Pitt Needs the DEs to Take Next Step to Reach Usual Standard

Stopping the run and sacking opposing quarterbacks. The bread and butter of a Pat Narduzzi defense, and there perhaps isn’t a better defensive line coach than Charlie Partridge — in general — to combine the two into a sandwich.

The pieces of bread are sitting on the table, but the butter is still in the fridge — hard as a rock.

Pitt is allowing 126.4 rush yards per game this season, at a meager 3.13 yards per carry, to be fair, and no one is happy with that total. It doesn’t matter if a team runs 60 times in a game or racks up all of its yards in the fourth quarter, Pitt wants to be better. Partridge, especially, wants to be better.

“There’s no lack of want-to, no lack of will, we just gotta get a little better at all positions and force some turnovers,” Partridge said Tuesday after practice. “We saw an example of when we can force turnovers, what that does for us and also eliminate some penalties. Guys, we’re not building rockets. Let’s be honest. We’re not working for NASA. You eliminate some penalties; you get some more turnovers and we’re feeling a lot better this week.”

Pitt allowed just 80 yards on the ground against Louisville, recorded four sacks, three turnovers and picked up a huge upset win.

Pitt allowed 112 yards on the ground against Wake Forest, recorded two sacks (both by A.J. Woods) and forced two turnovers in a shocking loss.

What are the big differences in those two games? 13 penalties against Wake Forest to eight against Louisville (not good for either game) and four sacks to two. Two sacks against a Demon Deacons offensive line that allowed the most sacks in the ACC and had a third-string quarterback throwing his first collegiate passes.

Pitt generated just 10 pressures against Wake Forest, four of which came from Woods on corner blitzes, and that’s a season-low — aside from six against a West Virginia quarterback who dropped back just 13 times.

“New quarterback did some things different that we didn’t practice as much more for,” Pat Narduzzi said Monday at his weekly news conference. “We practiced more on other things that they didn’t do when we didn’t know who the quarterback was going to be and didn’t know there was any issue with their starting quarterback.

“But you know, we’ve got to execute. And again, we haven’t forgot how to coach defense and how to stop the run, okay? It’s what we do. And you know, it’s like I said, we’ve got to coach better. We’ve got to get it out of them and they have got to learn better and execute better, and that’s what it comes down to.”

Pittsburgh Panthers defensive lineman Nate Temple (6) September 9, 2023 David Hague/PSN

When it comes to stopping the run, yes, there have been issues when it comes to gap integrity and tackling, but when Partridge watches the tape, he sees that it’s plays on the edge are creating the most challenges for the run defense.

“So, interior, we’ve been solid,” Partridge said. “I think we’re sixth in the league right now and that’s not our standard. We want to get back to first in the league, but teams have done some things to put some stress on us on the edges and that’s what we have to get cleaned up right now.”

It comes down to better play from the defensive ends on the outside. And whether it’s communication or fundamentals, Partridge expects a higher percentage of high-level precision execution — especially from the veterans.

Hayes, who leads Pitt — by an overwhelming margin — with 30 pressures this season, isn’t getting a ton help from the ends. Bam Brima has eight and Nate Temple has six. Samuel Okunlola, in limited snaps, has five.

Hayes has generated pressure, nearly three times as many pressures and hurries than his next closest teammate, but he hasn’t been able to finish. And some of that stems from being unable to finish in the backfield, missing eight tackles this season — a 30% miss rate. He’s talented, Partridge has watched Hayes grow up this season, and he feels like a continued focus on execution and technique will pay off this season. It just hasn’t resulted in massive production.

Pittsburgh Panthers defensive lineman Samuel Okunlola (8) September 23, 2023 David Hague/Pittsburgh Sports Now

Okunlola, who has recorded just 55 pass rush snaps this season, actually has one more sack than Hayes this season. He made an impact against Louisville, chasing down Cardinals quarterback Jack Plummer on a screen play and stripping him. And it is impressive that a second-year freshman has worked his way into what appears to be a four-man defensive end rotation.

“That’s what he’s done by punching the clock every day and coming to work every day, and then you add some production to that, some lack of distractions from how he approaches things on a daily, meaning I know what I’m getting when he walks in the door every day, that’s leading to an exciting future from him every day,” Partridge said.

He just doesn’t have the experience that Brima and Temple have yet. Partridge likes how Temple and Brima aren’t rattled by new formations and unexpected plays. He said Temple brings experience and awareness, Brima brings length and Okunlola brings twitch and a desure to get there.

When it comes to actually getting after opposing quarterbacks though, Hayes — obviously — leads the way. But it’s the linebackers, Shayne Simon, Bangally Kamara and Solomon DeShields who have consistently made an impact.

Temple has just a 8%-win rate against blocking on pass rush snaps, and Brima has just a 5.6%-win rate. Hayes (25.6%) and Okunlola (15%) both have had legitimate success against opposing offensive lines.

But against Wake Forest, in limited true pass rush opportunities, there wasn’t much of an impact. Jimmy Scott generated pressure and a hurry in his four snaps, coming into the game late, but Okunlola (four snaps), Brima (one snap) and Temple (six snaps) failed to generate any pressure.

“You look at the guys: Sammy, Jimmy Scott is in there on that last series playing left end,” Narduzzi said. “We had Dayon at nose just trying to get more speed on the field. And trying to think of who else, Sammy, Jimmy and Dayon were the three guys in on that last series.

“We’ve got to be better with our pass rush and contain the quarterback, too, because in that last series, you look at first and second down were good in the last series, third down, it’s bad coverage. Won’t get into it. And then the fourth-and-one, bad coverage, won’t get into it. And then they got a first and goal. Again, we don’t get a reroute on the tight end. We hang out McIntyre and they slow throw a touchdown pass.”

The issues getting after the quarterback and stopping the run don’t fall solely on the defensive line, as Narduzzi pointed out, but it’s a unit that holds itself to a high standard.

And the splash plays haven’t been there as often as Partridge or his unit would like, but neither has the clean, consistent play that’s expected. Narduzzi knows that Partridge is working on it, and both Narduzzi and Partridge admitted that the coaching staff as a whole could’ve done a better job against Wake Forest in playing to its strengths and weaknesses with new players in the lineup.

Pittsburgh Panthers linebacker Solomon DeShields (23) September 23, 2023 David Hague/Pittsburgh Sports Now

Jordan Bass made his first start against the Demon Deacons after DeShields was injured on the opening kickoff, and he was forced to play 50 snaps. Okunlola and Scott both got into the game, too.

It’s important for those younger players to get those snaps, but as Partridge acknowledged, there’s line in what is called and how they’re utilized.

“Our stunts, I started talking about it a little bit earlier,” Narduzzi said. “Bass was in there running stunts, and he’s getting smooshed out of there. He looked like those wagons on wheels there, playing an ‘A’ gap or ‘B’ gap. And again, really wasn’t fair to him. He’s not done many of those. I’m just shocked he got near where he was supposed to be.

“Again, we should have done a better job of adjusting that, to be honest with you. We will the next time, I guarantee you that. But you have regrets as coaches. That’s a coaching thing that we should have fixed. But when you look at it, we’ve got to be better. Our stunts just don’t look as clean. We’ve just got to clean things up and detail them with a bunch of guys that maybe haven’t done a bunch. We are young up front.”

Pitt is young, and getting younger as more and more underclassmen work their way into the lineup offensively and defensively, but the focus has not shifted to next season. Pitt cannot afford to turn its focus to next season. It’s cliché, but Pitt still has to approach each week one week at a time, maybe just with a little bit more of a youth-centric push.

“We’re all frustrated because we didn’t win last week,” Partridge said. “That’s life in athletics because it’s Tuesday of Notre Dame week, that’s where we are, we are where our feet are, I’m talking to you, and I’m fired up about it. We’re getting ready to play Notre Dame this, I’m fired up about it. We had a good Tuesday practice, we gotta get more turnovers, we gotta cut down on the penalties, we do that and we’re gonna be smiling next week.”

It will be a tough test, on the road at Notre Dame Stadium, against No. 14 Notre Dame. Sam Hartman, despite prior success against him at Wake Forest, is a solid, veteran quarterback, and Audric Estime is one of the best running backs in college football.

But, as Partridge said, if Pitt can get after Hartman, cut down on its nearly nine penalties per game and generate turnovers, there’s a chance he’ll be smiling Sunday morning.