Veilleux is leaning on preparation ahead of first career start

Pitt has limped out to a 1-4 start to the 2023 season and bad quarterback play has been one of the biggest causes to that. The news of Pitt reportedly relieving Phil Jurkovec spread last week like wildfire, but for the man in a newly elevated role of Pitt’s starting quarterback position, it was business as usual.

Christian Veilleux is set to make his first collegiate start on Saturday when Pitt plays hosts to No. 14 at Louisville for a 6:30 kickoff at Acrisure Stadium. Veilleux has seen some game action this year, but will go into the game with the same mindset he has had all year: like he was already the starter.

“I’ve always leaned on preparing like you’re the starting quarterback, whether you’re the third-string or the scout team quarterback, it doesn’t matter,” Veilleux told the media earlier this week. “To me, my preparation is the same.”

It is one thing to say you prepare like you are the starter, and another to actual be under center with the first team when the lights come on in a game. Veilleux enrolled at Pitt knowing Jurkovec would be here, but still wanted to be available and ready, and now he will get a chance to show that readiness on the field.

“I think I bring my own personality and my own leadership style to the offense and whether that’s beneficial or not we’ll find out, but I do think I can definitely help this team win as being the starting quarterback,” he explained.

Pitt could certainly use a spark at the position. The Panthers have only scored seven offensive touchdowns during their current four-game losing streak with Jurkovec at the helm. Pitt’s passing offense, which averages 192.6 yards per game, ranks last in the ACC.

The Panthers lost their last time out, a 38-21 setback to Virginia Tech, but that was over a week ago. The Pitt coaching staff opted to transition to Veilleux during the bye week, which was meant to give him some time to prepare.

“Obviously anything like this doesn’t have ideal timing, but I will say having the bye week to prepare an extra week definitely helpful and definitely thankful that I get that extra week to prepare,” Veilleux explained. “I think it was good having the bye week to help me get situated and comfortable with everything.”

Veilleux will be in the role of starter this weekend, but he is not without any experience and has played three quarters of football this season. He took over in the fourth quarter of Pitt’s season opening win against Wofford, and also played in the second half against North Carolina following a Jurkovec injury.

The results have been mixed. He is 12-of-27 for 145 yards with one touchdown on the season, but the North Carolina game was a struggle. Veilleux threw two interceptions and was credited with a fumble on a handoff miscue. He recognizes those mistakes and is hoping to grow from them against Louisville and beyond.

“I had three turnovers that game and I take full responsibility for those turnovers,” said Veilleux. “It was a good learning experience getting that game action out of the way. Now being able to prepare as a starter and taking everything I learned from there and applying it to this week.”

Veilleux’s experience extends beyond the three quarters he has played this season. While at Penn State as a freshman, he was pressed into action and responded with 235 passing yards and three touchdowns in a win against Rutgers.

The Ottawa native was a heavily-recruited prospect out of high school. While attending The Bullis School in Maryland, Veilleux collected 19 power-five offers in total before choosing Penn State. After two seasons in State College, Veilleux made his way to Pittsburgh in the winter and quickly had to adapt to Pitt’s offensive scheme under offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti.

“It took a while to learn, but similar concepts from where I was before, but a lot more under-center stuff here and just the footwork and technique was much different than what I was used to,” he explained. “It’s just about attacking it every day and trying to find ways to better yourself and I feel like I’ve learned the offense extremely well and I feel super comfortable in it now.”

The offense won’t have any training wheels on Saturday according to Pat Narduzzi. When Pitt started Nate Yarnell in the team’s 2022 win over Western Michigan, the Panthers played conservatively and did not ask him to make many throws, something he said won’t be in-store with his new starter.

“But there’s no reason to simplify it,” Narduzzi said of Saturday's offensive game plan. “We can do just as much or more with Christian. He’s really smart and he understands football.”

Veilleux believes Pitt’s biggest flaw on offense this year has been execution, and he is hoping he can elevate that area once he takes over for real on Saturday.

“Our plan is good, our players are good, the plays are good, coaching is good, but we’ve just got to execute,” he explained. “At the end of the day, if you’re not executing no matter what team you play for, you’re not going to win football games. We’ve just got to go execute, believe in our plan, believe in what we can do and believe in our ability and I think that’s going to make a huge difference this weekend.”

Veilleux will become Pitt’s fifth starting quarterback over the past two seasons. The sophomore has two years remaining and wants to make his mark on Saturday and going forward to try to get a leg up on potentially starting in 2024. He came to Pitt for a litany of reasons and is comfortable in his second collegiate stop.

“Well I came to Pitt because the city is awesome,” he said. “I believed in Coach Cignetti. and Coach Narduzzi’s program. I believed in the guys in this room and for me it was the best fit to stay close to home and I don’t regret my decision. I love this place, love this team and these coaches, so I’m super happy to be here.”

Pitt’s offense has nowhere to go but up and it’s a lot of pressure for a first-time starter, but Narduzzi is hoping he can in and play freely.

“He just needs to go play his game and play like he’s practiced, and he’s had a really good week of practice,” said the Pitt head coach. “I’m excited to watch it.”