Pitt football camp preview: 5 storylines to watch as Panthers get underway

Confidence can sometimes be misleading or misplaced.

In the case of Pitt football coach Pat Narduzzi, his confidence in the 2023 team was of the latter variety, as it finished 3-9.

Fast forward two years, and Narduzzi is confident once again heading into Year 11 in Oakland, with his Panthers beginning practices Wednesday on the South Side.

Quarterback Eli Holstein and tailback Desmond Reid are looking to take the next steps within coordinator Kade Bell’s offense.

They are key parts of a nucleus of returning talent Narduzzi managed to keep around another year for what he hopes is a legitimate shot at an ACC title. Pitt showed flashes last season during its 7-0 start but then dropped its final six games, including a 48-46 six-overtime loss to Toledo in the GameAbove Sports Bowl.

“We have a talented football team,” Narduzzi said last week at the ACC Football Kickoff. “Most of our weapons are back. We did not lose anybody that we wanted to keep in the transfer portal. We’ve enhanced our roster. We stay healthy, I think we have an opportunity to win a championship, period. That’s the goal.”

Here are five storylines to monitor as camp gets underway and Pitt begins preparations for the season opener Aug. 30 against Duquesne at Acrisure Stadium.

Holstein and Reid

The success of Holstein and Reid this fall could mirror that of Pitt as a team.

Last season, the Panthers got a clear picture of what could be achieved offensively when those two were firing on all cylinders, as Pitt averaged just under 409 yards of total offense per game, ranking 44th in the nation, as well as 32.9 points per contest.

Reid, who transferred from Western Carolina in the 2024 offseason, finished with 966 rushing yards and five scores.

Holstein, who joined Pitt from Alabama at the same time, completed 61.9% of his passes for 2,228 yards, 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Both players also missed time with injuries, with Reid missing the Youngstown State and Boston College games, and Holstein sitting out the final three games of the year with a concussion and ankle injury.

If Pitt is to improve upon last season, as well as avert another catastrophic second-half collapse, Holstein and Reid need to stay on the field and play central roles.

Offensive line

Reid’s ability to run the ball and Holstein’s ability to sling it — in addition to both players avoiding injuries — will in large part come down to the five men in front of them on the offensive line. Three starters return.

At center, Lyndon Cooper is back for his redshirt senior year, having started 12 games (he missed one due to injury) in 2024.

BJ Williams, who started all 13 games last fall at right guard, is also back, and Ryan Baer has shown versatility in being able to play both tackle spots.

Narduzzi also brought in a few transfers who seem primed to compete for prominent, if not starting, roles.

Jeff Persi, a 6-foot-8, 315-pound specimen, arrives after five seasons (2020-24) at Michigan, seeing action in 41 career games. He will be an option at tackle.

Additionally, the Panthers got Kendall Stanley from UNC Charlotte. Stanley was a 13-game starter there last fall, all at right tackle.

Keith Gouveia made 24 starts at left guard for Richmond from 2021-24 before transferring to Pitt, and he also could fill some gaps up front.

Elite linebacking

Among the most important returners on either side of the ball is All-American linebacker Kyle Louis, who recorded 101 tackles last year, including a team-leading 15.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks.

Rejoining him are fellow linebackers Rasheem Biles, who made 82 tackles (15 for loss), along with six sacks, and Leechburg’s Braylan Lovelace, who started at the Money linebacker position.

Finally, Aliquippa’s Cameron Lindsey could be primed for a breakout season after redshirting last fall.

Lindsey staying home and choosing Pitt was a significant recruiting victory, and coordinator Randy Bates has been complimentary of Lindsay’s growth since joining the program.

Sophomore Jeremiah Marcelin is another linebacker to monitor.

Reinforced defensive line

This past winter, Pitt had to absorb several transfer portal losses at defensive line, as Sincere Edwards (Central Florida) and Chief Borders (UNLV) departed.

However, Narduzzi brought in several transfers at defensive end: Jaeden Moore, who played 17 games for Oregon over the past two seasons at defensive end, Blaine Spires (Utah State) and Joey Zelinsky (Eastern Michigan).

Spires is a veteran of 20 games (seven starts) with the Aggies from 2023-24 and is entering his seventh season of college football, and Zelinsky played three seasons at Eastern Michigan, appearing in 36 games.

The transfer portal reinforcements join redshirt junior Jimmy Scott, who started all 13 games for Pitt last year at defensive end, recording 30 tackles (12.5 for loss) with six sacks.

At interior defensive line, Pitt returns Nick James, Sean FitzSimmons (Central Valley) and Jahsear Whittington.

James played 12 games last year, posting 19 tackles, while Whittington redshirted as a freshman.

FitzSimmons’ season debut last year was delayed by injury until October, but upon becoming available, he went on to record 32 tackles (4.5 for loss) and 1.5 sacks in nine games.

Filling Sauls’ shoes

Pitt’s special teams will look decidedly different without Ben Sauls, who exhausted his collegiate eligibility after handling kicking duties from 2022-24.

Sauls was extremely dependable last year, as he drilled 21 of 24 (87.5%) field goals.

But now, new faces will be competing for that gig, namely James London, who transferred in from Murray State, where he hit 16 of 22 career attempts.

Walk-ons Sam Carpenter and Trey Butkowski are the other kickers on the roster.