Justin Guerriero stories

From Pat Narduzzi’s perspective, the early signing period probably is a roller coaster of emotions. The excitement of welcoming new recruits to Pitt’s program, the anxiety of some of those prospects potentially backing off their verbal commitments, on top of preparing the current Panthers squad for their upcoming bowl game...

Amid the backdrop of bowl preparation, Pitt and programs across the nation placed an eye to the future beginning Wednesday morning, as the early signing period commenced at 7 a.m., allowing for the Panthers’ 2026 recruiting class to start formalizing their collegiate intentions. Coach Pat Narduzzi and his assistants crafted...

Pitt manufactured some much-needed momentum by defeating Ohio State on Nov. 28 on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. That quality win led into Tuesday night at Petersen Events Center, when the Panthers hosted Texas A&M in the ACC/SEC Challenge. But another Power Five win was not in the cards, as the Aggies...

Three Pitt players — linebackers Kyle Louis and Rasheem Biles and kicker Trey Butkowski — earned second-team All-ACC honors Tuesday afternoon. Eight additional Panthers were honorable mentions: receiver Kenny Johnson, offensive linemen Ryan Baer and B.J. Williams, defensive tackle Francis Brewu, linebacker Braylan Lovelace, cornerback Shawn Lee, safety Cruce Brookins...

The first play of Pitt’s regular- season finale versus Miami told the tale of why the Panthers entered December having fallen short of their goal to play in the ACC championship. It was a 10-yard sack of Mason Heintschel, one of four allowed to the Hurricanes in a 38-7 blowout that...

So soon after a deflating defeat to Miami that torched Pitt’s aspirations of an ACC title game appearance, it’s difficult to imagine what a morale-restoring message would be for the players. Coach Pat Narduzzi likely already has delivered some remarks akin to that in the immediate aftermath of his team’s...

The desired outcome of Pitt’s regular-season finale Saturday versus Miami would have seen the Panthers intently watching results around the ACC well into the evening. That’s because a win by Pitt against the 13th-ranked Hurricanes, coupled with a loss by either Virginia or SMU, constituted the Panthers’ route to the...

Pitt’s final player availability report ahead of kickoff Saturday vs. No. 13 Miami contained several pieces of good news for the 24th-ranked Panthers. Carrying no injury designations were tailback Desmond Reid, kicker Trey Butkowski, offensive guard Ryan Carretta and defensive tackle Francis Brewus. Defensive tackle Sean FitzSimmons was listed as...

The landscape of college sports facilitates more movement by student-athletes through the transfer portal than ever before. As a result, far fewer players begin and finish their careers at the same institution, but those cases do exist. Pitt’s select few outgoing seniors who have been with the program since their...

When it comes to interceptions, Pat Narduzzi is a hard man to please. Before Pitt’s fall camp broke in late August, Narduzzi relayed to reporters that he and his staff had counted 19 dropped picks from 2024 — missed opportunities they felt players should have seized. Ultimately, the Panthers finished...

As Pitt reached its critical end-of-season juncture, closing out the year against three straight ranked opponents, it began without the steady services of kicker Trey Butkowski. Butkowski, a true freshman who had made 19 of 21 field goal tries leading into Nov. 15 when Pitt hosted No. 9 Notre Dame,...

Pitt’s two games against Power Five opponents this season — West Virginia and Central Florida — resulted in double-digit losses. However disappointing those defeats were, the Panthers were at least handling business against the low- and mid-major foes on their nonconference schedule. That changed Sunday at Petersen Events Center, as...

Pitt’s pivotal regular-season finale at home vs. No. 14 Miami on Saturday will be a noon kickoff televised nationally by ABC, the ACC announced Sunday morning. For the Panthers (8-3, 6-1 ACC), a win against the Hurricanes at Acrisure Stadium is required to stay alive for the ACC title game...

A simple proposition awaited Pitt on Saturday in Atlanta ahead of kickoff with No. 15 Georgia Tech: win and stay in the ACC title game hunt or lose and have the season’s top goal slip from its grasp. The course of the ACC season, its many tiers of tiebreakers and...

There can be no denying Pitt is going to have its hands full Saturday in Atlanta against Georgia Tech’s offense. The No. 15 Yellow Jackets (9-1, 6-1 ACC) boast the nation’s top offensive attack, averaging 496.7 yards, and are led by a Heisman Trophy contender in dual-threat quarterback Haynes King....

Pitt coach Jeff Capel said earlier this week that the Panthers were getting close to figuring out what kind of basketball team they are. That remark came on the heels of a 34-point beatdown of Bucknell at Petersen Events Center, Pitt’s first game after getting clobbered at West Virginia. The...

When Mason Heintschel walked off of the field at Acrisure Stadium last weekend, he experienced something new as a collegiate athlete. Pitt’s freshman quarterback, for the first time in six games since taking over as starter Oct. 4, lost. Previously, the Panthers (7-3, 5-1 ACC) were 5-0 with him under...

There couldn’t have been much talking on Pitt’s bus ride home from Morgantown on Thursday after the Panthers were routed by West Virginia on the road for their first loss of the season. All of Pitt’s previous games, wins against Youngstown State, Longwood and Eastern Michigan, had looked routine enough...

During Pitt’s eventual loss to No. 9 Notre Dame on Saturday, a player not seen in quite some time marched onto the field for his first game reps in six weeks. It was Jeff Persi, the Panthers’ offensive lineman added in the offseason via the transfer portal (Michigan), who earned...

A quadruply deflating long weekend for Pitt athletics began when Jeff Capel and Co. lost by 22 points to West Virginia on the road Thursday. Then, women’s volleyball lost in five sets to No. 5 Stanford on Friday, No. 9 Notre Dame dispatched the Panthers on the gridiron Saturday and...