Pitt commits 4 turnovers but still beats Stanford handily for 5th straight win

Injuries, cross-country travel or looking ahead to three upcoming ranked matchups in a row all could have been reasons Pitt might stub a toe Saturday at Stanford.

While the Panthers once again missed some key players and did have to deal with a long road trip, they got the job done, winning 35-20 against the Cardinal at Stanford Stadium.

Pitt (7-2, 5-1 ACC) won its fifth straight contest and now heads into a bye week before games against No. 12 Notre Dame, No. 8 Georgia Tech and No. 9 Miami, with the Panthers squarely in the mix for an ACC title-game appearance.

Quarterback Mason Heintschel started off hot, throwing three touchdowns, but by game’s end he’d also thrown two red-zone interceptions and lost a pair of fumbles. Heintschel finished 23 of 38 for 304 yards in his fifth collegiate start, all victories.

“I’m happy with the win,” coach Pat Narduzzi told reporters after the game. “I thought the defense played outstanding. Offensively, we gained a lot of yards, but we can’t turn the ball over in the red zone three times. … Just can’t happen.

“That’s probably the most disappointing thing, but you’ll live and learn from that. (Heintschel) has got to learn how to just take what they’re giving you and not force things.”

The Panthers made up for their four turnovers by generating three, all of which were interceptions of Cardinal signal caller Ben Gulbranson.

Javon McIntyre had the first pick, followed by Kyle Louis, and Shawn Lee had a 30-yard pick-6 in the third quarter.

Louis and receiver Kenny Johnson played Saturday despite nursing injuries this past week, but tailback Desmond Reid and linebacker Rasheem Biles sat out.

Louis, after missing last weekend’s game vs. N.C. State and most of Pitt’s win over Syracuse, led the team with 11 tackles.

Pitt’s defense once again managed to shut down the run game, as Stanford managed only 36 yards when adjusting the Cardinal’s total without 46 yards lost on five Panthers sacks.

Ja’Kyrian Turner filled in nicely for Reid, rushing 22 times for 127 yards, helping Pitt manage 466 yards of total offense.

“(Turner’s) a football player,” Narduzzi said. “He’s tough, he’s physical — he’s Des Reid 2.0.”

Pitt scored less than four minutes into the game, with Heintschel finding Johnson over the middle for a 17-yard touchdown.

After an early fourth-down stop by the defense, Pitt needed just four plays to go up 7-0, as Heintschel led an opening-drive touchdown for the fifth straight game, a streak that coincides with him taking over as starting quarterback Oct. 4.

Stanford made it 7-3 on its next possession, as a 53-yard reception by Sam Roush set up a 39-yard field goal from Emmet Kenney at the 9:35 mark.

Pitt’s ensuing drive ended with a fumble by Heintschel that Stanford recovered at the Panthers’ 36-yard line.

The turnover quickly became a touchdown and 10-7 lead for the Cardinal with 6:20 left in the opening quarter, as Gulbranson hit C.J. Williams for a 35-yard score.

Pitt retook the lead 4 seconds into the second quarter when Deuce Spann took a snap from the wildcat, rushing into the end zone to make it 14-10.

McIntyre came down with a pick at the Pitt 33 after Spann’s touchdown, only for the offense to punt shortly thereafter.

Louis then picked off Gulbranson at the Pitt 12 with 9:39 left before halftime.

After a big third-down sack by Cameron Lindsey forced Stanford to punt from its own end zone, Pitt embarked on a seven-play, 50-yard touchdown drive to go up 21-10 with 1:47 left in the opening half.

Heintschel found Poppi Williams from 5 yards for the score.

But as time expired in the half, Kenney drilled a 45-yard field goal to trim Pitt’s lead to 21-13.

Pitt imploded a promising Stanford drive to begin the third quarter, with Jimmy Scott collecting a third-down sack to force a punt.

Getting the ball back at their own 11, the Panthers marched downfield on an 89-yard scoring drive, capped when Heintschel found Jake Overman from 14 yards to go up 28-13 with 5:54 left in the third quarter.

Turner had a 15-yard rush on the drive, as well as a fourth-down rush of 6 to move the chains, and receiver C.J. Lee caught his first pass of the season, a 31-yarder.

On Stanford’s first play after the ensuing kickoff, Gulbranson was picked for the third time, this time by Lee, who returned it 30 yards for a touchdown as Pitt took a commanding 35-13 lead 8 seconds after Overman’s touchdown.

Stanford’s late-game touchdown came with 18 seconds remaining, when backup quarterback Elijah Brown found Williams for a 19-yard strike.

“It’s both sides of the ball ultimately playing together,” Scott, who had 1.5 sacks, said of the win. “We give up stuff on defense all the time, and the offense has our back. When the offense has a drive where they slip up, we have their back.”