There was no shortage of notable developments from Pitt’s convincing season-opening victory over Duquesne on Saturday at Acrisure Stadium.

Looking at the big picture, the Panthers put up 61 points on their Football Championship Subdivision foe, yanking key starters such as quarterback Eli Holstein and tailback Desmond Reid early into the fourth quarter.

It was a dominant performance by Pitt’s offense, defense and special teams, despite a slow start on both sides of the ball and various mishaps and missed assignments.

Crucially, Pitt handled business in a manner that allowed for a multitude of depth players and youngsters to enter the game and gain valuable experience.

Here are three takeaways from Pitt’s 61-9 win over the Dukes:

WR depth

Pitt’s wide receivers room had been advertised as one of the team’s deepest position groups as the Panthers navigated fall camp.

That means Holstein should have no shortage of talented playmakers to whom he can distribute the football.

On Saturday afternoon, 13 different players caught a pass and while Holstein was still in the game, several wideouts put forth solid performances.

By virtue of his two touchdowns, including an impressive over-the-shoulder one-handed grab late in the second quarter, Blue Hicks could have been considered the player of the game at his position.

CFB CATCH OF THE YEAR CANDIDATE already from Pittsburgh's Blue Hicks ????pic.twitter.com/VNb1h0z4yc

— DraftKings (@DraftKings) August 30, 2025

He finished with four grabs for 55 yards, hauling in another touchdown pass of 4 yards in the opening quarter.

Hicks’ longest reception of the day went for 22 yards, and he posted a first-down grab of 13 yards in the first quarter, as well.

Interestingly, it’s what Hicks didn’t do Saturday that coach Pat Narduzzi chiefly alluded to after the game.

“We didn’t get many chances to just get the ball in his hands,” Narduzzi said. “Every defense is different. Didn’t get the ball in his hands to make some plays. But I thought he played well. … Blue is a football player for us. We’re excited about him, and he can make plays with his legs, short passes, which we’ll see later on, I hope.”

In other words, Pitt views Hicks as dangerous after the catch.

As Narduzzi suggested, keep an eye out for him to be the recipient of some short-range targets moving forward, where Hicks will look to eat up defenses once he’s caught the ball.

Fellow receiver Kenny Johnson also had himself a day, adding four catches for 47 yards and a score to an impressive day on special teams, where he had a 78-yard kick return and also returned three punts (taking over for Reid) for 64 yards.

Johnson, Pitt’s leading returning receiver a year ago, is expected to make a jump in 2025.

Saturday was a good initial indicator on that front.

A career-high four touchdowns for QB1

???? @eli_holstein10 pic.twitter.com/9Ua7KJCGrK

— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) August 30, 2025

After Hicks and Johnson, Pitt’s third starter at receiver, Poppi Williams, made one catch for 45 yards.

Holstein tried to find him in the end zone in the first quarter, but the play resulted in an interception.

Behind those three, Panthers fans also got a look at Florida State transfer Deuce Spann, the tallest (6-foot-4) wideout in the room, as well as redshirt sophomore Zion Fowler-El.

Spann had a pair of catches for 12 yards, while Fowler’s lone grab went for 7 yards.

Late in the game, with only 80 seconds remaining, true freshman Bryce Yates made his mark on the win, hauling in a 60-yard touchdown from backup quarterback Cole Gonzales.

“It was good to see Bryce Yates at the end finish,” Narduzzi said. “Good to see him. … We expect those plays to be made.”

DL rotation

As is the case with receiver, the defensive line looks to be a position of strength for Pitt in 2025.

Saturday’s blowout allowed Narduzzi and coordinator Randy Bates to dig deep on the depth chart and get a multitude of ends and tackles action by game’s end.

To start, Pitt lined up with Sean FitzSimmons and Francis Brewu at tackle and Jimmy Scott and Blaine Spires at end.

A total of 10 Panthers defensive linemen recorded tackles against Duquesne, with Maverick Gracio, listed as the third d-end behind Scott and Zach Crothers, leading the way with three.

Gracio, Crothers, Nate Temple, Spires, Joey Zelinksy, Jahsear Whittington, Scott and FitzSimmons all factored in on tackles for loss, as well.

Zelinsky recorded one of Pitt’s four sacks on the day, the only defensive lineman with one.

Together, they helped hold Duquesne’s run game in check, as the Dukes finished with just 37 net yards on 31 carries.

Seventeen of those yards also came on Dukes tailback Taj Butts’ first carry of the game, but from there, Pitt was stingy against the run.

“Overall, happy with what we did in the run game,” Narduzzi said.

Added linebacker Kyle Louis, who led Pitt with six tackles (three for loss) and a pair of sacks: “That’s our pride, to stop the run, so no matter who we face, we’re just making sure we stop the run first, force them to pass the ball. Then we got talent in the (defensive backs) room to know that they’re going to stop the pass, as well.”

Butkowski gets feet wet

Saturday was a major special teams success for Pitt, which gouged Duquesne for 221 net return yards.

While return men Johnson and Reid are experienced hands, the same could not be said of true freshman kicker Trey Butkowski, who appeared in his first college game.

Butkowski was a surprise victor of the Panthers’ fall camp kicking competition, edging Murray State transfer James London.

While Butkowski had drilled a 58-yard field goal as a high-schooler, it remained to be seen how he’d adjust to kicking in front of large, Division I college crowds.

Narduzzi has indicated that the kicking competition is still ongoing, suggesting that Butkowski will need to perform well in order to keep his job.

The one blemish on Butkowski’s afternoon was a blocked extra-point attempt in the second quarter, but two made field goals, both 27 yards in the fourth quarter, should bode well for Butkowski kicking field goals for at least one more week, as the Panthers now gear up to host Central Michigan on Saturday.

While Butkowski will need to prove he can offer range as Pitt’s field goal kicker, Narduzzi liked what he saw.

“Probably had a low (kick) on that extra point that got blocked,” Narduzzi said. “I thought he was outstanding. It was really good to get those field goals in at the end, to be honest with you, just to get him feeling it. But for a true freshman, I was very impressed.”

---

Copyright ©2025— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)

---