Panthers’ miscues cause late loss in Annapolis

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Pitt won’t rue the day it lost 24-21 to Navy because of the way the Midshipmen executed their triple-option offense. Instead, the Panthers began the second half of their season by failing to play a full 60 minutes of football as Navy scored 10 unanswered points in the game’s final six-plus minutes with the assistance of multiple Pitt miscues. 

From defensive ineptitude, to a wavering offense to a 20-yard punt, Pitt might not have handed Navy a victory, but it certainly didn’t do much to prevent one. Navy’s win culminated in a 30-yard field goal by Nick Sloan that split the uprights as time expired.

“They beat us. They flat-out just beat us,” receiver Devin Street said. “Credit to them, but we beat ourselves too. We can’t keep coming out here and keep playing two teams at once. We shot ourselves in the foot.”

Street and the Panthers looked like the superior team for about 54 minutes Saturday. In the first quarter, Navy’s first two drives accumulated just 7 yards on six plays, and the Midshipmen did not record a first down. 

The next Navy drive resulted in a 58-yard touchdown pass from Keenan Reynolds to Marcus Thomas. Thomas reacted to catch the pass after its intended receiver could not handle the ball and instead, batted it to Thomas’ direction. 

Beyond a fluky play, though, Pitt’s defense seemed well-prepared for Navy’s unique offense. The only drive Navy sustained in the first half came in the final 1:41 as the Midshipmen drove to the Pitt 23, but Pitt corner K’Waun Williams intercepted Reynolds at the 1-yard line with 36 seconds left in the half.

As a result, Pitt carried a 13-7 lead into halftime. 

Although Pitt led at the half, the lead could have been greater. Two drives in the first half each stalled and resulted in only field goals by Chris Blewitt instead of touchdowns.

“You are happy to get field goals, but we needed to convert those into touchdowns,” Chryst said. 

Defensively, Pitt allowed 135 yards in the first half — a total skewed by the 58-yard passing touchdown. 

“I thought our guys were playing pretty disciplined across the board,” Chryst said. “We had a couple of times where guys were fighting to get off cut blocks, and they are, and they’re making plays.”

The second half showed a turning of the tide, though, as Navy kept Pitt off the scoreboard in the third quarter. Pitt’s two drives in the third both ended after three plays, with the Panthers totaling 1 net yard in the third. 

Meanwhile, Navy began a 16-play, 91-yard drive with 7:43 left in the quarter. After 32 seconds, Navy took a 14-13 lead on a 9-yard rush by Quinton Singleton. 

On a rare occasion, Pitt responded. Tom Savage led a 11-play, 75-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown toss from Savage to Tyler Boyd in the back of the end zone. Pitt’s two-point conversion succeeded as Savage then completed a fade pattern to Street in the back corner. 

The conversion was part of a nine-catch, 96-yard day for Street that saw him pass Latef Grim as the program’s all-time receptions leader. Street missed Pitt’s last game against Old Dominion because of a shoulder injury and his return made a noticeable impact.

“He’s just a playmaker. More than that, he’s a threat,” Savage said. “So a lot of teams have to double him or bracket him, and that opens up all the other guys.”

But the efforts of Street weren’t enough, which made his record-setting day bittersweet.

After Navy tied the game with 3:52 to play, Savage was sacked by Obi Uzoma on first down to push the Panthers back to their own 18. A completion to Boyd set up a third-and-six, but Savage was flushed from the pocket and forced to rush for no gain. 

Matt Yoklic then put the Panthers in double jeopardy, as his punt from the Pitt 29 traveled just 20 yards. With 2:17 to play, Navy started in Pitt territory and capitalized on a special teams error.

“Give Navy credit, in a 60-minute game they found a way to win,” Chryst said. “We did not make enough plays to win the game.”