Recap: No. 19 Pitt Makes Life Miserable for Syracuse in Huge Win

PITTSBURGH — It wasn’t surprising that Pitt racked up 17 points in the first quarter against Pitt. It was surprising that the Pitt linebackers caught more passes than the wide receivers in the first quarter.

Pitt picked off Syracuse quarterback Kyle McCord three times in the first quarter, returning two for touchdowns, and set the tone for a thoroughly dominant defensive effort against the Orange. A missed Syracuse 48-yard field goal coming out of the final two minute warning secured a 41-13 win for the Panthers.

Eli Holstein completed 11-of-15 pass attempts for 108 yards and two touchdowns before leaving in the fourth quarter with an apparent injury, replaced by Nate Yarnell. The offense managed just 202 yards of offense, but Holstein didn’t need to do much as the defense swarmed a helpless McCord all night, forcing him into five interceptions.

Pittsburgh Panthers linebacker Kyle Louis (9) October 24, 2024 Photo by David Hague/PSN

The Pitt linebacking corps did its job — and then some — in the first quarter.

Rasheem Biles got it started, jumping a McCord pass intended for wideout Trebor Pena. He undercut Pena and raced 35 yards back to the end zone to open the scoring.

Brandon George didn’t score any points himself, but his interception lying on the turf — on his stomach — might just be the Interception of the Year. Javon McIntyre broke up a pass intended for ‘Cuse tight end Oronde Gadsen II, the ball bounced into the air and George somehow secured it before it hit the turf.

A 49-yard Ben Sauls field goal stretched the lead and set a program record for the most consecutive made field goals.

Kyle Louis, not wanting to be outdone, picked off another pass intended for Gadsen and raced 59 yards back to the end zone. 17-0, Pitt.

Pitt forced a ‘Cuse three-and-out to open the second quarter, and Holstein and the offense finally started to click. A flurry of Reid carries set up a 20-yard touchdown connection between Holstein and Censere Lee.

The offense wasn’t able to string together any drives in the first half, but the defensive dominance continued. Pitt punted late in the second quarter, which gave ‘Cuse just about a minute and a half to get some points before the half. Instead, McCord threw another pick, which was returned for a touchdown by Braylan Lovelace.

Pitt: 31, Syracuse, 0, at the half.

Syracuse finally cracked the Pitt defense to start the second half, rattling off an 18-play drive that burned nearly 10 minutes off the clock. McCord pushed into the end zone from a yard out.

The sluggish Pitt offensive performance continued into the third quarter, but so did the interceptions. Jordan Bass deflected a McCord pass over the middle, knocking it into the air, and P.J. O’Brien Jr. came down with the fifth Pitt pick. Holstein hit Poppi Williams three plays later, a 29-yard strike over the middle of the field for a touchdown.

Holstein remained in the game in the fourth quarter despite a 32-point lead and left with an apparent injury after a hard tackle along the sideline following a 13-yard gain.

Yarnell entered the game in relief, finishing a drive for Holstein that resulted in a 57-yard field goal by Sauls (the second-longest of his career). Syracuse responded with a touchdown (a 2-yard rush by ‘Cuse tight end Dan Villari), but it was far too little and far too late.

McCord tripped over his own feet on a third-and-11, losing 15 yards, and it summed up a night that went horribly wrong for McCord and the Orange.

Pitt (7-0, 3-0 ACC) has a mini-bye before flying to Dallas, Texas in two weeks to play No. 22 SMU at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in what is shaping up to be a massive conference clash.