Another spring, another regime change for Pitt, which welcomes its fourth head coach since 2010—not even counting three interim guys. This year former Michigan State assistant Pat Narduzzi takes over for the Panthers, bringing his calling-card defense to a team locked and loaded on the other side of the ball.
Offense
How the Panthers beat you: In juniors James Conner and Tyler Boyd, Pitt returns the league’s lone 1,000-yard rusher/1,000-yard receiver duo. Both skill players offer the Panthers elite production: Conner, the reigning ACC player of the year, ran for 26 TDs (No. 3 in the FBS), and Boyd became the first player in ACC history to catch 1,000 yards in his freshman and sophomore seasons. But with former Arkansas OC Jim Chaney joining the fold, look for the ’15 offense to run through Conner. Chaney favored a run-heavy attack (two Razorbacks RBs gained 1,100 yards apiece in ’14) that opted to rush the ball on 60.8 percent of its plays. Pitt embraced a similar philosophy last year, especially on first down, when it ran the ball 75.7 percent of the time.
How you beat the Panthers: Even Boyd’s 16.2 ypc—the third-highest average among FBS WRs (minimum 75 catches)—couldn’t propel Pitt into the country’s top 100 passing offenses (185.9 ypg, No. 102). The Panthers just don’t have a go-to after Boyd, who made 78 grabs last year. The closest any other returning WR came to that total? Junior Dontez Ford, with three catches. If opponents opt for double coverage on Boyd (and, really, why wouldn’tthey?), junior QB Chad Voytik might run out of options fast.
Defense
How the Panthers beat you: Narduzzi will employ more tight press coverage this season—a hallmark of his Michigan State defenses. And that suits senior CB Lafayette Pitts (38 career starts) just fine. “It’s just man-on-man [and] who’s going to be the better guy at the end of the down,” he told Pitt’s school newspaper in the spring. The unit, which entered last season as one of the team’s biggest question marks ( just two cornerbacks with playing experience, including Pitts), ended 2014 with surprisingly good grades for the pass D: 198.9 ypg allowed (No. 24 in the FBS), 34 plays of 20-plus yards (No. 26). Rejoining Pitts is sophomore CB Avonte Maddox (six starts as a true frosh last year), along with three other DBs with starting experience— so Narduzzi, who has fielded consistently dominant secondaries as a D-coordinator, could coach this unit up to similar levels in 2015.
How you beat the Panthers: Pitt struggled to disrupt the pocket in 2014, with the Panthers collecting just 19 sacks total (No. 101 in the FBS). And while the defensive line returns senior tackle Darryl Render, plus junior DE Shakir Soto, Narduzzi will need a huge uptick in production if this group is to resemble the pocket hounders he has grown used to.