Nothing about Pat Narduzzi’s 10th season should be shocking news for anyone who has followed the passionate coach throughout his time at Pitt.
He loves his players. Sincerely, I believe.
Many of them love him back, especially the 14 players who have publicly announced their intentions to stay the course and return in 2025. Most notably, that number includes quarterback Eli Holstein and running back Desmond Reid, who amassed 1,700 all-purpose yards this season, many of them secured while at least one of his extremities or muscle groups throbbed with pain.
Yes, NIL funding and Alliance 412, Pitt’s collective, deserve part of the credit for helping to keep those players on campus.
OK, that’s the good news.
The bad news takes on many layers, starting with the basic win/loss record.
There is something to be said for Narduzzi standing No. 2 overall in victories (72) among Pitt’s all-time head coaches, behind only the legendary Jock Sutherland (111), whose tenure began 100 years ago. Narduzzi’s loyalty to the program matters greatly. Only Sutherland (1924-38) and John Michelosen (1955-65) coached Pitt longer.
But Pitt fans — and Narduzzi himself — expected more after winning an ACC championship in 2021 and 20 games over the ’21 and ’22 seasons. Big picture: Pitt has lost at least five games in eight of the 10 seasons, 15 in the past two when there should have been momentum.
Let’s take injuries out of the equation. All teams lose good players at some point. And, remember, Holstein was initially hurt while running a keeper against Syracuse in the fourth quarter of a game Pitt was leading 38-6. That’s coaching. Holstein started the next game, but he did not play to his previous standard.
Also, there wasn’t enough depth on the offensive line to successfully withstand the loss of tackle Branson Taylor and others. That’s recruiting.
The most puzzling aspects of Pitt’s season-ending six-game losing streak, the longest since 1998, were the failures on defense. That’s Narduzzi’s wheelhouse. That’s why Pitt hired him in 2014 after eight seasons as Michigan State’s defensive coordinator.
Maybe nothing illustrated Pitt’s problems on defense more than Toledo quarterback Tucker Gleason standing in the pocket with time to throw for 336 yards, two touchdowns in regulation and four conversion passes in overtime of a 48-46 win Thursday in the GameAbove Sports Bowl. He was sacked only once in a 4-hour, 38-minute game.
Then, only hours after the game, freshman defensive end Sincere Edwards, a backup to redshirt senior Nate Matlack, told Rivals he is planning to transfer. Edwards showed promise this season, with three sacks and six TFLs.
The five-game losing streak was bad enough — losing to Virginia and Clemson when victory was within Pitt’s reach was inexcusable — but now it stands at six after another one that got away.
Narduzzi did not coach a good game at Ford Field on Thursday, especially when he ordered a field goal from the 1 in the second overtime when a touchdown would have won the game. He showed no faith in an offensive line that played a big part in the Panthers rushing for 301 yards in regulation.
It was almost a repeat of the 2019 Penn State game where Narduzzi also ordered a field goal from the 1 in the final five minutes of a 17-10 loss. That game might have been Pitt’s last chance to defeat the Nittany Lions, with no games scheduled in the foreseeable future.
He also lived in his fears when he wouldn’t let Ben Sauls try a 69-yard field goal at the end of regulation. He said he was concerned about a return for a touchdown if the kick fell short. Julian Dugger was sacked, never getting a chance to throw a desperation pass into the end zone.
Yes, 69 is 3 yards longer than the NFL record, and Narduzzi was right to worry about a return. But he allowed the clock to tick down to one second before calling a timeout. The previous play was snapped at 35 seconds. There would have been time for one more sideline pass to create a shorter field goal try.
Sauls might have missed, but what a story if Narduzzi had gambled with his most reliable point producer. Sauls ended his final season at Pitt hitting 21 of 24 attempts, including 6 of 7 from 50 yards or longer. He hit from 57 with some yardage to spare earlier in the game, and he had a school-record-tying 58 yarder at Acrisure Stadium this season.
Finally, Narduzzi deserves credit for sticking with Dugger, the freshman from Penn Hills, when it became obvious Thursday he was the quarterback best suited to run the offense. He ran for 88 yards, threw two touchdown passes in regulation and got his team across the goal line four times in overtime.
Why didn’t Dugger start the game over walk-on David Lynch?
Narduzzi mentioned Lynch is older, and that’s true — by 15 months. He’s been in the program only since the spring of 2023, about a year long than Dugger. Both quarterbacks threw a pick-six, but Dugger is clearly more athletic and a better playmaker.
After losing two quarterbacks in the transfer portal, did Narduzzi find a quality backup for Holstein? After all, he was performing against a Mid-American Conference defense. That’s a question to be answered over the next several months.
Dugger played courageously and produced almost as well as Holstein did early in the season. But he’s 19 and has much to prove in 2025 — just like each of his teammates and, especially, his head coach.
