Whipple and Pickett make good match
Results apparent as passing game improves quickly
In the fourth quarter against Duke Oct. 5, Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett surveyed the Blue Devils defense. Trailing by four and facing third-and-4 on the 27-yard line with less than a minute to go, he saw a four-man front; just before the snap, a Duke safety crept into the box, and the Blue Devils rushed seven.
A linebacker flew untouched through the line directly in Pickett’s line of sight.
“They’re bringing max pressure,” Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi said. “A year ago, I believe he might have got sacked and who knows what else happened? But he knows where to go with the ball, he’s making quicker decisions and our receivers expect the ball to come out.”
Off his back foot, Pickett threw a bullet to V’Lique Carter, who spun away from a defender at the 15yard line and scored the goahead touchdown. Narduzzi was pleased with the pairing of Pickett, his junior quarterback, and first-year offensive coordinator Mark Whipple.
“Everybody talks about Whipple and what he’s done with the schematics and the fundamentals of getting Kenny Pickett where I think he could have been two years ago, to be honest with you,” Narduzzi said.
Last season, Pitt averaged 141.8 passing yards per game, 120th out of 129 FBS teams. They went 6-2 in ACC play and won the Coastal Division, but against Clemson in the conference title game, Pickett completed 4 of 16 passes for eight yards. In a 14-13 loss to Stanford in the Sun Bowl, he completed 11 of 29 passes (37.9 percent) for 136 yards.
“Six months ago … we felt like we needed a change,” Narduzzi said.
“We needed to be able to throw the ball this year, period. We knew we were losing two tailbacks, so I thought it was important that we throw the ball a lot better. We just couldn’t survive if we think we can run the ball and can’t, and then we have no passing game.”
So Narduzzi fired former offensive coordinator Shaun Watson and wide receives coach Kevin Sherman. He then hired Whipple, formerly the head coach at Massachusetts, and Maryland assistant Chris Beatty to coach the receivers.
“Chris Beatty’s done an incredible job with those wideouts,” Narduzzi said. “They’re catching the football and they’re playing their tails off for him. I think that’s the important thing, is they’re playing hard for him. They’re making plays and they have a lot of confidence. All of them do, not just Taysir [Mack] and [Maurice] Ffrench.”
This year, Pitt ranks 33rd in the nation in passing yards per game, with 276.7. Pickett has eclipsed 300 yards in a game twice and completed at least 60 percent of his passes three times. Ffrench and Mack have more combined receptions (91) than any receiver duo in the FBS.
Pickett has thrown six touchdown passes in five games, halfway to his season total in 14 games last year, but already has four interceptions after finishing 2018 with six. His completion percentage increased to 60.7 from 58.1.
“It’s coach Whipple knowing what Kenny likes, Kenny understands what he’s asking, being familiar with the offense and where the ball’s supposed to go, and also teaching him what’s going on back there in the secondary,” Narduzzi said. “Kenny just knows where to go with the ball quicker, which eliminates sacks when you do that.”