During off week, Pitt will direct plenty of attention toward 1-dimensional offense
Share this post:
Pat Narduzzi has built his coaching career — a pretty good one in its 33rd overall season — on a desire to make the opposing offense one-dimensional.
Actually, it’s more of a demand than a desire. As such, it’s no secret where Narduzzi will direct plenty of attention before Pitt’s next game Oct. 22 at Louisville: That’s right, Pitt’s one-dimensional offense.
If its problems continue, repeating as ACC Coastal champions will be difficult.
Narduzzi said he has “some ideas” about fixing it.
“We’ll figure that thing out,” he said.
Where to start?
Check out these four passing stats and where quarterback Kedon Slovis and the team stands:
• Passing yards per game: Slovis is seventh in the ACC (233.4 yards per game).
• Passing efficiency: He is eighth (134.8).
• Completion percentage: Slovis, who completed 71.9% of his passes as a freshman, is ninth at 61.9%.
• Touchdown passes (team): Seven, 10th in the ACC.
That the rankings fall in descending order is troublesome.
It’s unfair to compare any Pitt quarterback to a player who became a Heisman finalist, first-round draft choice and NFL starter. But at this point last season, Kenny Pickett had thrown 21 touchdown passes.
We will not know for sure until the end of the season, but that might well be the difference between the 2021 and 2022 versions of the Panthers.
After getting sacked twice and hurried 12 times by Georgia Tech, Slovis was sacked only once and hurried six times Saturday.
But he appeared indecisive in the pocket on many occasions and missed wide receiver Jared Wayne for a potential big gain in the third quarter, settling for 14 yards to tight end Karter Johnson.
While surveying the defense, Slovis reset his footwork and timing and believed he lost his best chance to find Wayne.
“It’s one of those after the fact you’re kind of kicking yourself,” he said. “I wish I had reset one more time and let it fly. It’s one of those plays I hope to clean up in the future.”
Slovis said the off week will allow an opportunity to work on timing problems.
How long can Pitt expect to lean on Izzy Abanikanda, whose 36 carries for 320 yards lifted him atop the ACC in carries (129), yards (830) and rushing touchdowns (12)? He also leads the FBS with 1,117 all-purpose yards because he catches the occasional pass (four/59 yards) and is Pitt’s chief kickoff return man (12/228). He was named Sunday as the Walter Camp National Offensive Player of the Week.
What makes Abanikanda’s efforts even more remarkable is how he’s running behind an offensive line missing starters Carter Warren and Owen Drexel, while right tackle Gabe Houy is playing part-time.
Backup running back Rodney Hammond Jr., who has missed five games, could return after the off week. He dressed but didn’t play Saturday. Narduzzi also was optimistic linebacker SirVocea Dennis, who missed the second half, won’t be out long.
Meanwhile, Pitt’s pass rush remains a force, but coaches will want more in the next six games than the current number of 19 sacks (second in the ACC). Also, Narduzzi isn’t accustomed to seeing this next stat linked to one of his teams:
With 126 yards on the ground, Virginia Tech is the third opponent this season to hit triple digits. Pitt is surrendering an average of 125.3 rushing yards, fifth-best in the ACC.
For the second consecutive week, Pitt received no votes in the Associated Press Top 25 poll. That doesn’t move the meter in the coaches’ offices as much as it does for fans, but it’s another area of regression.
Pitt (4-2, 1-1 ACC) is in a better place than many previous Pitt teams were at this point in the season — before and after Narduzzi arrived in 2015. But the Panthers will play only two more games at Acrisure Stadium and will travel to Louisville, North Carolina, Virginia and Miami.
So far, the passing game, run defense and overall national standing have fallen short of what Narduzzi and his players aspire to become.