Pitt Take 5: Cincinnati game offers opportunity for rare road victory vs. Power 4 school

Without giving it a second glance, Pitt’s game Saturday at Cincinnati looks like just another noon kickoff among so many others across the country.

Yet the game against a Big 12 foe presents an opportunity for the Panthers to start regaining some of their national relevance.

First of all, it’s a chance to defeat a Power 4 opponent on the road. In coach Pat Narduzzi’s nine previous seasons, Pitt is 1-7 when venturing onto the home turf of nonconference so-called power teams. The winners were Iowa, Oklahoma State, West Virginia, Penn State (twice) and Notre Dame (twice). Pitt won at Tennessee in 2021.

Pitt needs to show it is strong enough to win more games of that ilk.

Pitt is a 2 1/2-point underdog, but the Bearcats were picked to finish 14th in the 16-team Big 12, according to the conference’s preseason poll. A Pitt victory wouldn’t be considered an upset, but it’s a chance to go 2-0 for the first time since 2021 and build momentum for the West Virginia game Sept. 14.

With SMU, Clemson, Louisville and Boston College on the November schedule (and only Clemson at home), a 4-0 start would be a nice cushion.

1. Pitt air show

Narduzzi all but shrugged his shoulders when told Pitt quarterbacks Eli Holstein and Nate Yarnell attempted 48 passes (60% of the snaps) last week.

“We’ve thrown 48 times before,” he said.

True, but it’s happened only once in the previous three seasons — 56 in a loss to Miami in 2021. Pitt averaged 30.1 and 30 per game in 2022 and 2023. Overall in the 39 games before last Saturday, Pitt reached 40 or more pass attempts nine times.

Even in ’21 with a Heisman Trophy finalist (Kenny Pickett) throwing the ball and a Biletnikoff winner (Jordan Addison) catching it, Pitt averaged only 38.9 attempts. You can say that was a product of the 11-3 record when throwing wasn’t often necessary late in the game, but guess what? Pitt beat Kent State, 55-24, and still threw the ball 10 times in the fourth quarter.

This is not to accuse offensive coordinator Kade Bell of leaning too heavily on his aerial game. The Panthers may never match that 48 figure this season. That probably will be the case Saturday in Cincinnati when they find out if they can run the ball. Towson, an FCS team, rushed for 194 yards last week against the Bearcats.

What it does show is the potential capability of building an effective passing game, which is often the avenue to victory in college football these days. The inability to throw effectively was, perhaps, the main reason Pitt was 3-9 a year ago.

“You do what you do well and take what they’re giving you,” Narduzzi said. “I like to score points, and I like to move the sticks.”

2. Hidden stat

Pitt lines up with three linebackers, but the five leading tacklers last week play that position. Kyle Louis led with 10, followed by Rasheem Biles and Brandon George (seven) and Braylan Lovelace and Keye Thompson (five). Is it possible all that preseason enthusiasm about Pitt’s young, athletic linebackers actually is based in fact?

3. Two of a kind

Cincinnati’s recent fortunes mirror what Pitt has experienced over the previous three seasons.

Both teams won conference championships (AAC/ACC) in 2021, although the Bearcats took it one step further by reaching the College Football Playoff where they lost to Alabama, 27-6. Pitt and Cincinnati each were 9-4 and 3-9 in ’22 and ’23 and won their openers this season against lightweights.

After defeating Pitt last season at Acrisure Stadium, 27-21, Cincinnati was 1-9 the rest of the way while Pitt finished 2-8. Both teams have plenty to prove this season.

Pitt also must contend with a 3-4 defensive front after working against their own 4-3 all summer.

“It’ll be interesting game plan-wise what we do as we prepare and block something different,” Narduzzi said.

Cincinnati opened last week with a 38-20 victory against Towson. It may be instructive to note that Towson, a 51-13 loser to Delaware last season, totaled 438 yards of total offense against the Bearcats.

4. Fast? Slow? Keep ’em guessing

Pitt’s pace on offense has been one of the most discussed topics this summer. In the opener, it was fast for most of the snaps, but it slowed down at times. Despite the inconsistencies, Narduzzi said he “loved it.”

“If you’re all fast and you stay fast, that’s easy (for the defense),” Narduzzi said. “It’s when you’re in and out of stuff and you’re going fast and then slowing down. That to me as a defensive guy is the hardest thing to deal with because your guys are up ready to go, and all of a sudden now you’re sitting on the ball and you’re not doing anything, and you’re like, ‘Come on, let’s go.’ They want to play because you went fast two plays in a row, now all of a sudden you slow it down. I think that’s exactly the way we want it to be.”

Narduzzi said Pitt snapped the football 57% of the time before there were 22 seconds on the 40-second play clock.

5. Comeback story

Cincinnati defensive tackle Dontay “The Godfather” Corleone has been cleared by doctors to resume “all football activities,” according to school officials. Corleone, a freshman All-American in 2022 and a second-team All-Big 12 selection last year, was treated in June for blood clots in his lungs.

Narduzzi isn’t wasting time wondering if the 6-foot-1, 320-pound Corleone will play.

“I think he’ll be back for us,” he said.

How much Corleone will play is difficult to predict. Narduzzi said, “It’s hard to get in football shape in a week. I’m sure they’ll protect him.”

Corleone, who has 12 TFLs (with six sacks) over the past two seasons, practiced on a limited basis this summer, and he did not play in Cincinnati’s opener.

“Dontay has really worked hard to get to this point, and we are excited to have him back,” coach Scott Satterfield said. “Despite being limited, he has stepped up as a team leader and maintained a steadying influence on the team. More than anything, it’s his presence and his leadership. It will be awesome to see the big boy go out there.”