Storylines to Follow as Pitt Hosts No. 4 Florida State

There’s not a whole lot of optimism surrounding the Pitt football program right now, not after a beatdown against Notre Dame, but there is now a chance to shock the world.

Pitt is hosting No. 4 Florida State at Acrisure Stadium, one of the last stops on the Seminoles’ path to the College Football Playoff, and certainly not one of the most imposing. It sets up a scenario like the one in 2017, where Pitt knocked off No. 2 Miami to kill a perfect season.

Of course, Pitt has to show up and play the game of its season to do so. And at 2-6 (1-4 ACC), that hasn’t happened all that much this season.

So, let’s take a look at some storylines entering the matchup against the ‘Noles.

What Has ‘Continuity’ Gotten Pitt So Far? 

Israel Abanikanda masked a lot of problems for the Pitt offense last season, but that’s not much of a surprise for those who watched Pitt football last season. I just didn’t expect it to be this bad. I can’t name one thing a Frank Cignetti Jr. offense does well.

I know it may be unfair to say, “Oh, of course they’ll get worse after losing an All-American.” Obviously, having elite skill players is important. Kenny Pickett and Jordan Addison were elite, and that turned out pretty well. But even without a Heisman finalist and Biletnikoff Award winner, there was enough talent last season to win double-digit games.

The offense was OK, good enough for nine wins and a largely successful season, but there was the potential for so much more. You take away last season’s All-American? The offense craters.

Pitt is on its third quarterback of the Frank Cignetti Jr. era, and it’s just not working. The Panthers are way, way down in scoring, racking up fewer yards than ever (especially on the ground) and there hasn’t been any level of consistency.  It’s not unfair to say it’s one of the worst offenses in college football — certainly in the ACC.

Phil Jurkovec didn’t work (and Cignetti actually said that being benched wasn’t reflective of his play), and now Christian Veilleux is having his chance to run the offense. And the big word of the day — especially when it came to quarterback development — was continuity.

Frank Cignetti Jr. Wants Continuity, but What’s That Resulted In So Far?

Pitt Names its Fourth Team Captain

Pitt usually names four captains each season, and while it took a few months to find that fourth captain, he’s finally been named.

Pat Narduzzi announced Thursday night that C’Bo Flemister will serve as Pitt’s fourth captain this season — joining Matt Goncalves, David Green and Shayne Simon, who were announced as captains at the Football Kickoff Luncheon in August.

As Goncalves suffered a season-ending injury in September, it’s been Flemister who has stepped up offensively as a leading presence on and off the field.

“You see, C’Bo has been playing well the last couple weeks, and again he’s also helping to lead our football team as far as just being a leader,” Narduzzi said last month. “I think he’s stepped up with the absence of Matt Goncalves. He’s kind of got some natural leadership skills to him. Our guys have really bought into what he’s all about. He plays his tail off. I mean, he’ll be on any special teams. So he’s played hard.”

Pitt Vet Named Fourth Team Captain With Four Games to Go

Pat Narduzzi Opened the Week With an Apology 

Pat Narduzzi didn’t wait for the Pitt plane to land on the way home from Notre Dame. He went to a few players to discuss what he said following the loss to the Fighting Irish.

And when Pitt held its team meeting Sunday night, he made sure to open with an apology to the entire Pitt football team.

“We had a Sunday night meeting in here, after an emotional Saturday afternoon and evening, but I started off with my players — first thing I said, as I sat here at the podium, I apologized to our guys, to our football team, about my postgame comments, which didn’t obviously come out the way I intended them to come out,” Narduzzi said Monday at his weekly press conference.

“Sometimes that happens, but I looked at it over the last 48 hours, 24 hours, and there’s nothing worse than a loss. Losses hurt. The first thing I did was jump on the plane and watch the video on the iPad, but the loss hurts and everybody in that locker room was hurt. But when you feel like your players are hurt from something the head coach said, that hurts even worse. It makes you sick to your stomach. I didn’t get a whole lot of sleep last night.”

Narduzzi met with players Sunday, some early Monday and he’s always emphasized that his office door is always open. And he feels like his players understand him well after what transpired late Saturday night.

Pat Narduzzi Opened Pitt Sunday Team Meeting With Apology

A Couple True Freshmen Bear Watching Going Forward 

Pat Narduzzi won’t say that a Pitt true freshman has his redshirt “burned” if he plays in more than four games his first season, but he also acknowledged that there’s a fine line between just throwing a true freshman out for two or three snaps a game and actually gaining in-game experience with a solid snap count.

Pitt has already had five true freshmen reach the four game limit this season, and at this point in the season, with four games left, there are decisions to be made.

Kenny Johnson, BJ Williams and Jordan Bass have all started games this season, working their way into those legitimate snap counts, and Braylan Lovelace is right there despite not officially making a start this season. Rasheem Biles hasn’t taken many defensive snaps, but he’s been an impact special teamer this season.

I’d imagine as the final month of the season rolls around, barring a four-game win streak to close out the season and earn bowl eligibility, will feature those five true freshmen.

But there are additional Pitt true freshmen who will find themselves receiving increased opportunities, too.

Which Pitt True Freshmen Need to be Watched Going Forward?

Pat Narduzzi Would like to See Additional Eligibility

If COVID-19 had never happened, Kenny Pickett would’ve needed a waiver to play in the 2021 season because he had to suit up against Syracuse in the 2017 season — just before the NCAA moved to four games preserving a redshirt season.

Pat Narduzzi thinks four games is way better than what it used to be, but he still thinks it could be better.

“I think it’s a fantastic rule,” Narduzzi said Thursday at his weekly news conference. “I’m not too sure, with the portal we have right now, why not just let the guys play? And then we’ll worry about — I mean, we’d have probably played (Izzy) Polk, we’d have probably played Cruce (Brookins) last week just to get him in the game and see how he reacted instead of waiting until the No. 4 team in the country comes in.

“It should be unlimited, what are we talking about? Just give them five years and open it up. They’ve changed all kinds of other rules, we’ve got name, image and likeness, we’ve got the transfer portal, why do I have to hold on to him? Let me play him if I want to I won’t feel guilty for playing him for two plays.”

Pat Narduzzi Would Like Five Years of Eligibility for All Players

What Pat Narduzzi Discussed This Week

Pat Narduzzi meets with the media every Monday right at noon, giving a greeting on the way to the stand before the podium in the team meeting room of the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, and this Monday was no different.

There was perhaps an air of expectation this Monday, after Narduzzi’s postgame comments following the massive loss to Notre Dame blew up nationally, and he certainly addressed those comments and how he handled it in-house, but he touched upon a few topics ahead of a week of preparation for No. 4 Florida State.

So, let’s dive in.

Here’s What Pitt HC Pat Narduzzi Talked About This Week

Notre Dame Loss Was Major Learning Opportunity for Christian Veilleux

If the Canadian Flag Football Federation comes calling during the buildup to the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Christian Veilleux will 100% jump on board.

But the Olympics are still a long, long way off, and after a brutal loss to Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. over the week, he can’t afford to look that far ahead. He can’t afford to do anything but approach each day with 100% of his time and dedication. As Charlie Partridge likes to say, it’s about being where your feet are.

So, it may not have been easy, but after flying back from South Bend Saturday night, Veilleux was back at the facility early Sunday to watch film.

“That’s really what Sunday’s about,” Veilleux said Tuesday after practice. “You watch the film, you try to understand the mistakes, learn from them and identify how you can avoid them. So, we had a great Sunday just watching the film. Obviously, it wasn’t fun, but I think we all took something from it, we learned from it and it’s definitely gonna help this week.”

Veilleux completed just 14-of-29 pass attempts (48.3%) for 127 yards with four interceptions against the Irish. It was a poor performance, one in which he never really appeared to be on the same page with his wideouts, and he said that the only thing he can do is learn from it — he made just his third career start, after all.

‘Gotta Learn From It’: Notre Dame Showed Christian Veilleux How Far He Has to Go

What’s Going on With Rodney Hammond Jr. and Gavin Bartholomew?

I don’t think that it would’ve mattered all that much in the end, but the Pitt loss to Notre Dame highlighted exactly how both Rodney Hammond Jr. and Gavin Bartholomew have been under-utilized this season.

Hammond carried the ball just six times (just three times in the first half) for 31 yards. Solid 5.2 yards per carry. And then he had a single carry on Pitt’s eighth, ninth and 11th drives — all in the second half. Eight yards. But that’s better usage than Gavin Bartholomew received against the Fighting Irish.

Bartholomew wasn’t targeted a single time against Notre Dame — despite an emphasis on throwing the ball against a stifling Irish pass defense.

It’s just the continuation of another confusing season offensively, one in which Frank Cignetti Jr. has failed to get the ball to his playmakers. And, you know, that was supposed to be one of his strengths.

I don’t know how Bartholomew — who has been the most consistent offensive threat this season — isn’t afforded the opportunity to have plays schemed up for himself.

What’s Holding Back Rodney Hammond and Gavin Bartholomew?

Frank Cignetti Jr. Can’t Just be a Teacher Anymore

Frank Cignetti Jr. might have the best intentions in the entire world when it comes to his players at Pitt, but that — unfortunately for him — will likely not be enough.

Cignetti has made many stops on his collegiate and professional coaching journey, often pointing out that he’s worked alongside — and with — some of the greatest names in the game. He’s an overwhelmingly positive presence who, by all accounts, wants the absolute best for his players on and off the field.

“We got an unbelievable group of players in this football program,” Cignetti said Wednesday after practice. “Coach Narduzzi’s done an unbelievable job building this culture, not only Christian and Phil in this situation, but our guys give us everything they have. And when you’ve gotta make a tough decision like that, what you love as a coach is that this team loves each other and they compete with each other and they root for each other.”

That’s great. It’s great to love and respect the guys in his room, to come to work every day with a smile and the desire to make a difference on his players, but now more than ever, college football is a business.

Ludwig: It’s Not Enough Just to be a Teacher Anymore