In his eight seasons at Pitt, Pat Narduzzi has been reluctant to offer details or even discuss injured players, not unlike any coach who’s ever worn a whistle.
At least two injury issues emerged Thursday night when defensive end Deslin Alexandre and running back Rodney Hammond Jr. left the West Virginia game. Hammond was available for postgame interviews — a sign that the injury wasn’t considered especially serious at the time — but he walked into the room to chat with reporters while wearing a boot.
When he was asked about Alexandre and Hammond on Monday, he said, “You know, I’m not going to talk injuries. Those are private things.”
Then, he gave an example of why he likes to respect a player’s privacy
During training camp last month, Narduzzi was asked about strong safety Brandon Hill, who did not practice for a few days. The coach declined to offer details, and one person appreciated it: Hill’s mother Adrienne.
To illustrate, Narduzzi pulled out his phone and read the text message he received.
“Hey, coach Narduzzi, I saw the interview on Friday where the reporter asked about Brandon,” Adrienne Hill’s text began. “Thank you for respecting his medical privacy. It looked like that question (teed) you off. Thank you for caring about your players. I can see you care about all of them.”
“It goes on and on, and some emojis,” Narduzzi said. “That’s the first ever I got from a parent. I was, like, you know what, I guess I’m not screwing it up too bad.”
For the record, Hammond and Alexandre are listed on the depth chart released Monday. Hammond is listed as a co-starter with Izzy Abanikanda, and Alexandre is DE1, with Habakkuk Baldonado on the other side.
Did you know?
M.J. Devonshire’s interception return against West Virginia marked the third consecutive game Pitt has scored a defensive touchdown. Free safety Erick Hallett returned an interception for a score in the ACC championship game against Wake Forest, and former linebacker Cam Bright picked up a fumble and returned it for a touchdown in the Peach Bowl against Michigan State.
