Pitt had a convincing 47-14 win over Virginia Tech on Saturday afternoon. The Panthers improved to 5-4 on the season and have now won back to back games after a tough four-game losing streak in the middle of the season. Here are five things that stood out about the win.
Overcoming the losses
Pitt announced prior to today’s game that the team would be without 16 players due to COVID related protocols. Among the 16 players out on Saturday, the Panthers were down three starting offensive linemen, leading receiver Jordan Addison, starting safety Brandon Hill, and star linebacker SirVocea Dennis. Pitt did not bat an eye without so many key players available against Virginia Tech. The Panthers started Carson Van Lynn, Blake Zubovic, and Matt Goncalves on the offensive line and the trio helped pave the way for 556 yards of total offense. In the absence of Jordan Addison, DJ Turner stepped up and had one of the best performances for a Pitt wide receiver in Pitt history. The defense missed the impact of Hill and Dennis, but the stars on that side of the ball shined bright and Pitt held Virginia Tech to just two touchdowns, both in the first half. The Hokies were just 3-of-11 on third down conversions and Pitt turned them over twice. It was a complete team victory, and given all the personnel the team has lost throughout the season coupled with the COVID absences for today, it made the win and the nature of the win that much more impressive.
Turner Dominates
DJ Turner caught 15 passes for 184 yards and a touchdown. The 15 catches are the second most for a Pitt receiver in a single-game in school history. With the absence of leading receiver Jordan Addison, Turner became the focal point of the offense and it was apparent early on he was going to be the go-to-guy. He caught seven passes in the first quarter and quarterback Kenny Pickett was looking for him often after that. Turner was one of the ten seniors that participated in senior day at Heinz Field today and the expectation for him is that he will move on after this season. He has had a couple of big games this year and obviously would be a big boost to the team in 2021, but a performance like this might have him thinking about the next level if that's already in his head.
Pickett’s last stand
It is hard to imagine we just watched the last start of Kenny Pickett’s career at Heinz Field. It’s been an up and down ride for the senior quarterback these past three seasons as the starter, but he put on a show in his final start at home. Pickett attempted a career-high 52 passes and finished with 404 yards of passing, the second 400-yard game of his career. He threw for two touchdowns and rushed for another. Pickett oversaw an offense that racked up over 550 yards of total offense on the day. He missed on some throws early and threw a bad interception, but he brushed those aside and still finished strong in the blowout win and avenged a 28-0 loss to the Hokies from last season. Pickett still has two more games left in his career, but finished strong at Heinz Field this afternoon.
About the Hokies
I wouldn’t classify Pitt and Virginia Tech as a rivalry, though I do think it’s usually a big game for both teams every season. After years of playing in the Big East and ACC Coastal together, there’s a lot of familiarity between the two programs. I think since Pat Narduzzi and Justin Fuente have taken over their respective programs there has also been some added juice to the game. There’s a mutual respect there, but it also feels like both coaches like to beat one another more than just an ordinary game. Pitt beat Virginia Tech by 30 two years ago, with the Hokies blanking Pitt 28-0 last year. The Panthers came punching back this year with a 33-point victory today. Pitt is now 6-1 all-time against Virginia Tech at Heinz Field. The Panthers are 4-4 against Virginia Tech since joining the ACC, and Narduzzi himself is 3-3 against the Hokies since arriving at Pitt in 2015. It’s a close series, and one that Virginia Tech will be circling when the schedule comes out for next year.
Nothing to lose next week
Nobody is going to expect Pitt to beat Clemson next week. Nobody. The Tigers are ranked fourth in the nation and are still very much alive for the College Football Playoffs. Clemson also had an unexpected bye week today when Florida State backed out of the game at the last minute, so it will also be an anxious football team when Pitt comes to town next week. As for Pitt, they can go into Death Valley next week and take chances and see what happens on Saturday. Pitt will try to pressure Heisman candidate Trevor Lawrence as best they can with one of the nation’s top pass rushes. The Pitt offense that has looked competent in recent weeks will try to spread the ball around with Kenny Pickett throwing to guys like DJ Turner and Jordan Addison. Pitt is not expected to win next week, in fact most won’t expect the Panthers to even keep it close. This season has not gone as planned for this program, and there’s no denying that. This season was supposed to be a breakout year and it never came into being. The team did not fold after the four-game losing streak, and with the confidence of winning two blowouts in back to back games especially given the circumstances has to be a big boost to this team heading into next week.
