PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – After a wobbly first drive, the Pitt offense scored on its next six possessions (with the exception of taking a knee for one play at the end of the first half) to cruise past Wofford 45-7 Saturday afternoon in the season opener at Acrisure Stadium.
"We were able to come out here and play an FCS team and play the way we are supposed to," said Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi. "Not play down, but play up. I don't know if there could have been a better first half."
Panthers rushed for 217 yards while throwing for 274 (214 by Phil Jurkovec), going 8 of 14 on third downs and 3-3 on fourth downs. Pitt was also 5-5 in the red zone.
Carter carries
He's been waiting for an opportunity for more carries for the last couple of years. He's said he can be more than just a fullback. Senior Daniel Carter lost the weight (15-20 pounds before this season) and rushed it 11 times in the opener after just 16 attempts all of the 2022 season. The 65 yards surpassed the total of any previous season for the senior from Florida.
"Daniel had a great camp," Narduzzi said. "He's consistent and he stayed healthy the whole time. Rodney is really good and C'BO is really good. We have three guys and keeping them fresh and see who breaks away. I'm happy with Daniel, really with all three of those backs did today."
"I think he's the ultimate team player," said quarterback Phil Jurkovec.
"He's such a great teammate to have. He just runs so hard. He scored on the fumble and just makes it happen. It's just will power for him that he is going to get those yards. I think all day the running game was really good."
WR share
13 different players had a catch on Saturday with Konata Mumpfield the only player with three, for 34 yards. Former walk-on Jake McConnachie and tight end Karter Johnson had TD receptions.
"I don't think a lot of it was 'we are going to try to get this guy the ball on this play'," Jurkovec said hitting nine different receivers. "It's just reading out the plays. We have a lot of weapons. You could see a lot of guys can play out there."
"Every tight end got a catch, everybody got involved," Narduzzi said. "That's a tribute to Coach Cignetti and the game plan. Who are we throwing the ball to? We are throwing it to anybody. We have a lot of playmakers. You got to cover them all."
"We have a lot of weapons, a lot of depth," Mumpfield said. "That's what we are going to need to be able to beat teams. We definitely going to spread it around. We are a brotherhood. We are really close. We are always together and sharing our dreams. We know what we can accomplish and the talent in that room."
Defense ready
At times the timing for the offense wasn't there in the first game of the season, however the defense was in mid-season form. The Panthers allowed four first downs in the first half. Wofford had one rush yard as the Panthers accumulated three sacks and four tackles for loss in the first 30 minutes. Westinghouse HS grad Dayon Hayes had a sack on the first play of the game followed by a Deandre Jules tackle for loss. Bangally Kamara and Sam Okunlola also with sacks.
"There were a lot of three-and-outs," Narduzzi said. "When your defense is going three and out, I think it's going to be a good day. Just the pressure in the backfield, just like the receivers and the tight ends, there was a lot of guys that made plays on defense as well."
"Coaches have been hard on us, treating them like they were a top team like Georgia," Hayes said. "We had to be physical and fast."
"We handled everything we wanted to handle," said linebacker Shayne Simon. "We wanted the goose egg, but we handled everything, checked every box and on to Week 2."
Up Next
A new member of the Big 12, Cincinnati rolled over Eastern Kentucky 66-13 Saturday. Transfer QB Emory Jones was near perfect 19-23, 345 yards and five touchdowns. Receiver Xzavier Henderson with seven receptions for 149 yards as one of five different players to catch a TD pass.
Jones is one of 22 transfers including five transfer receivers-a pair from Louisville and one from Florida who were all starters.
The Bearcats finished 9-4 last season losing by only seven at Arkansas, four at Central Florida, three to Tulane and lost 24-7 to Louisville at the Fenway Bowl. Scott Satterfield takes over as head coach after Luke Fickell left for Wisconsin. Defensive lineman Dontay Corleone is a preseason First Team All-American.
Kickoff at 6:30 with 93.7 The Fan pregame starting at 3:30p on Saturday with Bob Pompeani, Paul Zeise and Dorin Dickerson.
