As the quarterback depth chart for Pitt dwindled in the past few weeks, it opened the opportunity for Penn Hills product and true freshman Julian Dugger to receive the first snaps of his collegiate career.
Near the end of the first quarter in the GameAbove Sports Bowl against Toledo, Dugger trotted on the field after starter David Lynch drove the Panthers down to the Toledo 14-yard line.
With Pitt lined up in the red zone, Dugger was called upon in a designed package for the young quarterback. On his first-career snap, Dugger took off up the middle for eight yards. Dugger than picked up another three yards on the following play to gain the first down to the Toledo 3-yard line.
With the help of Dugger, it set up Pitt to score its first touchdown of the game as Lynch would hand it off to running back Desmond Reid for the 3-yard score to make it 9-6 Pitt.
The 6-foot-3 signal caller came in this season and redshirted for Pitt. However, with Eli Holstein out with injury and Nate Yarnell and Ty Dieffenbach hitting the transfer portal, Dugger quickly slid into the backup role for the Panthers’ bowl game in Detroit, Mich.
Prior to Pitt, Dugger starred at Penn Hills, leading the Indians to a WPIAL Class-5A Northeast title and a run in the WPIAL playoffs during his senior season. Dugger completed 101-of-192 pass attempts (53%) for 1,646 yards and 20 touchdowns, while adding 126 carries for 776 yards (6.2 yards per carry) and 11 touchdowns.
The Penn Hills product was rated the nation’s No. 17 dual-threat quarterback prospect by Rivals.
