No, you're not mistakenly watching the Steelers on a Saturday. Let's not get drastic over this.
Just as the No. 24-ranked Pitt wide receivers are preaching, have patience with the developing passing attack.
Pitt's offense is officially past the days of the elite duo of Kenny Pickett and Jordan Addison. But, if there is one thing that we anticipated coming to the forefront of the Frank Cignetti Jr. offense with Kedon Slovis leading it, it's that there was going to be a renewed commitment to running the football.
Through four games, that largely has been the case, especially so much so with Israel Abanikanda totaling more than 100 rushing yards in three straight games. Some of that has stemmed from game planning -- see the Western Michigan game -- but the offense still has shown glimpses of its capability of letting it fly downfield.
We didn't see much of that in the last two games. It's not a matter of capability; it's a matter of opportunity.
But, for now...
"It's not really a challenge at all," wide receiver Konata Mumpfield said. "You can preach patience, but it's 'we not me.' I mean, we're getting the job done, and coach Cignetti, he has a plan, and we're all into it."
What ever works, right?
At some point, Slovis will have to make plays with his arm, and Mumpfield, Bub Means, Jared Wayne, and Co. will have to go vertical for what ever reason it might be.
It might serve some benefit to have Abanikanda running as strong as he is. He is RB1 in the ACC -- he is the only player averaging more than 100 rushing yards per game -- and has proven he can be a workhorse for the Panthers offense when needed.
What's the old adage? Establish the run?
I quipped about the Steelers to start this. Of course that was tongue-in-cheek, but there is also some truth to the Panthers not going downfield as often as it probably should, especially as dictated by the easing of Slovis back into the groove in the Rhode Island game.
"We see it each and every day in practice, and, of course, as wide outs, we want an opportunity," receivers coach Tiquan Underwood said. "It's going to come. It's going to come. Sometimes you just have to be patient, you have to be a team player, you have to be unselfish. I told the wide outs, I said, 'look, y'all were throwing it all over the yard last year. How did the running backs feel? Now the table's kind of turned, right?' So let's just be prepared and ready for our opportunity when it comes, and I feel like they will be."
Slovis has thrown for 692 yards in his 10 quarters of play this season. He is averaging 9.2 yards per attempt, which would be a career best for him, going back to his days at Southern California.
But, Pitt receivers have had to do quite a bit of work after the catch. In the two full games Slovis has played in -- against West Virginia and Rhode Island, he has thrown for 497 yards. Pitt receivers registered 349 yards after the catch, or 70% of Slovis' yardage.
"It's stressed tremendously by coach Cignetti," Underwood said of making plays after the catch. "College football is really turning into a space game, right? Get your guys in space, let them make guys miss tackles. So we're trying to just get guys the ball the best way we can and then let their natural talent and ability take over after that."
Slovis' longest completion against West Virginia went for 64 yards to Wayne, but 50 of those were recorded after the catch.
Against Tennessee, his longest completion was the Gavin Bartholomew hurdle heard 'round the world, which went for 57 yards. Bartholomew recorded 39 yards after the catch, which brings it back to a fairer number to Slovis' credit in terms of air yards.
Against Rhode Island, his longest completion went for 41 yards to tight end Karter Johnson. He had to run 39 yards after the catch on that play. In that game, Slovis threw for 189 yards, but 191 were recorded after the catch. That signifies a lot of dinks and dunks. The game plan was kept simple from the passing standpoint to get Slovis back and acclimated to game speed after missing the Western Michigan game, but only one true shot was really taken downfield -- to Mumpfield in the fourth quarter -- against the FCS team.
It's been a clear trend in the opposite direction in terms of how far Slovis is throwing it down the field. But, again, game plan and Abanikanda's emergence have to be considered.
Pat Narduzzi also credited Slovis' decision making, which is true to some degree, but, again, versus an FCS team, one might think Pitt should have taken more shots downfield.
"Slovis is making good decisions in the passing game," Narduzzi said. "If they're playing deep, they didn't want to get beat deep. Does that make sense? They didn't want to give up -- what were they doing? Playing different coverages, and in turn we rushed for a few yards.
"I'm glad Kedon is not out there trying to force a post or fade into coverage and throwing picks. Protect the football is a priority. And when you've got Izzy on a check-down over here, throw it. There's a couple he missed here and there but for the most part -- he missed a slant to Bub down inside the goal line, which we ended up kicking a field goal. It was one of those drives."
So, yes, there is an element to Slovis getting his feet back underneath him, but there was at least an acknowledgement by Narduzzi after the fact and after he was able to digest film.
This will certainly change at some point. Abanikanda is obviously the hot hand of the offense right now and probably will be once again against a Georgia Tech team which let go of head coach Geoff Collins on Monday and will run under interim coach Brent Key. The Yellow Jackets' pass defense has been fair to start the season, as it is allowing 202.5 yards per game and four total passing TDs.
Some of you have pointed out this stat regarding Slovis and the amount of pressure he has faced, courtesy of ESPN's David Hale:
Phil Jurkovec has been pressured on 44.7% of his dropbacks this season.
β π«π °οΈβοΈπ (@ADavidHaleJoint) September 26, 2022
Next closest in the ACC is Kedon Slovis... at 32.2%.
Jurkovec has seen pressure more than any other QB in FBS by 3.4 percentage points.
One obvious factor to point out is that the offensive line has been banged up. Notably, center Owen Drexel has been out and Gabe Houy just got his first taste of in-game action against Rhode Island, which has forced Jake Kradel over to center from right guard, Blake Zubovic into right guard, and a rotation of sorts at right tackle between Matt Goncalves and Branson Taylor. Taylor even took some snaps for Carter Warren at left tackle against Rhode Island -- Narduzzi said that snap count was at 40.
But there is also a component of Slovis being slightly slower in decision making in his first two games. He was sacked five times against West Virginia and twice against Tennessee, and Rhode Island didn't get to him. Cignetti and Slovis remedied this slightly against the Rams by throwing quick-hitters and bubble screens. There's nothing wrong with that, but throwing short dinks and dunks can only carry so far into ACC play.
"I think Cignetti -- like I said, we trust his plan," Mumpfield said. "I think, you know, it's all going to come together. Izzy's been doing a great job of running the ball. People are going to stack the box, and those opportunities will come."
THE ESSENTIALS
β’ Who: Georgia Tech (1-3, 0-1 ACC) at No. 24 Pitt (3-1, 0-0 ACC)
β’ When: Saturday, 8 p.m.
β’ Where: Acrisure Stadium
β’ Spread: Pitt by 22
β’ Weather: 52Β°, Cloudy, 23% chance of rain, 8 mph winds
β’ TV: ACC Network
β’ TV broadcasters: Wes Durham (play-by-play), Roddy Jones (analyst), Taylor Davis (reporter)
β’ Radio: 93.7 The Fan, 92.1 WPTS-FM (Pitt student radio)
β’ The Fan broadcasters: Bill Hillgrove (play-by-play), Pat Bostick (analyst), Larry Richert (reporter), Dorin Dickerson (reporter)
β’ Streaming: ESPN App
β’ Satellite: SiriusXM channel 193, SXM App channel 955
β’ Box Score: Live stats
β’ Media notes: Georgia Tech / Pitt
TEN TO WATCH
β’ #2 Israel Abanikanda -- Three straight 100-yard games for Pitt's RB1. Does he make it four?
β’ #7 SirVocea Dennis -- Pitt's defensive leader has racked up the most total tackles (27), and solo stops (10) among his fellow Panthers.
β’ #8 Karter Johnson -- If Gavin Bartholomew can't go because of his reported shoulder injury, then Johnson will step in as Pitt's top tight end. He has registered just one catch in three games since returning from an infection that hospitalized him for the West Virginia game.
"Next man up," Johnson said. "It's not really (that) anybody's trying to take anybody's spot or anything like that. It's mostly just next man up and got to get the job done."
β’ #9 Kedon Slovis -- For reasons mentioned above, in the kickoff feature. How much does Slovis air it out against a fair Georgia Tech pass defense?
β’ #12 M.J. Devonshire -- Devonshire is due to take over as a starting cornerback for A.J. Woods and as the starting punt returner over Konata Mumpfield. It's not that he had to step in because of injury or a lack of production; these are earned opportunities for his bright play over the course of Pitt's first four games.
"I've been really impressed with M.J.," Narduzzi said. "Both special teams wise, punt returner, and at corner. We consider him a starter, period, regardless of reps or who's the first guy out on the field. He's been really good. He just keeps getting better. That's what you want guys to do, is just keep getting better every day. Since he arrived here from Kentucky he's been very consistent in what he's put on tape, and things he needs to work on, he's getting better at every week. I'm excited about where he is. He's got a real good chance to be a really good football player."
β’ #15 Bub Means -- Last week, Means had his best outing of the season in registering a team-high six catches for 38 yards. After two drops in each of his first two games, he has shown flashes of consistency as Slovis gets comfortable back under center.
"I just told the guys to have a short memory," wide receivers coach Tiquan Underwood said. "Any time a bad play happens, whether it's a drop or a mental error or something of that sort, you've got to have a short memory. You've got to flush it and move on to the next play. He's done a great job of that. He's been practicing very well, so I look forward to this week's practices and also the game versus Georgia Tech on Saturday."
β’ #22 Vincent Davis -- Over his last two games, the RB2 to Abanikanda has rushed for 134 yards on 18 carries with a touchdown, and he hasn't lost a yard on the ground. Davis rushed seven times for 51 yards and a touchdown last week against Rhode Island.
"I love Vince Davis, and I love him more and more every week it goes by," Narduzzi said. "He's just so unselfish. He doesn't care that Izzy's getting the carries. He'll have a big role every week, and he's got a great attitude. He's doing things the right way, so we'll just keep getting him involved in everything. He'll get involved."
β’ #32 Shayne Simon -- Simon is included here for the relatability factor of what's happening on Georgia Tech's sideline. Last year while playing for Notre Dame, Simon experienced his head coach, Brian Kelly, leaving the program just before the Fighting Irish's Fiesta Bowl game against Oklahoma State. Defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman took over as the head coach from that point forward.
"It was different. It was pretty crazy," Simon said. "I think having a coach leave in that aspect where you kind of hear about it through over the internet, and not really sure what's going to happen next, and then how that prevails, it was a super fast time. I remember, I'm sitting in the facility just looking through Twitter and you hear about it and everybody's talking about it. 'Did you hear this? Did you hear that?' It was a wild time.
"I think everybody galvanized around coach Freeman. Everybody was pretty happy in the long run. But I think everybody has a different team, everybody has different chemistry. They're probably taking it -- I'm not sure what it's like in their camp right now, but they're getting ready for us on Saturday."
Georgia Tech is traveling to Pitt this weekend under an interim head coach after Geoff Collinsβ firing this week.
β Corey Crisan (@cdcrisan) September 28, 2022
I asked Shayne Simon about going through the similar experience at Notre Dame last year, when Brian Kelly left and Marcus Freeman took over before the Fiesta Bowl: pic.twitter.com/fMAdyjIB6m
β’ #78 Branson Taylor -- After playing 40 snaps at left tackle last week, could Taylor be in for more playing time? This could stand for either tackle position. There has been a revolving door at right tackle, but Gabe Houy appears to be fully back after playing in a few series against Rhode Island.
β’ #90 Ben Sauls -- Usually when the place-kicker isn't mentioned, it's for the better. Such is the case with Sauls, who has made 3 of 4 field goals in his last two games. Sauls didn't have to kick in any pressure situations over the last two weeks, but that will surely change in ACC play.
