On Thursday Morning, Pro Football Focus College analyst Seth Galina released his picks for most underrated team in each of the Power 5 conferences, and in the ACC, he gave the nod to the Pitt Panthers.
The Panthers may not be getting the credit they deserve for a number of reasons, one being the amount of talent they lost to the NFL this spring. Losing guys like Patrick Jones II, Rashad Weaver, Jimmy Morrissey and Paris Ford among numerous others isn’t an easy thing to overcome, but they also retained a lot of key pieces and have many players on the rise.
The fact that Kenny Pickett has started 36 games at quarterback in college and is back for another season can’t be overlooked. Neither can the fact that in the transfer frenzy that is today’s college sports, Pitt has lost very few players in that regard, which only says good things about the program. Add in blossoming stars like Jordan Addison and Calijah Kancey and you have a team that is poised to win the games they were supposed to last season. In June, PFF named Kancey a Preseason All-American honorable mention.
In the other Power 5 conferences, Galina picked Minnesota (Big Ten), Oklahoma State (Big 12), Utah (Pac 12) and Ole Miss (SEC).
They are going to surprise this year, 9 to 10 wins.
I agree, there’s good talent at all positions & some potential breakout candidates for sure. The fact that Kenny Pickett is returning, can’t be understated either. Pitt has the potential to be nationally ranked by seasons end and pull off a few upsets along the way. I definitely have a good feeling about this year’s panthers