AP Photo Pittsburgh quarterback Eli Holstein (10) runs through a gap between North Carolina defensive lineman Travis Shaw, left, and defensive lineman Kevin Hester Jr. (98) during the second half of October 5 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

DALLAS — There were several months of hype leading up to 20th-ranked SMU’s ACC home opener against a traditional power after an undefeated regular season.

The Mustangs’ second game in their new league, after more than a month away from home, is going as planned.

SMU (7-1, 4-0) finally returns to campus tonight to face No. 18 Pittsburgh (7-0, 3-0), one of eight remaining undefeated FBS teams. This is a somewhat unexpected matchup of the co-leaders of the Atlantic Coast Conference that opens in November.

“When you win, every game is the next big game. …so that’s the most exciting part,” » said Mustangs coach Rhett Lashlee. “We felt that a little bit last year when we ran late to win the conference.”

This was SMU’s final season in the American Athletic Conference before the much-desired move to one of the power leagues. When the ACC schedule was released in late January, SMU fans immediately focused on the league opener against Florida State — even though it was the fifth game of the season.

Florida State’s season was a disastrous misfire, and the Mustangs followed it up with a 42-16 victory on September 28 in their final home game. They won in October at then number 1. 22 ACC newcomers Louisville, Stanford and Duke in overtime last week despite six turnovers — with three interceptions and two fumbles from dual-threat quarterback Kevin Jennings.

“I’m ready to come out this weekend and show it was just a hiccup.” said Jennings, the sophomore who supplanted incumbent starter Preston Stone after SMU’s only loss to still-undefeated No. 9 BYU in the third game.

“This is the first major kind of adversity in his short starting career,” » said Lashlee. “He was actually explosive and protected the ball pretty well.”

Eli Holstein’s 17 TD passes for Pitt are tied with Alex Van Pelt’s 1989 total for the most by a Panthers freshman. The Alabama transfer suffered an undisclosed injury after an option knocked him out late against Syracuse last week, but coach Pat Narduzzi said the quarterback had been medically cleared and would start against SMU.

Pitt was a preseason pick to finish near the bottom of the expanded 17-team league. The Panthers are instead trying to get to 8-0 overall for the first time since 1981, when Dan Marino was their quarterback and Jackie Sherrill their coach, despite being the lowest-ranked of the undefeated Power Four schools.

“The only thing that matters is victories and defeats” Narduzzi said. “If we keep doing what we’re doing, I think we’ll be in good shape at the end.”

AT THE TOP OF THE ACC

No. 5 Miami and No. 11 Clemson are the other ACC teams undefeated in league play. These two teams do not face each other in the regular season. Aside from Pitt-SMU, the only matchup between the co-leaders is Pitt hosting Clemson on November 16. The ACC championship game for a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff is Dec. 7.

STRICT EMS

The Mustangs set a school record by winning their last 13 regular-season conference games, including all eight last year in their final AAC season. SMU has averaged 50.5 points in its last 12 home games, with the only loss in that span being 18-15 to BYU in September without a touchdown.

SHARK ATTACK

The Panthers and their “sharks” The linebacker group put on a show last week, returning three interceptions for touchdowns on a night when Pitt caught five passes from Syracuse quarterback Kyle McCord.

Still, defensive coordinator Randy Bates believes his young group that returned only a handful of starters from 2023 still has a ways to go.

“I think we had a lot more turnovers in us, frankly,” » Bates said. “We dropped two or three (interceptions). We still have a lot of work to do. We have come a long way… (and) we still have a lot to teach (to do).

Pitt is also starting to generate more pressure, with 10 sacks in the last two games after 12 in the first five.

TO SLOW DOWN

Pitt’s offense has seen a slowdown since entering ACC play. The same group that averaged over 500 yards in four non-conference games has just 338 in championship games.

Running back Desmond Reid was held in check for the first time this season against the Orange, a game in which Pitt was held to just 217 yards. The offense’s inability to generate rhythm was one of the reasons Holstein was still in the game midway through the fourth quarter.