Miserable night for Pitt against 'measuring stick' Clemson

Pitt’s 52-17 loss to Clemson on Saturday night was bad, but no more devastating than any of the four that preceded it.

Whether it was 31-19 to Miami or the three interceptions Joey Yellen threw in a 42-point loss to Notre Dame or the failure to overcome one-point deficits while losing to Boston College and N.C. State, they all add up to disappointment and vanishing opportunity.

They also define how different Pitt’s program is from the ACC’s finest: No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 3 Clemson.

After Heisman Trophy candidate Trevor Lawrence threw for 403 yards and two touchdowns in only three quarters, coach Pat Narduzzi acknowledged the talent gap between his team and the Tigers (8-1, 7-1), who have won five consecutive ACC championships and two of the past four national titles.

“It definitely is a measuring stick,” he said. “It tells you where you are and what you have to do to get back to where you need to be. Our best play was Kirk Christodoulou with the punt (10 of them). I would not say we are where we need to be talent-wise.

“When you look at what Clemson is recruiting and what Notre Dame is recruiting, we just have to continue to recruit. We get what we get, and we’ll try to develop them as a football staff.”

The game was over only minutes after it began when Clemson jumped out to a 31-0 lead by the end of the first quarter, setting a school record for points in a game’s first 15 minutes.

Quarterback Kenny Pickett, who had thrown four interceptions in his first seven games, threw three in the first quarter, four for the game.

Clemson didn’t need any help, but Pitt obliged, anyway.

“That’s been the tale against really good football teams,” Narduzzi said. “We’ve turned the ball over and not really given ourselves a chance, started slow.”

For the second consecutive game, Pitt played without three starting offensive linemen — tackles Carter Warren and Gabe Houy and guard Jake Kradel — and it showed. The replacements played well last week against Virginia Tech, but Clemson takes the game to another level.

Aside from the interceptions — each preceded a Clemson touchdown — the Tigers recorded six sacks, two quarterback hurries and two forced fumbles.

“Probably overwhelmed our offensive line a little bit with having three starters out again,” Narduzzi said. “We just didn’t get things done. No. 3 team in the country, you turn it over four times, you have no shot.”

Some of the problems were familiar.

“We didn’t make enough plays,” Narduzzi said. “We dropped balls. We missed a lot of tackles on defense early. You’re down against a good football team, it’s hard to come back.”

Narduzzi lamented giving Clemson short fields after the interceptions. But when he stops to analyze what happened, he’ll see Clemson had touchdown drives of 16, 35 and 41 yards but four others of 65, 82, 75 and 89.

Defensive end Rashad Weaver, one of the ACC’s best players on defense, recorded two sacks to give him 7½ this season, but he believes the defense didn’t carry enough of its load.

The turnovers put pressure on the defense, but Pitt’s unit began the season with hopes of being able to withstand the hardships and adversities that inevitably surface.

Instead, Pitt has allowed an average of 483 yards in three of the past four games and been embarrassed by Notre Dame and Clemson with a combined score of 97-20.

“Our job is to go out there and stop them to at least a field goal,” Weaver said. “That’s our job. Even if turnovers happen, the defense is still supposed to stop the offense from getting in the end zone, whether it’s on the 1-yard line or starting 99 yards away.

“You have to look at yourself on those type of plays.”

Now, Pitt (5-5, 5-4) must play one more game on Dec. 10 against Georgia Tech, a game postponed from Nov. 14 by covid-19 issues.

A loss would leave Pitt without a winning record in three of the past four seasons.

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