Pitt's 2023 schedule is out

With a daunting September, two rivalry games on the road, a 10-year anniversary game and a trip to Yankee Stadium, there’s no shortage of storylines in Pitt’s 2023 schedule.

The Panthers’ full slate of 12 games was announced Monday night, with four previously-announced non-conference games complemented by the eight-game ACC schedule. But even the conference schedule had some intrigue to it, as the league shifted to a non-divisional format this year, eliminating the Atlantic and Coastal Divisions in favor of a schedule model that features three annual opponents and a rotation through the other teams in the conference.

For Pitt, that means no Miami or Georgia Tech in 2023, as the Panthers’ former Coastal Division foes are not on the schedule - the first time Pitt has played an ACC schedule without the Hurricanes or Yellow Jackets since joining the league in 2013.

Instead, Pitt’s schedule features three former Coastal teams (North Carolina, Virginia Tech and Duke) and five former Atlantic teams (Louisville, Wake Forest, Florida State, Syracuse and Boston College).

The schedule starts quietly on Sept. 2 with a non-conference game against Wofford, but it escalates quickly after that. The Panthers will host newly-minted Big 12 team Cincinnati on Sept. 9 before going to West Virginia for the first Backyard Brawl in Morgantown since 2011.

Pitt closes September with a pair of ACC games - home against North Carolina on Sept. 23 and a road trip to Virginia Tech on Sept. 30 - giving the Panthers four September games against Power Five opponents.

Understandably, Pat Narduzzi’s group will get a break after that, with an off week before hosting Louisville, under new head coach/former Cardinals quarterback Jeff Brohm on Oct. 14. That will conclude a four-game run of repeat opponents from 2022 (Pitt went 2-2 against WVU, UNC, VT and Louisville last year).

The Panthers close October with a trip to Wake Forest on Oct. 21 and their first return to South Bend since 2018 when they face Notre Dame on Oct. 28.

Pitt opens November with Florida State’s first visit to Pittsburgh since the Panthers’ first game as a member of the ACC in 2013. A week later, Pitt will face annual opponent Syracuse in a rare neutral-field setting, meeting the Orange in the Bronx for a No. 11 game at Yankee Stadium.

Five days later, Pitt will host Boston College for a Thursday night game before closing the season on Nov. 25 at Duke.