SOTC Update: Pittsburgh Panthers
2024 was a tale of two seasons for the Panthers, starting 7-0 before dropping their final six. Weapons return on offense in year two in Kade Bell's tempo attack, and the defense is set up.
Pittsburgh Panthers
State of the Chart™ Recap Edition
Live All-In Ranking: 51st
Offense: 67th
Defense: 46th
2024 Results: 7-6 (3-5 in ACC)
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|||||| STATE OF THE CHART™ SUMMARY
Pat Narduzzi and the Panthers had an uncharacteristic three-win 2023 season. Things just never seemed to click. As is customary after a campaign like that, there are big changes. These came on the offensive side of the ball with young offensive coordinator Kade Bell coming in from Western Carolina, charged with moderizing and speeding up this offense. They brought in the quarterback they thought best to run it, with Eli Holstein from Alabama. When healthy, Holstein performed well enough and the offense did certainly go fast — they just didn’t have a well-rounded attack. The offensive line is important to any offense, but even more so in this Bell version. They did not play up to snuff and it cost them. The defense was a wrecking ball and set up camp in opposing backfields all season to help keep them in games. And games they won early, starting 7-0, before dropping their final six. As the focus shifts to 2025, the response to the ‘23 debacle was solid, but could have been better. With some key pieces returning and another year in this new offensive system, this could be the return to the level they now expect in Pittsburgh. That being 9+ wins and contention for the ACC title.
|||||| HEAD COACH AND COACHING STAFF
Pat Narduzzi responded to the 3-win campaign in 2023 with a complete overhaul of the staff, including bringing in the ‘whizz kid’ offensive coordinator Kade Bell from Western Carolina to modernize the offense. They had a better season, but fell off after a strong start. The staff stays in place with no major changes as the Panthers look to improve again and get back to the upper level of the ACC.
Note: This is a “dynamic” article; meaning we will update any information that comes in this “off-season” and post a note when impactful moves are made or news breaks.
|||||| 2024 SCHEDULE / RESULTS ANALYSIS
A tale of two seasons here. They got off to a 7-0 start with some impressive wins, including two non-conference games against Big 12 schools — at Cincinnati and West Virginia — in weeks two and three. They won on the road in Chapel Hill and handled a scare from Cal in week seven after they traveled cross country. Perhaps their most impressive win was the 41-13 beat down of a very good Syracuse team. After that week nine game, things just went south in a hurry and they lost their last five games. They weren’t very competitive in those games and then they dropped the bowl game to Toledo to finish on a six-game losing streak.
||||||| POSITION GROUP CHECK-INS
OFFENSE: This new Kade Bell-led offense did what it was expected to do — it ran fast. The 21.4 seconds per play was ranked third in the FBS level. They threw it a lot, too. Unfortunately, the efficiency wasn’t on par with the pace. When you run the third-fastest offense and finish 44th in yards per game and 69th in yards per play, something went haywire. Part of it was the inconsistencies at the quarterback position, exacerbated by injuries and poor offensive line play. They allowed 43 sacks and 100 tackles for loss. Only part of that is volume-driven; the other is incompetence. It could have been worse, but they did cash in on their opportunities in the red zone at a 73% clip (15th in FBS) and finished with a respectable 32.9 points per game (30th). The key to unlocking this potential is two-fold, and both have been mentioned as reasons for the struggles in ‘24. They need to solidify the trenches by injecting some life into that offensive line to open holes in the run game and protect the quarterback when passing plays are called at a high rate. Speaking of quarterbacks, this one falls on Eli Holstein, the Alabama transfer, who had his moments of greatness but struggled to stay healthy and consistent. His progression in this offense will be of the utmost importance in 2025.
||| QB
Eli Holstein was identified as the guy to run this new, fast-paced offense with his dual-threat capabilities. He was slowed by injuries but was the preferred option. Nate Yarnell graded out better but lacked the athleticism that Bell wanted to see. Yarnell moves on to Texas State, leaving Holstein as the guy (again). Incoming freshman Mason Heintschel may quickly move up the ranks into a backup role and may be the future here.
||| RB
Desmond Reid emerged as the bellcow here from a host of talented backs. His 185 carries dwarfed that of the rest of the room. He also chipped in with 51 catches out of the backfield. He returns and will again have a significant role. Derrick Davis Jr. will backup, and we should see more of highly-touted now redshirt freshman Juelz Goff, who made a name for himself as the injuries piled up in this room.
||| WR
This high-volume passing attack featured three ‘go-to’ options: Konata Mumpfield, Poppi Williams Jr., and Kenny Johnson. They each got over 70 targets. Mumpfield made the most of those opportunities. He heads to the NFL, while both Williams and Johnson return as the new 1-2. There is room for somebody else to step up, with plenty vying for that opportunity. Keep an eye on Andy Jean, coming in from Florida, who battled injuries to make a run at impacting this room.
||| TE
Gavin Bartholomew was a solid option for the offense, as the tight end does get involved in Bell’s offense. He caught 38 of 51 targets and scored four times. He’s gone, but everybody else behind him returns. They like what they have in Jake Overman, who chipped in with 17 grabs in limited action. He will take over the lead role and could top Bartholomew’s impact. Malachi Thomas is next in line, as Overman has just one year of eligibility left.
||| OL
This was the Achilles heel of the offense. They couldn’t quite do everything Bell wanted to do as this unit struggled to find its footing. Be it injuries and having to mix-and-match or just a general struggle to grasp the schemes, it didn’t work. They get back their center, Lyndon Cooper, and the right side of the line. They bring in tackle Kendall Stanley from Charlotte, who grades as an impact starter. Jeffrey Persi is a former 4-star from Michigan who could be in the mix. A little cohesion and talent infusion could work wonders here.
DEFENSE: When looking at the profile of this defense in 2024, it’s really a shame that the offense couldn’t hold up their end a little more. This was an impressive group. Led by a relentless attack in the backfield, accumulating 106 tackles-for-loss and 41 sacks, both top-10 figures. They stuffed the run and forced teams to pass, which they did, somewhat effectively. That secondary was challenged as the game script often forced a ‘shootout’ type game, and giving up 265 yards per game in the air looks really bad and puts them towards the bottom of FBS rankings; the per attempt numbers were much better — 7.2 — ranks 66th. They got off the field on third downs, holding opponents to 34% (28th). They will get a decent amount back from this aggressive unit and should continue to build on what was, if nothing else, a fun-to-watch defense in 2023. Linebackers Kyle Louis and Rasheem Biles will wreak havoc all season, and if they can tighten in the secondary, this could be special.
||| DL
This was a solid grouping led by Nate Matlock and Jimmy Scott. They combined for 11 sacks and over 45 hurries. Matlock moves on, but Scott returns for his RS-Junior season. Isaiah Neal and Nick James return as contributors. The loss of Sincere Edwards to UCF hurts, as he showed well in his limited role as a true freshman. Sean FitzSimmons is another name to watch here. They add in a few high-upside transfers, and this should continue to roll in 2025.
||| LB
A good amount of the stellar pass rush and work in the backfield came from this group, led by Kyle Louis. His return and true sophomore Rasheem Biles sets this up for a repeat performance. The loss of Brandon George can be overcome, but they know what they have here and don’t do much in the portal for that very reason. They are set up to continue their havoc-wreaking in 2025.
||| DB
This group was challenged quite a bit as game scripts often forced ‘shootout’ type games. The final numbers didn’t look great but weren’t as bad as the surface numbers. Donovan McMillon (former Florida) was their leader at SS. His graduation will challenge somebody to step up in that vital role. They have some options, including UC-Davis transfer Kavir Bains and Ohio State transfer Jayden Bonsu. Some work to do here to get this group propped up, but the seeds are there.
SPECIAL TEAMS: They had one of the best place kickers in the college game with Ben Sauls. He hit 21/24, including six from beyond 50 yards — and just one miss 50+. Caleb Junko handled the punting duties and he was a bit inconsistent. Sauls does not return, while Junko does. Sam Carpenter is next up on the kicker depth chart and we don’t have a lot on him. We just know he has big shoes to fill. All of their returners are back as well with WR Kenny Johnson handling the kickoffs and Desmond Reid a dangerous threat in the punt return game.
Reader feedback is requested and encouraged! Who knows these teams better than their passionate fan bases? We don’t pretend to know it all and would love your feedback. We will update/edit based (and credit) for anything that is brought to our attention. Let’s do this together…
|||||| TRANSFER PORTAL TRACKER
This one hurts a bit with that red number showing over 100 on the wrong side of the ledger. There is still time to impact this in the spring window, but losing some key pieces will affect the overall talent level of the roster. Some of those losses are at positions where they are well-positioned, like quarterback (assuming health) and running back (with Reid returning). OT Kendall Stanley (Charlotte) was a significant pick-up for the offensive line and one of the most needed. Not great, but it's also not the end of the world.
Below is a screen shot of the full, live Transfer Portal Tracker over at CFBDepth.com. Click the image or the button below to view it in its entirety…
|||||| 2025 RECRUITING CLASS
A solid group coming in for this 2025 class with just one 4-star in CB Mason Alexander from Arkansas. They get a good group of high(er) 3-stars and they’ll need to develop. It was an even effort between offense and defense but the focus areas are offensive line (five players, ranked 19th) and linebacker (three players, ranked 25th). They also bring in five defensive backs to the mix.
Here is a snapshot of the 2025 Recruiting Class+ with a link to the live page with updates throughout the cycle:
|||||| 2025 SCHEDULE LOOK AHEAD
SOS+ has this as a bit more difficult of a slate. Adding Notre Dame will do that to you. They get the Irish in week 12 in Pittsburgh. Their other non-conference tilts start with two winnable games with Duquesne and Central Michigan at home to kickoff the season. They should get that 2-0 start and roll into Morgantown for the ‘Backyard Brawl,’ hoping for back-to-back wins that rivalry for the first time since 07-08. Then, the typical tough but not overwhelming ACC slate will feature a lot of toss-ups, and if they can steal a couple and get the bounces going their way, it could be that growth season they need to get back to their expectation level.
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