LB Wirginis hurt, to miss the rest of 2017 season
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The 2017 season has gone from bad to worse for Pitt linebacker Quintin Wirginis. Wirginis, a senior from Fox Chapel High School, is out for the year with a nonfootball- related injury, coach Pat Narduzzi announced Monday afternoon. Expected to compete for a starting spot at middle linebacker, Wirginis already had been suspended for the first three games of the season for undisclosed reasons. “Disappointing, but something we deal with. That’s what we do,” said Narduzzi, who added that redshirt sophomore Saleem Brightwell played well at middle linebacker Saturday in the season opener against Youngstown State.
Wirginis was a full participant in training camp, so the injury must be recent. He had four sacks last season as a backup, and was Pitt’s leading returner in that category coming into the year. Wirginis has been a contributor on defense and special teams since his freshman season.
The silver lining is that because Wirginis never redshirted, he can miss this entire year and preserve a year of eligibility. Narduzzi said that’s the plan, and that Wirginis is expected to graduate in December, at which time he would be allowed to transfer to another program and play immediately in 2018.
Losing Wirginis for the entirejust the season,first three rather games,than hurts the depth and experience at linebacker — where he was the only scholarship senior — but Pitt was, in some ways, prepared for his absence already. “It’s about the same as it was last week,” Narduzzi said. “The good thing is the depth chart hasn’t changed. It’s the same. “He prepared all camp for it. He’s a great player and a great kid, so obviously you’d like to have him, but what are you going to do?” In the instance of an injury to Brightwell, the middle linebacker duties could fall to Chase Pine, a redshirt freshman. Sean Idowu and Elijah Zeise seem cemented at the outside linebacker spots.
Coach kicks himself
Pitt nearly escaped Youngstown State’s upset bid Saturday afternoon without the need for overtime, but Alex Kessman’s second career field-goal attempt missed the mark.
Kessman, Pitt’s redshirt freshman kicker taking over the job from four-year starter Chris Blewitt, was 0 for 2 on field goals in his collegiate debut. The first miss came from 28 yards, banking off the right goal post — remember that, right goal post — and the second was that 38-yarder as time expired in the fourth quarter.
Coach Pat Narduzzi insisted Monday that he blames himself for the one that would’ve won the game, not Kessman, and here’s why:
Last week, covering all his bases as coaches are wont to do, Narduzzi asked Kessman if he prefers kicking from the left hash mark or right hash mark on the field. The player told coach the left hash, so Narduzzi filed that information away, but with one problem — he never thought to ask Kessman if he likes kicking from straight down the middle.
Now, logically, it makes sense that any kicker would prefer coming in from deadcenter if given the option. Plus, Kessman had been 3 for 3 on extra points, which are down-the-middle kicks (albeit from a short distance).
So with time ticking down in the frantic final moments of a 21-21 game, Narduzzi told his offense to get the ball to the middle of the field.
“Hey, line it up, center it up and get that thing done,” he recalled himself saying.
And what did Kessman do? He put what would’ve been his first winning field goal in his first game just to the right of the goal posts.
When he saw Kessman the next day, Narduzzi asked, “Hey, by the way, do you like it in the middle or the left hash?”
Kessman — who has showed off his leg to coaches inpractice and scrimmages — told him left again, and Narduzzi apologized. But Kessman’s response to that mea culpa is what gives Narduzzi confidencegoing forward.
“I don’t care if it’s left hash, right hash, middle, I should have put it through the uprights. Period,” was Kessman’s reply.
“He’s that type of kid,” Narduzzi said. “I have faith in him, and psychology-wise, he’s got faith in himself. There’s a trust there, for sure.
“There’s not a guy who sits in this room — as a coach, a player, a manager, trainer — that doesn’t have faith in that kid. He’s going to be a heck of a kicker. You see the type of leg he’s got. We’ve just got to straighten him out a little bit.”
Bookser back
One new name on the depth chart this week is that of redshirt junior offensive lineman Alex Bookser, who was suspended for Week 1. Bookser is listed as an “OR” starter alongside Brandon Hodges at right guard, where Bookser started all 13 games last season and was an ACC honorable mention.
Teammate Brian O’Neill has called Bookser the most versatile lineman on the team, and possibly one of the most versatile in all of college football, given that he has practiced at all five spots on the line. For now, Narduzzi isn’t sure where Bookser will slot in — guard, center, or possibly even tackle.
“We’re going to slowly get him back,” Narduzzi said. “When you don’t have him for the opener, he doesn’t get those reps with the [starters]. … We’ll bring it back slowly, see what he knows, see how it goes.”