Damon Ferguson Jr. didn’t just get his first career start Saturday - he was handed the job on the fly and made it count in Pitt’s 12-7 win over UCF at Acrisure Stadium.
The freshman running back was thrust into the lead role when Ja’Kyrian Turner was held out with what head coach Pat Narduzzi called a “minor” injury. In only his second college game, Ferguson ended up carrying the load for a Pitt offense that had to grind through monsoon-type weather and a game that never offered much room to breathe.
He finished with 86 all-purpose yards and scored the only touchdown in the game. On the ground, Ferguson logged 20 carries for 59 yards, and he protected the football in a matchup where every possession mattered.
“I think he handled it pretty well,” Narduzzi said of the freshman’s first start. “I mean, we'll look at the videotape and see exactly. I'm sure he made some mistakes, bounced some runs when he shouldn't, you know, freshman mistakes, but thought he did a nice job.”
Ferguson said he had no warning that the start was coming.
“I didn't have any idea that I was going to start today,” Ferguson told reporters following the Panthers' victory. “It was a game day decision by Coach. He called my name and I was just ready.”
His biggest moment came late in the first half, when Pitt had started to build some momentum with a drive that reached the UCF 39-yard line. Ferguson touched the ball on five straight plays during that march, including a 14-yard catch to get things rolling. He finished it himself with a 13-yard touchdown run, getting help from his linemen, who pushed the pile into the end zone for Pitt’s lone touchdown and a 12-0 lead just before halftime.
“It was my O-Line,” Ferguson recalled of his first career rushing touchdown. “Without them guys, without them giving me the extra push, I wouldn't have been able to get in there. So I thank my O-Line for that one.”
The moment capped a quick rise for the former four-star recruit from Baltimore. Ferguson didn’t enroll early and didn’t arrive until mid-summer, so he missed the longer offseason runway some freshmen get. Even so, he found his way onto the field in a major way almost immediately.
“He's a great player,” Pitt quarterback Mason Heintschel said of his teammate. “Young cat, and he works his tail off day in and day out.
He's a smart football player, too. And I kind learned that today.
He did a lot of really great things.”
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