Pitt Football

Pitt Camp Notes: More Developments as Second Scrimmage Looms

Published

4 weeks ago

March 27, 2025

Pitt freshman quarterback Mason Heintschel at spring camp on March 27, 2025 / Ed Thompson. PSN.

PITTSBURGH — Pitt football wrapped up its eighth spring practice of the year on Thursday at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on the South Side as the team readies for another Saturday spring scrimmage.

While the quarterbacks and offense were shaky in the first scrimmage, head coach Pat Narduzzi was pleased with what he saw from the offense from an execution standpoint during the third week of camp.

“Completing the ball. Quarterbacks were moving around in the pocket, protection was good and they’re making plays with their feet. Completing balls. When you’re completing balls, the sticks are moving. When the sticks are moving, you’re going to score touchdowns. We did a coming out period today. Started the ball at the one and the offense took it all the way down the field for a touchdown, so it was good to go 99,” Narduzzi said.

The media received a full seven periods of viewing on Thursday — the most all spring.

With the second scrimmage looming, here are some more notes and observations from Pitt practice No. 8 on the South Side.

WRs — I spent the day watching the wide receivers work on their route running skills and haul in passes from all four quarterbacks. Kenny Johnson continues to show why he is the No. 1 receiver in this room. He runs smooth routes and makes catching deep balls look effortless. Deuce Spann looks the part of a 6-foot-4 receiver as he is becoming a potential sideline threat and option to take the top off the defense. The offensive staff has seen some good things out of him as of late. Louisville transfer Cataurus Hicks is working as the second wide out right now on the outside and he certainly has the speed and route running ability to be a major factor in the Kade Bell’s offense. Zion Fowler-El continued to look good by making people miss after the catch. If there’s one young receiver that I think could make an impact very soon, it’s Tony Kinsler. He runs crisp routes, has quick feet and his catch radius reminds me of what we saw from Konata Mumpfield at his pro day.

Pitt wide receiver Zion Fowler-El at Pitt spring camp on March 27, 2025 / Ed Thompson. PSN.

Cam Sapp — I wanted to give Sapp his own love. The freshman had his rough moments in practice and was coached up multiple times by JJ Laster on finishing through his routes, but he also stood out and made some plays. At one point, he hauled in a beautiful sideline pass from Eli Holstein that was right over the fingertips of a DB. A few plays later, he burned past the entire secondary for a deep ball reception. He’s also working on fielding punts. Sapp still has plenty of developing to do, but he could be a nice, speedy piece in multiple areas for the Panthers in the future.

Pitt freshman wide receiver Cam Sapp pulls in a pass during spring practice on March 27, 2025 / Ed Thompson. PSN.

Mason Heintschel — More notes on the freshman signal caller as he continues to make plays in practice. In watching him, I saw a young quarterback with maturity going through reads and making completions. He has this tight and quick throwing motion to him. Also, I was told that Heintschel completed in the area of 70 percent of his passes at the spring scrimmage on Saturday and did not have a turnover. The staff has been rather impressed with him so far as he is bringing some welcomed competition to the QB room with Julian Dugger and Eli Holstein.

Pitt freshman quarterback Mason Heintschel throws a pass during spring camp on March 27, 2025 / Ed Thompson. PSN.

Kickers — As Ben Sauls boomed kicks at the Pitt pro day on Wednesday, it begged the question of how are Pitt’s current kickers progressing in camp with Murray State transfer James London and redshirt sophomore Sam Carpenter. Narduzzi shed some light on the two Thursday: “They started off slow with that wind last week. They finished really good. I was happy with our kickers last week. First time in the stadium kicking in live situations. We had a two-minute drill today. We always have situations for our ACC championship period at the end. We take a former two-minute that we had. A real two-minute. It was the 2016 Clemson game. We kind of replayed that. Both kickers went down and, shoot, I think Sam Carpenter had a 51 yarder at the end I think. James London got lucky. Got a little closer with the other offense, but both down the middle. Those are clutch kicks. Pressure’s on, noise is up and guys are yelling. I’m happy with what I saw out of those guys here after eight.”

Battle brewing at middle linebacker? — Linebacker Braylan Lovelace was very productive for the Panthers last season and was overshadowed at times by Kyle Louis, Rasheem Biles and Brandon George. He finished fifth with 53 tackles and fourth with 10.5 tackles for loss. With George and Keye Thompson gone from the ‘mike’ linebacker position up the middle, Lovelace has moved in to take over the starting role. However, Narduzzi indicated, not so fast. Sophomore Jeremiah Marcelin, who burned his redshirt last season, is impressing in camp so far and a battle seems to be brewing for that spot. Narduzzi stated, “Jeremiah’s right there. Jeremiah and Lovelace can play either one. Last week, Lovelace got some reps at the ‘mike.’ Jeremiah played ‘mike’ and played boundary backer, the ‘money’ spot, too. They’re still fighting at the ‘mike’ spot.” Marcelin has the size at 6-2, 235 pounds, speed and physicality to replace George at ‘mike.’