Each time Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi met the media this week, he was flooded with quarterback questions. Finally, he was grateful when he got one that didn't make him grimace. Somebody asked about Iowa's quarterback.
C.J. Beathard will start for the Hawkeyes on Saturday at Kinnick Stadium as Pitt and Iowa take 2-0 records into a third consecutive nonconference test for both teams. “I've seen a few quarterbacks go through the locker room there at Iowa, and C.J. Beathard is one of the best I've seen,” said Narduzzi, who was 3-4 against the Hawkeyes as Michigan State's defensive coordinator (2-2 at Kinnick). “He can make plays with his feet. We are going to get after him. We can't let him get out of the pocket.” The game presents another obstacle for Pitt, which hasn't defeated a Big Ten team on the road (0-7) since beating Minnesota in 1991, 14-13.
Kinnick Stadium, with its alternating black and gold seat sections, will be as loud and hostile as any venue Pitt will visit this season. It also will be Pitt's first appearance on TV (Big Ten Network). “It will be an ornery crowd,” Narduzzi said. “There will be adversity in that game, and we are going to find out how we respond to it.” Said wide receiver Tyler Boyd: “I heard their fans are real loud and noisy. I want to make sure they stay quiet.” Boyd likely will have an opportunity to catch passes from two quarterbacks. Narduzzi hasn't announced a starter between juniors Nate Peterman and Chad Voytik, but he said the quarterback who doesn't start will play, possibly as early as the third series. Then, the “hottest guy” will finish the game.
Befitting a team going through coaching, quarterback and cultural change, Pitt doesn't look anything like the most recent teams that lost to Iowa.
PEDERSON POISON RESIDUE:
In 2011, Pitt's speed-based offense under former coach Todd Graham squandered a 21-point, second-half lead and lost 31-27 at Kinnick. It was the biggest comeback in Iowa history. Also that day, news broke that Pitt was leaving the Big East for the ACC.
Last year, in a totally different offense, running back James Conner ran for 155 yards, but Pitt lost a 10-point halftime lead as Beathard came off the bench to rally Iowa to a 24-20 victory. This year, Conner is out with a knee injury.
The biggest differences involve quarterbacks on both sides. Pitt finally has some depth at the game's most important position, and its defense now can make the other team's passer uncomfortable. The Panthers have nine sacks after totaling 19 through 13 games last year.
Iowa's Ferentz has muddy ties to area Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz, an Upper St. Clair graduate, never won in Pittsburgh until the Hawkeyes defeated Pitt last year at Heinz Field, 24-20. His all-time record: 1-8.
But give the guy a break. He was offensive line coach of the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens from 1993-1998.
Pitt beat Iowa, 21-20, in 2008 but grabbed an even bigger prize from Ferentz five years later by recruiting running back James Conner, who had some interest from Iowa.
Ferentz did win a big game here in late 1970s when he played linebacker at Upper St. Clair and helped defeat USC coach Jim Render, then the boss at Uniontown. The game was played at USC's field in “7-inch thick muddy goo,” Render said. Render didn't accuse USC coach Joe Moore of watering down the field, but he added, “The grass beyond the goal posts was as green and lush as St. Clair Country Club. Everything in the middle was a mud pile.” Said Ferentz: “We won, but it would have been 50-7 them on a dry field.”
Jerry DiPaola is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. Reach him at jdipaola@tribweb.com or via Twitter @JDiPaola_Trib. Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/college/pitt/9118460-74/iowa-pitt-coach#ixzz3mBciqHpb
C.J. Beathard will start for the Hawkeyes on Saturday at Kinnick Stadium as Pitt and Iowa take 2-0 records into a third consecutive nonconference test for both teams. “I've seen a few quarterbacks go through the locker room there at Iowa, and C.J. Beathard is one of the best I've seen,” said Narduzzi, who was 3-4 against the Hawkeyes as Michigan State's defensive coordinator (2-2 at Kinnick). “He can make plays with his feet. We are going to get after him. We can't let him get out of the pocket.” The game presents another obstacle for Pitt, which hasn't defeated a Big Ten team on the road (0-7) since beating Minnesota in 1991, 14-13.
Kinnick Stadium, with its alternating black and gold seat sections, will be as loud and hostile as any venue Pitt will visit this season. It also will be Pitt's first appearance on TV (Big Ten Network). “It will be an ornery crowd,” Narduzzi said. “There will be adversity in that game, and we are going to find out how we respond to it.” Said wide receiver Tyler Boyd: “I heard their fans are real loud and noisy. I want to make sure they stay quiet.” Boyd likely will have an opportunity to catch passes from two quarterbacks. Narduzzi hasn't announced a starter between juniors Nate Peterman and Chad Voytik, but he said the quarterback who doesn't start will play, possibly as early as the third series. Then, the “hottest guy” will finish the game.
Befitting a team going through coaching, quarterback and cultural change, Pitt doesn't look anything like the most recent teams that lost to Iowa.
PEDERSON POISON RESIDUE:
In 2011, Pitt's speed-based offense under former coach Todd Graham squandered a 21-point, second-half lead and lost 31-27 at Kinnick. It was the biggest comeback in Iowa history. Also that day, news broke that Pitt was leaving the Big East for the ACC.
Last year, in a totally different offense, running back James Conner ran for 155 yards, but Pitt lost a 10-point halftime lead as Beathard came off the bench to rally Iowa to a 24-20 victory. This year, Conner is out with a knee injury.
The biggest differences involve quarterbacks on both sides. Pitt finally has some depth at the game's most important position, and its defense now can make the other team's passer uncomfortable. The Panthers have nine sacks after totaling 19 through 13 games last year.
Iowa's Ferentz has muddy ties to area Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz, an Upper St. Clair graduate, never won in Pittsburgh until the Hawkeyes defeated Pitt last year at Heinz Field, 24-20. His all-time record: 1-8.
But give the guy a break. He was offensive line coach of the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens from 1993-1998.
Pitt beat Iowa, 21-20, in 2008 but grabbed an even bigger prize from Ferentz five years later by recruiting running back James Conner, who had some interest from Iowa.
Ferentz did win a big game here in late 1970s when he played linebacker at Upper St. Clair and helped defeat USC coach Jim Render, then the boss at Uniontown. The game was played at USC's field in “7-inch thick muddy goo,” Render said. Render didn't accuse USC coach Joe Moore of watering down the field, but he added, “The grass beyond the goal posts was as green and lush as St. Clair Country Club. Everything in the middle was a mud pile.” Said Ferentz: “We won, but it would have been 50-7 them on a dry field.”
Jerry DiPaola is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. Reach him at jdipaola@tribweb.com or via Twitter @JDiPaola_Trib. Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/college/pitt/9118460-74/iowa-pitt-coach#ixzz3mBciqHpb
