By Ray Porter Jr.
PITTSBURGH, PA–The Pitt Panthers did it again.
A week ago, they were down 27-6 to beat the Cincinnati Bearcats 28-27, and this week they were down 34-24 to beat the West Virginia Mountaineers 38-34 in front of a sold-out Acrisure Stadium crowd in the latest edition of the ‘Backyard Brawl.’
“Wow, first thing I’ve got to say, what a great crowd out there.” Said Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi. “Panther Nation showed up there today. I appreciate all the efforts that the Panther Pitt and everybody gave out there. We showed them a ball game.”
With the win, Pitt is now 3-0. They finished last season 3-9.
What made this comeback significant, was the fact that the Panthers were trailing by 10 points with over four minutes left in the Fourth Quarter thanks to Freshman QB Eli Holstein who looked like Joe Montana, John Elway, Terry Bradshaw, Dan Marino, and Ben Roethlisberger all in one as he smoothly conducted two drives that resulted in 14 points. The first drive resulted in a 40-yard TD to WR Daejon Reynolds to close the deficit to 3, and then after a magnificent stand by the defense, Holstein did it again on 6 plays, a 77-yard drive that resulted in a 1-yard TD run by RB Derrick Davis Jr. to give the Panthers the game-winning points. Holstein would finish passing for 301 yards, and 3 TDs and he is the first Pitt player to pass for 300 yards in his first 3 games.
“Not always the way we wanted it to go as far as just the details, but you couldn’t ask anything more from our guys in the locker room.” Said Narduzzi. “Some big plays in the game. Kenny Pickett (laughs) — he’s pretty good too — Kenny Johnson had two big-time passes (catches). The big one early. Then he had another tipped ball. Just great eye control on the ball.”
But like most Pitt/WVU games, it was a battle and a question of who wanted it most as the lead changed several times: In the first quarter, The Mountaineers took a 7-0 lead when QB Garrett Greene (210 yards, 2 TDs, 2INT) found RB CJ Donaldson for a 10-yard TD pass, then Holstein would find RB Desmond Reid for a 9 yard TD pass and a 10-7 lead.
In the Second Quarter, West Virginia took a 14-10 lead on a 5-yard TD run by RB Jahiem White. In the Third Quarter, the Panthers would take a 24-17 lead on a blocked punt that led to a TD return by LB Brandon George, then the Mountaineers took a 27-24 lead on a FG by K Michael Haynes II and extended their lead to 34-24 on an incredible 28-yard TD pass from Greene to WR Justin Robinson. Then the Panthers got the ball left with over 4 minutes to play…
In their 107-year history, this is another memorable game in their historic Rivalry.
“Most proud of this team, just finding a way to get it done. They stick together. That’s the most important thing is they stick together, and they finish together. And that was a happy locker room in there after the ball game.” Said Narduzzi.
“And again, each play, each play, each game there’s different guys making plays. We spread it around. Whether Des Reid is not in the game, it’s Derrick Davis. He had some great pass pro on that drive as well. Derrick is a really good back as well. So it’s everybody together. And when we win, we win as a team. And that was a team win. Coaches, players, our scout team, our rocks, we call them, it’s a team win across the board.”
The Panthers will now turn their attention to NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision Youngstown State. A win would allow them to finish their non-conference schedule undefeated.
“I love that locker room to death. Our players never gave up. I’m sure some of the fans kind of gave up, and I thought, oh, there’s no way.” Said Narduzzi. “But our guys didn’t give up. And if you didn’t learn that from last week, then hopefully you learned it from this week. And we’ll move on to the next.”
Please email Ray at rayporterjr72@gmail.com
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