Nobody has cracked Pitt in the first quarter all season. Nobody has scored on the Panthers in the third quarter, either.
That’s the kind of defense Virginia Tech is dealing with Friday night, when the No. 4-0 Hokies welcome Pitt to a sold-out Lane Stadium at 7 p.m.
ET on ESPN.
Virginia Tech enters at 4-0 and 1-0 in the ACC, with an offense putting up 43.3 points per game, second-best in the league. Pitt is also 4-0 and 1-0 in conference play, and its defense has been even nastier, allowing just 8.5 points per game, tops in the ACC.
Something has to give.
A win would push Virginia Tech to 5-0 for the first time since 2005, but head coach James Franklin isn’t interested in looking that far ahead.
"I get that for the media, and I get that for the fans and everybody," Franklin said Monday. "But we've got to find a way to be 1-0 this week."
The matchup starts with Pitt’s defense, which ranks second in the ACC in total defense at 244.5 yards per game and second in run defense at 53.3 yards allowed per game. Franklin said the Panthers want to "make it one-dimensional, stop the run," before attacking the quarterback with a blitz package he described as "really good."
"They've got a really good plan and it causes conflict," Franklin said. "There's no doubt about it. You've got to do a great job of getting the ball out quickly."
That becomes a real problem for Virginia Tech, which is dealing with a patched-up offensive line. Left tackle Justin Terry is out for several weeks, according to a team spokesman, while guard Brody Meadows left the Boston College game in the first half. Right guard Montavious Cunningham is expected back Friday.
That puts more on the shoulders of tight end Luke Reynolds, who has become the obvious safety valve. Through three games, Reynolds caught 25 passes for 265 yards and four touchdowns, leading all Power Four tight ends in each category.
"It's like finding Waldo. He's all over the place," Narduzzi said Monday. "He's big, he's athletic, and he's a great blocker too."
Quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer has completed 74.3% of his passes, and Pitt has given up only two passing touchdowns all season. That makes vertical shots a risky proposition for Virginia Tech, especially with a makeshift left side up front. Screens and pop passes to Reynolds, along with checkdowns to running back Jeffrey Overton Jr., could be the best way to slow down Pitt’s pass rush and make the Panthers hesitate before sending extra pressure.
Pitt has already shown how it wants to win games. In victories over UCF and Syracuse, its two Power Four opponents, the Panthers didn’t throw a touchdown pass. Quarterback Mason Heintschel went 28-of-52 for 335 yards and one interception across those two games, and Pitt leaned on its ground game to finish the job.
True freshman Damon Ferguson Jr. leads the Panthers with 239 rushing yards after Ja'Kyrian Turner, last season’s leading rusher, missed the UCF and Syracuse games with an injury. Pitt is averaging 176.5 rushing yards per game.
"They do a really good job of stressing you out with traditional paths, formations, RPOs," Franklin said.
Virginia Tech has the kind of front that can make that a problem. The Hokies are allowing just 83.3 rushing yards per game, which ranks 14th in the FBS, and they lead the country with 45 tackles for loss. Defensive end Cortez Harris tops Virginia Tech with five sacks.
If the Hokies can slow Ferguson early, Heintschel would be forced into obvious passing situations in his first road start of the season, with a sold-out crowd on top of him. Virginia Tech has been strong on third down, holding opponents to a 27.3% conversion rate, tied for 14th nationally.
The Hokies may need a boost from somewhere else, too, because the defense hasn’t been handing out takeaways. Virginia Tech has only one interception through four games, which ranks 114th in the FBS, and the team’s turnover margin sits at minus-1.
The return game has been more dangerous. Wide receiver Que'Sean Brown is second in the country with 204 punt return yards on only eight returns. He’s already ripped off a 79-yard return against Old Dominion and a 50-yard return at Boston College.
That Old Dominion return should have turned into a bigger payoff. Brown set Virginia Tech up at the 1-yard line, but the Hokies lost a yard, lost two more on a Wildcat snap to Reynolds, then missed on a pass before settling for a field goal.
Against a Pitt defense that hasn’t allowed a first-quarter point all season, a takeaway or a Brown return deep into Panthers territory may be the quickest way to change the tone. If Virginia Tech turns one of those chances into a touchdown, it might be the fastest route to 5-0.
In Other News...
James Franklin Sends Hokie Nation A Clear Message Before Huge Friday Night
Virginia Tech kept rolling through a messy night in Blacksburg, beating Boston College 21-14 to move to 4-0 despite the kind of weather that can turn a football game into a survival test. It was the sort of win that can say plenty about a teams early season resilience, and it also set up a bigger stage for what comes next at home.
James Franklin has already made it clear the Hokies are looking ahead to a Friday night visit from undefeated Pittsburgh, a matchup that figures to bring plenty of attention and even more energy inside Lane Stadium. The Panthers arrive with sophomore quarterback Mason Heintschel driving the offense and a hot start that includes 13 touchdown passes against just one interception, so the backdrop is set for a test that should tell a lot more about where Virginia Tech stands. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Tech Just Answered A Big Question Before ACC Play
Virginia Tech got one of those early-season wins that can shape the rest of a fall, leaning on depth, patience and a breakout performance from Jeffrey Overton Jr. to knock off Boston College 21-14 and move to 4-0 for the first time since 2017. With several key players unavailable, the Hokies had to piece together enough offense and enough resistance to stay afloat until the game turned late.
Overton, a sophomore running back, was the difference when it mattered most, rushing for 209 yards and breaking free for a 76-yard touchdown that helped fuel the fourth-quarter comeback. For a team about to enter ACC play, the bigger takeaway was not just the record but the way Virginia Tech handled a shorthanded afternoon and found answers from reserves when the pressure started to build. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Tech May Be Getting Undervalued Before Its Biggest Test Yet
Virginia Tech kept its early momentum rolling with a 21-14 win over Boston College, and now the Hokies are headed into a September showdown that suddenly feels a lot bigger than a standard conference game. The victory pushed Virginia Tech to 4-0 for the first time since 2017, with sophomore running back Jeffrey Overton Jr. earning ACC Running Back of the Week honors for his work in the backfield.
Next up is Pitt on October 2, and the matchup carries a rare kind of national weight for two teams that are still unranked but both unbeaten. It is set for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN, and it will be a historic meeting between 4-0 Power Four programs, the first of its kind in modern college football history. [Read more 🡒]