The Pitt offense needed a jolt heading into the 2020 season. The coaching staff tried to address that on the recruiting trail and brought in a number of true freshmen with speed to help strengthen the offense. The coaches also remained active on the graduate transfer market and brought in a multiple players they felt could impact the team immediately.

Those newcomers shined bright on Saturday in Pitt’s 55-0 win over Austin Peay. It remains to be seen how these players will respond as the competition level increases, but Saturday showed that these newcomers will have big roles this season.

The talk of training camp all along has been true freshman Jordan Addison, and he did not disappoint in his college debut. The Maryland native hauled in a team-high seven receptions for 35 yards, had a 15-yard run, and handled the punt return duties without any issues.

Addison came close to a splash play on the first drive, but the ball slipped out of his hands. Despite not finding the end zone on Saturday, it’s very clear that quarterback Kenny Pickett will be looking for Addison often this season.

“I wanted to get him some touches early, like I said previously this week," Pickett explained. “I think he did a great job. Explosive kid, showed that today and I’m excited to build off this one going into next week.”

Fellow freshman Jaylon Barden did not generate the buzz that Addison did during camp, but he came down with one of the bigger highlight reel plays of the afternoon. Barden got open for a 68-yard pitch and catch from Pickett and nearly scored before being pushed out at the one-yard line.

“We had that play dialed up all week,” Pickett said of the deep ball to Barden. “There was a couple of close shots that we had and when you get the call in and you see the look that you want and we got the same look that we practiced, he did his job and I just had to put it out there for him.”

D.J. Turner was a late addition to the team as a graduate transfer from Maryland, but it did not take him long to make an impact. Turner caught two passes for 76 yards, including a 51-yard scoring strike from Pickett.

“He was a huge pickup for us, very underrated I think looking at it a week and a half ago and now seeing how well he’s done at picking up the offense,” the Pitt quarterback said. "I hope we get more and more plays added for him with his versatility and what he can do moving forward.”

A pair of freshman running backs also made an impact. Israel Abanikanda and Daniel Carter both found the end zone on Saturday and look like two players that can continue to receive more carries as the season progresses.

The one offensive newcomer that did not play was tight end Lucas Krull. The Florida graduate transfer entered this season with a lot of hype, but sat out Saturday’s game due to an injury. Pat Narduzzi seemed optimistic he could have played if he was really needed, and should be ready to go for next week’s ACC opener against Syracuse.

“We chose to hold him and get him 100 percent,” said Narduzzi. "I didn't want 99 percent Lucas Krull. I wanted a hundred percent Lucas Krull and he'll be ready to go for the ACC opener.”

Pickett is looking forward to adding another weapon to the mix next week.

“I’m very excited for it,” he said of Krull’s pending Pitt debut. “He had a great scrimmage prior to game week, so I think he’s itching to get out there and he’s just got to take care of what he’s got to take care and he’ll be ready to go.”