MORE FROM PITT'S WIN OVER DUKE - Box score: Pitt 54, Duke 29 | Slideshow: Pitt beats Duke in Durham | Narduzzi breaks down the win | Five takeaways: Pitt handles Duke | No 24-hour rule, focus turns to UNC
Pitt will host North Carolina in a primetime showdown at Heinz Field Thursday night. Here’s everything you need to get ready for the game.
Time, TV and radio info
Pitt-North Carolina will kick off at 7:30 pm on Thursday night. The game will be broadcast on ESPN, with radio coverage in Pittsburgh on 93.7 The Fan.
What’s the spread?
According to BetMGM, Pitt is a 6-point favorite over North Carolina for Thursday night’s game. The over/under is set at 74.5.
Weather outlook
According to weather.com, Thursday in Pittsburgh will have a high of 66 and a low of 52, with less than 10% chance of precipitation.
Game week schedule
Pat Narduzzi will hold his weekly press conference on Monday at noon. Narduzzi will also have his weekly radio show on 93.7 The Fan at 6 p.m. Monday night, and that will be the extent of Pitt’s media availabilities due to the Thursday night game.
Here on Panther-Lair.com, The Kenny Pickett Show debuts every Wednesday morning and the Panther-Lair Show live stream airs Wednesday nights at 8:30 p.m.
Notes of note
- Pitt is 7-2 overall and 4-1 in the ACC. That’s the Panthers’ best record through nine games since they started the 2009 season 8-1. Pitt got off to a 4-1 start in ACC play in 2015 and 2018; both of those teams eventually climbed to 6-1 in conference games before losing the regular-season finale to Miami (it was Miami in both years) to finish 6-2.
- Pat Narduzzi is now 49-36 overall; with one more win, he can match Jackie Sherrill in total victories as Pitt head coach.
- After passing for 416 yards and rushing for 57 at Duke, Kenny Pickett has accounted for 3,413 yards of total offense. That total ranks third in FBS and second in the Power Five conferences, trailing only Virginia quarterback Brennan Armstrong, who has 3,828 yards of total offense. North Carolina quarterback Sam Howell, who will face Pitt this Thursday at Heinz Field, is No. 6 nationally in total offense, averaging 345.1 yards per game.
- Pickett is No. 5 nationally and No. 3 among Power Five passing leaders with 3,171 yards. He is the first quarterback in Pitt history to post multiple 3,000-yard passing seasons. Pickett now has 11,155 passing yards in his career; with 113 more yards, he will pass Alex Van Pelt as Pitt’s all-time passing leader.
- Pickett can also set the all-time Pitt record for passing yards in a season with 509 yards. And he needs nine touchdown passes to set the Pitt record for passing touchdowns in a season.
Top storylines
- The stakes continue to be high for Pitt heading into Week 11. The Panthers are atop the ACC’s Coastal Division with a 4-1 conference record, but Virginia (4-2) and Miami (3-2) are right behind them with two losses each. The Hurricanes beat Pitt at Heinz Field last weekend, giving them an advantage if the Panthers drop another game. Miami will close the season with a road trip to Florida State (2-4 in the ACC) this weekend, a home game against Virginia Tech (2-3) and a road game at Duke (0-5).
- Virginia has played six conference games and will host Notre Dame on Saturday. After that, the Cavaliers will come to Heinz Field in two weeks prior to hosting Virginia Tech in the season finale.
- Obviously Pitt’s game against Virginia will be significant, but the Panthers also can’t afford to lose any game due to Miami having a tiebreaker advantage.
- Thursday night’s game will feature two of the top offenses in the ACC and the nation. Pitt currently leads the nation in scoring offense and is No. 3 in total offense; North Carolina is No. 11 in scoring offense and No. 9 in total offense.
- After joining the ACC in 2013, Pitt lost six straight to UNC before finally beating the Tar Heels in 2019 during a Thursday night game at Heinz Field. The Panthers and Tar Heels did not meet last season after the ACC adjusted the schedule due to COVID. In the 2019 game, a 34-27 Pitt victory in overtime, Pickett threw for 359 yards and one touchdown and ran for two more scores, while Howell threw for 322 yards and three touchdowns with one interception.
