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Pitt will be missing its most productive defensive tackle for the rest of the season, as Pat Narduzzi announced on Monday that redshirt sophomore Keyshon Camp suffered a season-ending injury.
The injury was described as being “upper body;” Camp suffered the injury in the loss at Notre Dame earlier this month, and he was seen after the game with his arm in a sling. He did not play in Saturday’s win over Duke but started the previous three games, and he finishes the season with 14 total tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.
Camp’s sack total is fourth on the team this season and second among defensive linemen. According to Pro Football Focus, Camp has the second-highest grade in overall defense among Pitt’s linemen this season and is No. 1 among linemen with a pass-rush grade of 77.4.
PFF credits Camp with 16 quarterback pressures this season (in Pitt’s official stats, he has two quarterback hurries); only redshirt sophomore end Rashad Weaver has more pressures, according to PFF.
With Camp out of the lineup, the Pitt coaches listed junior Amir Watts and redshirt freshman Jaylen Twyman as “OR” starters in this week’s depth chart. Previously, Camp and Watts were “OR” starters, with Watts starting the first four games and Camp starting the last three.
Watts made one of Saturday’s biggest plays when he sacked Duke quarterback Daniel Jones on third down to force a punt and set up Pitt’s game-winning touchdown drive in the fourth quarter. Watts had two total tackles in that game and Twyman had one.
Redshirt senior Shane Roy, who has started 20 consecutive games at nose tackle, had two tackles against Duke and has 19 this season, including 1.5 tackles for loss. Redshirt sophomore Rashad Wheeler has been a rotational reserve all season and recorded one tackle against Duke. He has nine tackles on the year, including three tackles for loss and one sack.
With Watts, Twyman, Roy and Wheeler, Pitt can still go two-deep at defensive tackle but the likelihood seems high that the coaches will add a fifth piece to the mix. That could be redshirt freshman Deslin Alexandre, who has split time between defensive end and defensive tackle. Or it could mean the collegiate debut of a true freshman like Devin Danielson.
Danielson, a former Thomas Jefferson standout, traveled with the team to Notre Dame and, more recently, took snaps with second-team defense during warmups for Saturday’s game against Duke. If Danielson gets on the field, he can play in a maximum of four games - in other words, every remaining regular-season game - and still preserve his redshirt.
Fellow true freshman David Green could also be in the mix for playing time, but true freshman Tyler Bentley likely is not an option after he did not dress for the Duke game.