Before practice Tuesday morning, Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi said he was hoping to see improvement from his running game. He didn’t like some of what developed in the scrimmage last Saturday.

“Our offense threw the ball really well,” he said. “Still want our run game to get better.”

He said it’s a matter of consistency, and getting everyone — backs, linemen, tight ends and wide receivers who block downfield — in sync.

“All it takes is one guy (to miss an assignment),” he said. “We have to execute better. We just need more reps. It takes 11 guys. It’s not just the running back.”

After practice (most of which was closed to reporters), quarterback Nick Patti said there was some improvement.

“We killed it. Ran the ball great,” he said. “We have a lot of confidence in the offensive line. Hammering out a couple of issues. We’re looking better every day.”

’Physical’ scrimmage

Overall, Narduzzi said the scrimmage was “very physical.” Equally as impressive was the players’ conditioning.

“Nobody in the white tent all camp (for heat exhaustion),” he said. “Knock on some wood. Our football team is in shape.”

The physicality and tackling were good, he said: “I didn’t see a whole of sloppy, missed tackles.

“As a head coach, you’re saying, ‘Slow down a little bit. In a real football game, you’re going to take that hit, but that’s your teammate. Don’t do that.’ “

Still, if it stops short of causing injuries, he likes to see his aggressiveness at practice.

“There was some hitting going on on both sides of the ball. It was physical. It was fun to see. I would much rather slow them down than pick them up.”

Secondary competition

Narduzzi pointed out position battles at free safety and nickel.

Junior Erick Hallett and sophomore Rashad Battle are competing at free safety.

“Hallett has a little more knowledge, and Battle keeps closing every day,” Narduzzi said. “It’s just a great battle back there. It’s going to be the guy who wants it the most.”

Hallett is also in the mix at nickel with senior John Petrishen and Battle.

“We have more guys at that position than we’ve had in the past,” the coach said. “Hallett has done it before. John (who is listed as a linebacker but has played safety) does it in base (defense), so he kind of gets a clue. He’s done a nice job for us.

“Battle is really, really smart. He can play corner. He can play safety. He can play nickel. He’s kind of like Damar Hamlin. He can do it all.”

Keep an eye on …

Freshman tight end Gavin Bartholomew (6-foot-4, 260 pounds) has impressed teammates and coaches through the first 10 days of camp.

“He’s just so athletic,” Patti said. “He’s really versatile., He’s a good blocker, He’s like – what? — 18?

“When he came in, (we said), ‘Who is this kid?’ We were definitely pleasantly surprised with him.”

Recruiting stuff

Pitt lost a member of its class of 2022 when three-star offensive linemen Ja’Kavion Nonar of Belle Grade, Fla., announced his de-commitment on Twitter.

— Ja'Kavion “Bugatti” Nonar (@jayno1_) August 17, 2021

He had been committed since June but recently has received scholarship offers from Florida and Ole Miss.

Pitt has two other offensive linemen in its 12-man 2022 class: four-star Ryan Baer of Eastlake, Ohio, and three-star Isaiah Montgomery of Virginia Beach, Va.

Pitt’s class is ranked 51st in the nation and 10th in the ACC by Rivals.com.

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