 NFL Draft Listing - Pro-Football-Reference.com". Archived from the original on December 21, 2007.