Football season is off and running, and this week’s 3-2-1 Column is all about the start of Pitt’s 2024 campaign. The Panthers opened the year with a 55-24 win over Kent State, and we discuss all the storylines that came with that outcome.

Tomorrow, Pitt has a much more difficult challenge with a road game against Cincinnati, and we take an extended dive into that showdown as well.

THREE THINGS WE KNOW=

Holstein asserts himself in first start

The talk all offseason around the Pitt football program was about who would win the starting quarterback job, but after one game, that debate already appears settled. Eli Holstein shined in his debut, as he threw for 336 yards, three touchdowns, to just one interception.

Under Holstein’s guidance, Pitt achieved a higher point (55) and yardage total (554) than in any game from last season. It was all done with the caveat that the Panthers were playing Kent State of course, but either way, Holstein showed quite a bit in his first game to bring optimism to the program for this season and the future as well.

Holstein’s passing total was the most by a Pitt freshman in a single game since Alex Van Pelt threw for 354 yards back in 1989. He completed 30 passes, the first time a Pitt quarterback has done that in a game since Pickett did it during his Heisman campaign in 2021.

Again, it was only Kent State…but Saturday’s performance at least laid the groundwork for future success for Holstein.

There is no doubt this program has been searching for answers at quarterback ever since Pickett graduated. Pitt has used three different starting quarterbacks in each of the past two seasons, with retread transfers and career backups alternating opportunities to lead the offense, usually netting poor results.

In the case of Holstein, he is virtually a blank canvas, and one with a good starting point at that. Holstein did not come in looking for a change of scenery like previous transfers Kedon Slovis and Phil Jurkovec, but rather, he was simply looking for his first chance.

Obviously, the opportunity to play this season would not have been there at Alabama, with Jalen Milroe back as the starter. I don’t think that’s an indictment on Holstein, but it was more him being realistic about his situation after seeing where he stood after one year in Tuscaloosa.

Holstein was a top prospect in the class of 2023 out of Louisiana and signed on to play for the legendary Nick Saban, but every quarterback Alabama recruits shares a similar profile. He wasn’t unique, as everyone in that program is a top talent. It’s not that he wasn’t capable of eventually playing at one of the premier programs in the sport. He very well could have started games for the Crimson Tide later in his career, but it was not going to be this season, and Pitt shouldn’t feel too bad about landing a quarterback under these circumstances either.

It’s very early in the Holstein era, one game to be exact, but this whole marriage is looking like it could be mutually beneficial to both parties. Is Pitt regularly going to land a four-star, top-100ish quarterback our of high school? Likely not. But Pitt can be that soft landing spot for a talented prospect in a crowded situation, which is exactly the scenario here with Holstein.

Now that he’s here, playing, and the unquestioned starter, there is an opportunity to see some real growth out of Holstein. It should not be discounted he was one of the best high school quarterbacks in the country two years ago. It should not be dismissed he had offers to play from every top program, either.

There is an obvious pedigree he brings to the position, and he walked into a friendly situation, with an offensive coordinator in Kade Bell who will seemingly make it easy to spread the ball to open spaces. Obviously, there is a long way to go in the story of Eli Holstein as Pitt’s starting quarterback, but the first chapter at least grabbed everyone’s attention.

Playmakers made plays

This felt like an unusually long offseason around Pitt football. A three-win campaign will do that, of course. But there was, and still is, an unknown factor about this team, and a lot of it stems from Kade Bell, Pitt’s first-year offensive coordinator.

There was an entire offseason that we heard he was going to bring speed, pace, and scoring to the offense. It was a lot of hearing, but not seeing. The first game last week finally put away some of the speculation (for now), as we saw exactly what the players and coaches have been preaching over the past few months.

I know, I know…it was Kent State, but the offense looked to move at a high-rate of speed against the Golden Flashes, which was the message about this scheme all along. This attack was also supposed to incorporate the run and the pass, which is what we saw in the opener as well. But the biggest selling point was that this offense is designed to get the ball in the hands of playmakers in space.

Well, we saw a good deal of that in the first game.

Pitt’s playmakers made plays, and after a season of not really seeing that, it was a welcomed change for the Panthers. Holstein’s debut was probably the most notable given the position he plays, but perhaps Pitt’s brightest performance in the opener was that of Desmond Reid. The Western Carolina transfer was electric with two long touchdowns and 231 all-purpose yards.

The other newcomers to the offense also played well. Poppi Williams caught two touchdowns, Censere Lee had six receptions, and even tight end Jake Overman hauled in two passes.

Of course, Pitt’s returning players also reaped the benefits of the new offense. Gavin Bartholomew tied a career-high with five catches, Kenny Johnson had his first career 100-yard game, and Konata Mumpfield had a touchdown.

Pitt had nine different players to record receptions and three different running backs to earn touches. Over the course of 79 offensive snaps, which is what Pitt had on Saturday, the Panthers got to incorporate nearly every weapon at their disposal for this season, something that never happened over the past two years.

It remains to be seen if this offensive output can continue as the competition increases, but when it is clicking, Saturday’s opener shed light on what this offense can look like when it is operated at a high level.

A rematch with the Bearcats

There were plenty things to take from Pitt’s opening win over Kent State, but the season will head in an entirely different direction tomorrow at noon. The competition picks up quickly for Pat Narduzzi’s team in the second game of the season with a road contest at Cincinnati.

Obviously, things have to be a cleaner for Pitt when facing a team out of the Big 12 as opposed to what they faced in week one. There is also the challenge of going on the road, with many Panthers making their first college start in a hostile environment. Lastly, there is also the lingering thoughts that Cincinnati won this game one year ago, and some revenge has to be on the mind.

I can’t necessarily call this a rivalry, since the series goes back on hiatus after this game. But it’s still a nationally televised game against a fellow power-four opponent and that alone brings some added pressure to perform, even if the rivalry element is a bit muted.

I think for all those factors, that makes this a big game for the Panthers. When you are a team in Pitt’s position, coming off of a three-win season and entering the year with subdued expectations, until you actually go out and prove the mess of 2023 is behind you, there are going to be doubts.

Needless to say, this is a big benchmark game and could springboard the season in different directions. It’s not a ‘must win’ or anything like that, but it could be a launchpad of sorts.

Cincinnati is in a similar position to Pitt. The program is also coming off a three-win campaign, but is also not far removed from a high level of success after cracking the College Football Playoff in 2021. This team is not expected to finish near the top of the Big 12 either, but there is an obvious hunger to prove those predictions wrong. Basically, all of the reasons this is a big game for Pitt, hold true for Cincinnati as well.

After setting the stage for what this game means to both sides, I think when you really start to evaluate Cincinnati as a team and as a opponent for Pitt, there should be some level of confidence for the Panthers, or at the very least, this should be thought of as a winnable game.

Cincinnati, like Pitt, turned to transfer to start at quarterback. Brendan Sorsby looked sharp in his debut with 383 passing yards and two touchdowns, although the team was playing Towson of the FCS, so it’s a little hard to gauge his performance overall. He’s still new to the program, and Saturday will only be his ninth start in his career.

Sorsby does have a veteran offensive line to protect him, and it does appear the Bearcats have some playmakers. Corey Kiner, a 1,000-yard back a season ago, rushed for 153 yards against Pitt in 2023. Ohio State transfer Evan Pryor adds a speed burst to the backfield after ripping off 105 yards on just four carries in the opener. Transfer tight end Joe Royer looks like he is a weapon, and veteran receiver Xzavier Henderson can cause matchup problems with his 6-foot-3 frame.

Kiner is a bit of a known commodity, perhaps Henderson too, but the rest of those guys had good games against lesser competition, and never have done much of anything at the college level prior to transferring to Cincinnati, which is something to keep in mind.

On defense, the Bearcats curiously allowed over 400 yards to Towson last week, which is perhaps an area Pitt can exploit with its up-tempo offense. Cincinnati did clamp down and only allowed 20 points and pitched a shutout in the fourth quarter, but there were definitely holes in the defense after allowing 194 rushing yards to an FCS team.

As it was reported earlier this week, Cincinnati’s best player Dontay Corleone is slated to return to action this week. He is an NFL-caliber defensive tackle, but you have to wonder where he is conditioning wise after being cleared for full contact earlier this week. Even with him in the lineup last year, Cincinnati still had one of the worst run defenses in the country, yielding 175 yards per game.

When you look at both teams, I think there is a reason the betting line has hovered around 1 to 2 points over the past couple of days. You can draw similar comparisons to each side, simply because of how poor both teams were in 2023.

While Cincinnati has some talented players and has the advantage of playing at home, this is still a team picked to finish 14th in the 16-team Big 12. Pitt does not have much ground to stand on itself, but when looking across the sidelines, the Panthers are most certainly going up against a team they are capable of beating.

TWO QUESTIONS WE HAVE

How do we feel about Pitt’s defense?

Pitt’s defense did not have the wholesale changes this offseason like the offense, but there was enough. The Panthers will be brining along a number of players playing in bigger roles than previously in their respective careers, which certainly brought some questions about this side of the ball.

In the team’s 55-24 season-opening win, most of the storylines were about the improved offense and the debut of Eli Holstein, but how did we feel about the defense's performance?

I’ve gone back and forth with my thoughts on this group. By the numbers, it was a pretty successful day. Pitt allowed 220 yards total, and only 39 rushing. Kent State was just 3-of-16 on third down conversions. The Panthers swarmed for 12 tackles for loss, five sacks, and also forced two turnovers.

Pitt’s defense yielded only two touchdowns and a field goal, with the Golden Flashes’ other score coming off of a special teams blunder. The Kent State offense had 13 offensive possessions, with seven of them traveling three yards or less.

For the most part, the Panthers smothered Kent State. So why are we feeling mixed results about their play? I think it starts with the beginning of the third quarter. Kent State marched 75 yards on 11 plays for a touchdown, then moved the ball own its next drive a little bit before settling for a field goal.

In those possessions, the Golden Flashes had some success running the ball and Pitt had several missed tackles along the way. That was an area of concern, to be sure, but there were other factors were sprinkled in throughout the game to raise questions as well.

Pitt’s pass rush never really got going until late in the game. The Panthers recorded four of their five sacks in the fourth quarter, thus giving off the feeling that there is still work to be done there.

I don’t if there were serious, underlying concerns to come out of that game that will become trends this season. Maybe it a matter of first game jitters with a bunch of new starters on the field. It remains to be seen. But I still think a lot of the feelings I had about this defense in the preseason still hold true.

Pitt is going to have some growing pains on the defense line, but there is talent there, and over time it should improve. They have really athletic group of linebackers, and it should grow into a strength as well. There is a lot of experience and depth at safety, and about the entire opposite at cornerback.

So again, nothing about the first week changed those sentiments on my end, but rather it’s wait and see mode how they attack each week about some of these preconceived notions come to life on the field.

What are the biggest matchups this week?

When looking up and down at the Cincinnati roster, there are certain areas where the Bearcats present bigger challenges than others. Because of that, certain players and position groups on Pitt’s side will be tasked with some tough assignments. In a game that is expected to be close, some of the results from these particular on-field battles may determine the outcome of the game.

Eli Holstein vs. the crowd

Pitt is going into this game with a redshirt freshman quarterback. Eli Holstein played in his first college game last week, and his second assignment will come on the road. Nippert Stadium is not like traveling to Blacksburg or Death Valley, but it’s a small, old stadium with fans right on top of you. It will be loud enough and it will be interesting to see how Holstein handles it in his second career start.

Pitt’s interior linemen vs. Dontay Corleone

As it has been discussed, Cincinnati’s best player is returning to the field on Saturday. A disruptive defensive tackle can make a world of difference in college football, as Pitt had a pretty good one two seasons ago in Calijah Kancey to support that notion. Dontay Corleone is a good player, and while you do wonder about his playing shape, but when he is on the field, the trio of Ryan Jacoby, Lyndon Cooper, and BJ Williams will have to be on their A-game. Pitt only netted 83 rushing yards and allowed five sacks in last year’s meeting with Cincinnati, so it’s obvious this group needs to be much better tomorrow playing against the Bearcats' three-man front.

Pitt’s run defense against Corey Kiner

Corey Kiner rushed for 1,047 yards last season to lead Cincinnati. His season-best total came against Pitt, where he ran 20 times for 153 yards and a touchdown. The 5-foot-9 and 210-pound senior is a physical runner, and the Bearcats have a couple other capable running backs. Given that is what they had success with last year, I’d expect Cincinnati to try and run until Pitt can prove to stop it.

Pitt’s cornerbacks vs. Xzavier Henderson

Pitt ushered in two new starters at cornerback last week, and they were relatively untested against Kent State. Tomorrow should be a different story, as they will have to account for Xzavier Henderson, a 6-foot-3 fifth-year senior for the Bearcats. Henderson had seven catches for 101 yards and a touchdown in the opener. He also caught 58 passes for 782 yards a season ago. Henderson began his career at Florida, and has 138 career receptions. I’m not sure if he is an All-American or anything like that, but this is an experienced veteran going up against new starters, Ryland Gandy and Rashad Battle, so it will be a matchup worth watching.

Pat Narduzzi vs. Scott Satterfield

The last matchup worth paying attention to is with the guys in charge. Scott Satterfield and Pat Narduzzi will be going against each other for the third consecutive year. In 2022, Satterfield, who was coaching Louisville, and knocked off Pitt, 24-10. In his first season with Cincinnati, he of course won last year’s meeting 27-21. In both defeats Pitt’s offense directly cost the team the game, so we’ll see if Narduzzi’s revamped offensive strategy pays dividends.

ONE PREDICTION

Pitt moves to 2-0 with a win tomorrow

Maybe I’m buying into too many things here. Perhaps I got a little intrigued with Pitt’s offense in week one, despite reminding myself a million times it was only Kent State. Or maybe, I saw Cincinnati give up over 400 yards to an FCS team, and read into that nugget little too much also.

Whatever the case may be, I think Pitt is going to get it done with a win on the road tomorrow. I think both teams have similar profiles right now, but I think in this particular matchup the Panthers have some advantages.

Look, we knew by about the second quarter of the Cincinnati game last year that Pitt was not going to have a good season. You could see everything unfolding in real time about how poor it all looked. It was stunning in the moment to see them fall behind 27-7 to Cincinnati, and needed two fourth quarter touchdowns to even make it a game. But looking back on it, everything made perfect sense. The offense was miserable all season, and that just happened to be the first game it started to surface.

Last year was a season worthy of changing just about everything, and Pat Narduzzi did just that. I think everyone who follows this team is finally ready to see this offense unleashed against a peer opponent. Sure, it looked good last week, but let's see what it can do against a power-four team.

It was a long offseason wondering what this team could do, and last week gave a glimpse. Tomorrow, I’m expecting to see Bell to try to let it rip, and it might be a case where he has to also. Cincinnati put up gaudy offensive numbers last week as well, so this could be headed towards a shootout of sorts.

When you can score quickly, and I think Pitt can, then you are always in the game. When you can’t score at all…well, I think we saw what happened last year. The new philosophy on offense was brought in for games just like this. I’m buying in on it for now until I see differently.