1996 Pittsburgh Panthers football team

1996 Pittsburgh Panthers football
Conference	Big East Conference
Record	4–7 (3–4 Big East)
Head coach	Johnny Majors (8th season)
Offensive coordinator	Ken Karcher (4th season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Chuck Driesbach (4th season)
Base defense	Multiple 4–3
Home stadium	Pitt Stadium

1996 Big East Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 13 Virginia Tech +		6	–	1					10	–	2
No. 14 Miami (FL) +		6	–	1					9	–	3
No. 21 Syracuse +		6	–	1					9	–	3
West Virginia		4	–	3					8	–	4
Pittsburgh		3	–	4					4	–	7
Boston College		2	–	5					5	–	7
Rutgers		1	–	6					2	–	9
Temple		0	–	7					1	–	10
+ – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 1996 Pittsburgh Panthers football team represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season proved to be a major disappointment as the Panthers finished 4–7, 8th in the Big East. They finished 3–4 within their conference and were 1–3 in non-conference affairs. In their 4th game, the Panthers were annihilated by Ohio State, 72–0. This was the worst loss in school history.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
August 31	7:30 p.m.	West Virginia	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (Backyard Brawl)	ESPN	L 0–34	54,612	[1]
September 7	7:00 p.m.	Kent State*	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 52–14	24,374
September 14	7:00 p.m.	Houston*	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		L 35–42 ^OT	27,648
September 21	12:30 p.m.	at No. 7 Ohio State*	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	ESPN	L 0–72	93,959
September 28	12:00 p.m.	at No. 10 Miami (FL)	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL	ESPN Plus	L 0–45	32,747
October 5	1:30 p.m.	Temple	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 53–52	30,054
October 12	12:00 p.m.	at Syracuse	Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY (rivalry)	ESPN Plus	L 7–55	45,103
October 26	12:00 p.m.	at Virginia Tech	Lane Stadium Blacksburg, VA	ESPN Plus	L 17–34	43,625	[2]
October 31	8:00 p.m.	Boston College	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	ESPN	W 20–13	26,313
November 16	2:30 p.m.	at No. 14 Notre Dame*	Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)	NBC	L 6–60	59,075
November 30	12:00 p.m.	Rutgers	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA		W 24–9	21,772
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Coaching staff

1996 Pittsburgh Panthers football staff
Coaching staff Johnny Majors – Head coach Charlie Coe – Assistant head coach/running backs Bob Babich – Linebackers/special teams Curt Cignetti – Tight ends/recruiting coordinator Joe D'Alessandris – Offensive line Chuck Dreisbach – Defensive coordinator Ken Karcher – Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks Gary Nord – Wide receivers Tony Pierce – Defensive backs Tom Turchetta – Defensive line			Support staff Jim Earle – Assistant Athletic Director/football operations Brian Callahan – Graduate assistant Andy Rondeau – Graduate assistant			Strength and conditioning staff Tim Wilson – Strength and conditioning Coach Mark Kostek – Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach

Roster

1996 Pittsburgh Panthers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 21 Chiffon Allen Fr WR 23 Curtis Anderson  Sr RB 39 Chris Beasley Sr OL 60 Jeff Craig  Sr QB 1 Darnell Dinkins  Fr QB 10 Pete Gonzalez  Jr OL 74 Ben Kopp Fr QB 8 Matt Lytle  So TE 88 Kirk McMullen  Fr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DL 58 Jason Chavis  Sr LB 95 Phil Clarke So LB 80 Ernest Coakley Jr DL 98 Mike Mohring  Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Johnny Majors Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: 1996-12-19

Team players drafted into the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
No Players Selected

^[3]

References

1. "WVU stomps Pitt". Indiana Gazette. September 1, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Hokies have little trouble with lowly Panthers". The Daily News Leader. October 27, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "1996 NFL Draft Listing - Pro-Football-Reference.com". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on December 21, 2007.