Lucas Krull had five drops in Pitt’s last five games, dropped his first target on Thursday night ... and totally redeemed himself.
Pitt’s Thor look-alike at tight end thrived in the rain when his number was called. The 6-foot-6, 260-pound senior used his size to box out North Carolina’s defenders on what turned out to be Pitt’s game-winning touchdown in overtime — proving Kenny Pickett’s persistent trust in Krull wasn’t misplaced.
“I think my whole career has been that. Name of the game is perseverance. Everything I’ve done is bouncing back,” Krull said after Pitt’s 30-23 win, referencing both his season-ending knee injury in 2020 and his drop on Pitt’s opening drive. “... You have to play the next play like (coordinator Mark Whipple) always preaches. That’s what I did, and Kenny came right back to me.”
It resulted in Krull’s most impactful performance at Pitt.
After that drop, his third in five quarters after two miscues at Duke, Pickett hit Krull for back-to-back completions. The veteran signal-caller sought him out on a 3-yard throw to the flat before finding him downfield for a 21-yard gain. Later in the second quarter, Pickett connected with Krull for a 16-yarder.
“Lucas is incredibly talented,” Pickett said of the tight end who tallied five touchdowns in Pitt’s first five games this season. “I wanted to make sure he knew that I was targeting him in this game. I think he knew that coming in. ... He showed out and stepped up and did a great job.”
“I told him, ‘Let’s go right back to it.’ And he did that,” Krull added. “He has a lot of confidence in me, just like I have in him. We kept rolling the rest of the game.”
Pickett’s greatest sign of trust came in the midst of a downpour, when it was most difficult to hold on to the ball. Krull motioned left and ran a slant over the middle of North Carolina’s zone defense. Pickett waited for Krull to slide behind the first linebacker and hit his towering target for an 11-yard score in overtime.
It was a patient play by Pickett, a savvy job by Krull to get inside on North Carolina’s safety and, from a play-calling perspective, a long time coming.
Krull said that red zone slant was a play Pitt had been “oiling up for months.” Pickett concurred, saying he’s thrown that pattern to Krull “100 times, not even exaggerating” in practice. That work — and Pickett’s unwavering belief that Krull would come down with it — paid off.
A storm coming, Mr. Wayne
Wide receivers Taysir Mack and Jaylon Barden, who sustained injuries against Miami, were on the sideline with arms in slings, unable to play. At this point, it would be a surprise if either suited up for Pitt’s last two regular season games.
But since they’ve gone down, Jared Wayne has been the hero Pitt’s needed.
In Pitt’s shootout loss to Miami, Wayne had six catches for 78 yards and a touchdown. Last week at Duke, the third-year receiver had five receptions, 81 yards and a score. And against the Tar Heels, Wayne was reliable again — securing three catches for 70 yards, including a 35-yard touchdown.
The catch was impressive, too. Wayne used every inch of his 6-foot-3 frame to come down with Pickett’s deep post — a play that was open thanks in part to Jordan Addison drawing double coverage. Wayne and Pickett took advantage.
“Jordan did a great job putting stress on them. They wanted to bracket him a little bit, so I knew I had the middle of the field to put it up,” Pickett said. “Jared did a great job, and I have all the trust in the world he’ll go make the play.”
Late-game management
Down 23-20, North Carolina tailback Ty Chandler was tackled at Pitt’s 2-yard line with 1:52 left in regulation. Pitt had two timeouts and really should have burned one of them to conserve clock in case North Carolina found the end zone. Pat Narduzzi even admitted he thought about letting the Tar Heels score.
Instead, Narduzzi and the Panthers kind of lucked out.
A bad snap on 1st-and-goal caused a backpedaling Sam Howell to throw it out of bounds, stopping the clock at 1:13. North Carolina committed a false start, then ran two plays that kept the clock moving. Pitt called both timeouts to give Pickett a shot late. Ultimately, 57 seconds wasn’t enough to get Pitt into game-winning field goal territory, and Pickett’s Hail Mary fell incomplete.
In case you missed it ...
• When Shocky Jacques-Louis went out, seventh-year senior Tre Tipton filled in. The Apollo-Ridge graduate, who has spent most of his final year of college football on special teams, logged his second and third catches of the campaign.
• Addison not only surpassed 1,000 receiving yards on the season, but he was also utilized on Pitt’s special teams. Addison returned three punts, featuring a 25-yarder in the first quarter that set Pitt up for a touchdown drive.
“I’m not a huge fan of Jordan on punt return,” Pickett said smiling. “He’s a team guy, does whatever we need him to do. I always whisper in his ear to fair catch it before he trots out there. I want to make sure he’s running routes for me.”
• Erick Hallett had six tackles, including several in the open field. The veteran safety was a part of Pitt’s woeful effort against Miami with four missed tackles. But he was noticeably solid against a potent Tar Heel passing offense.
• Israel Abanikanda had carries of 16 and 10 yards as Pitt’s tailbacks totaled 43 yards on seven first-quarter attempts. From that point on, Abanikanda, Vincent Davis and Rodney Hammond logged only 12 attempts for 43 yards. The running game was largely predictable. Nine of the backs’ 19 carries came on second down — a bit of a play-calling crutch for Whipple.
• Cornerbacks A.J. Woods and offensive lineman Gabe Houy, who were injured at Duke, did not play. Woods is expected to be back for the Virginia game. Houy “probably could have” played against the Tar Heels, Narduzzi said, but the staff was able to “save him.” Defensive tackle Keyshon Camp did not play, wearing a boot on his right foot. Starting guard Jake Kradel left injured on the first drive and did not return.
• ACC refs have had some head-scratching calls this year, but few were as bad as the penalty on guard Marcus Minor. With 40 seconds left in the first half, Minor was called for a dead-ball, personal foul ... for blocking while the ball was in the air. It wasn’t dirty or after the play. But instead of Pitt, up 23-7, facing a 3rd-and-7 in the red zone — or even a 2nd-and-22 if it wasn’t a dead-ball penalty — the result was a 3rd-and-22. Pitt couldn’t overcome that, and Sam Scarton, who had a night to forget, missed a long field goal.
• Gavin Bartholomew continues his rapid rise within Pitt’s passing offense. The true freshman tight end caught all three of his first-quarter targets for 23 yards and a touchdown. After lacking a reliable tight end for years, Pitt now has one for at least the next two seasons.
“That kid is going to be special, man,” Krull said of Bartholomew. “... I don’t know of any true freshmen, especially at that position, doing what he’s doing.”
Johnny McGonigal: jmcgonigal@post-gazette.com and Twitter @jmcgonigal9
First Published: November 12, 2021, 5:25 p.m.
