Pitt football hasn’t lived up to its storied history in recent decades. But the return of Kenny Pickett gives the Panthers the opportunity to make a leap back into the sport’s elite, argues senior staff writer Dalton Coppola.

College basketball isn’t a great sport because there is something inherently “good” about a group of 18-to-22-year-olds putting a ball in a metal ring. College basketball is thrilling because of its pageantry and is deeply personal — especially for a student journalist — because you can write about a player dominating national television one night and go to class with them the next morning.

Though the sample size is small, the Panthers’ 4-2 start to conference play is not a fluke. The team clearly made visible improvements in spite of an unprecedentedly disjointed offseason. While several of the same, nagging woes haunted Pitt teams for the first two seasons of Jeff Capel’s tenure, he has seemingly managed to flip the script in his third season.

In honor of inauguration week, here’s a list of some of Pitt sports’ most iconic figures, and the president whose career they most resemble.

Following an incredible comeback victory over Syracuse on Jan. 6th, a team Pitt had lost to seven straight times, it’s time to break down mid-season grades for the Panthers roster, coach Jeff Capel and the Panthers’ overall performance. Each will receive a grade based on performance, factoring in preseason expectations.

Senior staff writer Tyler Mathes argues that Panthers quarterback Kenny Pickett will need a productive end to the 2020 season in order to keep his chance at a professional career alive.

To be an awful team is one thing, but to be an awful team with the worst series of injuries in the major leagues is another. The four starting pitchers remaining from the 2019 team have barely played.

A 15-1 record, more than 4,500 total yards and 45 touchdowns, each one capped with a spirited end zone dance and football gifted to a child in the stands. But inevitably, Newton became the target of people who just don't like all the darn “showboating” and celebrations.

But the killing of George Floyd last week forced Lawrence — and other quarterbacks who fit his mold — to take a bolder push into uncomfortable conversations about race relations, a topic that has been put to task in Lawrence’s sport for more than a century.

Pitt hasn't looked hungry or aggressive during its seven-game losing streak, instead appearing complacent and fatigued.