2009 Meineke Car Care Bowl
Encyclopedia
The 2009 Meineke Car Care Bowl was the eighth edition of the college football
bowl game
, and was played at Bank of America Stadium
in Charlotte, North Carolina
. The game started at 4:30 PM US EST
on Saturday, December 26, 2009
and was telecasted on ESPN
and ESPN360
. The Pittsburgh
Panthers
defeated the North Carolina
Tar Heels
19–17 with a 33-yard field goal and .52 seconds remaining in the game.
Pitt (9–3) finished second in the Big East after losing at home to Cincinnati
on December 5 in a game decided by a missed extra point. The Panthers played in the Charlotte bowl (then known as the Continental Tire Bowl) in 2003
, losing to Virginia
23–16.
North Carolina (8–4) made its third appearance in the bowl game, and its second in a row. They lost to West Virginia
in the 2008 game
, 31–30. A deal was initially in the works to have UNC play fellow traditional college basketball power Kentucky
in the Music City Bowl
. However, this came undone when all of the ACC's top-tier bowl selections passed on ACC title game loser Clemson
, forcing the Music City Bowl to select the Tigers. The ACC's bowl selection rules at the time did not allow the conference title game loser to fall below the Music City Bowl, which has the fifth pick from ACC bowl-eligible teams. This sent the Tar Heels to the Meineke Car Care Bowl, which has the sixth pick. The game will mark the seventh time that the two schools have played each other and the first time they will meet in the post-season. Entering the game, UNC led the series 4–2 with the last meeting being a 20–17 Tar Heels victory in Pittsburgh.
The Tar Heels' appearances have accounted for two of the game's three sellouts; the 2008 game attracted its largest crowd ever. UNC has a large alumni and fan base in the area, and Charlotte is only two hours south of the UNC campus. However, the 2009 game only attracted a crowd of 50,389, the smallest in the game's eight-year history.
Pitt freshman
tailback
Dion Lewis rushed for 159 yards and a touchdown on his way to being named the game's MVP. Lewis also broke the Pitt single season rushing record for a freshman, breaking Tony Dorsett
's record of 1,686 in the first quarter of the game. Lewis also passed Craig Heyward
for second in terms of overall single season rushing. Lewis finished with 1,799 yards on the season. UNC was led by their junior
quarterback
, T.J. Yates, who passed for 183 yards and two touchdowns. Pitt finished the season with 10 wins. This was their first 10 win season since 1981, when they were led by quarterback Dan Marino
.
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
bowl game
Bowl game
In North America, a bowl game is commonly considered to refer to one of a number of post-season college football games. Prior to 2002, bowl game statistics were not included in players' career totals and the games were mostly considered to be exhibition games involving a payout to participating...
, and was played at Bank of America Stadium
Bank of America Stadium
Bank of America Stadium is a 73,778-seat football stadium located on of land in uptown Charlotte, North Carolina, USA. It is the home facility of the Carolina Panthers NFL franchise. It also hosts the annual Belk Bowl which features teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Big East...
in Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
. The game started at 4:30 PM US EST
North American Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
on Saturday, December 26, 2009
2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season
The 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on September 2, 2009, progressed through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in Pasadena, California on January 7, 2010, featuring the...
and was telecasted on ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
and ESPN360
ESPN360
ESPN3 is an online streaming service for WatchESPN to deliver both live streams and replays of global sports events to sports fans in North America, Australia, Brazil, Chile, Middle East, New Zealand, and Europe...
. The Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
Panthers
2009 Pittsburgh Panthers football team
The 2009 Pittsburgh Panthers football team represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The season was the fifth under head coach Dave Wannstedt. The 2009 season marked the team's ninth at Heinz Field and the University's 120th season overall. The 2009...
defeated the North Carolina
2009 North Carolina Tar Heels football team
The 2009 North Carolina Tar Heels football team represented the University of North Carolina during its 57th season in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Tar Heels played in the Coastal Division of the conference. The Tar Heels finished the season 8–5, 4–4 in ACC play and lost in the Meineke Car...
Tar Heels
North Carolina Tar Heels
The North Carolina Tar Heels are the athletic teams for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The name Tar Heel is a nickname used to refer to individuals from the state of North Carolina, the Tar Heel State...
19–17 with a 33-yard field goal and .52 seconds remaining in the game.
Pitt (9–3) finished second in the Big East after losing at home to Cincinnati
2009 Cincinnati Bearcats football team
The 2009 Cincinnati Bearcats football team represented the University of Cincinnati in the college football season of 2009–2010. The team, coached by Brian Kelly, played its home games in Nippert Stadium....
on December 5 in a game decided by a missed extra point. The Panthers played in the Charlotte bowl (then known as the Continental Tire Bowl) in 2003
2003 Continental Tire Bowl
The 2003 edition to the Continental Tire Bowl featured the Pittsburgh Panthers, and the Virginia Cavaliers. The game was the second edition to this bowl game. The game was played on Saturday, December 27, 2003 at 11:00 AM EST...
, losing to Virginia
2009 Virginia Cavaliers football team
The 2009 Virginia Cavaliers football team represented the University of Virginia in the 2009 season as a member of the Coastal Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Cavaliers were led by ninth-year head coach Al Groh...
23–16.
North Carolina (8–4) made its third appearance in the bowl game, and its second in a row. They lost to West Virginia
2009 West Virginia Mountaineers football team
The 2009 West Virginia Mountaineer football team represented West Virginia University in the college football season of 2009. The Mountaineers were led by head coach Bill Stewart and played their home games at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia...
in the 2008 game
2008 Meineke Car Care Bowl
The 2008 Meineke Car Care Bowl was the seventh edition of the college football bowl game, and was played at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. The game started at 1:00 PM US EST on Saturday, December 27, 2008. The game, telecast on ESPN, pitted the North Carolina Tar Heels...
, 31–30. A deal was initially in the works to have UNC play fellow traditional college basketball power Kentucky
2009 Kentucky Wildcats football team
The 2009 Kentucky Wildcats football team represented the University of Kentucky during the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Rich Brooks, in his seventh and ultimately final season at Kentucky, and played its home games at Commonwealth Stadium. The Wildcats competed...
in the Music City Bowl
2009 Music City Bowl
The 2009 Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl was the twelfth edition of the college football bowl game, and will be played at LP Field in Nashville, Tennessee. The game was played on Sunday, December 27, 2009 and was telecast on ESPN...
. However, this came undone when all of the ACC's top-tier bowl selections passed on ACC title game loser Clemson
2009 Clemson Tigers football team
The 2009 Clemson Tigers football team represented Clemson University in the 2009 college football season. The Tigers were led by head coach Dabo Swinney, who was in his first full season as head coach. The Tigers played their home games in Memorial Stadium...
, forcing the Music City Bowl to select the Tigers. The ACC's bowl selection rules at the time did not allow the conference title game loser to fall below the Music City Bowl, which has the fifth pick from ACC bowl-eligible teams. This sent the Tar Heels to the Meineke Car Care Bowl, which has the sixth pick. The game will mark the seventh time that the two schools have played each other and the first time they will meet in the post-season. Entering the game, UNC led the series 4–2 with the last meeting being a 20–17 Tar Heels victory in Pittsburgh.
The Tar Heels' appearances have accounted for two of the game's three sellouts; the 2008 game attracted its largest crowd ever. UNC has a large alumni and fan base in the area, and Charlotte is only two hours south of the UNC campus. However, the 2009 game only attracted a crowd of 50,389, the smallest in the game's eight-year history.
Game summary
North Carolina wore their home blue jerseys, Pitt wore their away white jerseys.Pitt freshman
Freshman
A freshman or fresher is a first-year student in secondary school, high school, or college. The term first year can also be used as a noun, to describe the students themselves A freshman (US) or fresher (UK, India) (or sometimes fish, freshie, fresher; slang plural frosh or freshmeat) is a...
tailback
Tailback
Tailback can mean:* Halfback * A line of motor vehicles caught up in traffic congestion; a traffic jam...
Dion Lewis rushed for 159 yards and a touchdown on his way to being named the game's MVP. Lewis also broke the Pitt single season rushing record for a freshman, breaking Tony Dorsett
Tony Dorsett
Anthony "Tony" Drew Dorsett is a former American football running back in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos.-Early years:...
's record of 1,686 in the first quarter of the game. Lewis also passed Craig Heyward
Craig Heyward
Craig William "Ironhead" Heyward was an American football running back who played for the New Orleans Saints, Chicago Bears, Atlanta Falcons, St...
for second in terms of overall single season rushing. Lewis finished with 1,799 yards on the season. UNC was led by their junior
Junior (education)
"Junior" is a term used in the United States to describe a student in their 3rd year of study . A Junior is considered an upperclassman...
quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
, T.J. Yates, who passed for 183 yards and two touchdowns. Pitt finished the season with 10 wins. This was their first 10 win season since 1981, when they were led by quarterback Dan Marino
Dan Marino
Daniel Constantine "Dan" Marino, Jr. is a retired American football quarterback who played for the Miami Dolphins in the National Football League...
.
Scoring summary
| Scoring Play | Score | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Quarter | |||
| UNC – Greg Little 15 yard pass from T.J. Yates (Casey Barth kick), 6:57 | UNC 7–0 | ||
| 2nd Quarter | |||
| PITT – Dan Hutchins 31 yard, 14:11 | UNC 7–3 | ||
| PITT – Dion Lewis 11 yard run (Dan Hutchins kick), 11:08 | PITT 10–7 | ||
| UNC – Casey Barth 37 yard, 1:05 | TIE 10–10 | ||
| PITT – Dan Hutchins 31 yard, 0:00 | PITT 13–10 | ||
| 3rd Quarter | |||
| PITT – Dan Hutchins 42 yard, 9:11 | PITT 16–10 | ||
| UNC – Greg Little 14 yard pass from T.J. Yates (Casey Barth kick), 4:00 | UNC 17–16 | ||
| 4th Quarter | |||
| PITT – Dan Hutchins 33 yard, 0:52 | PITT 19–17 | ||