It’s kind of remarkable, but we’re already at the halfway point of spring camp.
Saturday’s scrimmage was practice No. 7 - the coaches held three practices the first week and four last week - and while the spring game is technically No. 15, the reality is, the first 14 practices are when the work really gets done.
Now seven of those 14 are in the books.
- Practice No. 8 was Tuesday morning, and for the first time this spring, the team practiced outside. This was the first practice since Saturday’s scrimmage, and we all know that Pat Narduzzi uses scrimmages as a measuring stick for the team, so the first thing I looked for on Tuesday morning was the jersey colors.
For the first two weeks of spring, the offense was wearing blue, presumably after “winning” the Sun Bowl. But on Tuesday morning, the defense had the blue jerseys on, which means that side of the ball “won” Saturday’s scrimmage.
- From what I could tell, there was some evidence of defensive success. I’ve been tracking the “TAKEAWAY” helmet tape this spring, watching to see which defensive players get a sticker that says “TAKEAWAY” after they record a turnover, and from what I could see, there were six turnovers in the scrimmage.
Javon McIntyre, Marquis Williams, Noah Biglow, Bam Brima, M.J. Devonshire and Nick Lapi were all sporting new “TAKEAWAY” stickers on Tuesday morning, which certainly speaks to some defensive success.
EDIT: Upon further reflection, I don't think that means there were six turnovers in the scrimmage. The last time I saw the helmets was before Friday's practice, so the six new tapes were from Friday and Saturday combined. It sounds like only McIntyre and Williams had picks in the scrimmage; the other four must have come from Friday's practice.
A couple of those guys stand out, and the first is Biglow. I had to do a double-take to see his “TAKEAWAY” sticker, since he now has three on his helmets - the most of any player. I don’t know how Biglow is doing in his assignments on a play-to-play basis, but he’s seemingly making more plays than anybody else on defense so far in spring camp.
Brima is notable because he is the first defensive lineman to get a “TAKEAWAY” sticker.
- Here’s the updated “TAKEAWAY” sticker count:
Noah Biglow - 3
M.J. Devonshire - 2
Dylan Bennett - 2
Dante Caputo - 2
Bam Brima - 1
Tamarion Crumpley - 1
Ryland Gandy - 1
Nick Lapi - 1
Javon McIntyre - 1
Donovan McMillon - 1
P.J. O’Brien - 1
Marquis Williams - 1
AJ Woods - 1
- It wasn’t just turnovers that won the scrimmage for the defense, though. From what I’ve heard, the defensive line was also getting a lot of pressure on the quarterbacks. One person I talked to said there was a ridiculously high number of sacks in Saturday’s scrimmage. Now, when I say “sacks” in a scrimmage, we’re talking about a defensive player getting even somewhat close to the quarterback before Narduzzi blows a whistle; I think Pitt’s current group of quarterbacks could probably escape from some of the blown-whistle sacks, but that’s how they’re scored in these scrimmages, and from what I’ve heard, there were a lot on Saturday. Maybe into the double digits.
A bunch of those sacks probably came against the second or third-team offensive line, but I’m choosing to look at it as a big endorsement of the young defensive linemen. Pitt needs some guys to step up there, and it sounds like it’s happening.
- It wasn’t all defense on Saturday, though, as it sounds like Phil Jurkovec was one of the standouts in the session. He played a limited amount of series, from what I’ve heard, but he made the most of those with a near-perfect performance.
That sounds like hyperbole, but that’s how it’s been told to me by several people. Jurkovec had multiple touchdown passes and moved the offense well.
- This brings me to something I think we’ve all come to understand already, but it’s becoming more and more apparent:
Jurkovec is the pretty clear top quarterback right now, and it seems likely that he’s in that spot to say. That’s not to say Christian Veilleux can’t outplay Jurkovec and win the job. Or Nate Yarnell or Ty Dieffenbach, for that matter; anything is possible. But Jurkovec was brought in to be the starter, and through the first half of spring camp, he hasn’t done anything to lose that role (nor has anyone done anything to win it).
I think part of that is simply ability. Jurkovec is a talented quarterback. I think we all recognize that. The other part is his experience with Frank Cignetti and the offensive scheme. He knows it, he has been in it, he can run it and Cignetti knows what to do with him. I’m not sure if all of those things applied to Pitt’s quarterbacks situation last year; I’m not sure if Kedon Slovis was ever truly comfortable with what the offense was asking him to do, nor am I sure if Cignetti ever really put the best system around Slovis.
That’s in the past, of course, but it’s at least somewhat relevant as we all ask the question: “How can Pitt’s offense improve in 2023?”
Maybe Jurkovec’s familiarity with the system can make some amount of difference to lead to some amount of improvement.
We’ll see how that works out, but for now, everything I’ve heard is that he’s been the best quarterback in spring camp and is firmly on track to be the starter.
- In fact, it sounds like Jurkovec’s time in Saturday’s scrimmage was limited partially due to his strong performance and partially out of an interest in seeing more of what Veilleux, Yarnell and Dieffenbach can do.
To that end, I think all three of those guys have promising skill sets. They’re all big and athletic, and they can throw the ball well. I know I’ve said this - over and over again - but this group really does impress with its size, athleticism and arm talent.
They’ve each got their shortcomings, of course, but there’s something to like with each guy. I’m intrigued to see what would happen if Veilleux gets the nod to replace Jurkovec at some point, which has to at least be considered a possibility since Jurkovec has played 24 of a possible 35 games over the last three seasons.
It seems like accuracy is where Veilleux really needs to improve, but that should be the kind of thing that can be helped with coaching and technique work. I’m sure Veilleux has a quarterback coach he works with, so that will be an emphasis.
- It’s also becoming more and more apparent that Ryan Baer is going to be a factor with the offensive line. He’s been getting work at tackle and guard, leading to a safe assumption that he could very well be the first linemen off the bench - at both positions. And while he might be the sixth man, I think he’s going to really push Branson Taylor and Ryan Jacoby, which will ultimately be for the benefit of everyone.
Either Baer forces his way onto the field, or Taylor and Jacoby elevate their level of play.
Either way, it’s a win-win.
- Pitt has practice today, Thursday and Saturday, with Saturday being another closed scrimmage. We’ll have more coverage from today’s practice, with photos, videos, quotes and more later.
Saturday’s scrimmage was practice No. 7 - the coaches held three practices the first week and four last week - and while the spring game is technically No. 15, the reality is, the first 14 practices are when the work really gets done.
Now seven of those 14 are in the books.
- Practice No. 8 was Tuesday morning, and for the first time this spring, the team practiced outside. This was the first practice since Saturday’s scrimmage, and we all know that Pat Narduzzi uses scrimmages as a measuring stick for the team, so the first thing I looked for on Tuesday morning was the jersey colors.
For the first two weeks of spring, the offense was wearing blue, presumably after “winning” the Sun Bowl. But on Tuesday morning, the defense had the blue jerseys on, which means that side of the ball “won” Saturday’s scrimmage.
- From what I could tell, there was some evidence of defensive success. I’ve been tracking the “TAKEAWAY” helmet tape this spring, watching to see which defensive players get a sticker that says “TAKEAWAY” after they record a turnover, and from what I could see, there were six turnovers in the scrimmage.
Javon McIntyre, Marquis Williams, Noah Biglow, Bam Brima, M.J. Devonshire and Nick Lapi were all sporting new “TAKEAWAY” stickers on Tuesday morning, which certainly speaks to some defensive success.
EDIT: Upon further reflection, I don't think that means there were six turnovers in the scrimmage. The last time I saw the helmets was before Friday's practice, so the six new tapes were from Friday and Saturday combined. It sounds like only McIntyre and Williams had picks in the scrimmage; the other four must have come from Friday's practice.
A couple of those guys stand out, and the first is Biglow. I had to do a double-take to see his “TAKEAWAY” sticker, since he now has three on his helmets - the most of any player. I don’t know how Biglow is doing in his assignments on a play-to-play basis, but he’s seemingly making more plays than anybody else on defense so far in spring camp.
Brima is notable because he is the first defensive lineman to get a “TAKEAWAY” sticker.
- Here’s the updated “TAKEAWAY” sticker count:
Noah Biglow - 3
M.J. Devonshire - 2
Dylan Bennett - 2
Dante Caputo - 2
Bam Brima - 1
Tamarion Crumpley - 1
Ryland Gandy - 1
Nick Lapi - 1
Javon McIntyre - 1
Donovan McMillon - 1
P.J. O’Brien - 1
Marquis Williams - 1
AJ Woods - 1
- It wasn’t just turnovers that won the scrimmage for the defense, though. From what I’ve heard, the defensive line was also getting a lot of pressure on the quarterbacks. One person I talked to said there was a ridiculously high number of sacks in Saturday’s scrimmage. Now, when I say “sacks” in a scrimmage, we’re talking about a defensive player getting even somewhat close to the quarterback before Narduzzi blows a whistle; I think Pitt’s current group of quarterbacks could probably escape from some of the blown-whistle sacks, but that’s how they’re scored in these scrimmages, and from what I’ve heard, there were a lot on Saturday. Maybe into the double digits.
A bunch of those sacks probably came against the second or third-team offensive line, but I’m choosing to look at it as a big endorsement of the young defensive linemen. Pitt needs some guys to step up there, and it sounds like it’s happening.
- It wasn’t all defense on Saturday, though, as it sounds like Phil Jurkovec was one of the standouts in the session. He played a limited amount of series, from what I’ve heard, but he made the most of those with a near-perfect performance.
That sounds like hyperbole, but that’s how it’s been told to me by several people. Jurkovec had multiple touchdown passes and moved the offense well.
- This brings me to something I think we’ve all come to understand already, but it’s becoming more and more apparent:
Jurkovec is the pretty clear top quarterback right now, and it seems likely that he’s in that spot to say. That’s not to say Christian Veilleux can’t outplay Jurkovec and win the job. Or Nate Yarnell or Ty Dieffenbach, for that matter; anything is possible. But Jurkovec was brought in to be the starter, and through the first half of spring camp, he hasn’t done anything to lose that role (nor has anyone done anything to win it).
I think part of that is simply ability. Jurkovec is a talented quarterback. I think we all recognize that. The other part is his experience with Frank Cignetti and the offensive scheme. He knows it, he has been in it, he can run it and Cignetti knows what to do with him. I’m not sure if all of those things applied to Pitt’s quarterbacks situation last year; I’m not sure if Kedon Slovis was ever truly comfortable with what the offense was asking him to do, nor am I sure if Cignetti ever really put the best system around Slovis.
That’s in the past, of course, but it’s at least somewhat relevant as we all ask the question: “How can Pitt’s offense improve in 2023?”
Maybe Jurkovec’s familiarity with the system can make some amount of difference to lead to some amount of improvement.
We’ll see how that works out, but for now, everything I’ve heard is that he’s been the best quarterback in spring camp and is firmly on track to be the starter.
- In fact, it sounds like Jurkovec’s time in Saturday’s scrimmage was limited partially due to his strong performance and partially out of an interest in seeing more of what Veilleux, Yarnell and Dieffenbach can do.
To that end, I think all three of those guys have promising skill sets. They’re all big and athletic, and they can throw the ball well. I know I’ve said this - over and over again - but this group really does impress with its size, athleticism and arm talent.
They’ve each got their shortcomings, of course, but there’s something to like with each guy. I’m intrigued to see what would happen if Veilleux gets the nod to replace Jurkovec at some point, which has to at least be considered a possibility since Jurkovec has played 24 of a possible 35 games over the last three seasons.
It seems like accuracy is where Veilleux really needs to improve, but that should be the kind of thing that can be helped with coaching and technique work. I’m sure Veilleux has a quarterback coach he works with, so that will be an emphasis.
- It’s also becoming more and more apparent that Ryan Baer is going to be a factor with the offensive line. He’s been getting work at tackle and guard, leading to a safe assumption that he could very well be the first linemen off the bench - at both positions. And while he might be the sixth man, I think he’s going to really push Branson Taylor and Ryan Jacoby, which will ultimately be for the benefit of everyone.
Either Baer forces his way onto the field, or Taylor and Jacoby elevate their level of play.
Either way, it’s a win-win.
- Pitt has practice today, Thursday and Saturday, with Saturday being another closed scrimmage. We’ll have more coverage from today’s practice, with photos, videos, quotes and more later.
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