Ludwig: Pitt Football Deserves Top 25 Ranking

Not that it really matters all that much in the long run.

But if I had an AP Poll vote, I’d rank Pitt after a win against North Carolina. I was leaning toward it after finishing non-conference play undefeated for the first time, but after a convincing win against North Carolina to kick off conference play, I’m sold.

Pitt won by 10, and while it was closer than it needed to be against UNC, I don’t think the Panthers were ever seriously in doubt.

I know, it’s kind of crazy. Even in a poor performance… Pitt played a pretty poor all-around game and still looked like the better team over the course of 60 minutes. A 10-point win reflected that. Pitt is a better team than North Carolina. A win is a win, but a win against UNC on the road is historic.

Pitt is 5-0 for the first time since 1991, riding the high of a win in Chapel Hill, N.C. for the first time in program history and Eli Holstein might just be the best quarterback in the conference.

I don’t think a spot in an AP Poll that will likely still have Missouri ranked in the top 20 tomorrow means all that much, but if we’re looking at it from a cosmetic standpoint, the Panthers deserve to have that little number next to their name on the scorebug. It’s good to boast a top 25 ranking.

The College Football Playoff poll, which will be released on Nov. 5, is what matters. And Pitt has Cal, Syracuse and SMU on the schedule in that span.

But those preseason polls, pre-CFP polls, in this case, do matter. I think we’re at the point in the season where we can realistically look toward the future. Pitt wants to win the ACC, all 17 member schools do, but the Panthers are a legitimate contender now. They are one of two ACC teams unbeaten through Week 6 — alongside Miami.

Pitt has knocked off Kent State (0-5), Cincinnati (3-2), West Virginia (3-2), Youngstown State (2-4) and UNC (3-3). It’s not exactly murderer’s row, but that’s three Power Four wins — two against Big 12 opponents. Pitt has handled business and controls its future. That’s what matters now.

And it certainly wasn’t a banner weekend for the top-ranked teams in the country. No. 1 Alabama fell to Vanderbilt on the road, setting the tone for seven ranked teams to fall — including four in the top 10.

Alabama, No. 4 Tennessee, No. 9 Missouri, No. 10 Michigan, No. 11 USC, No. 22 Louisville and No. 25 UNLV lost Saturday. It took a monumental comeback (and favorable officiating) for Miami to stave off Cal in a massive comeback.

There were quite a few ranked teams with the weekend off, but in a weekend of upsets, including a couple on the precipice, Pitt has earned a spot.

Pitt was 27th in the most recent AP and Coaches Polls, receiving the second-most votes amongst unranked teams. With a win against UNC, going into a previously unconquered environment and showcasing an offense that can score points at a rapid pace, the Panthers have earned a spot among the best in college football.

Pitt has a star quarterback, maybe the best quarterback in the ACC, and that matters, too. A star quarterback, an explosive offense and a pedigree.

The AP Poll doesn’t have any impact on the actual end-of-the-season rankings, and Pitt still controls its conference and national destiny, but Pitt deserves to be ranked now. And I think the Panthers will be ranked this week. It’s up to Pat Narduzzi and the coaching staff to take this momentum and carry it into the bulk of the conference slate.

Pitt is back in action this weekend against a Cal squad that took No. 8 Miami to the brink, falling in heartbreaking fashion late in the fourth quarter — blowing a 35-10 lead.