Pitt star left tackle Carter Warren will miss the remainder of the 2022 season with an undisclosed injury, Pat Narduzzi announced at his weekly press conference on Monday on the South Side.
Narduzzi said the decision to hold the former All-ACC lineman out was made yesterday, as the focus will now turn towards preparing him for the 2023 NFL Draft. This is Warren's final season of eligibility at Pitt.
"We've got some guys getting healthier, and speaking of injuries, we've got one bad news from a guy that has tried for the last, really, three weeks to bounce back and play," Narduzzi said. "This guy wants to play bad, and I really feel bad.
"We've done everything in our power, the trainers and doctors, to try to get him as close as he could and try go get him back on the field to play. His future's important as well. Carter Warren will be out for the rest of the year."
Pat Narduzzi just announced that Pitt team captain Carter Warren will miss the remainder of the 2022 season.
— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) October 17, 2022
7️⃣7️⃣, congrats on a great Pitt career!
» 40 games, 39 starts at LT
» 2021 All-ACC and ACC champion#H2P » @CarterWarren79 pic.twitter.com/QMPselKS6m
Warren was the undisputed anchor of the Pitt offensive line, one which was filled with senior contemporaries. Warren surged in 2021 as a second-team All-ACC selection after playing in all 14 games for the offense which gathered a school-record 41.4 points and 486.6 yards per game under Heisman Trophy finalist Kenny Pickett.
Warren was voted as a team captain for the 2022 season.
With Warren out, Narduzzi mentioned a "three-man race" as the Panthers' new permanent left tackle between Branson Taylor, Matt Goncalves, and Gabe Houy. Taylor had absorbed snaps at the position following Warren's exit during the Rhode Island game on Sept. 24. Goncalves and Houy have split time at right tackle, and Goncalves started there as Houy worked back from a preseason injury.
Narduzzi also mentioned that true freshman and top 2022 recruit Ryan Baer "has got to be ready to go. He's one play away, (but) we'd like to redshirt him."
Some early NFL Draft projections view Warren as either a Day 2 or Day 3 selection, but that could obviously change one way or another with rehab and a full offseason in advance of the 2023 NFL combine.
"Carter Warren, I can't thank him enough for all the efforts he's made," Narduzzi said. "It's sad to think that he's played his last ball game in that Pitt uniform. Don't even want to think about, he didn't want to think about it. That's why he's tried so hard. He tried to rehab it and he tried to get back. It doesn't feel good enough, and we need to get him prepared for his next journey in the NFL. It's only fair for him to be able to do that. Disappointed to hear that, but like I said, i's been painful for him to make that decision. It's like, 'Carter, we've got to make a decision here soon. You can't just keep -- week by week. You need to go get yourself better.'"
