Boston College travels to Pitt in Week Five, facing a familiar foe as head coach Pat Narduzzi enters his 11th season helming the program. Last season’s Panthers were truly a team of two halves: after a 7-0 start and climbing as high as a #18 rank in the country, Pitt proceeded to lose its last five regular-season games (and then lost a 6OT heartbreaker to Toledo in the Gameabove Sports Bowl).
Game Notes:
Saturday, October 4th | Time TBD | Pittsburgh PA
Series:
Pitt leads the all-time series, 18-16. Boston
College took a 34-23 victory last season in Chestnut Hill
2024 Recap:
Fueled by an aggressive young offensive coordinator in Kade Bell and two breakout offensive stars in Alabama transfer QB Eli Holstein and Western Carolina transfer RB Desmond Reid, the Panthers got off to a quick start last season. A 41-13 blowout over Syracuse was the exclamation point of the early start as the team moved to 7-0, (Kyle McCord somehow threw 6 interceptions, including 3 pick-6s), but that would be the last win of the season for Pitt. Holstein got hurt and then struggled with effectiveness once he came back, while the defense — normally rock-solid under Narduzzi — surrendered 48 points to SMU, 37 to Louisville, and 34 to BC. After a 3-win campaign in 2023 and the terrible end to last year’s season, Narduzzi needs a strong showing this year.
Offense:
Perhaps the most important returnee for this Pitt offense (if not the team) is offensive coordinator Kade Bell. Bell came over from Western Carolina and completely revamped Pitt’s identity on offense. Since the departure of Kenny Pickett, Narduzzi’s teams generally favored a run-first, control possession identity. Bell took over and immediately upped the tempo of the offense while encouraging his QB to sling the rock all over the yard. Bell will have playmakers at his disposal. QB1 Holstein returns, although he needs to prove that 1. he can stay healthy and 2. can be more consistent on the field. After posting 2,225 yards, 17 TDs and 7 interceptions while completing 61.9% of his passes, Holstein has the talent to make a major jump this year. Reid also returns to lead the backfield, while WRs Kenny Johnson (537 yards, 3 TDs) and Raphael Williams Jr. (426 yards, 6 TDs) could be in for significant role increases as well.
Defense:
Pitt’s defense fell apart towards the end of last year, especially struggling at containing the pass. Without a doubt, the strength of this defense is its linebacker corps; returning starters in Kyle Louis and Raheem Biles are joined by Braylan Lovelace. Louis, in particular, is a dynamic playmaker: he totaled 100 tackles last year along with 7 sacks and 4 interceptions. The defensive line returns several starters, including DE Jimmy Scott (30 tackles, 6 sacks) but lost some depth to the portal. The same can be said for the secondary, although Narduzzi also brought in a troika of secondary defenders from the portal — most notably Zion Ferguson (UNC).
Match-Up vs. Boston College:
BC scored a double-digit win over Pitt last season, but that game featured numerous factors that benefitted BC. The game was the final matchup of the regular season, and with Pitt sitting at 7-4 had locked itself into a bowl game but out of the ACC Championship game or any chance of the CFP. Moreover, Pitt was very banged up; Holstein and Reid did not play. With that said, I expect BC and Pitt to be a relatively even matchup this season; Pitt gets the home advantage, so I think this game has the potential to be somewhat of an inflection point on BC’s season. A win on the road would be a major step towards bowl eligibility, but Pitt will likely be healthier and better than when the Eagles drew them last year.
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