With his black-rimmed spectacles, Todd Sibley looked like he just left the library.
Until you saw the sweat on his face.
And the stats next to his name in the box score of Pitt’s 17-14 victory Saturday against Delaware.
With A.J. Davis and Vincent Davis sidelined with injuries, Sibley joined V’Lique Carter in the backfield to give Pitt its best ground attack of the season.
Sibley ran for 106 yards on 22 carries, and Carter added 42 on nine.
“I took the challenge to heart,” said Sibley, a redshirt sophomore. “I think I practiced harder than I ever practiced.
“Coach Duzzie, coach (Mark) Whipple, coach (Andre) Powell, they were telling me all week, this is your chance. This is your opportunity. Are you going to do it? I just kind of ran with it.”
Through the first four games of the season, Sibley carried only 10 times for 26 yards — zero in the Penn State and Central Florida games. But he said he wasn’t discouraged.
“At the end of the day, it’s a team game,” Sibley said. “I was happy for young Vincent. I was happy for A.J., because we came in together and both waited the same amount of time.”
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Avoid short fields
Pitt has allowed 12 touchdowns this season, but six came on drives that started in Pitt territory and a seventh on a punt return. In the Virginia game and Saturday, Pitt only allowed touchdowns on short fields.
“We have to do better in sudden-change situations,” coach Pat Narduzzi said. “We will have two sudden-change periods on Tuesday. We’re going to play better sudden-change defense.”
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Notable
Pitt’s defense recorded six sacks, giving the Panthers 24 in five games. Defensive end Patrick Jones II had four quarterback hurries among Pitt’s total of 10. Overall, seven players recorded at least a half-sack. … Delaware averaged only 1.4 yards per rush. … Pitt’s 17-point total was its fewest in a victory since a 17-13 victory at Virginia Tech in 2015. … With the UCF and Delaware victories, Pitt has rallied in the fourth quarter to win consecutive games for the first time since 2004 (Notre Dame and West Virginia).
