Rod Rutherford is the starting quarterback for the Pittsburgh Panthers.  Coach Harris has experimented with this young man by trying him at quarterback, special teams, and defense.  Rod Rutherford is known for his patience, his persistence, and his very powerful left arm.  He has set a record for the most total offense in a single season with 3,181 yards.  Rod formally attended Pittsburgh Perry Tradition Academy which is where he was recruited.  It was his ultimate dream to be Pitt's starting quarterback.  In his freshman year, Rod had received the James H. Coogan Award for being a game's most outstanding player.  In a 2001 season showed his great talent for being a quarterback and from then on, he would become the starting quarterback.  When the chips were down and people criticized Rod, he took it and got better from them.  At the end of his starting season he took the panthers to the Insight.com bowl and won it.  With the season over he was recognized as the 6th best quarterback.  Rod leads the Big East in total offense and is one of the four panther quarterback to throw for more than  6,000 yards.