Israel Abanikanda rushed for 320 yards in Pitt's 45-29 win over Virginia Tech on Saturday. He also scored all six of Pitt touchdowns in the victory. The 320 yards broke a school record for a single game, while the six touchdowns ties a Pitt record. For that performance, Abanikanda has been named the ACC Running Back of the Week.

It marks the third time this season Abanikanda has collected the weekly conference honors. For the season, Abanikanda has rushed for 830 yards and 12 touchdowns, which leads the ACC in both categories. The junior tailback is the second leading rusher in the nation and he is averaging 6.4 yards per carry.

Pitt's passing attack has stumbled out of the gate to the 2022 season, and the team has leaned heavily on the running game led by Abanikanda. He has accounted for 13 of the team's 24 offensive touchdowns.

“I won’t say I had to carry them, I just had to do what I had to do,” Abanikanda said on Saturday. “I did what my job was and just to help my team win, but I’m not the only one that led to that win.”

Abanikanda sparked Pitt's offense with some long touchdown runs on Saturday. Three of his scores went over 25-yards, including an 80-yard dash to the end zone in the fourth quarter, where he hit top end speed almost immediately.

“He's got breakaway speed," Pat Narduzzi said of his star running back. "If he pops through there, good luck to you. There's not many guys that can catch him.”

Abanikanda's game drew national attention as well. He was also named the Walter Camp National player of the week for his performance against Virginia Tech. Pitt has not had a 1,000-yard rusher since 2018, and Abanikanda needs just 170 yards to make it there with half of the regular season still left to play.

One of the players that blocked for that record-breaking performance also got some notoriety. Marcus Minor, Pitt's senior left guard, was named ACC Offensive Linemen of the Week. Pitt generated 496 yards of total offense against the Hokies, but of course the running game gets most of the credit.

Minor was on the field for all six touchdowns scored by Abanikanda. He has started all six games this season, after starting 13 and being named third-team all-conference in 2021.

Pitt is off this weekend and the team stands with a 4-2 record at the halfway point of the season. The Panthers return to action on Saturday October 22nd against Louisville on the road. The Cardinals have the 53rd ranked rushing defense in the country.