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Pittsburgh running back Rodney Hammond Jr. (9) gets around Duke safety Lummie Young IV (23) as he runs upfield during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Nov. 6, 2021, in Durham, N.C.
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Pitt-Duke analysis: A closer look at the Panthers’ running back rotation

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Pitt-Duke analysis: A closer look at the Panthers’ running back rotation

On the whole, their snaps are similar. According to Pro Football Focus, Pitt’s Israel Abanikanda has recorded 297 offensive snaps this season with Vincent Davis at 289. True freshman Rodney Hammond appears to be in a distant third with 118.

But Saturday afternoon at Wallace Wade Stadium all but cemented what felt like a few weeks in the making: a changing of the guard in Pitt’s running back rotation.

Abanikanda, the surging sophomore, led Pitt’s trio with 44 snaps at Duke while Hammond had 28. Both totals were the second-most of their young careers. Davis, the trusted junior, picked up 16 offensive snaps — the fewest he’s had in his last 15 ACC games.

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Davis tallied four carries, a two-year low for Pitt’s 2020 leading rusher. Hammond paced the Panthers with 81 yards on 18 attempts. And Abanikanda gained 67 yards on 10 carries, chipping in 24 receiving yards on four catches.

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Asked about the performance of Pitt’s running back trio and whether or not 14 touches was enough for Abanikanda, Pat Narduzzi shrugged.

“Depends on what you’re doing. He’s getting a lot of snaps out there. Izzy and Rodney were running hard and getting tough yards,” Narduzzi said.

Later, he affirmed that Abanikanda is the Panthers’ starting tailback: “We’ll keep rotating it through there.”

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Based on performance, Abanikanda and Hammond’s snaps should stay high.

This season, there are 24 tailbacks in the ACC with at least 59 carries. Per PFF, Hammond has the best overall rushing grade — ahead of Georgia Tech’s Jahmyr Gibbs, Syracuse’s Sean Tucker, North Carolina’s Ty Chandler, etc. Abanikanda ranks fifth while Davis sits 19th.

Of those 24, Hammond’s yards per carry average (5.9) is fifth-best. Abanikanda (5.3) ranks 11th, and Davis (3.5) is last. In terms of yards after contact, Hammond (3.85) is fifth, Abanikanda (3.38) ranks 10th, and Davis (2.13) sits 22nd.

Pitt running back Israel Abanikanda carries against Clemson safety Nolan Turner in the second quarter Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021, at Heinz Field on the North Shore.
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To be fair, Davis — who’s listed at 5-foot-8, 175 pounds — runs with shiftiness and burst. He’s detail-oriented, can catch the ball and requires a role on Pitt’s pass-heavy offense. But sometimes Davis misses the open hole, like he did on Duke’s safety. And sometimes — like that scenario, with Pitt backed up to its own end zone — you have to wonder if the coaches are putting Davis in the best position to succeed.

When rotating its ball carriers, Pitt has been consistent with giving Abanikanda, Hammond and Davis their own series. Narduzzi explained two weeks ago that the method is used to find out who the “hot guy” is in a given game.

But it’s clear at this point who’s hot for the Panthers. It’ll be interesting to see if the snap counts moving forward reflect that.

Quick hits

• P.J. O’Brien, an 18-year-old true freshman safety, found the field as early as Pitt’s second defensive series. The former Auburn commit was far from perfect. He was beat on a double move by junior wideout Jalon Calhoun for a 32-yard touchdown. But experiences like Saturday should be good for O’Brien’s development.

• With Taysir Mack, Jaylon Barden and Melquise Stovall out, Shocky Jacques-Louis stepped up with six catches. True freshman wide receiver Jaden Bradley was also asked to do more, and he largely delivered. Bradley fumbled on a freshman mistake, but looked the part catching two passes for 16 yards.

“Jaden Bradley did a great job,” quarterback Kenny Pickett said. “He’ll just continue to get better. He’s a guy who has a really high ceiling. I’m excited to see his improvement now that he’s going to get a lot more reps in practice.”

• Among the players who swarmed Duke’s quarterbacks was Bangally Kamara. The sophomore linebacker logged only six snaps but secured his first career sack in the second quarter.

• Sam Scarton had himself a happy 21st birthday, accounting for 18 points — tied for the most by a Pitt kicker in a single game (Conor Lee at Notre Dame, 2008). Scarton converted six extra points and hit four field goals (24, 34, 41, 47 yards).

• Tight end Lucas Krull, who had five touchdowns in Pitt’s first five games, hasn’t scored since the ACC opener on Oct. 2. Against Duke, Krull had two drops, bringing him to five on the season (second on the team behind Addison’s six).

• True freshman tight end Gavin Bartholomew recorded his second collegiate touchdown on a nicely designed screen. Bartholomew, who typically lines up in the backfield in maximum pass protection sets, did so again. But this time, he slipped out of the backfield and ran the delayed screen in for a 29-yard score. Mark Whipple is finding ways to get the ball in Bartholomew’s hands.

A ‘spy’ on the other side?

When asked about Pitt’s defensive improvements from the first quarter (210 yards allowed) to the second quarter (seven yards allowed), Narduzzi directed at least partial responsibility in an interesting direction — saying it “felt like” former Pitt offensive lineman and Duke transfer Carson Van Lynn was picking up signals for the Blue Devils.

“You feel like they got your signals. Carson Van Lynn’s staring at our signalers. We changed some things up. Maybe we didn’t change them good enough,” Narduzzi said. “I don’t know what it is. But we got it done. We’ve got a spy on the other team, and our kids found a way to get it done.”

Then, Narduzzi was asked: “Do you think he was actually getting the signals?”

Narduzzi’s response: “I don’t know. I don’t know what he was getting. We had a lot of changes, but he’s a smart kid. You never know. You felt like it. Our kids early in the first quarter said they were calling stuff out. We’ll see. No one else will have inside information the rest of the year. That’s why in-conference transfers are not good.”

Van Lynn, who spent four seasons at Pitt, entered the portal after spring camp.

If Van Lynn was swiping signals, his friends at Pitt didn’t seem bothered. The 2017 signee was seen posing for photos and chatting with Pickett, punter Kirk Christodoulou and others outside the Panthers’ locker room following the game.

Two days later, Narduzzi actually apologized for his comments to Van Lynn in the opening statement of his Monday press conference.

“Couldn’t be a nicer kid in the world. Always smiling,” Narduzzi added. “Want to apologize to him for what I said. I didn’t mean to make anyone feel bad or any harm to him. But I will say this: in the coaching profession, it’s intent versus impact. My intent was not to make him feel bad. He didn’t do anything I wouldn’t do. But I called it out, and I shouldn’t have said a word. That’s my fault. But the impact, you sometimes hurt people’s feelings or get people up in arms.

Johnny McGonigal: jmcgonigal@post-gazette.com and Twitter @jmcgonigal9

First Published: November 8, 2021, 1:53 p.m.
Updated: November 8, 2021, 2:19 p.m.

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Pittsburgh running back Rodney Hammond Jr. (9) gets around Duke safety Lummie Young IV (23) as he runs upfield during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Nov. 6, 2021, in Durham, N.C.  (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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