Greatness is within grasp for the Pitt football program.

When No. 23 Pitt hosts No. 9 Notre Dame on Saturday at Acrisure Stadium, the Panthers will be vying to stay in contention for the College Football Playoff and ACC title game.

It’s been quite a journey for the Panthers this season, one that began with great promise, quickly fizzled out thanks to a bitter rival and has been resurrected by the play of unexpected contributors and unforeseen circumstances in the ACC.

Saturday’s stakes — not only for the Panthers (7-2, 5-1 ACC) but also a Notre Dame (7-2) squad looking for a late-season CFP resume-building win — are primarily responsible for attracting ESPN’s “College GameDay” to the North Shore in advance of the noon kickoff.

“This is a really significant game in the big picture of college football because Notre Dame can’t afford to lose,” said ESPN’s Rece Davis, host of “College Gameday.” “I think their at-large case would be severely damaged if not completely done with a loss. (A win for Pitt) certainly would help their cause, it would help the ACC — there’s a lot at stake for them, too.”

Courtesy of Pitt Athletics The ESPN College GameDay broadcast set on the Great Lawn outside Acrisure Stadium on Nov. 14, 2026. Photo Courtsey of Pitt Athletics  

Pitt has followed a winding route into the national conversation.

Instead of riding the contributions of a returning quarterback from 2024 and All-Americans on both sides of the ball, it’s been a true freshman under center and robust depth that have powered Pitt to its current ranking by the AP and CFP Selection Committee.

The Panthers also navigated two early-season losses that threatened to prematurely unravel their long-term aspirations.

But coach Pat Narduzzi’s team has persevered, as an unorthodox arc has led the Panthers to a big stage Saturday, hosting one of the nation’s premier programs at a sold-out Acrisure Stadium on national television.

“This team’s different,” Narduzzi said. “They believe and it’s a fun group to coach.”

A peculiar path

There seemed to be a realistic preseason road map for Pitt to follow in order to arrive at this upcoming moment.

Eli Holstein, after an injury-shortened but impressive debut campaign for the Panthers, was back for his redshirt sophomore campaign at quarterback.

Also returning were two All-Americans in linebacker Kyle Louis and tailback Desmond Reid, as well as plenty more veterans.

With a seasoned quarterback and plenty of impact players in the mix, Pitt appeared to have a blueprint of how to improve upon a 2024 season that began 7-0 but ended with a six-game skid.

At least, that’s how Davis reasoned when evaluating the Panthers over the summer.

“I picked them to go to the (CFP) in the preseason because of all the guys they had returning, but also because of their returning quarterback, who I thought was going to take the next step,” Davis said.

Things started off well enough for Pitt, which moved to 2-0 behind thumpings of Duquesne and Central Michigan.

But cracks appeared in the foundation leading into the Backyard Brawl on Sept. 13.

Holstein’s play began dropping off and Reid was lost to injury, with his health having fluctuated ever since.

The Panthers fell to WVU in overtime before squandering the following week’s contest to Louisville.

At that point, Narduzzi rolled the dice and put the keys of the offense in the hands of a freshman — quarterback Mason Heintschel.

Andrew Palla | For TribLive Pitt quarterback Mason Heintschel heaves a deep pass down field Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, at Acrisure Stadium.  

The result has been five straight wins over Boston College, Florida State, Syracuse, N.C. State and Stanford.

“Heintschel has been just a revelation for them,” Davis said. “He’s given them a spark, and I think they’ve put themselves in the position that every team in America wants to be in. You want to get to November and have a chance. They’ve got a chance. … That’s a remarkable turn of events given the loss at West Virginia, given the quarterback change and the injuries mid-season.”

Adversity strikes

There was a reason Narduzzi and coordinator Kade Bell recruited Heintschel from northwestern Ohio even though the Panthers were the only Power Four program to offer.

Yet neither could have truly known what to expect when Heintschel made his first start Oct. 4 against Boston College.

Heintschel impressed from the jump, throwing for 323 yards and four touchdowns.

Since then, the 18-year-old has been the biggest reason why Pitt has returned to solid ground.

Behind him, the Panthers have not wavered.

“When things go a little sideways and there’s some uncertainty, which inevitably comes when you change quarterbacks, sometimes people can splinter a little bit,” Davis said. “Clearly Pittsburgh did not do that and that is to their credit.”

Of course, it hasn’t been a one-man show.

With Louis missing the better parts of two games and fellow standout linebacker Rasheem Biles absent for Pitt’s last three, others such as Cameron Lindsey and Nick Lapi stepped up in their place.

Andrew Palla | For TribLive Pitt's Braylan Lovelace (0), Rashad Battle (15) and Cameron Lindsey tackle N.C. State's Justin Joly on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, at Acrisure Stadium.  

When Reid, arguably Pitt’s most dynamic player, was unable to play, Juelz Goff and true freshman Ja’Kyrian Turner plugged the gap in the backfield.

Keith Gouveia, Pitt’s starting left guard, was lost for the season in early October, while left tackle Jeff Persi hasn’t played in six weeks.

Isaiah Neal, a defensive tackle, has learned to play defensive end on the fly as a result of multiple injuries decimating Pitt’s depth chart at the position.

“Our guys have done it a different way and I’ve been impressed with this football team,” Narduzzi said. “They’re different. This is not the 2020 team or ‘21 team — this is the 2025 team. I think you find different ways to win.”

Big stage, big stakes

Saturday marks the 74th all-time meeting between Pitt and Notre Dame, with the Fighting Irish holding a 50-21-1 advantage in a series that dates to 1909.

Narduzzi, at the helm in Oakland since 2015, is 0-4 against the Irish, having led Pitt in blowout defeats to Notre Dame in 2023 (58-7) and 2020 (45-3).

Earlier in Narduzzi’s tenure, Pitt came closer, dropping a 19-14 game to the Irish in 2018 and falling 42-30 in 2015.

Entering Saturday, Narduzzi believes he’s got as good of a shot as he’s had at Pitt to chalk up a win vs. Notre Dame.

With Notre Dame fighting for its place in the CFP and Pitt looking to maintain momentum heading into its final two regular-season games against No. 14 Georgia Tech and No. 16 Miami, anticipation from all directions is in abundance as kickoff nears.

“To be able to come to Pitt with a game of this magnitude and see one of the best NFL stadiums sold out — that’s all we ask for,” GameDay analyst Steve Coughlin said. “The excitement level — that’s what we pride ourselves on.

“There’s nothing like the energy of a college campus, but when you can bring the college campus to the stadium when we have a noon game … it provides an energy level that you don’t get. It’s not artificial. It’s genuine.”

Andrew Palla | For TribLive Pitt fans react to a sack against N.C. State on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, at Acrisure Stadium.  

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