No. 25 Pitt is rolling into Saturday afternoon with an unbeaten record, a national ranking and a new name under center.
The Panthers will host North Carolina in Pittsburgh after losing quarterback Mason Heintschel to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in last Friday night’s 35-33 win over Virginia Tech. Fifth-year quarterback Holden Geriner now steps into the first-string role for Pitt, which is 5-0 overall and 2-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
“I can tell you this, our players love Holden as well,” Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi said.
Geriner is in his first season with the Panthers after transferring from Texas State following three seasons in Auburn’s program. Pitt is 5-0 for the second time in three years and will try to keep that start intact as it chases a third straight ACC win. Narduzzi has done that before, guiding Pitt to 3-0 starts in conference play three times previously, but he wasn’t offering much on how the offense might look with a new quarterback.
“I don't want to get into the details about that,” he said. “After the game, we'll talk about it. But, you know, there's differences, obviously.”
North Carolina arrives at 2-2 overall and 0-1 in the ACC after falling 37-26 at home to No. 3 Notre Dame last week. Bill Belichick said Pitt’s offense presents enough uncertainty even before factoring in the quarterback change.
“(Geriner) has played, (so) I'm sure they have a lot of confidence in him,” Belichick said. “I doubt that they'll change their offense much, but we'll see. They got two other players that we have to be ready for.”
Belichick also pointed to Pitt’s receivers, who have been dangerous with the ball in space.
North Carolina’s own injury situation could also force some shuffling up front. Nose tackle Isaiah Johnson was injured against Notre Dame, and Belichick said replacing him won’t be simple.
“It’s hard to replace a guy like Isaiah,” Belichick said.
If Johnson can’t go, Nicco Maggio and Trey Giddens, both second-year college players, would be in line to absorb more snaps there.
The Tar Heels did get a spark from Jaden Jefferson, who earned ACC Specialist of the Week honors after taking the second-half kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown against Notre Dame. North Carolina has also gotten strong work on opening drives this season, something Belichick said the team wants to keep building on.
“We've had some really good execution on some of those,” Belichick said. “We spend a good amount of time in practice on those opening plays. It's good for your confidence, good for your momentum.”
At quarterback, Billy Edwards Jr. threw three touchdown passes against Notre Dame, and all three went to tight ends.
Pitt’s defense will try to make that tougher. Belichick described the Panthers as a group that gets after the quarterback from multiple angles.
“They hit the quarterback a lot, but it's not just one guy,” Belichick said. “They play good team defense and pressure a lot.”
The Panthers have been tough at home all season, outscoring opponents 157-34 in four games on their own field. Pitt, No.
4 Miami and Duke are the only undefeated teams in ACC play, and a sold-out crowd is expected. The game also comes as Pitt celebrates the 50th anniversary of its 1976 national championship team.