Pitt football to host national runner-up Notre Dame on Nov. 15
Pitt won’t play 11 of the 12 teams that advanced to the first College Football playoff during the 2024 season, but the national runner-up is coming to Acrisure Stadium.
The ACC announced its 2025 schedule Monday night, and one of the highlights for Pitt will be a visit from Notre Dame on Nov. 15.
Cookin up our 2025 schedule ????#HailToPitt | @calientepdrafth pic.twitter.com/ai8OyhfnzJ
— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) January 28, 2025
The Irish will be in town for the first time since 2020. It also will be the teams’ 16th meeting since the long-time rivals played the last game at Pitt Stadium in 1999. That game was a 37-27 Pitt victory, but Notre Dame won 11 of the next 15 and leads the all-time series 51-21, with a scoreless tie in 1911.
Long before that game — Pitt’s 10th of 12 in the regular season — the Panthers will open the 11th season under coach Pat Narduzzi against crosstown rival Duquesne on Aug. 30 at Acrisure. It will be the first game between the schools — separated by 2 miles of city streets — since 1939.
The rest of the schedule includes:
• Pitt is home again Sept. 6 against Central Michigan of the Mid-American Conference, marking the first game between the two schools.
• The 108th Backyard Brawl shifts to Morgantown, W.Va., on Sept. 13, with past and present WVU coach Rich Rodriguez in charge of the Mountaineers.
• After an open week Sept. 20, Pitt’s first ACC test will be a tough one at home Sept. 27 against Louisville (9-4 last season). The Cardinals have won 19 games in the past two seasons.
• Boston College will be one of eight 2024 bowl teams on Pitt’s schedule, and the Eagles of second-year coach Bill O’Brien visit the Panthers on Oct. 4.
• On Oct. 11, Pitt returns to Tallahassee, Fla., to face Florida State for the first time since a 41-17 Panthers victory in 2020.
• A week later Oct. 18 at the JMA Wireless Dome, Syracuse gets an opportunity to avenge Pitt’s 2024 victory. Pitt returned three interceptions for touchdowns to defeat Syracuse three months ago.
• Pitt will be host to N.C. State on Oct. 25 for the teams’ first meeting in five seasons.
• Then, it’s off to the West Coast on Nov. 1 to play two-year ACC member Stanford. It will be Pitt’s first regular-season road game at Stanford since 1922 and Pitt’s first football game in California since the 1971 opener at UCLA.
• The coast-to-coast trip will be followed by Pitt’s second open week Nov. 8.
• A week after the Notre Dame game, Pitt visits Georgia Tech on Nov. 22. Pitt has won four of the past five against the Ramblin’ Wreck.
• The regular-season finale is Nov. 29 against Miami at Acrisure.
Pitt won, 42-16, three seasons ago at Hard Rock Stadium.
Jerry DiPaola is a TribLive reporter covering Pitt athletics since 2011. A Pittsburgh native, he joined the Trib in 1993, first as a copy editor and page designer in the sports department and later as the Pittsburgh Steelers reporter from 1994-2004. He can be reached at jdipaola@triblive.com.
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