DC Randy Bates hopes Pitt's sacks, interceptions turn into something bigger

Ignoring Pitt’s won/loss record and focusing only on the good-news stats might raise false hope about the Panthers’ chances of upsetting Clemson on Saturday.

“You are what your record says you are,” Bill Parcells famously remarked. His point was a team can look good, but if you don’t win the game, who cares?

Pitt (5-4, 4-4 ACC) leads the nation in sacks (40) and tackles for loss (97) and has an ACC-high 12 interceptions. But was any of that enough to reverse Pitt’s two one-point losses? The late touchdowns allowed in those games are what everyone remembers.

Pitt has statistics that suggest it has a chance to beat the odds — No. 4 Clemson (7-1, 6-1) is favored by 25 — but defensive coordinator Randy Bates wants to see more.

“I don’t think we’ve reached what we did last year,” he said. “I’d like to think that we still have a lot of work to do.”

The interception total is impressive, but Bates isn’t especially impressed.

“The unfortunate thing we haven’t done is catch enough of them,” he said. “We have to catch the ball when it hits you in the hands. I can probably think of six or eight of them that we should have gotten. That’s the mark of a great team.”

But he believes Pitt’s defense has the potential to dramatically improve upon its performance in the 2018 ACC championship game when Clemson ran for 301 yards in a 42-10 victory.

“What happened in that championship game is something I’ll never forget,” senior defensive end Patrick Jones II said. “We are definitely going to come into (Saturday) with a chip on our shoulder.”

Ends Jones and Rashad Weaver and sophomore linebacker SirVocea Dennis (if he returns after missing the Virginia Tech game) are Pitt’s leaders in TFLs (a total of 37). They will need to get Clemson junior quarterback Trevor Lawrence on the ground or out of his comfort zone. But opponents have sacked Clemson quarterbacks only 13 times.

Lawrence, the presumptive first overall choice in the 2021 NFL Draft, has thrown for 8,778 yards and 83 touchdowns in three seasons. He has completed 66.5% of his throws (70.7 this season).

He hasn’t played since Oct. 24 after testing positive for covid-19, but he was ready to go last week when Clemson’s game at Florida State was postponed. Clemson still averages 353.6 aerial yards per game, with pass catchers such as Amari Rodgers (48 receptions, 720 yards and six touchdowns) and running back Travis Etienne (37/491/2).

Bates can’t seem to praise Lawrence enough.

“He’s tall. He’s long. He’s really, really smart as far as where he goes with the ball. He doesn’t make a lot of bad decisions,” he said.

“He’s fast. Boy, I’m really impressed. I know I was when he was a freshman (in 2018), and he’s not any slower. He’s got a lot of velocity. He really puts the ball where it needs to be. Other than that, I don’t think he’s very good.”

Bates said he hasn’t seen much difference in Clemson over the past two seasons.

“Pretty much the same offense and, unfortunately, about the same team,” he said.

Pitt is different, but the key will be how much its defense has improved since 2018.

“I believe up front we’re a better team overall,” Bates said. “The older guys are taking their technique to a different level. They are crafting some new moves.”

After nine games, Pitt is only 11 sacks and six TFLs short of its 13-game totals from 2019.

“What has really helped more than anything are the younger guys being able to learn from the older guys,” Bates said. “The guys do a great job of teaching each other.

“If there is one thing I can say about this group as a whole on defense, they are a group together. They worry about their teammates before they worry about themselves.”

That has been the case all season. Bates hopes that togetherness will make a difference Saturday.

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