Pitt HC Pat Narduzzi Gives ‘Update’ on QB Eli Holstein

Pat Narduzzi doesn’t usually answer questions about injuries. So, when he was asked Monday about the status of Eli Holstein, who left early in the loss to Virginia with an apparent head injury, he kept it vague.

“Everybody is playing Saturday except Branson Taylor,” Narduzzi said Monday at his weekly press conference. “You won’t see Branson.”

But still, does Narduzzi anticipate Holstein playing against Clemson?

“Depends what (athletic trainer) Chris Hanks tells me,” Narduzzi said. “Our doctors make all those decisions. I wish I could tell you. I don’t even go down to the training room to see. I stay out of the training room. That’s not my job. My job is to coach football and let some of the best medical trainers in the country take care of — if you could sneak down to the training room, you might find out.”

Holstein left midway through the third quarter in a loss to Virginia with an apparent head injury, taking a high, hard hit from Virginia linebacker Trey McDonald as he slid on a second-and-4 conversion. McDonald was ejected for targeting, and Holstein — after being attended to on the field — went into the medical tent.

Holstein spent some time in the tent before heading to the locker room, missing the remainder of the game. Pat Narduzzi said Holstein seemed “okay” after the game.

“We don’t talk about injuries, but he seemed okay in the locker room,” Narduzzi said Saturday night.

Of course, Narduzzi said something similar after Holstein was knocked out of the game against Syracuse a couple of weeks ago. So, it bears watching. He was obviously rattled after taking the late hit.

He completed 10-of-23 pass attempts (43%) for 121 yards in the game. No touchdowns, no interceptions. And he benefited from some near misses as he attempted to make plays out of nothing. It’s an admirable trait until it hurts the team.

Holstein showed some signs of his old self, but he looked overwhelmed against Virginia. He skipped screen passes across the turf, missed Konata Mumpfield running over the middle of the field a couple of times and just looked rattled. He’s looked rattled for weeks, and for whatever reason, the Pitt coaching staff hasn’t been able to settle him down.

It was particularly disappointing against Virginia — a Cavaliers pass defense that entered the night 126th in passing defense nationally.

Holstein has completed 177-of-286 pass attempts (62%) for 2,177 yards with 17 touchdowns and six interceptions, adding 79 carries for 323 yards (4.1 yards per carry) and three touchdowns.

Eli Holstein has had his fair share of ups and downs this season, but he’s still a first-year starter figuring things out. If he can go, he should be out on the field. No. 23 Clemson is likely the toughest test this season, and even through the ups and downs, Holstein is the best option under center.

Pitt and Clemson are scheduled to kick off at noon at Acrisure Stadium on Saturday, and it’s a situation that bears watching this week.