Pitt football notebook: Struggles on 3rd down plague Panthers offense

There was plenty in Pitt’s offensive performance against Louisville last weekend that merited concern.

At different junctures and to varying degrees, quarterback play, coordinator Kade Bell’s calls and a lack of a run game contributed to Pitt managing only 10 points after the first quarter.

But all of those areas were components of an additional struggle that the Panthers have been navigating: third-down conversions.

In the pasts two games, the offense has converted only 5 of 27 (18.6%) on third down.

Coach Pat Narduzzi clearly was feeling frustration when discussing Pitt’s 1-for-10 performance on third down versus the Cardinals.

“It was bad. Awful,” Narduzzi said. “Third down, we’ve got to be better. We practice a lot of third down. I don’t get it. We’ll look at the videotape. … But we didn’t execute well.”

More alarming for Pitt was that its lone third-down conversion came in the fourth quarter, when backup quarterback Cole Gonzales had taken over for Eli Holstein.

With Holstein, who was benched with about seven minutes to play in the 34-27 loss after throwing two interceptions, the Panthers failed to convert on any of their nine third downs.

“I hope we’re out of that third-down struggle,” Narduzzi said. “We need to move the sticks and execute on third down. It’s the most important down in football. It doesn’t matter what happens on first and second (down). We’ve got to execute.”

On the note of first and second downs, did Pitt do itself any favors there to set up third-and-managable?

Looking at Pitt’s first third-down try of the afternoon, which came on a solid opening drive, blame can’t be placed anywhere but on the shoulders of tight end Malachi Thomas, who dropped a pass from Holstein on Louisville’s 6-yard line.

Including that play (which came on third-and-5), the Panthers’ remaining eight unsuccessful third-down attempts featured four incomplete passes, two rushes that failed to produce the required yardage, a pass from Holstein to Deuce Spann for minus-2 yards and a sack of Gonzales.

In total, Pitt’s average yards to go on third down was just 5.4.

“Last week was not a third-and-15 problem. It was more of just execution, getting the ball to the right guy and seeing the right stuff,” Narduzzi said. “That’s our job as coaches, to get that done.”

This season, the Panthers have been among the nation’s worst on third down, converting 16 of 50 (32%), which ranks 119th out of 134 FBS programs.

Only six Power Four teams have fared worse this season.

Redshirts

On the Panthers’ final weekly player availability report, released two hours before kickoff against Louisville, receiver Censere Lee was listed as “probable.”

Lee, however, did not play.

A senior playing his second season at Pitt after transferring from Western Carolina, Lee has yet to see a snap because of an undisclosed injury he has been nursing since training camp in August.

While Narduzzi listed Lee as fully healthy, where exactly he would fit into the mix given Pitt’s crowded receivers room remains a question.

Kenny Johnson, Blue Hicks and Poppi Williams are Pitt’s starting wideouts, receiving the lion’s share of snaps. Behind them, Spann and Zion Fowler-El are usually the next to have their numbers called, as well as Bryce Yates.

Those factors led Narduzzi to reveal that a redshirt is likely for Lee, who may play in four games while preserving a year of eligibility, per NCAA rules.

“He’s ready to go and is on scout team every day,” Narduzzi said. “We got him on scout team right now. He will be available for four games, and we’ll probably redshirt him but, if crap hit the fan on Saturday, CJ would probably be able to go in there and know exactly what he’s doing.

“… He wants to be at his best, which I think we can all respect. But if we need him, we’ve got him where we want for four games, which is a bonus.”

Narduzzi also said Pitt “would love” to have injured offensive lineman Keith Gouveia successfully petition the NCAA for a medical redshirt.

Gouveia, who started the first four games of the year at left guard, was lost for the remainder of the season after suffering a lower-leg injury against Louisville.