COLLEGE FOOTBALL DAILY REPORT : AROUND THE NATION : Pitt’s Van Pelt Is Set to Pass Marino

Alex Van Pelt needs only 31 yards against Rutgers tonight at Piscataway, N.J., to pass Dan Marino of the Miami Dolphins as the all-time passing leader at the University of Pittsburgh.

Marino passed for 8,597 yards at Pitt from 1979-82.

“I really don’t think about it much now,” Van Pelt said before the season. “That was a goal I set a long time ago after my freshman year. Now it’s lost some of its importance.

“I’m sure years from now I’ll be telling my kids my name is ahead of Dan Marino’s in the record book. I think then it will become important to me again.”

Van Pelt, a four-year starter who is the only quarterback in Pitt history to pass for more than 2,000 yards in three different seasons, has led the Panthers (1-1) to three consecutive victories over Rutgers (1-1). He has completed 51 of 91 passes for 909 yards and five touchdowns with three interceptions in those games.