Life without Pickett: A look at Pitt's quarterback options

Leading up to the start of Pitt's football training camp Aug. 3, DK Pittsburgh Sports will provide a weekly positional analysis of the 2022 roster. Some positions have set starters while others should make for intriguing battles, including the position we’re going to discuss in today’s installment – quarterback.

For the first time since 2018, the team will have a starter other than Kenny Pickett and the depth will look completely different, as well, after two players transferred into the program and two transferred out.

Key Additions: Kedon Slovis, transfer from USC and Derek Kyler, graduate transfer from Dartmouth

Key Losses: Davis Beville, transferred to Oklahoma and Joey Yellen, transferred to Hawaii

ROSTER ANALYSIS

Slovis: The 21-year-old senior Scottsdale, AZ native transferred to Pitt from USC in December 2021. Based on his performance as a freshman and sophomore, he was one of the top quarterback targets in the portal. While at USC, Slovis played in 27 games and put up some impressive numbers, especially during his first two years. Overall, he completed 68% of his passes for 7,576 yards and 58 touchdowns. He broke several USC records his freshman year, including most yards and pass attempts in a game and was considered a Heisman candidate heading into the COVID-shortened 2020 season. He led the Trojans to a 5-1 record in 2020 which positioned him as a possible first round pick heading into last season, but injuries and inconsistent play derailed his season and he slipped to 74th in QBR. He comes to Pitt with two years of eligibility remaining and he seems to have settled in since arriving.

“You try not to set certain expectations,“ Slovis told reporters two months ago after the Blue-Gold Game. “You try to let it come to you but I think you know everyone's really impressed me here, my teammates and the coaching staff.”

Despite his struggles last season, Slovis is known as a very accurate passer who possesses a high football IQ and he’s very technically sound. This should help as he learns offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti’s playbook.

“I’m really comfortable,” Slovis said. “Coach Cignetti’s a great mentor and he knows a lot about the game, and I've really gotten to spend so much time with him in the film room and watching our cut-ups of practice but also watching NFL cut-ups of the best guys in the world doing it and that's been so great for me to experience.”

As for the competition with Patti, Slovis has been surprised by the level of camaraderie displayed in the quarterback room.

“All the guys have been so great,” Slovis said. “Nick's been awesome. It feels like we're a bunch of friends out there playing football. I've been in other rooms where that's definitely not the case.”

Nick Patti: The longest tenured quarterback on the roster, Patti first came to Pitt in 2018 as a three-star recruit from St. Joseph’s Academy in New Jersey. He has seen limited action over that time, including  starts against Delaware in 2019 and Michigan State in this year’s Peach Bowl. and has thrown for 479 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing for four more. In what was to be his statement game, he suffered a broken collarbone in the Bowl Game after scoring one of those rushing touchdowns. He was in line to become the team’s starter prior to Slovis’ transfer, but that has not changed his mindset.

“I’ve always had to compete. My first year at Pitt I was on the scout team and didn’t think I mattered,” Patti told DK Pittsburgh Sports in an interview last week. “I learned then to do whatever I can to help the team and control the controllables. Plus, competition makes everyone better and that’s what every player should want. Working with Kedon thus far has been awesome. We’ve collaborated to make the offense better.”

Patti briefly thought about transferring once Slovis joined the team, but a conversation with his Mom and Dad quickly dispelled that notion.

“There was a lot going on in my head this past spring,” Patti said. “I went home and discussed everything with my mom and dad. My dad loves weighing every option, so we started to walk through possibilities, but then my Mom asked why I would leave a place where I’m comfortable. And she was absolutely right. What’s the worst-case scenario? I am the backup and get my MBA. That’s not a bad worst case. Plus, I would rather sit with my guys.”

Derek Kyler: With the losses of Beville and Yellen, Pat Narduzzi needed more depth in the QB room so he pursued Kyler, a graduate transfer from Dartmouth. Kyler won two Ivy League championships in his three years as a starter with the Big Green. He finished his career with 4,409 yards passing, a 7-to-1 touchdown to interception ratio and a 69% completion percentage. He may be best known for his 2019 performance against Harvard, which was voted the Ivy League Game of the Year. He guided the offense 96 yards in the final minute including the game winning 45-yard Hail Mary, now known as the “Miracle in Cambridge,” to lift Dartmouth to a 9-6 victory.

Nate Yarnell: The 6-foot-6” native of Austin, TX joined the Panthers in the spring of 2021 as a top 25 pro-style quarterback, according to 247Sports. He did not see any action last year and was redshirted.

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Projected starter: Despite speculation to the contrary, this one is too close to call. Narduzzi has yet to name a starter and may not until Sept. 2. Camp performance will determine who is under center for the Backyard Brawl.

Keep an eye on: Whoever isn’t named the starter, whether it’s Patti or Slovis. If the starter falters or is injured, the other has game experience and can lead the offense.

NEXT WEEK: Running backs