RUN GAME TROUBLING
Offensive line fails to open holes for RBs
Jimmy Morrissey doesn’t blame offensive coordinator Mark Whipple “one bit” for losing confidence in Pitt’s run game.
“We didn’t deserve a run call,” the senior center said of the offensive line after the Panthers’ 30- 29 loss to N. C. State. “It’s the O- line’s fault.”
Really, the fault for Saturday’s gridlocked ground game could be spread around at least a little bit. A toothless rushing attack has been an issue dating to Whipple’s first game in charge last August. And Pitt coaches lamented earlier this season about the running backs’ inability to extend plays.
But it’s darn near impossible to get upfield and break off a long gain when being hit within a second or two of receiving the handoff.
The offensive line didn’t do its job in opening running lanes — or even the tiniest of crevices — for Vincent Davis and Israel Abanikanda to run through. Davis, a 5- foot- 8, 175- pound back, managed 40 yards on 15 carries. And that’s with a 15- yard burst late in the second half.
Eking out 25 yards on the other 14 carries isn’t going to get it done. But it’s wrong to point the finger at Davis. It wouldn’t have mattered if James Conner was running behind Pitt’s offensive line this weekend. On his 15 carries, Davis was hit at the line of scrimmage or behind it eight times. Abanikanda was hit at the line on three of his four attempts.
Pitt tried to make the ground game work, mixing in stacked looks and heavy packages. But when the Panthers had extra blockers, it seemed to just clog things up more. In heavy packages — two tight ends, or one tight end and one fullback — the running backs picked up only 23 yards on eight runs.
Morrissey said Saturday’s loss was “embarrassing” for everyone involved. But Pitt’s two- time captain said the onus is on his offensive line to get its act together.
“I’m responsible for the O- line, and we take responsibility for the run game,” Morrissey added. “We’ll be better next week.”
Giveth and dropeth
Maryland transfer DJ Turner had a rough go against Louisville, dropping a pair of passes and adding to Pitt’s nation- leading count. But the redshirt senior speedster rebounded in a big way Saturday.
Turner posted eight catches for 186 yards — the most by a Pitt player since Nov. 6, 2004, when Greg Lee had 188 yards at Syracuse. Turner reached that ridiculous figure by way of five catches of 20- plus yards, including a 50- yard reception and a pair of grabs that brought Pitt to N. C. State’s 1- yard line.
For context, Pitt had 45 receptions of 20- plus yards in 13 games last season, an average of 3.46 per contest.
That was the good news provided by Pitt’s receiving corps. The bad news? Drops are still very much a thing, specifically for veteran Taysir Mack.
Mack, Pitt’s second- leading receiver in 2019, made a few crucial catches against N. C. State. Five of his six grabs, which totaled 76 yards, accounted for first downs. On one of them, Mack had his legs taken out from under him, and he still held on as his body flipped like a coin.
However, Mack could’ve had two more first downs and what turned out to be a necessary two- point conversion. The former Indiana transfer’s three drops hurt, especially the third, which would have pushed Pitt’s fourth- quarter lead to 31- 24 before N. C. State’s eventual scoring drive.
Troubling trend
Sure, Pitt squeezed in a couple of quarterback sneaks. But the stench coming from four consecutive failures at N. C. State’s 1yard line might linger for a while. And if they don’t correct their red- zone issue soon, the Panthers don’t have recent history on its side.
In the past three seasons, 23 of 30 teams that finished bottom- 10 among Power Five programs in red- zone touchdown rate settled for seven wins or fewer.
Pitt was one of the exceptions last season, posting an 8- 5 mark despite the sixthworst red- zone touchdown rate among Power Five schools. But can the Panthers find themselves in the bottom 10 yet again and, including a bowl game, do better than 7- 5 or 6- 6?
With games against Miami, Notre Dame, Virginia Tech and Clemson ahead, Pitt’s red- zone offense has to find an answer. If not, the Panthers run the risk of a season spinning out due to an inability to finish off drives, no matter how good their defense might end up being.
Chunk play tracker
Pitt’s live stats page makes note of both teams’ “chunk plays,” defined as a completion of 15 yards or more or a rush of 10- plus yards. Each week, we’ll see which team won the chunk play count — a good indicator of which offense did enough to win.
For the first time this season, Pitt lost the chunk play battle. But it wasn’t a huge gap, with N. C. State edging the Panthers, 11- 10.
The Wolfpack tallied seven passing plays over 15 yards and four rushing plays of 10- plus yards.
Meanwhile, nine of Pitt’s 10 chunk plays came through the air. Turner caught five, while Mack and sixth- year senior Tre Tipton each had one. Pickett hit Shocky Jacques- Louis for a 45- yard gain and, of course, connected with freshman Jordan Addison for a 75yard touchdown on the game’s second snap.
Did you notice …
• Five of Pitt’s 11 defensive penalties were mental errors by two young, emerging playmakers. Redshirt freshman defensive tackle Calijah Kancey jumped offside twice and was penalized for a facemask, while sophomore outside linebacker SirVocea Dennis was flagged for offside and a late hit.
• The read- option was a clunky addition to the offense. Pickett had a 9- yard run on his first read- option, but the other two keepers were disastrous: A 3- yard loss on a third- and- 1 and, even worse, a 4- yard loss on third- and- 3 from N. C. State
7. • When Pickett exited the game briefly on N. C. State’s blatant targeting, former four- star passer Davis Beville entered the game — providing clarity on the backup quarterback situation. There wasn’t a whole lot to examine with Beville, who mistimed a tunnel screen on his only play. But without reading too much into it, it appears he’s got a slight edge over Arizona State transfer Joey Yellen.
• N. C. State moved the chains or found the end zone on six of its first seven third- down opportunities. The Wolfpack faced the following yardages: 1, 5, 1, 6, 2, 16, 1. You can guess which one it didn’t get.
Injury report
Three starters — tight end Lucas Krull, right tackle Gabe Houy and middle linebacker Wendell Davis — were out from the get- go. So were running back A. J. Davis, tight end Kyi Wright and defensive end Habakkuk Baldonado.
That list of bystanders grew when first- team defensive tackle Keyshon Camp went down in the first quarter and didn’t return. The same happened to starting outside linebacker Cam Bright on the defense’s second series. And Addison, who got popped late in the second quarter, appeared to have a shoulder injury and did not re- enter.
Narduzzi didn’t address the other injuries, but said he doesn’t think that Addison’s injury is serious — which is a sizable news for the Panthers, who need the prolific freshman next week at Boston College.