Pitt will host an FCS team to open the 2020 season, as the Panthers announced on Tuesday that they will be welcoming Austin Peay to Heinz Field on Sept. 12.

Pitt had been scheduled to play at Marshall on that date, but the game was canceled when the ACC’s revised schedule policy for 2020 permitted conference members to play nonconference teams at home or in-state. That schedule policy was ultimately a moot point, as Conference USA has since postponed its 2020 fall season.

The Panthers’ original season opener was scheduled for Sept. 5, when they were slated to host Miami (Oh.), but like Conference USA, the Mid-American Conference has also postponed its fall season. Pitt’s game against Richmond that was scheduled for Sept. 19 has also been canceled due to the Colonial Athletic Association postponing its season.

Austin Peay plays in the Ohio Valley Conference, and while that league has also postponed the fall season, it is allowing member institutions to play games if they are so inclined. The Governors will open the 2020 season this Saturday night with a game against Central Arkansas at the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery (Ala.). That game will kick off at 9:00 pm ET and will be televised on ESPN.

Austin Peay also has a game scheduled at Cincinnati on Sept. 19.

The Governors are coming off a 2019 season that saw them go 11-4 and advance to the quarterfinals of the FCS championship tournament. They are playing under an interim head coach in Marquase Lovings, who took over in July after Mark Hudspeth resigned after 15 seasons for personal reasons.

Austin Peay will be looking to replace its leading rusher from 2019 and its starting quarterback - who was also the team’s second-leading rusher - but the Governors do return quarterback Jeremiah Oatsvall, who missed all but two games last season due to injury. They also have star receiver DeAngelo Wilson back after he caught 89 passes for 1,564 yards and 15 touchdowns a year ago.

That production by Wilson went a long way toward the team’s 34.5 points per game, which put them in the top 20 in FCS.

Defensively, Austin Peay was dominant against the run in 2019. The Governors held opponents to an average of 104.1 yards per game on the ground, which ranked No. 8 in FCS. They were also No. 15 in scoring defense, giving up an average of 20.6 points per game, and No. 12 in total defense, allowing 307.5 yards per game.