Reporter’s notebook: Reflecting on Pitt’s football season
By David Leftwich | Senior Staff Writer
November 28, 2017
As I watched the Panthers upset No. 7 Miami to close out their season, I had the same thought as I did coming into the season — this team will be good. Covering the Panther football team this year was as uneven as the team’s performance. Early on, I realized the team needed to make strides al...
Browne out for the season following injury
By Mackenzie Rodrigues | Sports Editor
October 12, 2017
Redshirt senior quarterback Max Browne is out for the remainder of the football season after sustaining an injury to his throwing arm Saturday, Oct. 7, in the loss to Syracuse. Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi announced the end of Browne’s season Thursday afternoon. Browne underwent surgery Wednesday morn...
Prediction: Panthers to crush the Orange
By Dominic Campbell | Staff Writer
October 5, 2017
The last time Pitt and Syracuse met, the Panthers won a hectic back-and-forth offensive game 76-61 — the highest combined total score in NCAA history. But now the Panthers and the Orange both come into this game 2-3 and are desperate for a win, especially in the ACC. Pitt dominated Rice 42-10 last week, ending its three-game losing streak and giving the team some much-needed life. R...
‘Max is back’: Narduzzi praises Browne, previews Syracuse
By Grant Burgman | Staff Writer
October 2, 2017
Pitt football is coming off a victory for the first time since its season-opener, and head coach Pat Narduzzi made it known at Monday’s press conference. “Obviously it was a much more pleasant Sunday here with our kids,” Narduzzi said. “I couldn’t be happier for our kids. I mean, that’s kind of why ...
Pitt offense bolstered Browne in matchup against Rice
By Abbot Zuk | Staff Writer
October 1, 2017
It took until the last day of September for the Pitt Panthers to finally shake their losing streak and defeat the Rice Owls. This was only their second win of the season and their first since Sept. 2. Many marquee players did their part in the Panthers’ success Saturday afternoon — particularly re...
Pitt fries Rice, 42-10, snaps losing streak
By David Leftwich | Senior Staff Writer
September 30, 2017
As redshirt senior Max Browne threw a 48-yard touchdown in the Panthers’ opening drive, he finally solved the Panther quarterback dilemma. In a 42-10 rout of the Rice Owls (1-4), the Panther offense found its footing, putting up more than 400 yards through the air as the team picked up its second...
Prediction: Panthers’ improvements could inspire victory
By Abbot Zuk | Staff Writer
September 28, 2017
The Pitt Panthers will face off against the Rice Owls for the first time since 1951 in Pitt’s final non-conference game of the 2017 season on Saturday. Already four games into the season, the Panthers and the Owls are both struggling to find their groove. Each team is entering Saturday’s game with a 1...
Panthers’ gutless play calling continues to disappoint
By Abbot Zuk | Staff Writer
September 25, 2017
Over the course of their three losses this season, the Panthers have surrendered more than 30 points in each matchup. It would be far too easy to pin the Panthers’ woes on the defense. This Saturday’s game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets was anything but a defensive farce, though. The...
Quarterback remains questionable following Narduzzi’s press conference
By David Leftwich | Senior Staff Writer
September 18, 2017
After Pitt football head coach Pat Narduzzi addressed the media Monday, the most important question remained unanswered. Who will be the starting quarterback against Georgia Tech? During a brief press conference Monday afternoon, Narduzzi talked about the Panthers’ struggles against No. 6 Oklahoma...
Cowboys crush Panthers, 59-21, in Pitt football’s worst loss at Heinz Field
By David Leftwich | Senior Staff Writer
September 16, 2017
As if last week’s loss to in-state rival Penn State wasn’t demoralizing enough, the Panthers were blown out in their worst loss ever at Heinz Field by the Oklahoma State Cowboys Saturday. Senior quarterback Mason Rudolph and the Cowboys’ passing offense were too much for the Panthers, posting...
Prediction: Panthers could pull upset against Cowboys
By Ryan Zimba | Staff Writer
September 14, 2017
The Panthers entered the fourth quarter tied at 38 against the Oklahoma State Cowboys last year in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The Cowboys took over — with a chance to win — with just under two minutes to go. They capitalized on the possession, as quarterback Mason Rudolph took advantage of Pitt’...
Quick takes: Pitt football
By TPN Sports Desk
September 12, 2017
Following Saturday's game against rival Penn State, The Pitt News sports staff looked at a few specific aspects of the football team’s game — offense, defense and head coach Pat Narduzzi’s — and how they will need to adjust as they take on Oklahoma State this weekend. Here are a few of our takeaways on the Panth...
DiNucci deserves starting slot over Browne
By Kevin Bertha | Staff Writer
September 10, 2017
Max Browne has started two games for the Pitt Panthers in his career, and he shouldn’t start a third. Unfortunately, head coach Pat Narduzzi doesn’t share this sentiment — yet. When asked if Browne was still the starter after Saturday’s performance against Penn State, Narduzzi responded with a...
Max Browne buckles in Panthers debut
By David Leftwich / Staff Writer
September 4, 2017
As redshirt senior quarterback Max Browne hit wide receiver Jester Weah for the game-winning touchdown this Saturday against Youngstown State, Panther fans saw a flash of what made Browne a five-star recruit coming out of high school. But that wasn’t an accurate representation of Browne’s Panth...
Predicting Pitt football’s 2017 campaign
By Dominic Campbell / Staff Writer
August 29, 2017
Coming off a season in which it beat both the national champion and the Big Ten champion, this year’s Pitt football team will have a hard time providing bigger fireworks than it did a year ago. But head coach Pat Narduzzi expects his team to pull it off, setting the bar just as high as previous seas...
Top 5 ACC Kickoff takeaways
By Ryan Zimba | Sports Editor
July 18, 2017
With less than two months until the start of the 2017 college football season, Pat Narduzzi and the Pitt football program are preparing for fall camp and the opening week game against the Youngstown State Penguins. This weekend, Narduzzi, senior cornerback Avonte Maddox and redshirt junior offensive...
Rotstein: Despite losses, football will improve
By Steve Rotstein | Senior Staff Writer
May 29, 2017
As the Pitt men’s basketball team tries to recover from a mass exodus of graduating players, transfers and dismissals, the Pitt football team will be dealing with its own loss of talent next season. Just don’t confuse the two. While the Panthers’ hoops roster for next season looks like a barren...
Henderson shines as Gold team defeats Blue at Pitt’s Spring Game, 23-14
By Ryan Zimba | Staff Writer
April 15, 2017
The Pitt football team will enter the 2017 season without either star running back James Conner or quarterback Nathan Peterman, who both left the Panthers for the NFL Draft. But junior wide receiver Quadree Henderson showed why Pitt will still be an explosive offense by dazzling during Saturday’s...
GALLERY: Pitt football’s Spring Game
By Anna Bongardino | Staff Photographer
April 15, 2017
After Wednesday's draft, Pitt's Gold Team defeated the Blue Team in the annual Spring Game held at Heinz Field Saturday, April 15. Quadree Henderson racked up 137 yards and a touchdown for the Gold Team in a 23-14 win. ...
Tight end Matt Flanagan transfers from Rutgers
By Steve Rotstein | Sports Editor
March 29, 2017
It’s been nearly two months since Pitt locked up ESPN’s No. 31 football recruiting class in the country on National Signing Day, but the Panthers haven’t stopped adding to next year’s roster. Rutgers tight end Matt Flanagan announced his decision Monday to enroll at Pitt in the fall as a graduate transfer. Flanagan ...
Pitt football team adds 22nd member to 2017 recruiting class
By Steve Rotstein | Sports Editor
January 18, 2017
The Pitt football team’s 2017 recruiting class continues to take shape, as a new member joined the class Wednesday — marking the second commit in two days. Michael Smith, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound wide receiver from Vero Beach, Florida, verbally committed Wednesday to join the Panthers for the 201...
Pitt football team receives pair of new commitments for 2017
By Steve Rotstein | Sports Editor
December 15, 2016
The Pitt football team received a pair of commitments to join next year’s team Thursday, one from a high school prospect and one from a proven veteran at the college level. Graduate transfer quarterback Max Browne and three-star offensive lineman Jerry Drake Jr. both announced their intentions Th...