Pitt men’s soccer rises to No. 1 in nation for 1st time in program history
The undefeated Pitt men’s soccer team ascended to No. 1 in the United Soccer Coaches poll Tuesday, reaching the milestone for the first time in program history. YOU KIDDIN ME LETS GOOOOOO Julie Jurich (@juliejurich) October 20, 2020 The Panthers (4-0, 3-0 ACC) were No. 2 nationally for three...
Pitt notebook: If Kenny Pickett can’t go, Joey Yellen may get call again
Before embarking on three days of practice, Pat Narduzzi said Monday that Joey Yellen may be the choice for Pitt’s starting quarterback Saturday against No. 3 Notre Dame. If Kenny Pickett (ankle) can’t play, of course. Asked if he enters this week knowing Yellen will start, he said, “Right now,...
Are Pat Narduzzi’s options limited in quest to end Pitt’s losing streak?
Sometimes, a coach just has nowhere to turn. Pat Narduzzi hasn’t reached that point, even though Pitt will take a three-game losing streak into Heinz Field on Saturday to play undefeated and No. 3 Notre Dame (4-0, 3-0 ACC). But injuries and not enough depth (a recruiting issue) have created...
Defense, running game keep Pitt out of ACC spotlight
A long, long time ago — or so it seems — an undefeated and nationally ranked Pitt team grabbed a 7-0 lead against N.C. State on the second snap of the game. The N.C. State secondary fell asleep, and Kenny Pickett found Jordan Addison for a 75-yard touchdown pass. That...
Pitt notebook: Pat Narduzzi keeps his QB secret, but it doesn’t help
Pat Narduzzi did his best to hide the truth from Miami coach Manny Diaz, and he succeeded. Not that it mattered. Narduzzi said he knew early in the week quarterback Kenny Pickett would be unable to play Saturday on his injured left ankle. But he kept talking about Pickett’s toughness...
Without QB Kenny Pickett, Pitt falls to No. 13 Miami
Nobody questions Kenny Pickett’s value to Pitt’s hopes of escaping the mediocrity — or something worse — that surrounds this season. He is the team’s leader, emotionally and tangibly, and Pitt is a lesser group without him. It showed Saturday in a 31-19 loss to No. 13 Miami at Hard...
Pitt’s Kenny Pickett doesn’t travel to Miami; Joey Yellen will start
Pat Narduzzi kept the secret all week, and it was finally revealed Saturday morning — Kenny Pickett won’t play Saturday at Miami. Pickett, who injured his left ankle last week in the second half of the Boston College game, did not make the trip to Miami with his teammates. Joey...
5 things to watch: Can good work week lead Pitt to victory?
Every week, with most of the game preparation behind him, Pat Narduzzi gets on his Thursday Zoom conference call and either assures reporters “the hay’s in the barn” or “we’ve had a good week of practice.” Sometimes, he mentions both things. This week, with Pitt (3-2, 2-2 ACC) preparing for...
First Call: Ex-Steeler wanted Le’Veon Bell back in Pittsburgh. Ravens mad at Bengals. Aaron Donald’s surprising revelation.
Friday’s “First Call” gives us an ex-Steeler who wishes Le’Veon Bell would’ve come back to Pittsburgh instead of going to Kansas City. Another AFC coach admits his team wanted Bell. Aaron Donald’s surprising quote about his huge game last week. And the Ravens are mad at the Bengals. Better luck...
Pitt QB Kenny Pickett not 100% healthy, but Pat Narduzzi feels good ‘with where he is right now’
Pat Narduzzi doesn’t like to talk about injuries, especially when the information might help an opponent’s preparation. But Pitt’s coach did offer 57 words Thursday when he was asked about quarterback Kenny Pickett’s left ankle that was injured in the second half of the Boston College game. He didn’t give...
Pitt lives, hopes to survive on Cornerback Island
Pat Narduzzi has been preaching, teaching or designing defensive strategy for 30 years. He believes in recruiting athletic, tough-minded cornerbacks who don’t mind — in fact, prefer — pressing up against wide receivers at the line of scrimmage and covering them with little help from safeties. So it was no...
Pitt, WVU reschedule postponed game to 2023-24 basketball season
Pitt and West Virginia officials have worked out an agreement to move their basketball game, postponed this year by covid-19 restrictions, to the 2023-24 season in Morgantown, W.Va. That extends by one season the two-year agreement, finalized earlier this year, for games during the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons. The teams...
Pitt will welcome 5,500 spectators inside Heinz Field for final 2 home games
Spectators are returning to Heinz Field for Pitt games, too. Following the lead of the Pittsburgh Steelers, who welcomed people inside for the first time last Sunday, Pitt officials announced Thursday approximately 5,500 fans can attend each of the final two home games — Notre Dame on Oct. 24, and...
U mad, bro? Fans think Steelers are overrated; Readers pout about Pitt, Pirates, Patriots
When is a 4-0 start in the NFL not good enough? When you live in Pittsburgh and root for the Steelers. That’s how we start “U mad, bro?” this week. We also hear from persnickety Pitt fans, bummed-out Buccos backers and stubborn New England Patriots conspiracy theorists. After the Steelers...
Pitt offensive lineman Bryce Hargrove inspired by Kenny Pickett’s ability to ignore pain
Although there is no word on the status of Kenny Pickett’s left ankle — practice, of course, is closed, and coach Pat Narduzzi wants to keep Miami’s coaching staff guessing — there is something else that can’t be questioned: The value of Pitt’s quarterback goes far beyond his ability to...
No longer ‘stuck on myself,’ Pitt’s Xavier Johnson ready to build a winnerVideo
Perhaps it was a sign of growth and maturity that Xavier Johnson willingly admitted Wednesday — on his 21st birthday and the first day Pitt officially opened basketball practice — his head might have been somewhere else last season. “I learned last year I was really stuck on myself a...
Duquesne, PPG Paints Arena chosen to serve as hosts of 2024 NCAA Tournament
Duquesne is getting accustomed to sitting in the NCAA Basketball Tournament spotlight. The NCAA chose Duquesne on Wednesday to host the 2024 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship first- and second-round games. The event will mark the seventh time since 1997 Duquesne has hosted tournament games, including the previously announced 2022 first...
Pitt’s Patrick Jones approaches college football like it’s his job
Charlie Partridge encourages open dialogue of all kinds when he gathers his defensive linemen in their meeting room. “A lot of guys are looser in meeting time and having fun with each other,” Pitt’s defensive line coach said. “Which is fine. “Our meetings rooms are designed in a way where...
Through the years, Pitt has learned to bounce back from tough defeats
Those who dare to compete in the unforgiving world of college football often find the other team wants to win, too. Defeat is part of the equation, and Pitt has had its share of tough ones over the years. When Alex Kessman’s extra-point try went wide right in overtime last...
First Call: Le’Veon Bell ‘likes’ criticism of Jets; Big Ben erased from Browns record books; Pitt, WPIAL QB promoted in Dallas
Former Steeler Le’Veon Bell disses his coach on Twitter. Ben Roethlisberger is finally erased from the Cleveland Browns record books. The Dallas Cowboys may turn to a Pittsburgh product at quarterback if Andy Dalton gets hurt. “Ground Chuck” is still in playoff form. All that and more in Tuesday’s “First...
Pitt football notebook: Panthers will need fresh cornerbacks in Miami’s heat
Temperatures are expected to soar as high as 84 degrees Saturday when Pitt plays Miami in Hard Rock Stadium. But even if South Florida is hit with a sudden cold front, Pat Narduzzi plans to give his beleaguered cornerbacks a break against the No. 13 Hurricanes. “With the tempo we’re...
Pitt’s Pat Narduzzi encouraged by Kenny Pickett’s initial response to ankle injury
Pat Narduzzi didn’t pull out X-rays of Kenny Pickett’s injured ankle and display them in front of his computer for reporters on Zoom to see. But he did talk about his quarterback’s injury Monday — a slight upset — and he didn’t rule him out of Pitt’s next game Saturday...
Pitt postpones 2020 Hall of Fame induction ceremony until next year
Concerns related to the ongoing covid-19 pandemic have compelled Pitt officials to postpone induction of the 13-member Pitt Athletics Hall of Fame 2020 class until 2021, the university announced Monday. The induction ceremony was scheduled for Friday at Heinz Field. Members of the class, the third since the Hall of...
Madden Monday: Steelers’ hot start is ‘least impressive 4-0 in history’; Pitt is like its coach
The Steelers won the battle of Pennsylvania Sunday. Sorry, “BENsylvania.” The Penguins traded a Stanley Cup-winning goaltender. Sorry, a two-time Stanley Cup-winning goaltender. And the Pitt football team lost in unbelievable fashion. Sorry, completely typical Pitt fashion. So it was quite a week. Mark Madden and I recap all of...
Strong Pitt connection at USA Wrestling Senior Nationals
Pitt volunteer assistant wrestling coach Luke Pletcher, former Panther heavyweight Demetrius Thomas and junior Nino Bonaccorsi competed in the 2020 USA Wrestling Senior Nationals on Sunday in Coralville, Iowa. Bonaccorsi (Bethel Park) completed in the 97 kilos weight class in Greco, while Thomas and Pletcher (Latrobe/Ohio State) competed in men’s...
