(AP) |
The game today against Tennessee is extremely pivotal. It is about as important as any non-conference game has been under Pat Narduzzi aside from the four against Penn State. So why is this game against a below average SEC team so important? Let me tell you.
Remember to enter our current Giveaway on Twitter in partnership to with Pittsburgh Clothing Company! Details can be found here: https://www.goldlotpgh.com/p/giveaway-details.html?m=1
GIVEAWAY: Once we hit 412 followers one lucky retweeter of THIS TWEET ❗️will receive a free @PGHClothingCo T-shirt on us! To win, you must retweet THIS TWEET and be a follower at the time of the giveaway. We will do this for every 412 followers we receive up to 2500 followers!
— GoldLotSports (@GoldLotSports) September 1, 2021
Pat Narduzzi has never won 10 games as the head coach of the
University of Pittsburgh. I guess now he
is the Chris Bickell ’97 Head Coach of the Pittsburgh Panthers, but he hasn’t
won 10 games as that either…yet.
This has to be the year Narduzzi succeeds in beating expectations. He has a 5th year quarterback, plenty of returning talent on defense, and an easy non-conference schedule. If this is not a successful season, the questions will be asked.
Is this guy ever going to deliver? Should Pitt cut ties and look elsewhere? Can we ever be a great program under Narduzzi?
Quieting the Haters
The best way to shut these questions down is winning the
game against the Volunteers today. Pitt is expected to win and is favored by 3 points at last check. However, it is Pitt's toughest non-conference opponent on paper, and a win today would pave the way for a very successful season.
GAMEDAY » Johnny Majors Classic
— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) September 11, 2021
Pitt Panthers 🆚 Tennessee Volunteers
⏰ 12 p.m.
📺 @ESPN
🔊 @937theFan
📍 Knoxville, TN#H2P » #BeatTennessee pic.twitter.com/AyiDNEwzut
If Pitt were to win today, they would be 2-0 with their
toughest non-conference opponent behind them.
Next Saturday, they face a Western Michigan team that has a decent
chance to beat some in-conference MAC opponents, but should be an easy task for
the Panthers. The game against Western
Michigan is followed by another home game against New Hampshire. Pitt will be favored in each of these games
so logically a win against Tennessee should mean a 4-0 start for Narduzzi and
the Panthers.
Momentum Into Atlanta
I’m not going to dive entirely into the ACC schedule, as I have done a couple times before.
However, Pitt should also be favored in their first conference game even
if it is on the road. The Panthers face
a Georgia Tech team that lost to Northern Illinois last week in their
opener. If Pitt goes into Atlanta and
takes care of business against Georgia Tech, the Panthers will start 5-0. They also may go into Blacksburg against
Virginia Tech ranked in the Top-25.
This is the start Narduzzi needs to beat expectations and keep his seat from getting too hot. Start the season 5-0 against five teams you
are favored against. That is what good
football teams do and that is what good football coaches succeed in doing. It would also go a long way toward getting that
10-win season we all desperately want for this program. This is all starts today with a win.
Johnny Strikes Up The Band 🔊
— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) September 10, 2021
On the eve of the Johnny Majors Classic, enjoy this footage of Coach speaking to the Panthers after a thrilling win on his return to Pitt from Tennessee in 1993.#H2P pic.twitter.com/HGrNOYT3gD