Pitt defense exceeding high expectations
MORE FROM PITT'S WIN OVER LOUISVILLE - Inside the offensive numbers: Who played and who produced against Louisville | More opportunities after first 3-0 start in six years | 10 thoughts on the game | PODCAST: The Drive Home after Louisville | Rundown: What stood out in Pitt's win over Louisville | Narduzzi on beating Louisville, a dominant defense and more | Video: Narduzzi, Pickett, Kessman, Jones and Pinnock on the win | Box score: Pitt 23, Louisville 20
The Pitt defense entered the 2020 season with plenty of hype. The Panthers had returning talent, depth, and upside across the board and were coming off an impressive 2019 season.
Through three games, Pitt is not only meeting those high expectations, but it is exceeding them. The Panthers pitched a gem on Saturday in a 23-20 win over No. 24 Louisville at Heinz Field. Pitt registered seven sacks, recorded 12 tackles for loss, and forced three turnovers.
Pitt held Louisville to 1-of-11 on third down conversions and the Cardinals finished with just 223 yards of total offense.
Those numbers would be impressive against any opponent, but Louisville is not an ordinary offense. The Cardinals boast one of the best and fastest offenses in the ACC, and they struggled to find success against the stout Pitt defense.
Pitt heard all week about Louisville’s speed, but that did not deter the expectations heading into Saturday. Senior cornerback Jason Pinnock sealed the game with an interception in the final minutes, and he wasn’t wowed by his team’s performance.
“I wouldn’t say it was impressive, because it was expected,” Pinnock said. “It’s exciting that it’s coming into play.”
Senior defensive end Patrick Jones echoed those thoughts. Jones finished with a team-high three sacks and was part of a unrelenting Pitt pass rush on Saturday.
“I agree with J Pinny saying that because we work so hard and everything we do is not given to us, it’s through hard work and we strive to be the best in the country,” he said. “Me personally I feel like we left some stuff out there on the field and like you said that one big run, we should not have gave that up. We got to go back and fix that because we can’t be giving up stuff like that if we want to be the best in the country.”
Pitt did allow a few big plays. Louisville running back Javian Hawkins broke loose for a 75-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, but he was limited to just three yards on his 11 other carries. The Cardinals also took advantage of a short field as the speedy TuTu Atwell got behind the defense and caught a 21-yard touchdown pass.
Other than that, the Cardinals could hardly breathe. Louisville quarterback Micale Cunningham entered Saturday’s game as the ACC’s leading passer with 650 yards and and six touchdowns through two games, but he only completed nine passes for 107 yards and was picked off three times and was sacked seven times.
Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi always deflected praise from his defense last season. He kept challenging them to be better, but following the game on Saturday even Narduzzi admitted this performance was something special.
“It's been really impressive,” Narduzzi said of his team's defensive effort through three weeks. “Randy Bates, Charlie Partridge, Coach Harley, Coach Sanders, Coach Collins, the defensive staff has done an unbelievable job.”
Louisville dropped to 1-2 following the loss and the Cardinals lost to Miami last week. Despite the loss, the Cardinals posted over 500 yards of total offense and showed big play potential throughout. There wasn’t much of that on Saturday aside from those two plays.
“You saw what they did to Miami, a great Miami defense a week ago, and then you look at what they did to a Pitt defense,” said Narduzzi. “It's a little different deal when you line up against a Pitt defense.”
The Panthers dominated on defense, but the offense failed to create separation in the second half. Each time the Pitt offense sputtered, the defense was more than willing to pick up the slack. It’s something the team embraces.
“You’ve got to love it,” Pinnock said of playing in a close game. “I love the pressure. I came from pressure. So we go out there after the interception or the fumble, whatever they called that on Kenny Pickett. We’re out there dancing. We practice sudden change and embrace it.”
Pitt's defense passed its first real test on Saturday, but will see other talented offenses in the team’s final eight games. The notoriety of this defense is rising throughout the country, and the expectations remain high internally.
Patrick Jones said he wants for Pitt to be the best defense in the country. He was what that meant exactly and he wasn't shy about the goals he and his teammates have.
“Everything. We want everything. We want it all. We want to be the best in every single category, there’s not a category we don’t want the No. 1 in, we’re coming for it all,” said Jones.