First half

Pitt played its sloppiest half of football in the 2020 season, but the Panthers only find themselves trailing 17-14 at the break. Pitt got off to a strong start, as Kenny Pickett found Jordan Addison all alone for a 75-yard score as North Carolina State had a blown coverage. :28 seconds into the game the Panthers had a quick 7-0 lead, but it got muddy from there.

North Carolina State executed a 17-play 75-yard drive that chewed 6:21 off the game clock. The drive was aided by multiple Pitt penalties, which proved to be the theme of the half. The Panthers committed 10 penalties for 90 yards, including some costly ones that kept the defense on the field.

Pitt had trouble possessing the ball on offense throughout much of the first half. Pitt was forced to punt on three straight possessions after the early touchdown and only ran a total of 12 plays during that stretch of drives.

North Carolina State grabbed the lead on a field goal on another time consuming drive that went for 10 plays and 60 yards. The Wolfpack added to that lead when Leary hit Emeka Emezie for a 35-yard touchdown, once again that drive was aided by a costly Pitt penalty.

Pitt had little success on the ground. Pickett leads the team with 26 yards, but running backs Vincent Davis and Israel Abanikanda have combined for 14 yards on ten carries. Pitt opened up the offense late in the second quarter with some success. Pickett hit Shocky Jacques-Louis for a 45-yard gain and Tre Tipton for a 19-yard pass on the sideline.

The drive eventually stalled as Pickett took a big hit, which was subsequently called a targeting, which forced him out of the game. Freshman Davis Beville threw an incompletion in his lone pass attempt. Alex Kessman eventually nailed a 27-yard field goal to cut into the lead at 17-10 with 4:50 to go in the half.

The Pitt defense finally looked like itself and forced another punt to close out the half. D.J. Turner had a nice 25-yard return to set Pitt up in North Carolina State territory. The Panthers then ran a 10-play drive capped off by a 29-yard Kessman field goal to make it 17-13 Wolfpack, as that was the score at the break.

Third quarter

The Pitt defense had another strong possession. The Panthers forced North Carolina State to a three-and-out and got the ball back. Offensively, Pitt kept picking up big yards through the air. Pickett hit Mack for completions of 12 yards and seven yards before hooking up with D.J. Turner for gains of 32 and 27. Pitt was held out of the end zone, however, as the Wolfpack stuffed the Panthers on 4th goal and from the one.

Pitt took the lead back on a one-yard quarterback keep from Kenny Pickett. The Panthers executed a 10-play 73-yard drive that was highlighted by a 23 yard pas from Pickett to D.J. Turner that was initially ruled a touchdown. After review, the ball was placed at the one and Pickett plunged in to give Pitt a 20-17 lead with 1:11 remaining in the third quarter.

Fourth quarter

Pitt 23, NC State 17 10:52

Pitt added to its lead on a 42-yard field goal from Alex Kessman. Kenny Pickett has 360 passing yards on the day, and moved into sixth place all-time in career passing yardage in school history. He connected with D.J. Turner on a big gain to move the Panthers into Wolfpack territory.

North Carolina State 24, Pitt 23 8:16

North Carolina State takes the lead back on a 25-yard touchdown pass from Devin Leary to Cary Angeline on a third down attempt. It marks the first time Pitt has allowed a defensive touchdown in the second half this season.

Pitt 29, NC State 24 1:44

Kenny Pickett plunged in for his second rushing touchdown on the day from one yard out to give Pitt a late lead over NC State. The Panthers worked a 13-play 75-yard drive that took off 6:32 from the game clock. Pickett set a career-high for passing yards in a single-game with 383 on the drive. The Panthers attempted a two-point conversion, but Taysir Mack dropped it in the end zone leaving the Panthers with just a five-point lead.

North Carolina State 30, Pitt 29 Final

The Wolfpack scored a touchdown on an 8-play 79 yard drive in the final 1:44 of the game. Leary connected with Emezie once again. Pitt was unable to do much in the final :15 seconds of the game. The Panthers drop to 3-1 on the season.