Pitt opens ACC schedule with 68-60 victory at N.C. State, wins fifth in a row
On multiple occasions this season, Pitt coach Jeff Capel has been asked to describe his team’s identify. Perhaps it’s too early to say for sure, but Pitt’s 68-60 upset victory Friday night against N.C. State in Raleigh, N.C., appears to have set a tone that Capel hopes to maintain. “To...
Pitt men’s soccer seeks return trip to College Cup in Elite 8 home match vs. Portland
With a team that has persevered through four losses and five ties among its 20 games, Pitt’s men’s soccer finds itself on the cusp off a second trip to the College Cup in the past three seasons. It was only 2021 when Pitt most recently reached the College Cup. For...
Report: Former Pine-Richland quarterback Phil Jurkovec plans to transfer from Boston College
Former Pine-Richland quarterback Phil Jurkovec wants to try a third school before his collegiate eligibility expires. Jurkovec plans to put his name in the NCAA transfer portal, according to a report from ESPN. He will be a graduate transfer with one season of eligibility in 2023. With a good season,...
Pitt’s Calijah Kancey will miss bowl game with injury
Pitt will play its bowl game without an important player for the second consecutive season. Defensive tackle Calijah Kancey, the ACC Defensive Player of the Year, tweeted this morning that he will not play in Pitt’s bowl game because of an unspecified season-ending injury he suffered in the third quarter...
Pitt’s William Jeffress has foot surgery, expected to return for 2023-24 season
Forward William Jeffress, whose preparations for his junior season at Pitt were disrupted by injury, had surgery on his left foot Thursday morning. Coach Jeff Capel previously said Jeffress would miss the entire 2022-23 season. Jeffress is expected to receive a medical redshirt and have three seasons of eligibility remaining....
Pitt women’s volleyball seeks to quench its thirst for national championship
The Pitt women’s volleyball team has won 57 of 64 matches, four of the past six ACC championships and earned berths in the Elite 8 and Final Four in consecutive seasons. Guess what? Not good enough. That’s not coming from an outsider. That’s the feeling inside the women’s locker room....
First Call: Could Tom Brady return to New England? Aaron Donald out; Phil Kessel back to face Pens
The Pittsburgh Steelers’ upcoming opponent got some bad news. Aaron Donald is injured. Phil Kessel is slumping. Joey Porter’s son is going pro. And could Tom Brady really go back to New England? All that and more in Thursday’s “First Call.” Donald down Former Pitt Panther Aaron Donald is going...
Jeff Capel’s message to Pitt’s Greg Elliott during his scoring slump: Keep shooting
Jeff Capel loves to see passion from his players. He wants them to care when problems arise and erase their frustrations by searching for answers. Just don’t let anyone see you sweat. That was the Pitt coach’s message to Greg Elliott, who fell into a shooting slump in the four...
Tim Benz: Kenny Pickett identifies significant rookie season challenge — and how he’s handling it
Troy Aikman returned to the same conversation with Pittsburgh Steelers rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett multiple times throughout the broadcast. During the “Monday Night Football” game between the Steelers and Indianapolis Colts, the ESPN analyst frequently referenced how Pickett had a different take than what the usual rookie QB has to...
Pitt’s Jeff Capel preaches the value of talk to his players
The first question Jeff Capel asks himself when he’s recruiting players — from high school or the transfer portal — is this: Can he play? Can he run, jump, pass, shoot and defend well enough to keep pace with other athletically gifted players in the ACC? After he is satisfied...
Reserve defensive back Khalil Anderson says he plans to transfer from Pitt
Pitt defensive back Khalil Anderson, a redshirt freshman from Atlanta who appeared in only three games over the past two seasons, said Wednesday he plans to enter his name in the NCAA transfer portal. Practice Film: pic.twitter.com/MDs7HMqa8s— Khalil Anderson (@_KhalilAnderson) November 30, 2022 Anderson (5-foot-11, 180 pounds) was a...
Pitt’s Calijah Kancey keeps company with Aaron Donald, named ACC Defensive Player of the Year
Pitt’s Calijah Kancey, who didn’t let his comparatively short stature keep him out of opposing backfields this season, was named ACC Defensive Player of the Year on Wednesday. Kancey, a 6-foot, 280-pound junior defensive tackle from Miami, is the first Pitt player named ACC Defensive POY since Aaron Donald, who...
Bowl bid arrives Sunday, and Pitt looks to rewrite its postseason history
Since Walt Harris’ 1997 team broke a six-year bowl drought in a 41-7 loss to Southern Mississippi in the Liberty Bowl, those postseason, holiday-disrupting road trips have not turned out especially well for Pitt. Since then, seven Pitt coaches — including three interims and not including Todd Graham, who left...
12 Pitt players named All-ACC, including 4 first-teamers
Four Pitt players were named to the All-ACC first team Tuesday, leading a contingent of 12 Panthers recognized in voting by conference coaches and media personnel. Defensive tackle Calijah Kancey, running back Izzy Abanikanda, linebacker SirVocea Dennis and left guard Marcus Minor were chosen to the first team. Abanikanda leads...
12 Pitt players named All-ACC, including 4 first-teamers
Four Pitt players were named to the all-ACC first team Tuesday, leading a contingent of 12 Panthers recognized in voting by conference coaches and media personnel. Defensive tackle Calijah Kancey, running back Izzy Abanikanda, linebacker SirVocea Dennis and left guard Marcus Minor were chosen to the first team. Abanikanda leads...
Pitt finds its shooting touch in 87-58 victory over Northwestern
After Pitt’s 87-58 victory against Northwestern on Monday night, graduate transfer Greg Elliott and coach Jeff Capel were talking about the basketball like it was a living, breathing entity. That would be a story worth telling, of course. But over the past eight days, Pitt (5-3) has been making real...
Pitt wide receiver Jaylon Barden reveals plans to transfer
Pitt’s Jaylon Barden, who displayed promise in his first two seasons before disappearing from the wide receiver rotation in 2022, announced Monday his plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal. He joins safety Judson Tallandier II, a senior from Largo, Md., who also said Monday that he plans to transfer....
Pitt volleyball earns No. 2 seed, home match Friday to open NCAA Tournament
Pitt women’s volleyball earned a No. 2 seed as an at-large selection in the NCAA Tournament — its highest in program history — and will be the host for first- and second-round matches Friday and Saturday at Petersen Events Center. Pitt (27-3) will meet Patriot League champion Colgate (24-5) at...
Pitt men’s soccer team defeats No. 1 Kentucky to reach 3rd consecutive NCAA Elite 8
Pitt men’s soccer traveled a difficult road to its third consecutive NCAA Elite Eight berth, but the Panthers rallied from an early deficit and defeated previously undefeated and No. 1 Kentucky on Sunday night, 2-1. Pitt will be the host for an NCAA Tournament quarterfinal match against Portland on campus...
How Pitt’s players, coaches kept season from unraveling
For a good portion of Pat Narduzzi’s eighth season, most of the criticism thrown Pitt’s way was fair. As we later discovered through the current four-game winning streak and a 42-16 dismantling of old nemesis Miami on Saturday night, this was a team that had better talent than its 4-4...
Pitt defensive lineman Devin Danielson slams head with helmetVideo
In a clip posted online, Pitt defensive lineman Devin Danielson can be seen slamming his helmet against his head several times as teammates look on in astonishment and horror. But the incident wasn’t a first for Danielson, according to teammate SirVocea Dennis. “Everybody is passionate for the game. Things happen.”...
Pitt maintains late-season surge, beats Miami, 42-16, for 4th consecutive victory
With little at stake but personal pride and an eighth victory, Pitt rolled over Miami, 42-16, on Saturday night to end the regular season on a four-game winning streak. There will be no conference championship this season for the Panthers (8-4, 5-3 ACC), but their 19 victories in back-to-back seasons...
Pitt rallies in second half to defeat William & Mary, 80-64
Pitt hasn’t played enough games against premium competition to allow coach Jeff Capel to get an accurate read on his team. On Friday night, however, there was reason to be encouraged — at least for half a game. The Panthers rallied in the second half to defeat William & Mary,...
Pitt Take 5: Fortunes change for Panthers, Hurricanes
The wise guys, including one writing for this space, thought we were so smart in the preseason when we predicted the Pitt/Miami game at the end of the regular season was destined to decide the ACC Coastal championship. Check the standings. Pitt and Miami have combined for 10 losses, the...
Pitt’s Frank Cignetti Jr. always in search of the right call
Trailing Duke by a point with the first half clock winding down last Saturday at Acrisure Stadium, quarterback Kedon Slovis led the Pitt offense out of its huddle. The heat was on because it was third down, and Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi didn’t want to settle for a field goal....
