The Pitt Panthers had one of the most talented and productive defensive lines in 2020 and their coach received some much deserved recognition because of that.
Defensive line coach Charlie Partridge has been named the 2020 FootballScoop Defensive Line Coach of the Year, which is presented by AstroTurf.
Led by soon to be NFL draft picks, Rashad Weaver and Patrick Jones, the Panthers defensive front terrorized opposing quarterbacks as they led the nation in sacks for the second consecutive season. Pitt registered 46 sacks in 2020, which was tied with Clemson for the most in college football. According to FootballScoop, Pitt’s 4.18 sacks per game was second only to Utah’s 2014 defense (4.23) for most sacks per game.
Not only did this defensive front get to the quarterback, they also shutdown the opposition’s running game. The Pitt defense made 111 plays behind the line of scrimmage, which was tops in all of college football. Football Scoop notes that Pitt’s 10.09 tackles for loss per game led the nation and became just the third team in the last decade to average of 10 tackles for loss per game.
Weaver and Jones get all the headlines in 2020 but the Panthers return talented defensive lineman such as Deslin Alexandre, Haba Baldonado, Tyler Bentley, Keyshon Camp, Devin Danielson, David Green, Dayon Hayes, Deandre Jules, John Morgan and Calijah Kancey, plus add talented freshman Nahki Johnson, Dorien Ford and Elliot Donald.
Partridge re-joined the Pitt staff in 2017 after serving as head coach at Florida Atlantic from 2014-16. Partridge has also held on-field coaching positions at Eastern Illinois, Wisconsin, Arkansas and for the first time with Pitt in 2003.
