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Notre Dame quarterback Tommy Rees finished 24 of 41 for 216 yards, but was a perfect 8 for 8 on the game-winning drive as the Irish (2-2) won their second straight by beating Pittsburgh 15-12 on Saturday.

Ray Graham ran for 82 yards and added 43 yards receiving for Pitt, but the Panthers could do little else. Sunseri, who has struggled getting the ball downfield, didn't complete a pass longer than 18 yards.

Rees wasn't much better against the nation's 119th-ranked pass defense. Pitt sacked him twice and gave him little time to throw.

Floyd caught three passes on Notre Dame's first drive but managed just one more the rest of the way. Yet the Irish are proving they're more than just their all-everything receiver.

Cierre Wood ran 23 times for 96 yards for Notre Dame but it was Gray who provided the big play. The senior sprinted 79 yards down the sideline in the second quarter for his first career score, the school's longest rush since Terrance Howard darted 80 yards against West Virginia in 2000.

"I was just trying to run as fast as I can, keep my knees high and make sure they don't get any shoestring tackles," Gray said.

It was the lone explosive play in a game where yards and momentum were in short supply.

Penalties were not, however, as both teams were flagged a combined 17 times, none bigger than a roughing the kicker call against the Irish at the start of the second half.

It turned a Pitt fourth-and-20 into a first down and extended what turned into a 19-play drive that ended more than 8 minutes later with Sunseri finding tight end Hubie Graham for a 3-yard touchdown to put Pitt up 12-7.

The way Pitt's defense kept flying around, it looked like it might be enough. Rees made sure it wasn't, delivering a fourth-quarter comeback that marks another step in the maturation process.

"I knew that his head was in the right place," Gray said of Rees. "I'm sure there was a little bit of frustration but I knew he was going to make big plays down the stretch."

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