Pitt’s 2016 schedule was locked in Tuesday as the ACC formally announced the coming season’s slate of games.

September will feature a pair of marquee non-conference games. After opening against Villanova, Pitt will host Penn State on Sept. 10 and then travel to Stillwater to face Oklahoma State on Sept. 17. Pitt hasn’t played Penn State since 2000, and this season will be the Panthers’ first-ever meeting against the Cowboys.

Things don’t get easier after that, as Pitt will travel to Chapel Hill the week after the Oklahoma State game for a matchup with defending Coastal Division champion North Carolina, who has beaten the Panthers three years in a row.

After returning home for a final non-conference game - Marshall on Oct. 1 - Pitt will dive into ACC play with Georgia Tech at Heinz Field on Oct. 8 and Virginia in Charlottesville on Oct. 15. Pitt will then host Virginia Tech on Thursday, Oct. 27 - the second consecutive game between the Panthers and Hokies to be played on a Thursday night at Heinz Field - and then travel to Miami on Nov. 5, a game that breaks the three-year trend of the Panthers and Hurricanes meeting in the regular-season finale.

Nov. 12 presents arguably the toughest challenge of the season for Pitt, as the Panthers will head to Death Valley for a meeting with defending ACC champ and national-championship runner-up Clemson. Pitt will then end the season with home games against Duke and Syracuse.

Pitt’s 2015 scheduled was front-loaded with road games, as five of the first seven games of the season were played away from Heinz Field. That included three of the Panthers’ first four ACC games, and while Pitt went 5-1 on the road - 4-0 in ACC road games - Narduzzi and company were undoubtedly glad to see a little more balance in the 2016 schedule.

This year, the Panthers will be at home for four of the first six games, and with a seven-home/five-road alignment this year, Pitt will finish with three road games and three home games in the final six.

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