Grading Pitt: Overcoming injuries leads to 3-1 record and hope for start of ACC play
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The questions on the minds of Pitt fans thirsty for another championship are these:
• Just how good is Pitt?
• Are trips to Charlotte, N.C., and the ACC Championship game part of the Panthers’ destiny for the second consecutive season?
• Without Kenny Pickett and Jordan Addison, how can Pitt match last season’s victory total of 11?
Truth be told, coach Pat Narduzzi might be asking himself and his coaches the same questions, especially Sundays when he dissects the previous game’s video and rages at the big mistakes and nit-picks the small ones. (And wouldn’t you like to hide in the back of the room and listen to those conversations?)
Sure, there’s hope and encouragement generated by the ACC’s best running back and a 3-1 nonconference record.
But is Pitt’s No. 24 national ranking in the Associated Press and coaches’ polls too generous? Or, is it a disrespectful slap in the face?
We only can go by what we’ve seen in four games. So, with Pitt preparing for its first ACC game Saturday night against Georgia Tech at Acrisure Stadium, let’s take a closer look and break down and grade each position.
Quarterback
Kedon Slovis has missed six of 16 quarters, creating the inclination to give him an incomplete grade.
Yet, he can chuck the football with impressive accuracy. He’s completed 66.7% of his passes (50 of 75) for an average of 230.7 yards per game (seventh in the ACC). His true test will come when an opponent stops Pitt’s running game, and Slovis is asked to win the game, Pickett style.
Slovis’ captaincy as voted on by teammates after less than a year together is proof of his leadership skills.
When you grade this position, you need to remember the courageous way Nick Patti, hobbling on an injured ankle, willed Pitt into overtime against a Tennessee team that has climbed to No. 8 in the AP poll. Plus, don’t forget the poise shown by Nate Yarnell and how expertly offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti Jr. prepared the redshirt freshman for his first start since his junior year of high school.
B
Running back
Wide receivers coach Tiquan Underwood, who played at Rutgers with Ray Rice, said Izzy Abanikanda’s “is having one of the best seasons I’ve seen as a running back. He’s a home run hitter.”
Abanikanda leads the ACC with 479 yards, 84 more than Louisville quarterback Malik Cunningham, who is second. Combine Abanikanda’s yards with Vincent Davis’ total of 134 the past two weeks and you have a running game that will carry Pitt to many more victories this season.
“The run game is going crazy,” Underwood said.
Funny, Abanikanda looked like the team’s second-best back after the West Virginia game, but Rodney Hammond’s foot injury has kept him inactive for three weeks.
A
Wide receivers/tight ends
Jared Wayne and Gavin Bartholomew are averaging 20.4 and 16.6 yards per reception, thanks to plenty of YAC (yards after catch) and tight end Bartholomew’s hurdling ability.
But both players have missed time with injuries. Whether Wayne and Bartholomew are available or not Saturday, Pitt needs Konata Mumpfield, Bub Means, Jaden Bradley and Jaylon Barden (at least, two of them) to step up. Collectively, they are averaging less than 10 yards per catch, with a total of one touchdown.
C
Offensive line
Injuries have forced Pitt to dig into its depth, but the ground game hasn’t suffered. Credit Jake Kradel for versatility while moving from guard to center and guard Blake Zubovic and tackle Branson Taylor for coming off the bench to help.
Narduzzi and the quarterbacks, however, would prefer fewer than the 10 sacks allowed.
B+
Defensive line
When all are healthy, this position is the backbone of the team. But it hasn’t been able to reach full potential because of injuries to ends Habakkuk Baldonado, Deslin Alexandre, Dayon Hayes and others.
The run defense has improved since surrendering 190 yards to WVU, but Pitt is fifth in the ACC (98.5). Narduzzi expects better.
Pitt’s linemen have recorded seven of the team’s 12 sacks, less than two per game, and that number is expected to rise when everyone heals up.
B
Linebackers
SirVocea Dennis remains one of the ACC’s best at this position. He has three sacks and leads Pitt with 27 tackles.
Linebacker may be the toughest defensive position to learn, but first-year starter Bangally Kamara has 19 tackles, three pass breakups and one quarterback hurry. Shayne Simon has been disruptive with four breakups and one hurry.
What makes this a strong group is position coach Ryan Manalac cultivating depth with at least six players he trusts to put in any game.
B
Defensive back
Free safety Erick Hallett is having an All-ACC season and is the only FBS player with two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. Cornerbacks A.J. Woods (six) and Devonshire (five) and Hallett (two) have combined for 13 breakups.
M.J. Devonshire’s Pick 6 saved the WVU game, or Pitt would be sitting at 2-2 with no Power 5 victories. Cornerback Marquis Williams’ first-quarter Pick 6 enabled Pitt to seize control of the Western Michigan game.
A-
Special teams
A blocked punt, three missed field goals and a 16.4-yard average on kickoff returns (last in the ACC) aren’t what special teams coach Andre Powell expects. But Devonshire is one of only two players in the ACC with a touchdown on a punt return.
B-
Overall
Many Pitt fans believe a No. 24 national ranking is too low, especially with eight other 3-1 schools ranked higher. You could make a case for Pitt being ranked ahead of No. 19 BYU, a 41-20 loser to No. 13 Oregon, but a double-overtime winner against No. 16 Baylor. Pitt’s only loss – and only game against a Top 25 team — occurred when it dragged No. 8 Tennessee into overtime. The Western Michigan road victory was nice, but the Broncos went out to San Jose State last week and lost, 34-6.
Perhaps Pitt should be ranked ahead of No. 22 Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons almost beat No. 5 Clemson, but only defeated Liberty by one point.
What does it all this September ranking talk mean? Nothing.
What matters is that – if healthy — Pitt has enough talent to win the ACC Coastal and to be competitive against any team that comes out of the Atlantic.