With the opening of camp this week, there are five key questions, on both sides of the ball, this team must answer in order to be successful this season.
1. Will Phil Jurkovec be effective? And, if he’s not, will the coaching staff be willing to make a change?
As the quarterback goes, so our season will go. We’d all love to see the great storyline— local kid comes back and leads the hometown team to glory. His college career to date makes this an open question. Can he stay healthy, and if he stays healthy, can he perform? If he performs as he did in 2020, this team will be set up for success. But the bigger question remains if he struggles will the coaching staff be willing to make a change? Last year, there was a reluctance, for whatever reason, to bench Kedon Slovis during his struggles against Georgia Tech, Louisville, and North Carolina. If Jurkovec struggles, will the coaches shift to Veilleux or Yarnell? And how long will they wait before deciding that a change is necessary? The success of the offense lies in the answer to these questions.
2. Will the receivers be able to stretch the field to open up the run? And which receivers will emerge beyond the top three?
Part of Jurkovec’s success will be determined by the performance of the receivers, as well. Based on last year’s offense, it’s pretty clear that Rodney Hammond will get at least 20 carries per game, but to score in the modern era, teams have to be able to throw.
To keep the defense from playing eight or nine in the box to stop the run, this offense has to establish a downfield passing game. We struggled to do that with any consistency last season. Bub Means has the physical tools to be that field stretcher. But he was plagued by key drops (Tennessee) that prevented him from being that guy. Florida transfer Daejon Reynolds averaged 20 yards per catch but with a small sample size (20 receptions in two seasons). Mumpfield served as a possession receiver, averaging 9.5 yards per catch.
Beyond those three players, no other receiver on the roster has any meaningful game experience. At least one, probably two, of the other receivers on the roster, will have to produce. In the event, and likelihood of injury, maybe even three. Right now, we just don’t know who those players will be.
3. Who will provide a pass rush up the middle? Which ends, besides Dayon Hayes, will pressure the quarterback.
The most important part of any defense is the line. For the past few seasons, our defensive line has been one of the best in the nation. One of the factors making it so successful has been the ability of the tackles to create a pass rush up the middle. Jaylen Twyman and Calijah Kancey allowed defensive ends to rush one-on-one. The current crop of tackles has a number of veteran space-eaters (David Green, Devin Danielson, Tyler Bentley, Deandre Jules), but none of them have impressive sack numbers. Who will fill the gap left by Kancey’s departure? This is a question that our defensive staff has to address, and I trust Charlie Partridge to answer it.
We have been blessed with excellent defensive ends the past few seasons, as well. This season, however, there is only one sure thing at end— Dayon Hayes. Nate Temple has shown flashes in limited duty, Nahki Johnson won the Ed Conway award as the most-improved defensive player this spring, and Sam Okunlola received high praise, as well. But none besides Hayes have done much/if anything in game action. With the way Pitt plays defense, and with inexperience at safety, a good pass rush is a must, so it will be interesting how these questions are resolved throughout the season.
4. How long will it take for the new safeties to gain experience and limit big plays?
Speaking of the safeties, this is arguably the most difficult position in Pitt’s defense. As with many of the other positions of note, Pitt has been blessed with experience the past few seasons. This year’s group appears to have talent and depth but lacks experience. I expect opposing offenses to challenge these safeties early in the season and in games, to test their reads and discipline by running crossing routes and play action. How quickly this group of young safeties (McIntyre, O’Brien, Hall, and McMillon) learns to adapt will be important in limiting big plays.
5. Which players will have breakout seasons?
Every season, on every team in the country, there are players who put everything together and exceed expectations. We will see those players, this year on this team. There are five players on this team, excluding true freshmen (too many unknowns), who could be breakout players this year:
1. Derrick Davis
2. Nahki Johnson
3. Sean FitzSimmons
4. Ryan Baer
5. C’Bo Flemister
Who else may break out? Which freshmen will have the biggest impact? It will be interesting to see how this unfolds throughout the season.
1. Will Phil Jurkovec be effective? And, if he’s not, will the coaching staff be willing to make a change?
As the quarterback goes, so our season will go. We’d all love to see the great storyline— local kid comes back and leads the hometown team to glory. His college career to date makes this an open question. Can he stay healthy, and if he stays healthy, can he perform? If he performs as he did in 2020, this team will be set up for success. But the bigger question remains if he struggles will the coaching staff be willing to make a change? Last year, there was a reluctance, for whatever reason, to bench Kedon Slovis during his struggles against Georgia Tech, Louisville, and North Carolina. If Jurkovec struggles, will the coaches shift to Veilleux or Yarnell? And how long will they wait before deciding that a change is necessary? The success of the offense lies in the answer to these questions.
2. Will the receivers be able to stretch the field to open up the run? And which receivers will emerge beyond the top three?
Part of Jurkovec’s success will be determined by the performance of the receivers, as well. Based on last year’s offense, it’s pretty clear that Rodney Hammond will get at least 20 carries per game, but to score in the modern era, teams have to be able to throw.
To keep the defense from playing eight or nine in the box to stop the run, this offense has to establish a downfield passing game. We struggled to do that with any consistency last season. Bub Means has the physical tools to be that field stretcher. But he was plagued by key drops (Tennessee) that prevented him from being that guy. Florida transfer Daejon Reynolds averaged 20 yards per catch but with a small sample size (20 receptions in two seasons). Mumpfield served as a possession receiver, averaging 9.5 yards per catch.
Beyond those three players, no other receiver on the roster has any meaningful game experience. At least one, probably two, of the other receivers on the roster, will have to produce. In the event, and likelihood of injury, maybe even three. Right now, we just don’t know who those players will be.
3. Who will provide a pass rush up the middle? Which ends, besides Dayon Hayes, will pressure the quarterback.
The most important part of any defense is the line. For the past few seasons, our defensive line has been one of the best in the nation. One of the factors making it so successful has been the ability of the tackles to create a pass rush up the middle. Jaylen Twyman and Calijah Kancey allowed defensive ends to rush one-on-one. The current crop of tackles has a number of veteran space-eaters (David Green, Devin Danielson, Tyler Bentley, Deandre Jules), but none of them have impressive sack numbers. Who will fill the gap left by Kancey’s departure? This is a question that our defensive staff has to address, and I trust Charlie Partridge to answer it.
We have been blessed with excellent defensive ends the past few seasons, as well. This season, however, there is only one sure thing at end— Dayon Hayes. Nate Temple has shown flashes in limited duty, Nahki Johnson won the Ed Conway award as the most-improved defensive player this spring, and Sam Okunlola received high praise, as well. But none besides Hayes have done much/if anything in game action. With the way Pitt plays defense, and with inexperience at safety, a good pass rush is a must, so it will be interesting how these questions are resolved throughout the season.
4. How long will it take for the new safeties to gain experience and limit big plays?
Speaking of the safeties, this is arguably the most difficult position in Pitt’s defense. As with many of the other positions of note, Pitt has been blessed with experience the past few seasons. This year’s group appears to have talent and depth but lacks experience. I expect opposing offenses to challenge these safeties early in the season and in games, to test their reads and discipline by running crossing routes and play action. How quickly this group of young safeties (McIntyre, O’Brien, Hall, and McMillon) learns to adapt will be important in limiting big plays.
5. Which players will have breakout seasons?
Every season, on every team in the country, there are players who put everything together and exceed expectations. We will see those players, this year on this team. There are five players on this team, excluding true freshmen (too many unknowns), who could be breakout players this year:
1. Derrick Davis
2. Nahki Johnson
3. Sean FitzSimmons
4. Ryan Baer
5. C’Bo Flemister
Who else may break out? Which freshmen will have the biggest impact? It will be interesting to see how this unfolds throughout the season.
