Pat Narduzzi said Monday afternoon at his weekly news conference that his Pitt squad is amped up to head into South Bend, Ind. to take on No. 14 Notre Dame.
Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon, and for those unable to make it out to Notre Dame Stadium, the broadcast crews have been announced.
Pitt will be on national television this week, with NBC airing the contest between the Panthers and Fighting Irish. Jac Collinsworth will handle play-by-play duties, former NFL head coach Jason Garrett will serve as his analyst and Zora Stephenson will report from the sideline.
Bill Hillgrove, of course, is back in the booth for 93.7 The Fan, with Pat Bostick serving as his analyst and Larry Richert and Dorin Dickerson reporting from the field at Notre Dame Stadium.
Notre Dame has rebounded following a loss to Louisville a few weeks ago, knocking off USC and heading into the bye week, and the Fighting Irish sit at 6-2.
ND has handled Navy, Tennessee State, North Carolina State, Central Michigan, Duke and USC this season, tripping up against Louisville on the road and allowing Ohio State to walk off with a win at Notre Dame Stadium, as the Sam Hartman-led squad continues to roll.
Hartman, who has history with Pitt, has thrown for 1,838 yards and 18 touchdowns (to just three interceptions) on 64.5% completion this season — his sixth and final collegiate season. But it’s been Audric Estime, who has 787 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground, fueling the offense.
It going to be a Halloween weekend showdown and the first meeting since an ill-fated 45-3 loss at Heinz Field in 2020, but it will not be a revenge game for Phil Jurkovec.
Jurkovec, who originally committed to Notre Dame as a high schooler in 2018, transferred away from the Fighting Irish in 2020. He was — obviously — slated to take on the Irish for the second time since leaving, but it will now be Christian Veilleux’s third start.
Pitt heads into the matchup on a three-game losing streak dating back to 2015 — with only one win dating back to 2013: a 28-21 win in 2013.
Pitt is 21-48 all-time against Notre Dame, having played the Fighting Irish since 1930. It’s been skewed in ND’s direction since the inaugural matchup, but there’s no time like the present.
Television — NBC/Peacock (Pittsburgh’s WPXI-TV, Channel 11)
Jac Collinsworth (play-by-play)
Jason Garrett (analyst)
Zora Stephenson (reporter)
Radio — 93.7 The Fan, Pitt Panthers Radio NetworkÂ
Bill Hillgrove (play-by-play)
Pat Bostick (analyst)
Larry Richert and Dorin Dickerson (reporters)
SiriusXM Satellite Radio
Channels 85 or on the SiriusXM app
WPTS Radio (Pitt Student Station) — 92.1 FM
