Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett will return for a fifth season, he announced on Tuesday evening
Pickett, a senior, will be able to play in 2021 due to the NCAA passing a blanket eligibility waiver for the 2020 season.
The 6-foot-2, 220-pound New Jersey native missed two games for Pitt in 2020 with an ankle injury. He threw for 2,408 yards, completing 61.1% of his passes and earning a career-best 129.6 passer rating.
Pickett made the announcement on Twitter, saying “one more year.”
He will enter the 2021 season fifth in program history with 7,984 passing yards, behind only Alex Van Pelt (11,267), Dan Marino (8,597) and Tino Sunseri (8,590).
Pickett infamously got his start at Pitt when he was forced into action after a pair of injuries in his freshman season. Pickett played in just four games that season.
He is the first Pitt senior to publicly acknowledge that he will be taking advantage of the additional season of eligibility.
Eight Pitt players: safety Paris Ford, defensive end Patrick Jones II, center Jimmy Morrissey, cornerback Jason Pinnock, wide receiver D.J. Turner, defense tackle Jaylen Twyman and defensive end Rashad Weaver have already announced their intentions to enter the 2021 NFL Draft.
Finally a Pitt senior who got good advice regarding his prospects.
Currently the 9th rated QB coming out, but that could certainly change when underclassmen declare. Definitely a smart move given the guys ahead of him. Will it make much of a difference if Whipple is back though???
This is great news for Pitt. However it will be interesting to hear how this news is received by the other QB’s on the roster. They will not get an extra year of eligibility and may not want to wait around another year.
Everyone that is playing this year gets an extra year of eligibility.
Missed Hargrove on your little list…
Great for Pitt! Maybe he can get a few others to stay! H2P
Was at the Syracuse game where because of injuries, he was thrust into an impossible situation. His mother screamed “NO” at the top of her lungs. Narduzzi burned his redshirt, so in a way Covid got him his fifth year and probably a master’s degree.