Can Pitt Make a Sneaky Run to the ACC Championship?
The Pittsburgh Panthers' season has so far been pretty pedestrian, with wins over weak opponents such as Boston College, Syracuse, and Stanford, along with a loss to 4-7 West Virginia. That being said, they did play well against Louisville, which isn’t an awful team despite losing by seven points. Their first “real” test was against the powerhouse known as Notre Dame, which ended so badly for them that they fell out of the rankings. Luckily for Pitt, they have a chance to redeem themselves with a win against Georgia Tech under the lights at Bobby Dodd. This Pitt team is not bad by any means; they just can’t beat good teams, which is one of the reasons their record is faulty. On the bright side, their offense performs well against average teams, as the Panthers are 23rd in the nation in points per game. On the contrary, Georgia Tech’s defense allows an average of 24 points per game, which is something Pitt coaches should be licking their chops over.
Assuming they win at Georgia Tech, they would still need to play host to Miami the following week, who has looked like their Week One form again with dominant wins after dominant wins. Miami has matched up well against all opponents, with two very close overtime losses to Louisville and SMU. Pitt will have the weather advantage, as this will be Miami’s northernmost game all year. This is a team whose defense is one of the best in the nation, led by Heisman candidate Reuben Bain Jr. If Pitt can keep him guessing along with the rest of their defense, they should come out on top.
While it may be a long shot for this team, they do have tons of players ready to fire it up. One of those players is wide receiver Raphael Williams, who leads the team with six touchdowns. As for head coach Pat Narduzzi, he is aware of the importance of the next two games and is motivated to ensure his guys don’t quit, especially after such a disheartening loss. Pitt’s season may be over tomorrow, but nobody at the beginning of the year would ever think they would be fighting for a chance at the ACC championship, and with two more wins, we could see them punch their ticket.
