Analysis: Complete victory over Boston College rekindles Pitt's season aspirations

Even after Pitt dropped two games in a row to West Virginia and Louisville, and looked disorganized in the process, a modicum of belief could be attached to the assertion that the Panthers were still a team with attainable goals.

For coach Pat Narduzzi and players, those goals center around competing for an ACC championship.

That remains easier said than done, but for Pitt (3-2, 1-1 ACC), thumping Boston College, 48-7, on Saturday has rekindled aspirations that the campaign can be special.

“It’s great for our locker room,” Narduzzi said of beating the Eagles. “Again, the last two games prior to today, (our opponent) didn’t beat us. We beat ourselves. Today, we beat them. It was clearly a win.

“It came down to execution. Our guys executed. We’ve talked about focus, effort and execution. Our guys executed today. We gave (two) games away, and that’s what’s disappointing. Can’t look back. We’re looking forward to Florida State.”

Heintschel delivers

Benching Eli Holstein must not have been easy for Narduzzi, who instead turned to freshman Mason Heintschel against Boston College, choosing a player with four previous collegiate pass attempts over his starter of a year-plus.

But Holstein had eroded his own position as Pitt’s starter, throwing interceptions in every one of the Panthers’ first four games, including three in the red zone, and tossing two more in a one-score loss to Louisville on Sept. 27.

That led to Narduzzi shaking things up and inserting Heintschel, with the gamble paying off in a big way.

Heintschel was electric in his first college start, completing 73% of his passes (30 of 41) with four touchdowns and 323 yards through the air.

He also had a fifth touchdown pass — a smooth 37-yarder in the end zone to Blue Hicks — called back because of offensive holding.

In the second quarter, Heintschel scrambled and fired accurately on the run to Kenny Johnson, who was unable to come down with the ball in the end zone.

So Heintschel wasn’t too far off from throwing six touchdowns on the day.

Good morning Pitt fans.

Mason Heintschel is QB1. pic.twitter.com/wA3vebfC90

— The Loyal Sons (@TheLoyalSons) October 5, 2025

Regardless, he put together one of the most memorable Panthers debuts in recent memory and reinvigorated his team’s belief in itself.

“I think we needed this a lot,” Johnson said. “It was such a relief going out there and dominating the whole time like we should have been. I think we’ve lost games ourselves. I don’t think teams have beat us. Just mistakes that we’ve made, we cleaned up this week and got better. It was so much out there just balling out. Losing sucks, so getting back in that win column was amazing.”

Run game rekindled

Heintschel, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound signal caller, also displayed impressive mobility on top of his throwing chops.

While the stats will say he rushed 10 times for 28 yards, the two sacks Pitt allowed for minus-22 yards are factored in.

Not counting sacks, Heintschel ran eight times for 50 yards, adding to a Pitt run game that finally found a bit of traction without All-American Desmond Reid, who sat with an injury for the second straight game.

In his absence, Juelz Goff and Ja’Kyrian Turner, both of whom scored touchdowns, combined to rush 29 times for 126 yards (4.3 average).

The run game success came even in light of Pitt losing starting left tackle Jeff Persi to injury in the game, with Kendall Stanley filling in.

Saturday was also the first game without left guard Keith Gouveia, who suffered a season-ending leg injury versus Louisville and was replaced by Ryan Carretta.

But overall, the new-look Panthers offensive line performed capably.

“I think they did well,” Narduzzi said. “First start for Carretta playing the whole game. They did a nice job. We were able to run the ball effectively. I’m sure we were about 50/50 run/pass, which is what we were a week ago. At least we were in the 50s. We moved the sticks and put ourselves in good downs and distance.”

Stout defense

Boston College may have arrived at Acrisure Stadium with a 1-3 (0-2) record, but the Eagles still boasted the nation’s fourth-best passing offense, averaging 344.5 yards.

Pitt shut down quarterback Dylan Lonergan (and two more Boston College signal callers whom coach Bill O’Brien turned to for a spark), limiting the Eagles to 189 passing yards.

Of that total, 70 came in garbage time late in the fourth quarter with few Panthers starters remaining on defense.

On the ground, Pitt stuffed the run for the second straight week, holding Boston College to 27 yards on 24 carries while forcing three turnovers.

Beware of the shark ⚠️???? @K_009r

➡️ 5 tackles
➡️ 1 PBU
➡️ 1 forced fumble
➡️ 1 fumble recovery pic.twitter.com/w55dSum4S0

— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) October 5, 2025

“I think it was just being physical up front,” defensive end Jimmy Scott said. “We knew they had some dynamic guys who could run the ball. That was a big emphasis all week in practice, stopping the run and playing as physical as possible.”

Pitt’s solid defensive effort was a byproduct of the smooth operation on the other side of the ball.

For the first time since the season opener versus Duquesne, the Panthers ran more plays on offense than their opponent (88-54).

Last week, Louisville ran 85 plays to Pitt’s 55. WVU ran 90 to Pitt’s 72.

More time to rest on the sidelines in between series paid dividends for Pitt’s defense.

“I think the biggest thing was the time of possession,” linebacker Kyle Louis said. “It gave us more time off the field. The offense was controlling the game by marching down the field. That definitely was a big game-changer in terms of stamina and everything like that. It definitely helped us out.”