Behind Enemy Lines: Pittsburgh
In an effort to bring you in-depth insight on the opposing teams that West Virginia plays, WVSports.com goes Behind Enemy Lines for an in-depth look at the matchup with Pittsburgh in the Backyard Brawl.
What can you expect from the Panthers? Well we contacted an authority on the subject in PantherLair.com writer Jim Hammett.
1. What's the pulse of this Pittsburgh football team through two games? How has this team met or fell short of expectations?
I think it’s fair to say Pitt is already starting to fall behind some preseason expectations. It is only the third week of the season, but there does feel like a sense that the team is already at a crossroads. It’s not necessarily a knock on Cincinnati, but many felt (Vegas included) Pitt would win that game last week. The loss was not totally bad on the surface, as the Bearcats have been a solid program for many years, but the nature of how Pitt lost the game certainly left a lot of lingering questions about the ceiling for the team this season.
Pitt has been on a good run the past couple of seasons with 20 wins over the past two years and consecutive top 25 finishes, but the team did lose a fair amount of talent, most notably Calijah Kancey and Israel Abanikanda, so while they brought back a lot of experience, they were certainly missing some star players. Through two games, that is exactly what the team seems to be missing. It’s hard to pinpoint who the top guys are at the moment, so while it was nice to bring back starters along both lines and depth in a lot of places, the lack of clear difference makers has been a glaring issue through two games.
2. How has Phil Jurkovec performed so far and what are his strengths and weaknesses?
I would give his week one performance against Wofford a B, but he failed to deliver in last week’s game against Cincinnati. Jurkovec was just 10-of-32 for 179 yards and three touchdowns. He landed a couple of big passing plays to save his stat line somewhat, but only completing 31% of his passes was pretty jarring to see. Jurkovec was inaccurate and looked slow to process his reads against the Bearcats.
I think heading into this season the hope was that Jurkovec could mesh well with Pitt’s offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti Jr. since they had success together at Boston College. There was always a disconnect last year with former quarterback Kedon Slovis and Pitt’s offensive scheme, and Jurkovec represented a quick fix. There was always a lingering thought for everyone who covers or follows the Pitt team, however, that Jurkovec might have been a one-hit wonder in 2020, and how he played the last two seasons was what Pitt was actually getting. I think those fears became more apparent with a forgettable performance last week against Cincinnati.
When Jurkovec is at his best, he does have some tools. He’s a bigger guy with deceptive mobility and he can kind of stand in the pocket and improvise. He did that against Wofford, but did not show much of that last week.
3. How does Pittsburgh want to attack on offense and the playmakers to watch?
I think given the issues around the quarterback, Pitt is probably going to have a simplified attack on offense for the time being. Pitt rushed for over 200 yards in the opener against Wofford and probably could have had some success on the ground last week, but abandoned the run once they got behind.
Pitt’s three-man trio of running backs, Rodney Hammond, Daniel Carter, and C’Bo Flemister, combined for 18 carries and 84 yards last week, and each of them broke off a run of 10+ yards, so I could see them getting more than 18 combined touches this week. Hammond was thought to be the clear-cut starter entering the year, but it has not worked out through two games, so maybe he could breakout a bit on Saturday.
When Pitt is throwing the ball, the best weapon thus far has been Konata Mumpfield. He caught four passes for 53 yards and two touchdowns last week. Gavin Bartholomew, Pitt’s junior tight end, can be a useful weapon in the passing game as well. The talk around the team was that Bub Means would be the team’s top pass catcher, but he only has two receptions so far, and did not have one last week despite being targeted 11 times.
4. Same on defense with scheme and playmakers?
I think Pitt’s defense lost a lot of its star power from last year to this year when their best defensive tackle, middle linebacker, and both starting safeties were all drafted. It left a talent void, but Pitt is not without experience. The Panthers still brought back three linemen with starting experience, two starting linebackers off of last year’s team, and their top three cornerbacks who have played a lot of football. It does give this team a nice starting point, but they are counting on some underclassmen to take some leaps this year.
Pitt’s defensive philosophy under Pat Narduzzi has always been pretty simple: they like to blitz and they like to stop the run. Pitt leads the nation in sacks over the past four seasons and generally because of that, they rank very highly in run defense. Pitt sort of was gashed by the Cincinnati running game in the first half last week unexpectedly, but they adjusted at halftime and ultimately the defense kept them in the game and gave them a chance.
Pitt’s best defensive linemen is Dayon Hayes, a senior defensive end from Pittsburgh. He has two sacks on the season and has been playing better with an elevated role this season. Bangally Kamara is the team’s best linebacker, and maybe best overall defensive player, and they can employ him to blitz a good amount. I mentioned the secondary already with the cornerback experience. Marquis Williams, MJ Devonshire, and AJ Woods are all steady players back there and Williams had an interception last week. There are some concerns with maybe depth at defensive end, but probably the more prominent question is around the play of the two new safeties: PJ O’Brien and Javon McIntyre, who are still pretty green back there.
5. Has the rivalry set back in with the Pittsburgh fan base and how excited are they for this game?
I think it is pretty clear the return of the Backyard Brawl has been good for both programs and I think that extends into the fan bases as well. The initial game last year gave both schools a nationally televised audience and it was the featured game on ESPN with the College Gameday crew in the house. This year’s game is getting the primetime ABC Saturday night treatment, so even after a decade hiatus, the game still resonates and I think that is cool thing for both sides.
I believe Pitt fans enjoy having rivalry games on the schedule. It’s obviously unique Pitt’s two biggest rivals, West Virginia and Penn State, are all in different leagues, so when these games come around there is definitely an added level of excitement and buzz around the team and the fans.
College football is obviously at a crossroads and we saw the destruction of the PAC-12 happen in August and we really have no idea what will happen next. I think it’s a good thing for Pitt and West Virginia to continue to play this game annually, because so much has changed in the sport in the past couple of years and probably more will happen eventually. In an ever-changing landscape, it’s still nice to have a few games you can count on, and the Backyard Brawl should be one of them for both schools.
6. How do see you see this game turning out and what are the keys to win this edition of the Brawl?
I think both teams may go into this game with the same mindset: make the quarterback be the one that beats you. Jurkovec is coming off a wildly inaccurate passing game and it seemed the West Virginia coaches were pretty reluctant to let Greene air it out against Penn State, even in obvious passing downs.
I think both teams will sell out to stop the run primarily, but whoever can establish the line of scrimmage will have that advantage. I don’t know if either quarterback is capable of really carrying a team to a win at the moment, but I would venture to guess both defensive coordinators in this game are OK with letting them try.
Not to sound too much like a cliché here, but in rivalry games, it’s hard to predict what will happen. We saw last year’s game have a bunch of surprises. I don’t think anyone expected CJ Donaldson to rush for 100 yards for West Virginia, or for Devonshire be the hero for Pitt, but that’s how it worked out. I’m sure we’ll get a few surprises this year as well.
I definitely thought going into the season Pitt was the better team and I still feel that way, but last week does give me some pause and obviously the crowd in Morgantown will be rocking, but I think Pitt can find a way here. Once Pitt’s defense settled down last week they looked pretty good and I think they can carry that into Saturday. It’ll be low-scoring, and I’ll say Pitt 21-17.
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