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Pittsburgh quarterback Phil Jurkovec throws a pass as Virginia Tech defender Keonta Jenkins (7) closes in during the first quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, in Blacksburg, Va.
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Virginia Tech hands lethargic Pitt its 4th straight loss as season continues to spiral

Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via AP

Virginia Tech hands lethargic Pitt its 4th straight loss as season continues to spiral

BLACKSBURG, Va. — Entering a road contest on a three-game losing streak against a one-win team, Pat Narduzzi’s group headed to Virginia Tech hoping to earn an easy victory and get its season back on track. However, as Saturday’s game unfolded in front of a sold-out crowd in Lane Stadium, things only fell further off the rails for Pitt.

For the fourth straight weekend, the Panthers (1-4, 0-2) failed to win a football game, with this loss coming at the hands of the Hokies (2-3, 1-0) by a final score of 38-21.

“Obviously, that was a disappointing loss on the road,” Narduzzi said. “We lost to a good football team. I give Virginia Tech credit, as always. They made more plays than we did. We didn’t make enough plays today.” 

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From the very start, Virginia Tech assumed control. After forcing a three-and-out on the game’s opening drive, the Hokies, led by backup quarterback Kyron Drones, jumped ahead thanks to a 54-yard touchdown catch by Da’Quan Felton.

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While Pitt responded the following play with a 75-yard touchdown connection between Phil Jurkovec and Bub Means, that lone scoring effort was all the Panthers would have to boast about in the game’s opening half. The Hokies, however, had plenty to celebrate.

Scores in the second quarter from Drones and Bhayshul Tuten helped Virginia Tech take a 21-7 lead into the locker room at the break. Virginia Tech’s 21 first-half points marked a program high since coach Brent Pry took over the helm in 2022. Its 241 yards of offense in the first half were the most Virginia Tech tallied against any opponent since its win over Wofford last September.

“Drones was a man,” Narduzzi said of the Virginia Tech quarterback after the loss. “I thought he played really well.” 

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The Hokies added another quick score early in the third quarter when a strip sack by Antwaun Powell-Ryland inside the Pitt 10-yard line set up a 10-yard rushing touchdown by Drones. But after falling behind by 21 points, the Panthers showed their first signs of life.

A 61-yard catch and run by C’Bo Flemister cut Virginia Tech’s lead to two scores just five minutes into the third quarter. Thirty-six seconds later, Shayne Simon forced Drones to fumble near the end zone and true freshman Braylan Lovelace was there to recover the ball and run it in from 4 yards out, making it 28-21.

“Braylan made a lot of big plays for us today,” Simon said after the game. “He’s going to be a great player for us.” 

However, that positive momentum didn’t last long. The Hokies extended their lead back to two scores late in the third quarter when Drones found a wide-open Jaylin Lane in the middle of the field, which resulted in a 53-yard touchdown.

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Led by a strong effort from Tuten, who finished the evening with 109 yards rushing on 24 carries, Virginia Tech pounded its way down the field to start the fourth quarter. The Hokies’ 14-play, 77-yard drive, which was capped off by a 32-yard field goal by John Love, killed 8:57 off the game clock and all but put a bow on the outcome.

“This wasn’t up to the Pitt standard,” Narduzzi said. “This wasn’t up to my standard. I’m extremely disappointed.” 

Key stat: For the third time in five games, Jurkovec failed to complete more than 40% of his pass attempts in the opening half. Jurkovec finished the first half Saturday evening with just 3 completions on 12 attempts for 117 yards and a touchdown — 75 of those yards, of course, came on his scoring toss to Means.

“Offensively, we didn’t do anything,” Narduzzi said. “We had two explosive plays. ... Other than that, I didn’t feel it at all.”

Jurkovec’s 25% completion percentage was his worst showing yet. Jurkovec ended the game with 11 completions on 22 attempts for 235 yards. Opposing pressure certainly didn’t help Jurkovec’s case. Pitt’s offensive line allowed four sacks and four hurries in the loss.

“I saw enough where I don’t even have to go back and look at the tape — Phil was under pressure the entire game,” Narduzzi said. “Even when we had a completion, he was getting hit. Every time. That is not an easy situation to put anybody in. I still feel like that’s the guy back there making the plays.” 

Quotable: For the third time in four weeks, Narduzzi was asked after a loss if he would consider making a change at quarterback. And though the Pitt head coach once again defended Jurkovec, this time, the idea of making a change didn’t seem completely off the table. 

“I’m going to re-evaluate where we are,” Narduzzi said. “I see a lot of things that need changed on offense. We had nine first downs. It’s hard to win a football game when you have two explosive plays, and that’s all we got. We gotta look at what we’re doing, how we’re doing it and fix it. That’s my job as a head coach to fix it. It doesn’t come down to one guy. It’s everybody. It’s a team loss. Period.” 

Up next: After losing four straight, the Panthers will get a much needed break from action next weekend thanks to a bye week. Pitt’s next contest will take place on Oct. 14, when it hosts Louisville (5-0, 3-0) at Acrisure Stadium. The game will be televised on the ACC Network at a time to be determined.

Noah Hiles: nhiles@post-gazette.com and Twitter @_NoahHiles

First Published: October 1, 2023, 3:31 a.m.

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Pittsburgh quarterback Phil Jurkovec throws a pass as Virginia Tech defender Keonta Jenkins (7) closes in during the first quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, in Blacksburg, Va.  (Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via AP)
Pittsburgh's Bub Means (0) catches a touchdown pass against Virginia Tech during the first quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, in Blacksburg, Va.  (Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via AP)
Virginia Tech defender Jalen Stroman (26) celebrates a Pittsburgh missed field goal during the second quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, in Blacksburg, Va.  (Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via AP)
Pittsburgh quarterback Phil Jurkovec (5) throws a pass against Virginia Tech during the first quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, in Blacksburg, Va.  (Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via AP)
Virginia Tech quarterback Kyron Drones (1) runs for a first down against Pittsburgh during the first half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, in Blacksburg, Va.  (Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via AP)
Virginia Tech running back Bhayshul Tuten (33) gets away from a tackle attempt by Pittsburgh's Daejon Reynolds (3) during the second quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, in Blacksburg, Va.  (Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via AP)
Pittsburgh coach Pat Narduzzi watches during the second quarter of the team's NCAA college football game against Virginia Tech on Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, in Blacksburg, Va.  (Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via AP)
Pittsburgh's Ben Sauls (90) misses a field-goal attempt against Virginia Tech during the second quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, in Blacksburg, Va.  (Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via AP)
Matt Gentry/The Roanoke Times via AP
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