Down 16 players, Pitt still breezes to victory

Senior quarterback Kenny Pickett threw for 404 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another in his final start at Heinz Field as short-handed Pittsburgh rolled past Virginia Tech 47-14 on Saturday.

The Panthers (5-4, 4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) were missing 16 players due to COVID-19 protocols, a group that included leading receiver Jordan Addison and three starting offensive linemen. It hardly mattered. Relying heavily on short passes designed to take some of the pressure off the patchwork line in front of him, Pickett completed 35 of 52 passes as Pitt won its second straight following a four-game losing streak.

Graduate transfer D J Turner caught 15 passes — one shy of the school’s single-game record — for 184 yards, including a 64-yard touchdown in the third quarter just four plays after the Panthers stuffed Virginia Tech quarterback Hendon Hooker at the goal line. Turner’s long catchand-run pushed Pitt’s lead to 33-14 and sent the reeling Hokies (4-5, 4-4) to their fourth loss in five games.

Aweek after having their game against Georgia Tech rescheduled due to COVID-19 protocols and despite missing a significant number of their regulars, the Panthers had little trouble doing whatever they wanted against the Hokies. Virginia Tech, itself missing 12 players because of the same COVID-19 protocols, simply could not keep pace.

Hooker threw for 260 yards and two scores but the Hokies turned it over twice and were stopped on fourth down twice. The defense couldn’t pick up the slack, allowing Pitt to roll up 556 yards of total offense.

The Panthers led just 16-14 at the half but broke it open in the third quarter.

(At) Virginia 55, Abilene Christian 15: Brennan Armstrong threw for 383 yards and four touchdowns as Virginia cruised to a win over Abilene Christian.

Armstrong completed just 16 passes, but the scoring throws covered 28 yards to Tony Poljan, 90 yards to Lavel Davis Jr., 56 yards to Keytaon Thompson and 52 yards to Ra’Shaun Henry as the Cavaliers made quick work of their Southland Conference foe.

The Wildcats (1-5), who have had two games canceled because their scheduled opponents had coronavirus-related issues, were a late addition to Virginia’s schedule when other nonconference options fell through, and they were clearly overmatched.

The Cavaliers (4-4) started slowly, but a 33-yard run by Armstrong got their offense untracked, and his 28-yard pass to Poljan got them on the board late in the first quarter. They ended the quarter with Armstrong hitting Davis over the middle, and the 6-foot-7 freshman outran cornerback Christopher Satterfield for the 90-yard score.

Shane Simpson scored on a pair of 1-yard runs in the second quarter, the second to cap a 64-yard drive that used the last 30 seconds of the half. It came after the Wildcats drove for their first points of the night on Stone Earle’s 2-yard pass to Kobe Clark.

Earle was making his first start and just his second appearance. He finished 19 of 31 for 150 yards and also ran 13 times for 20 yards.

In the second half, after two passes by Armstrong broke for long touchdowns, coach Bronco Mendenhall substituted liberally.

The game was the first played under new, stricter attendance standards established by the governor because of a rise in coronavirus cases. Instead of 1,000 fans, only 250 were permitted.

Late Friday

(At) Louisville 30, Syracuse 0: Malik Cunningham accounted for two touchdowns to offset three first-halfturnovers, and Louisville held Syracuse to a season-low 137 yards with three takeaways for a victory Friday night.

The Cardinals (3-6, 2-6 ACC) recorded their first FBS shutout since September 2013 against FIU and first against a Power Five opponent since North Carolina in 2004. It was also their fewest yards allowed since holding FCS-member Murray State to 80 in 2017.

Louisville’s defensive effort was sorely needed after a coronavirus outbreak depleted that unit before meeting Virginia Tech and resulted in a postponement of the next game at Virginia.