CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Pitt improved to 5-0 for the time ever under head coach Pat Narduzzi following the team's 34-24 win over North Carolina on Saturday at Kenan Memorial Stadium. After the game, the Pitt head coach discussed his team's win, here is the full report.

Narduzzi: But first I have to say, that football team. We've got a hell of a football team. We beat a good football team today, make no bones about it. As a good football team, you look at some of the critical plays in the game. I mean, it was just some big time plays, forget fourth down. I mean, they're two of six on fourth down. They went for fourth down six times. We won two out of four. I mean, that won the game right there. They moved the ball on us, offensively, they've got a good football team. They moved it, but our guys bowed up on fourth down. That fourth and one stop at the end, that's huge.

Offense made plays, we scored points, it's just a great team win. I mean, all around, team win, try to go to the knockout punch. We threw the ball on that last series at the end, I think we maybe dropped one in the end zone to really knock them out. But we had no fear of putting our defense out there in a two minute situation, because we've been good at that all year round. Our guys are locked into that. Just a heck of a team win and great effort by our guys.

Questions?

One of the things you talked about and Kade has talked about is changing speeds on offense. In that last drive, I think he took seven minutes off the clock. How important was it to be able to score fast and also drain the clock too?

Narduzzi: Yeah, no doubt about it I mean, we kind of tied in time possession, but talked about milking it, and you gotta love that tick tock on that drive. That was a great drive. And one of our keys to victory was tempo-ing them, gassing them out, trying to get them tired, and then get driving it, though. And that was a heck of a drive there, seven minutes. We ate up the clock, and probably shouldn't have scored a TD. But Ben Sauls, he's automatic, and put two scores there. I think we felt pretty comfortable, but you never know.

Sean Fitzsimmons was at the center that fourth down play that you talked about right in the fourth quarter. I mean, what did it mean to have him in the center for such a big play?

Narduzzi: No question. Sean Fitzsimmons had a great week of practice. He came back healthy. It took him a while to get back, but he was back, and he was in full force. I'm proud of him. It's good to get him back. Probably our best D-tackle didn't play today, so we'll have hopefully Nick James back next week. And we'll be better inside. You still gotta get four man pressure more. I felt like we missed some sacks that we've got to get in the future here. But Sean Fitzsimmons did a nice job today.

It seems like Kyle Louis continues to make plays, especially at the end of the games...

Narduzzi: That was a big, big play. I mean, Kyle Louis, I mean, who doesn't want to send him? I think it was a four man rush at the end, but he was just, that guy's electric, that guy's a football player. He's an all-ACC linebacker, let's just vote for it now. That guy's a player.

We talked about Desmond Reed a lot this year. He had double digit catches out of the backfield. I mean, just kind of what did you think of his performance in the passing game?

Narduzzi: He's unbelievable. He went in, shoot, the trainers did it as fast as you could. Get him an IV real quick, get him out of there, cramped a couple times. So that's all it was, but we got him the IV, great job by our trainers and doctors getting that done and getting him back out on the field.

What'd you make of Eli's performance today? It's the highest passing total for a freshman in Pitt history....

Narduzzi: Yeah, Eli, 381 yards, he's outstanding. EJ, you got that one stat, I don't know if you'll throw it out there. EJ's a stat man. A stat man, what is it?

Pitt SID EJ Borghetti: First Pitt quarterback to win his opening five starts since one Dan Marino in 1979.

Narduzzi: And as you guys know, first time we came down here and got a win in Chapel Hill. So that's huge. I mean, it's just a big time win. I didn't say it to our kids, because it's a different year, it's 2024. Again, our kids fought hard, great effort.

Eli started the game off with that pick six, obviously, but then comes back and piles up more than 400 yards of offense on the ground and through the air. How important was it for him to just have that quick memory and got your offense?

Narduzzi: He's a competitor now, I mean, nothing fazes him. Some quarterbacks would hesitate, but that guy didn't hesitate. He made plays after play after play, whether it's with his feet or with his arm. It's a great performance, it's kinda what he's done all year. So it's expected now.

You guys drove at the end of the first half, you went into UNC Territory, you had a timeout left as you guys went to the locker room. Was there a reason you didn't wanna use that timeout in that situation? When they were driving?

Narduzzi: Yeah, I mean, we were just getting it going here. I didn't use it, thought about using it earlier, but no particular reason. We were going.

What do you think Criswell did well to not get sacked at all today?

Narduzzi: He's a good player, I don't know how good we were underneath coverage. We played a lot of drop coverage, cover two. We'll have to evaluate how our backs played in coverage, but they did a nice job schematically of just finding some voids in the curl and getting backs out of the backfield, chipping and all that. But I think Criswell, he's a good football player, I told you. He's a player, he made some nice throws today. He didn't turn it over, and we lost a turnover margin and won. It's a big time win.

How important is it for Eli to just go on the road like this? I know in Cincinnati he struggled a little bit, but today it seems like he was a pretty solid....

Narduzzi: Eli was Eli, he does what he does, and it's great to get another road win. We talked about being road warriors, and our guys were road warriors.

You said this week, you guys kind of had the mentality of we haven't done anything yet, I mean, what are the emotions, what are the feelings of being 5-0 and having anything?

Narduzzi: Worried about Cal, we're breaking down on the 'Beat Cal'. And the locker room for the dancing and celebration goes on. But we're on to the next, I mean, we'll enjoy this for the evening. And then tomorrow morning, get back to work and work on the next. I mean, it doesn't really matter, each one of these games is important.

We got a really good Cal team, I don't even know who they play. But we got a good Cal team coming in here. Matter of fact, they're on tonight, right? They're like my home team. Gameday is there, I think. I don't even know who they play. Miami, so it'll be a heck of a ball game. Hopefully, I'm home by that time.