Big finish to perfect November
Panthers pound Miami in finale
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Just under a month ago, Pat Narduzzi’s team was faced witha harsh reality.
A 1-3 stretch in October dropped Pitt – the defending ACC champion – to 4-4 on a season in which it entered with the most optimistic intentionsit’s had in years. With its hopes of a title defense all but shattered following its Oct. 29 loss to North Carolina, the Panthers were dealt a choice: roll over, or fight for a strong,prideful finish.
In the month of November, Pitt proved that it chose the latter, capping off a perfect final month of its 2022 campaign with a 42-16 win on the road against Miami (5-7, 3-5) Saturday evening at Hard
Rock Stadium.
All month, Pitt’s victory formula has been crystal clear. The defense leads the way, with a rush-heavy attack takinga dvantage of the opportunities created. This was once again the case for the Panthers(8-4, 5-3).
On the game’s opening drive, senior linebacker Sir Vocea Dennis intercepted a pass from Tyler Van Dyke at the Hurricanes’ 11-yard-line and returned it 67 yards to set up an easy first score by Israel Abanikanda.
The Panthers defense created a second scoring chance the following drive thanks to an interception by Javon McIntyre, but a goal line stand by Miami kept things close for the time being. Later on in the quarter, Kedon Slovis built upon the Panthers’ lead when he found Jared Wayne, who took a pass over the middle 66 yards for Pitt’s longest passing touchdown of the season.
The following quarter, Erick Hallett II got in on the fun, forcing and recovering a fumble inside the Miami 20, which led to Abanikanda’s second touchdown of the evening — this one from 11 yards out. With just 31 seconds remaining in the first half, Wayne and Slovis connected for another touchdown.
A 25-yard field goal with 6:22 left in the third quarter put Miami on the scoreboard. The Panthers responded the following drive with a third touchdown connection of the evening between Wayne and Slovis.
In the final quarter of play, Will Mallory found the end zone on a 4-yard catch with 11:52 remaining for Miami’s lone touchdown. In response, Pitt senior tailback C’Bo Flemister capped off a 70-yard scoring drive with a 26-yard touchdownrun with 9:16 to go.
With the game out of reach, the Hurricanes sneaked one final punch in with just over seven minutes remaining, on a 4-yard touchdown catch from Xavier Restrepo.
Of all the Panthers who had big statistical days, Wayne’s efforts were most notable. He had 11 catches for 199 yards and three touchdowns. His bignight pushed his season total to 1,006 receiving yards on theyear.
Abanikanda also shined in the victory, rushing for 111 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. Saturday’s win marked the ninth time Abaninkanda eclipsed the century mark this season, the most by any Pitt player since Dion Lewis did 10 times in 2009.
Along with the three turnovers it forced in the first half, the Panthers’ dominance was highlighted by six sacks – three by Dayon Hayes.
Key stat
The Panthers’ last loss in November took place nearly two years ago, in a 52-17 blowout defeat on the road against Clemson. Through Narduzzi’s eight seasons with the Panthers, his teams have thrived in the final month of the regular season, going 22-9 which includes signature victories against No. 2 Clemson in 2016 and No. 2 Miami in 2017.
Up next
Pitt will wait to find out what bowl bid it will receive. Bowl participants will be unveiled on Sunday, Dec. 4 after all conference championship game shave been decided.