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Lyke expresses confidence in football program

In the midst of Pitt’s second consecutive 2-3 start to a season and fresh off a pair of losses, including a blowout loss to a non-Power Five school, Athletic Director Heather Lyke addressed the matter of the Panthers’ football program on Thursday.

“You know, we’re five games in, and, you know, we’ve got a lot of confidence in our players, our student-athletes that are working over there, our coaching staff,” Lyke said at the Petersen Events Center after the unveiling of Pitt Studios.

Pitt’s 2018 season opened with a win over Albany from the FCS ranks, but in Week Two, the Panthers suffered a 51-6 loss to in-state rival Penn State. The team rebounded to beat Georgia Tech at Heinz Field in Week Three but then lost to a winless North Carolina team on the road before getting blown out at Central Florida 45-14 last Saturday.

“I think we’ve lost two games to two really strong programs,” Lyke said. “And then, you know, we lost a game that was close at North Carolina; that was a tough one. But we’ve got a lot of season left to go and I have a lot of confidence in our coaches and our student-athletes.”

Naturally, the reaction on the outside to a 2-3 start with two blowout losses on the heels of the program’s first losing regular-season record since 2007 has been less than positive. Lyke said she largely avoids social media, but didn’t deny that fans have expressed their disappointment.

“I think people - you know, we all have expectations that we want to win and be as competitive as possible, even when you don’t win. So I think people - I like the fact - we want to work in an environment where there’s great expectations. I know our coaches are working as hard as they can to meet those expectations.”

Last December, Lyke signed football coach Pat Narduzzi to a seven-year contract that would keep him at Pitt through 2024.

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