Big home win is one for 'Panther Nation,' Narduzzi says

Pat Narduzzi appreciated the fact that Pitt had notched historic wins in recent history. He recruited on the strength of the Panthers’ upset of No. 2 Clemson last year, and the specter of the 2007 win over No. 2 West Virginia still lingers in the halls of Pitt’s football facilities.

But he had an issue with those games. It’s not that he didn’t like the wins; he just didn’t like where they took place.

The 13-9 win over West Virginia 10 years ago was in Morgantown. The 43-42 win over Clemson last year was in South Carolina.

“I said, it’s about time it happens in Pittsburgh,” Narduzzi said Friday afternoon after his team did exactly that:

They upset No. 2 Miami at Heinz Field.

The Hurricanes were the highest-ranked opponent to lose to the Panthers in a home game since 1941 when Pitt beat No. 3 Fordham at Pitt Stadium.

“It’s a big-time win in Pittsburgh, maybe one of the biggest wins you’ve had in the city of Pittsburgh for Pitt football,” Narduzzi said.

As would be expected in the season finale for a 4-7 team the day after Thanksgiving, the crowd at Heinz Field wasn’t overwhelming. Attendance was officially announced at 35,978 - a total that took a hit from most of the student section being empty due to the holiday weekend.

But the attendance was largely par for the course this season. Pitt has announced crowds of less than 40,000 for five of the seven home games in 2017, including the last three. Only Youngstown State and N.C. State drew more than 40,000; the game against the Wolfpack was announced at 41,124, and that was the high-water mark for games at Heinz Field this season.

That’s the lowest “top attendance” for a season since 2007 - a season that was notable because it too ended with Pitt knocking off the No. 2 team in the nation. The next year, enthused by the outcome of that win over West Virginia, the fans showed up.

In 2008, Pitt announced crowds in excess of 50,000 three times (Iowa, Rutgers and West Virginia) and never announced a total of less than 42,494. Penn State being on the home schedule will help the attendance for next season, but the biggest boost will come from what happened on Friday.

With an exciting quarterback, an emerging defense and a very big win to ride into the offseason, the Pitt football program gave its fans something to look forward to. And while the crowd on Friday wasn’t big, the fans in attendance found their voices on more than a few occasions.

After the first quarter ended and Pitt was leading the No. 2 Hurricanes, the crowd got loud. With each subsequent third-down stop, the noise grew. When freshman quarterback Kenny Pickett showed speed and toughness to run for two touchdowns, it seemed to reach a fevered pitch. And when Dewayne Hendrix recovered an Avonte Maddox-forced fumble to end Miami’s final drive, the proverbial roof blew off the building.

“That’s for all the Panther Nation out there,” Narduzzi said.