PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Last year there were spurts, the end of the West Virginia and Cincinnati games, North Carolina, but what Pitt offensive coordinator Kade Bell believes is this year will be more like he envisioned after being hired from Western Carolina.
It's not just about faster players, but the knowledge of their system from all those returning, especially the quarterbacks. It starts with having a starter who is back and healthy. Eli Holstein gets it and what Bell demands.
"Just having him now mentally where he understands what we are trying to get accomplished on the field," Bell said Thursday. "He understands in the meetings, now he is starting to answer the questions. Last year when he became the starter, it was a whirlwind. He was just trying to do what I told him to."
What Bell means by this is before Holstein gets to the film room, he already understands what happened. He knows the answers. The sophomore also knows the expectations. The Pitt offensive coordinator demands more of the quarterbacks than anyone.
You better be watching the practice back, understanding what everyone is doing, Bell requires. Are you in his office? Are you meeting with the receivers? Are you throwing after practice?
"We are not just here to do the bare minimum at quarterback," Bell said. "If you want to be a great quarterback and take your game to another level, you got to do more than ever. You got to be the hardest working guy in the room, in the building. Getting that expectation and them to understand that, that's been big this spring."
The Panthers have only three quarterbacks on scholarship, but that's what Bell wants. He felt like his first year was hard because they had eight quarterbacks, he had a hard time figuring out how to get everyone reps. He struggled with really knowing what they could do and then trying to develop them. Now it's about their main guys getting all the run.
"Think of the experience of playing quarterback and running the team," Bell said. "Getting rid of the ball and understanding coverage. Getting the reps is great for them."
While Holstein is the starter, Bell is excited about the strides redshirt-freshman Julian Dugger made in his first college experience in the GameAboveSports Bowl. Bell said Dugger showed off his athleticism. The Pitt offensive coordinator has been thinking of ways to get him the football. He hasn't even drawn up the plays, they are in his mind about how they can stress out opposing defenses. What Bell said makes that easier, is a lot of the plays that Dugger will run are plays that Holstein can run as well with his mobility.
First downs are an area Bell really wants to win. Every offensive coordinator says that, winning first downs are key. But he wants Pitt to be the best throwing team on first down in the nation. That doesn't mean he doesn't want to run it, but rather he believes that leads to increased rushing totals.
"I don't want to run the ball in two yards and a cloud of dust," Bell said. "I want people to be so scared that we are so good at throwing it, that you have to play deep."
The Panthers were 30th in the nation in scoring last year after being nearly dead last the season before he came. The sights are set high in 2025 and with experience at quarterback, Bell believes Pitt will have an explosive offense.
