Several Pitt stars opt out of Sun Bowl

The Pitt Panthers are set to take on UCLA in the Sun Bowl on December 30th. Pitt will be going for a ninth win on the season, and will look to close the year on a five-game winning streak, but will have to do it without plenty of key players.

On Monday morning, several Pitt players announced that they will forgo playing in the Sun Bowl and will begin focusing on the NFL Draft. The Panthers will be without Israel Abanikanda, Gabe Houy, Deslin Alexandre, SirVocea Dennis, and Brandon Hill for the team's upcoming bowl game.

Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi issued a statement over Twitter, and wished his players luck in their future endeavors.

"As a coach, one of the hardest things is saying goodbye to your palyers when their college careers end. Your players are truly family. That doesn't end when they stop playing college football. To Brandon, Deslin, Gabe, Izzy, SirVocea: you are forever Pitt Men! And the University of Pittsburgh will always be your home. As you begin the next stage of your lives, always remember that the Blue and Gold will be with you every step of the way. I know you'll continue to make Pitt proud!"

The decisions actually on Saturday, when redshirt junior safety Brandon Hill announced he will be forgoing his senior year and will be entering the 2023 NFL Draft. Hill took over the starting safety role late in the 2020 season and maintained that spot the past two years. As a junior, he was a second-team All-ACC pick after recording 78 tackles and two interceptions. Hill posted 67 stops this year, and had a key fumble return for a touchdown in Pitt's win over Duke last month.

Deslin Alexandre started the string of tweets on Monday. Alexandre is a team captain and returned to Pitt this year with his extra year of eligibility. The senior defensive end posted 6.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. His sack in the end zone against Syracuse resulted in a safety and helped Pitt secure a win against the Orange on November 5th. Alexandre has been a mainstay on the defensive line since 2019 and has been one of the most well respected players on the team.

Alexandre's charitable works off the field grabbed headlines this season. He helped raise over $50,000 for the children of Haiti through his NIL opportunities and received recognition for those efforts.

Gabe Houy is another player out of eligibility after this season, and he will also begin working towards his NFL future. Houy is a local product from nearby Upper St. Clair High School. He started 29 games throughout his career, but the 2022 season was filled with injuries. He has missed the season's initial three games and as well as the Virginia game later in the year as well.

Pitt linebacker SirVocea Dennis accepted an invite to the Senior Bowl last week, so it was expected he would not return next year, though he did have the option of coming back to Pitt for one more season. On Monday, he declared he will not participate in the Sun Bowl and locked in his future decision. Dennis has started 27 games at Pitt, including the last two years as the team's primary middle linebacker.

He was a third-team All-ACC pick in 2020 after recording 57 tackles and 14.5 tackles for loss. As a junior he elevated himself to second team All-ACC and helped lead Pitt to an ACC title. Dennis led Pitt with 87 tackles and recorded 9.5 tackles for loss. He will long be remembered for his pick-six on a shovel pass in Pitt's win over Clemson.

As a senior, Dennis was even better and was recognized as a first-team All-ACC selection and was a third-team All-American by Pro Football Focus. Dennis leads Pitt with 94 tackles and had 12 tackles for loss and 7 sacks this season.

The headliner here, of course, is Israel Abanikanda. The junior tailback had a breakout season in 2022 rushing for 1,431 yards and 20 touchdowns. He was a first-team All-ACC pick and was on several All-American teams. Abanikanda leaves Pitt with some serious accolades. His 2022 season is the 8th-best single season rushing total in school history. He broke the school's single-game mark with a 320-yard performance against Virginia Tech earlier this season and tied a school-record with six touchdowns in that game.

In addition to these five opt-outs, Pitt has already known it will be without All-American Calijah Kancey, who had shoulder surgery a few weeks back and missed the regular season finale. Plus Pitt has had several players hit the transfer portal including starting quarterback Kedon Slovis, along withJaylon Barden, Judson Tallandier, Khalil Anderson, Sam Williams, Kyi Wright, and John Morgan.

Pitt has a chance to get to 9 wins on December 30th, but will have to do it without some of the most prominent names on the roster from this season.