Pittsburgh Lands Eight On All-Big East Conference Team
12/10/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Pittsburgh Lands Eight On All-Big East Conference Team
12/10/2002
PITTSBURGH -- A week after accepting a bid for the 2002 Insight Bowl, the University of Pittsburgh Panthers landed a school-record (tied) eight players on the 2002 All-Big East Conference team announced today by the conference office. The Panthers also were awarded the league?s Rookie of the Year and Co-Special Teams Player of the Year honors.
Freshman receiver Larry Fitzgerald (Minneapolis, Minn./Academy of the Holy Angels) was named the Big East Rookie of the Year. Fitzgerald is the first Big East rookie honoree for Pittsburgh since Tom Tumulty earned the distinction in 1991. Junior punter Andy Lee (Westminster, S.C./West-Oak) earned Co-Special Teams Player of the Year, the first in the history of the school. Lee shared the award with Rutgers? Nate Jones.
Additionally, a school-record six players were named first-team all-conference, including Fitzgerald, Lee, senior offensive lineman Bryan Anderson (Philadelphia, Pa./John Bartram), junior defensive end Claude Harriott (Belle Glade, Fla./Glades Central), senior linebacker Gerald Hayes (Paterson, N.J./Passaic County Tech) and senior defensive back Torrie Cox (Miami, Fla./Miami Northwestern). Earning second-team honors were junior quarterback Rod Rutherford (Pittsburgh, Pa./Perry Traditional Academy) and offensive lineman Rob Petitti (Rumson, N.J./Rumson-Fair Haven Regional). The eight total players tied for the most in school history as Pittsburgh also had eight honorees during the 1991 season.
Fitzgerald becomes the first true freshman in Big East history to be a unanimous first-team selection. Fitzgerald finished the regular season leading the conference in receptions (5.33/game) and is second in receiving yards (74.4 yards/game). He has 64 catches for 917 yards, both of which broke the school?s freshman marks set by Antonio Bryant. Also, Fitzgerald has a Big East-leading 11 touchdown receptions, which is a Pittsburgh freshman record as well.
Lee leads the conference and ranks ninth nationally with a 43.3 punting average. He has 66 punts for 2,860 yards, including a career-long of 73 yards against Texas A&M. Lee has 13 punts downed inside the 20-yard line and was named the Big East Special Teams Player of the Week following his efforts against Rutgers, when he had three punts downed inside the 20-yard line.
After leading the team with 13 pass breakups, Cox was also a unanimous first-team selection. He is fourth on the team with 77 tackles and is second with two interceptions. Named Big East Special Teams Player of the Week earlier this year, Cox is also a standout on special teams as he is fourth in the conference and 32nd in the country in kick returns with a 23.7 average.
Hayes, who was a second-team all-america selection by CNNSI.com, ranks fourth all-time in Pittsburgh annals with 391 career tackles. He leads the Panthers this year with 122 total stops and also has 16 tackles for losses, two interceptions, two sacks and an eight-yard fumble return for a touchdown. He is the first Pittsburgh defender in 14 years to achieve three consecutive 100-tackle seasons. Hayes earned All-Big East honors each of the last two seasons.
In his first season as a starter, Harriott emerged as one of the Big East?s best at defensive end. He has forced seven fumbles, the second-highest total (tied) in the country and leads the Panthers with 7.5 sacks and 17 tackles for loss. Earlier this year, Harriott was named the Big East Co-Defensive Player of the Week after his effort against Boston College.
Anderson is in his fourth season as a starter on the Panthers? offensive line at right guard. He leads the Panthers with 46 career starts, including 33 straight, and was named to the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award Watch Lists prior to this season.
In his first year as a starting quarterback, Rutherford has completed nearly 53 percent of his passes (179 of 341) for 2,600 yards and 21 touchdowns. His passing yardage ranks sixth all-time on the single-season passing list and his touchdown pass total is the third highest in school history, trailing only Dan Marino (37) and Pete Gonzalez (31).
Petitti is in his second year as a starter at left tackle for Pittsburgh and has started every game (24) the past two years. Named to the Football News All-Freshman Team and The Sporting News Freshman All-America Team in 2001, he was named the Panthers? Most Valuable Offensive Lineman for the 2001 season.
Pittsburgh completed its regular season with an 8-4 overall record and 5-2 Big East mark. The Panthers, ranked 23rd in this week?s USA Today/ESPN poll and 24th by Associated Press, will make their third consecutive postseason appearance when they face Oregon State in the 2002 Insight Bowl in Phoenix, Ariz., on Dec. 26. The game will be nationally televised by ESPN and kick off at 8:30 p.m. (EST).
For ticketing and travel information for the Insight Bowl, call (800) 643-PITT or log on to www.pittsburghpanthers.com.