Players ready to brush aside woeful 2023
Shakeups on offense hope to spur change
Rodney Hammond Jr. could not even attempt to hide the disgust on his face when asked to reflect upon the 2023 season. After helping capture an ACC championship in his freshman year, which was then followed by a 9-4 season in 2022, success was the only thing Hammond and his teammates had known throughout their time at Pitt.
Last fall, things, of course, changed.
The combination of a young defense paired with an offense that never found its rhythm led the Panthers to finish just 3-9 on the year, the program’s worst in his lifetime. But while embarrassed by the shortcomings, Hammond expressed Wednesday afternoon that last year’s failures were the primary reason he is back at Pitt for his senior season.
“What happened last year, I’ve gotta shake back from that,” Hammond said. “I can’t have that on my name. I would rather shake back and dig myself out of this hole that we were in last year.”
Sources informed the Post- Gazette that Hammond, an established talent, would have had a handful of schools ready to welcome him if he would have entered the transfer portal. But NIL dollars and a new uniform were overlooked due to a desire to right the ship.
Some would argue Hammond’s loyalty to Pitt is a rarity in today’s college game, but other offensive teammates have expressed similar sentiments.
“Last year definitely wasn’t great,” tight end Gavin Bartholomew said. “I want to leave my name on a good season, on a good note with a great team. I think this year, we have a tremendous team.”
Plenty of changes occurred throughout the offseason to right the many wrongs that existed throughout the 2023 campaign, most of which were focused on the offensive side of the ball. After ranking last in the ACC in scoring (20.2 points per game), rushing (101.9 yards per game) and total yards (317.9 yards per game), coach Pat Narduzzi brought in an entire new offensive coaching staff, headlined by 31-year-old offensive coordinator Kade Bell.
While limited when it comes to Power Four coaching experience, Bell’s selling point is his scheme, one far more modern than the one Pitt ran over the past two seasons under Frank Cignetti Jr. The new scheme is also believed to be one that will allow high-impact players such as Hammond and Bartholomew to have more of an involvement, which was another key issue.
Despite being viewed as two of the team’s top talents heading into 2023, the duo of Hammond and Bartholomew produced just 933 yards of total offense. With a new playbook, both claim Bell’s offense will provide better opportunities for them to maximize their skills.
“You can’t just predict us and just think you’re going to get into one defense and stop everything,” Hammond said. “You can’t load the box. You’ll have to play some regular defense. It’s going to be tough for a lot of teams.”
“Coach Bell was telling us the other day how [the tight ends] will have a big role in this offense,” Bartholomew said. “He has high expectations. We all expect to meet them.”
Production from the running back and tight end positions will certainly be a step in the right direction, but better stats won’t put out the flame that burns within the Panthers training facility this spring. The goal in 2024 is to prove that last year was a rare stumble rather than the beginning of a new reality.
How will that narrative be sold to the rest of the country?
“We win,” Hammond said. “We put up numbers on everybody that we play this year. 3-9, that’s not going to happen again. I can promise you that.”