PITTSBURGH — Phil Jurkovec took a high, hard hit at the end of the first half, as the clock bled away under a minute left, and Christian Veilleux finished the half for Pitt.
Jurkovec appeared to be okay as he stood on the sideline, but he didn’t come back out of the locker room after the halftime break, and Pitt officially ruled Jurkovec out with an undisclosed injury.
Veilleux warmed up just before the half, and he will lead the Pitt offense for the foreseeable future.
Jurkovec completed 11-of-15 pass attempts for 109 yards, adding 29 yards on two carries, and put together one of his better performances of the season before being knocked out of the game — UNC’s Tayon Holloway was ejected for targeting on the play.
It’s been a tough season for Jurkovec, and it’s tough to see a player knocked out of a game with an injury — especially as Jurkovec was on a drive that resulted in nothing at the end of the half.
Veilleux has played in two games this season, completing 5-of-9 pass attempts for 60 yards and a touchdown against Wofford in the season opener, and he completed his lone pass attempt for 15 yards in the first half.
Pitt is trailing UNC 35-17, with UNC’s Drake Maye scoring a 1-yard rushing touchdown as it stands early in the second half.
It would be better if we could rule Cignetti out with an undisclosed injury.
Eliminate a quarterback and sit for a game, some decision. Eliminate an opponent and sit until they return, a better option.
sitting him for an injury is a cop out and a convenient excuse to pull him without hurting his thin skinned feelings.