In the midst of many new faces at Pitt, returning players find way to uphold culture coach Jeff Capel is building
Those players returning to Pitt’s basketball team for the 2024-25 season were not surprised Bub Carrington left for the NBA after one season. Especially when it became almost immediately apparent Carrington was destined to be a first-round choice. No one panicked, either, even as Carrington left while Blake Hinson also...
Pitt remembers 2023 loss to Syracuse, gets chance Thursday night to erase sour memories
Perhaps no game from 2023 capsulizes the misery Pitt players and coaches felt better than the 28-13 loss to Syracuse on Nov. 11 at Yankee Stadium. Not only did the defeat complete the second four-game losing streak of the season, but it dropped the Panthers to 2-8 for the first...
With Tony Bennett, others resigning, Pat Narduzzi says he coaches ‘for the love of the game’
In the wake of the resignation of another high-profile ACC basketball coach Friday, Pitt football coach Pat Narduzzi said college athletics will survive. “It’s never going to go anywhere,” he said Friday. “It’s who’s going to hang in there long enough to continue to ride the waves, right?” The waves...
Pitt names veteran big-school administrator Allen Greene as its next AD
Pat Narduzzi wasn’t on the search committee, and he said he did not have input into Allen Greene becoming Pitt’s next athletic director — his next boss. But when the Pitt head coach sits down with Greene in the coming days, it will be a getting reacquainted meeting — not...
Grading the Panthers: Pitt gets high marks for season’s first half while expectations continue to rise
Just for fun and to pass the time during Pitt’s open (don’t call it a bye) week, let’s set up a fake scenario of two Pitt fans before the season sitting at the bar at Cupka’s Cafe on the South Side drinking Crown and Coke. Man 1: “Hey, how do...
Pitt’s Ishmael Leggett named to All-ACC preseason 2nd team while Panthers projected to finish 7th
Pitt is ranked seventh in the ACC preseason poll, and Panthers senior guard Ishmael Leggett was named to the All-ACC second team, according to voting from a panel of 54 voters released Tuesday. Leggett averaged 12.3 points, 5.5 rebounds (No. 1 among all conference guards), 1.9 assists, and 1.3 steals...
Pitt by the numbers at the halfway point of the season
If you need proof that a year is a long time, merely turn to Pitt football and see how matters surrounding the program have changed. Here are some numbers that illustrate the dramatic shift in fortunes for the 6-0 and No. 20-ranked Panthers: 2-4/6-0 — Pitt was 2-4 after six...
Analysis: Plenty of gifts from California helped No. 20 Pitt remain undefeated
The speed in Desmond Reid’s legs, the power in Ben Sauls’ left foot and Pat Narduzzi’s risk-taking on fourth down were vital elements in Pitt’s 17-15 victory against California on Saturday. Give Pitt credit for all three. Those were not gifts. Without them, the Panthers (6-0, 2-0 ACC) would not...
Pitt’s defensive front smothers Cal, posting season-high 6 sacks plus 11 TFLsVideo
Pitt’s usually explosive offense did not show up Saturday at Acrisure Stadium vs. the Cal Golden Bears. The No. 22 Panthers, who had averaged more than 500 yards, entering the afternoon with a top offense nationally, managed a season-low 277 in a narrow 17-15 win over the Bears. Quarterback Eli...
Pitt offense stumbles, but Panthers edge California, improve to 6-0 for 1st time since 1982
When Eli Holstein walked into the interview room Saturday night after Pitt’s 17-15 victory against California that in reality was a lesson in survival, reporters were ready for him. His captivating season hit a roadblock in his second career ACC game when he threw two interceptions, completed just half of...
Pitt basketball announces plans to retire Sam Clancy’s No. 15 jersey
Pitt will retire the No. 15 jersey of legendary basketball star Sam Clancy during its game Jan. 18 against Clemson at Petersen Events Center. Coach Jeff Capel made the announcement at Acrisure Stadium on Saturday between the first and second quarters of Pitt’s football game against California. Clancy, a member...
Pitt Take 5: Undefeated Panthers insist ‘we haven’t done anything’
Pitt is one of 12 unbeaten teams nationwide, a distinction the Panthers (5-0, 1-0) share with only one ACC rival, Miami. That being the case, there’s nothing left to say other than: The time has come for Pitt to get down to the serious business of competing for a second...
Fueled by NCAA Tournament snub, Pitt basketball hopes to ‘leave no doubt’
The pain, the empty feeling, the anger won’t go away, and that’s OK, according to Pitt guards Jaland Lowe and Ishmael Leggett. They thrive on it, actually. “Fuel to the fire,” Leggett said Thursday afternoon on the ACC Network during an appearance at the ACC Tip-off Event in Charlotte, N.C....
Deer Lakes’ Sullivan playing all over pitch for No. 1 Pitt soccer
Michael Sullivan scored his first goal for the top-ranked Pitt men’s soccer team this week in a big game against another top-10 team in Denver, and though that was a big moment, it’s only a small part of what he’s contributing. Sullivan’s greatest asset to the Panthers has been his...
Pat Narduzzi speaks on subjects ranging from players’ financial investments to Matt Canada’s time at Pitt
Talk was scattered in many different directions Thursday in the conference room adjacent to Pat Narduzzi’s office, where he presided over his final news briefing of the week. The weekly sessions are not exactly akin to FDR’s fireside chats from the 1930s and 1940s, but it’s an opportunity for reporters...
Cat Flood relishes her role with Pitt women’s volleyball as team vies for national championship
Cat Flood has become one of the most popular players on the top-ranked Pitt volleyball team, particularly among the younger crowd. Maybe it’s her trademark two-tone hair, something she did on a teammate’s dare a couple of years ago, and it has stuck. She tried going back to one hair...
Hoping to look like Fred Rogers, Pat Narduzzi invites his ‘neighbors’ to Pitt’s game at Acrisure StadiumVideo
Pat Narduzzi has been known to make an occasional show on Pitt’s sideline, whether it’s having an animated conversation with an official or even kissing a player on the cheek. (Chris Blewitt remembers that one.) After Getting Kiss from Pat Narduzzi, Pitt Kicker Chris Blewitt Boots Field Goal to Upset...
Pitt women’s volleyball team sweeps No. 15 SMU
The Pitt women’s volleyball team finally dropped a set. That happened Oct. 4, when the top-ranked Panthers, who won their first 12 matches of the year via 3-0 sweeps, lost the opener at Boston College. The unbeaten streak, however, remains intact. The Panthers (15-0, 5-0 ACC) took care of 15th-ranked...
Pitt linebacker crew will confront stiff test when speedy California running backs come to town
Like his head coach two decades before him, Pitt linebackers coach Ryan Manalac played middle linebacker to some distinction. A walk-on when he first enrolled at the University of Cincinnati, he ended up with a scholarship, four letters, a starting job for two seasons and nearly 200 tackles. Manalac has...
Pitt coach Jeff Capel hopes to grow the same culture that led to 46 victories past 2 seasons
Approaching his seventh season as Pitt’s men’s basketball coach and 16th overall, Jeff Capel has many reasons to be proud. There are the 259 victories, advancing to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament with Oklahoma, becoming a trusted advisor to Mike Krzyzewski and sending seven players into the NBA...
Yes, Pitt tight end Gavin Bartholomew can catch, but he also contributes in other ways
While climbing the status ladder among the best quarterbacks in college football, Pitt redshirt freshman Eli Holstein has learned to be an equal opportunity dispenser. Six pass catchers have at least 14 receptions for at least 117 yards each. Already, seven have caught touchdown passes. Meanwhile, Holstein has thrown for...
While Pitt’s offense continues to click, don’t forget how defense steps up on the money downs
Back when Pat Narduzzi was playing linebacker for Youngstown State and Rhode Island, he knew a third-down stop meant success. Series over, offense trudging to the bench, punt or field-goal try upcoming. That was in the 1980s and even into the next century, to be honest, which might as well...
Pitt ranked No. 22 in AP poll, but improvements on defense could lead to greater heights
Not unlike every coach before him, each of his colleagues across the nation and anyone who will walk a sideline in the future, Pat Narduzzi insists on playing games one at a time. His credo: Try to go 1-0 every week and at the end of the season, look up...
Eli Holstein, Pitt stay unbeaten with victory against North Carolina in ACC opener
Pat Narduzzi admitted to being witness to a bit of “dancing and celebrating” in Pitt’s Kenan Stadium locker room after the 34-24 victory against North Carolina. He even made mention on his postgame interview — via 93.7 FM — of the subject he repeatedly avoided in the days leading up...
First Call: Najee Harris responds as Zaire Franklin doubles-down on criticism; Steelers-Cowboys primetime historyVideo
Friday’s “First Call” has Najee Harris’ response to Zaire Franklin’s criticism. We recap the brief history of the Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Dallas Cowboys in regular season primetime games. Pitt looks to extend its unbeaten streak while hoping to shake some frightening history in North Carolina. Penn State renews some long-dormant...
