FACTS & STATS: Site: Heinz Field (65,000) -- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Television:ESPN+. Home Record: Buffalo 1-0, Pittsburgh 0-1. Away Record: Buffalo 0-0, Pittsburgh 0-0. Neutral Record: Buffalo 0-0, Pittsburgh 0-0. Conference Record: Buffalo 0-0, Pittsburgh 0-0. Series Record: First-ever meeting.

GAME NOTES: Already knocked out of the Top 25, the Pittsburgh Panthers will now try to rebound from a season-opening loss, as they entertain the Buffalo Bulls in non-conference action at Heinz Field.

With countless starters welcomed back on both sides of the ball, the Panthers were expected to be a force on the national level and were even ranked No. 25 heading into the season. The hype and excitement surrounding this program though, has quickly diminished, as Pittsburgh was knocked off in its own backyard, 27-17, by Bowling Green last weekend. It was just the second loss in the last 12 season-openers for the Panthers, who are still expected to compete for their first wining campaign since 2004.

As for Buffalo, it is a program on the rise and it showed that by handling Texas-El Paso, 42-17, last weekend. The 42 points represent the most scored in a season-opener at the FBS level for the Bulls, who return 18 starters from a productive 2007 squad.

Saturday's game will mark the first-ever meeting between Buffalo and Pittsburgh on the gridiron.

The Bulls were impressive on offense in their season opener, rolling up 484 total yards, including an eye-popping 263 rushing yards. The success on the ground was a surprise, as Buffalo averaged only 130.0 rushing ypg in 2007. James Starks, who is coming off a 1,000-yard campaign, led the charge with 179 yards on 31 carries, while Brandon Thermilus added 102 yards and a pair of scores on 16 totes. Quarterback Drew Willy also had a day, completing 10-of-16 pass attempts for 221 yards and a career-high four touchdowns. The solid effort wasn't a big surprise, as Willy is coming off a successful 2007 campaign in which he hit on 68.4 percent of his tosses. Naaman Roosevelt, the team's top target from a year ago, picked up right where he left off, snaring four balls for a career-best 154 yards and two scores last weekend.

Defensively, the Bulls also got off to a good start and they limited UTEP to a mere 266 total yards. After allowing 174.7 ypg on the ground in 2007, Buffalo held UTEP to a mere 67 rushing yards on a 2.6 ypc average. The unit, which had only 11 interceptions last season, also showed improvement in that area by picking off three passes in the opener. Justin Winters put forth an all-around effort to pace the defense, as he finished with 10 tackles, an interception and a sack. Davonte Shannon chipped in with eight tackles and that was a modest performance from the team's top defender. Last season, Shannon was a beast for this defense and he led the club with 123 tackles to go along with three interceptions and 2.5 sacks.

The Panthers were able to move the ball in their opener against BGSU, but their four turnovers proved costly and too much to overcome. The team gained 393 total yards in the loss, but only 129 of those yards came via the run. That was kind of a surprising considering Pittsburgh has one of the elite tailbacks in the nation in LeSean McCoy. Following a sensational freshman campaign in 2007 that included 1,328 yards and 14 touchdowns on the ground, McCoy's sophomore season got off to a slow start, as he was held to just 71 yards and a score on 23 totes by BGSU. He did add five catches for 45 yards, but also lost a fumble. Quarterback Bill Stull, who missed almost all of last season with an injury, returned to his starting role last weekend and completed 29-of-51 pass attempts for 264 yards and a touchdown. He was under pressure all game though and was sacked four times, resulting in two personal turnovers. Stull did a good job of spreading out the ball, as five players caught at least five passes in the setback.

On the defensive side of the ball, Pittsburgh put forth a solid effort last weekend, although the unit was only able to force a single turnover. Still, the Panthers held BGSU's high powered attack to just 254 total yards, including a mere 64 on the ground. The defense, which was effective in holding foes to under 300 total ypg in 2007, was put in some bad spots due to turnovers by the offense last weekend, but the unit did its best and finished with two sacks. Austin Ransom guided the defense with seven tackles and an interception, while Scott McKillop had six stops and 1.5 TFLs. McKillop is the heart-and-soul of this unit and he is coming off a tremendous 2007 campaign in which he led the nation with 151 tackles.

The Panthers are coming off a tough loss to start the season and things won't get any easier against an emerging and confident Buffalo squad. With that said, expect Pittsburgh to protect the ball better and get its ground attack going this weekend. An improvement in those two areas should lead this team to a rebound victory over the Bulls.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Pittsburgh 31, Buffalo 17

Saturday, September 6th, 6:00 p.m. (et).