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Five Takeaways: Defensive Potential, Offensive Expectation and Looking to the Future

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Technically, Virginia’s Brennan Armstong completed his first two pass attempts against Pitt Saturday. Those completions just weren’t to the right team.

M.J. Devonshire undercut his first throw, taking it back 29 yards for a touchdown. Marquis Williams caught his second pass attempt, returning it 39 yards for another touchdown. And just like that, it was 14-0 with 16 seconds off the clock.

Considering that Pitt’s defense as a whole allowed just seven points to Armstrong and Virginia’s offense, the game wasn’t technically over, but it was close. The best individual quarter of the season put UVA away as Pitt ran out to a 28-0 lead.

Pitt earned bowl eligibility, the defense rose to No. 1 in college football in sacks and put together another dominating performance with a 37-7 win over Virginia en route to a hopeful 5-0 finish to the season.

It hasn’t been the season anyone hoped for, but Pitt’s quest to win out remains the same going forward.

Pittsburgh Panthers defensive lineman Calijah Kancey (8) October 8, 2022 David Hague/PSN

It’s Calijah Kancey, Bar None

It’s Pat Narduzzi’s belief that every team believes they have an Aaron Donald at their disposal. He didn’t coach Donald during his days at Pitt, but he is confident that Calijah Kancey is the best defensive tackle he has ever coached.

Kancey, he said, is someone who is truly hard to block. And Virginia’s defensive line learned that Saturday.

Kancey sacked Virginia’s Brennan Armstrong three times Saturday afternoon at Scott Stadium, and he was in the Cavaliers’ backfield nearly as much as Armstrong himself.

“I think we sent out more invitations to my teammates (for a party in the backfield), and we had fun,” Kancey said following the win.  

According to Pro Football Focus, Kancey recorded nine pressures, five hurries and hit Armstrong once — outside of his three sacks. On both of Pitt’s back-to-back pick-sixes, it was Kancey in Armstrong’s grill.

Kancey has recorded 29 tackles (17 solo), 14 tackles for loss and seven sacks this season, and even that doesn’t illustrate the level of an impact his presence has on Pitt’s defense.

“He was born with some great athletic ability,” Narduzzi said following the win. “He is so twitchy, and he’s been good all year. I told you; he was the MVP for the North Carolina game for North Carolina’s victory. He’s been like that all year, whether he’s been tackled or held, he’s hard to block.”

Pitt’s first half performance against Drake Maye was admirable, with Kancey himself leading the way with four pressures, three hurries and a quarterback hit in just the first half before his ejection. The second half wasn’t as admirable.

It would’ve helped to have the ACC’s leader in tackles for loss and sacks.

Passing Offense Still Needs to Finish

Pitt’s defense spotted the offense a quick 14 points to start the game, and while Pitt scored on its own first two offensive series, sustaining enough offensive consistency to score touchdowns was a struggle the rest of the way.

Pitt’s offense did score 23 points, Pitt’s defense scored 14 points and Virginia scored seven points. That is certainly a recipe for success.

Narduzzi still wants to see the offense score more points though.

However, that doesn’t mean there weren’t strides taken by Slovis and Pitt’s passing attack against Virginia Saturday. Israel Abanikanda and the running backs, as per usual, were strong. And Slovis connected on some deep shots — especially with Bub Means.

The deep ball attack was strong early, and while it didn’t always hit, it was still one of the highest density of deep balls this season. Slovis completed 3-of-7 pass attempts over 20 yards for 91 yards and a touchdown. And Means was the big beneficiary.

Perhaps Slovis’ best play of the season came on Pitt’s second offensive possession in which he evaded pressure, drifted outside the pocket and made an off-platform throw to Means — a dart 31 yards to the end zone for a touchdown.

That was the Slovis that Pitt brought in to play quarterback this season, and while he may have short-armed a couple of deep balls that may have resulted in touchdowns if hauled in, he did take chances against Virginia’s defense. Slovis’ penchant for taking the safe play, not wanting to turn the football over, has limited the offense at times this season.

Pitt’s offense operated the best quarter of the season with a 14-point lead in the first quarter, and Slovis just wanted to ensure that Pitt’s lead was sustained and not lost in allowing a momentum shift in a potential UVA comeback.

“It helps a lot, but as an offensive player, I’ve been in a game where we scored 28 in the first quarter, and then kinda let them come back,” Slovis said following the win. “So, it almost makes you re-focus and make sure that you really stay locked in the game and stay aggressive.”

Pitt’s offense moved the football against Virginia’s defense, but there would come a point where the drive stalled out and resulted in field goal opportunities. This certainly isn’t a horrible problem, but field goals aren’t always enough to win.

It may be nitpicking in a 30-point win, but Pitt’s offense hasn’t been the best at finishing this season. And if the new goals are to be met, more points will be required.

Pittsburgh Panthers defensive back M.J. Devonshire (12) September 24, 2022 David Hague/PSN

The Full Potential of Pitt’s Defense

Disappointing results against Louisville and North Carolina in October resulted largely from fourth quarter collapses after holding a lead.

Pitt’s defense would play well for three — even three and a half — quarters but would wear down over the course of the game as the offense failed to sustain drives and put the defense in short-field situations because of turnovers.

Did the defense break down against UNC in the second half? Certainly, but Maye is perhaps the best quarterback Pitt has faced this season. And lessons were certainly learned (and Kancey returned).

Pitt limited Syracuse to nine points and 25 rushing yards and Virginia to seven points and -8 rushing yards. It also helped that Pitt has racked up 18 tackles for loss and 14 sacks over the last two weeks, too. North Carolina has 15 sacks this season, for reference.

“I think we’re just all feeding off each other’s energy, and it’s motivation,” Kancey said. “We were all talking about how we’re gonna celebrate and what we’re gonna do when we get the sack, so it’s feeding off each other.”

The defensive line performance has stolen the headlines. And it’s understandable. Habakkuk Baldonado, Deslin Alexandre and John Morgan have come alive over the last two weeks, recording a combined 7.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks.

“It’s definitely fun, and also we just want to be remembered as a great defense,” Kancey said. 

The defensive line hasn’t been the only unit to step up over the last couple of weeks either. The linebacking unit, led by the infallible SirVocea Dennis, has made major strides.

Tylar Wiltz has been exactly what the linebacking corps needed, providing a technical tackler with impeccable instincts to complement Bangally Kamara’s pure athleticism at the Star position.

The discipline and alignment of the linebacking corps, with Wiltz, Kamara, Shayne Simon and Solomon DeShields, all stepping into major roles in Pitt’s defense for the first time, took time to develop. But it’s starting to shine. And the vast improvement in stopping the run is proof.

The duo of Devonshire and Williams — and A.J. Woods, of course — has been able to complement Brandon Hill and Erick Hallett in the secondary. It’s a unit that has sometimes struggled in stopping bigger, taller wideouts but has also largely gotten the job done when called upon.

Pitt’s defensive backs have had some issues catching footballs when the opportunity presented itself, but that wasn’t a problem against Virginia.

“Just know that everybody is doing their jobs, and we’re all clicking, and the coverage is matching the pass rush,” Devonshire said following the win. “We all work together and the defense, if everybody does their job, we look pretty good most of the time.”

A November to Remember

A win over Virginia secured bowl eligibility for Pitt this season. And it may have been a goal for the player, but Narduzzi doesn’t care about it.

Narduzzi said that Pitt expected to be bowl eligible this season, that’s why it wasn’t a goal in his eyes, so it’s on to Duke now for his squad. However, a bowl win has the opportunity to be Pitt’s fifth straight win to close the season.

Pitt is 2-0 through November, but the goal is to go 5-0 through December now.

“We’ve got a tough football team, and we’ve got a really good football team,” Slovis said. “I think obviously you get in that situation where you’re .500 and not really reaching your goals or really close to the goals you want to meet, but I think it’s a testament to the guys we have here, and we talked about winning November.” 

Pitt beat a ranked Syracuse at home and dropped 37 points on Virginia on the road to improve to 2-0 in November. A surprising 7-3 Duke squad is up next at Acrisure Stadium, and the regular season is capped at Miami in two weeks. It’s a chance to go 4-0.

“Coach (Cignetti) had a saying, ‘They only remember what you do in November,’ so right now we’re 2-0 in November,” Means said. “The defense is doing their job; they always hold it down.”

Following the 1-3 month of October, but especially the 0-2 stretch on the road against Louisville and North Carolina, Pitt sat at .500 and was at risk of missing out on postseason play a la a bowl game. That has since changed, but a 6-4 season still isn’t where Pitt wants to be.

Kancey said that while finishing the season 9-4 wasn’t what Pitt expected before the season, it is the expectation now. Considering the midseason slide, a five-game win streak to conclude the season with a bowl win would be a major boon.

Ryan Baer August 11, 2022 David Hague/PSN

Collegiate Debuts and Young Players

The Virginia game signified the beginning of a stretch of play where players who Pitt hoped to be able to redshirt this season were officially able to play without the risk of a burned redshirt.

So, of course, Ryan Baer and Samuel Okunlola both made their collegiate debuts against Virginia. 

Baer played just three snaps at left tackle, and Okunlola played just three snaps at defensive end, but it was the opportunity for both future cornerstones to get into a football game — even if it was already decided.

Baer is the future of the offensive line, alongside a player like Branson Taylor, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he were able to turn a strong offseason into a starting left tackle gig next season.

Okunlola, who has earned heavy praise when it comes to his burst and agility off the line of scrimmage from the coaching staff and his teammates, figures even more deeply into the future of the defensive end position now. With Dayon Hayes’ status uncertain, he joins a young core of Nahki Johnson and Bam Brima at defensive end.

Terrence Enos Jr. also made his collegiate debut against Virginia, taking three snaps at left guard, and he is a player to keep an eye on. Along with young players in Terrence Moore and Jason Collier.

Johnson and Elliot Donald also received some snaps against Virginia, a pair of defensive linemen who are expected to be key contributors in the future.

Sandy Schall, Coldwell Banker
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SRS
SRS
1 year ago

Jalen Twyman’s 2019 Season was comparable to Kancey and Aaron Donald’s Seasons at PITT. Twyman was disruptive as well. He sat out 2020 and then entered NFL draft as underclassmen. All the positions less the Kicker and QB have been exercised by the 2 deeps, and as mentioned above the 3s. They are ensuring Slovis’ return for 2023 by not playing anyone in a lop-sided UVA score in the 4th. Although Slovis handed off every attempt his last drive, and then Patti did the same. It would have been good to see Patti or Yarnell in there slinging it. Just… Read more »

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