Pitt Football | Postgame vs. Kent State | Pat Narduzzi | 8.31.24

happy with you know what we did today I thought uh really all three phases did some good things all three phases did some stuff we got to clean up um you know opening day you know issues whether it be a muff punt by kante trying to make a play um you know just you know some stuff like that that's got to get cleaned up jumping over you know punch Shield which we can't do uh which we coach every single day but guys trying to be aggressive um you know too many penalties early in the game uh all on us but uh you know overall um game one there'll be a lot to teach from the video and uh happy with where we are at this point how did you evaluate uh Eli's performance today you know I let you guys it won't matter what I say um you know I'm going to go back and watch the videotape but I thought early uh shoot I think you know his first series you know there wasn't a incomplete pass Jerry sorry you can't see me here Jerry you got the chairs all pulled up really close um but uh um you know Eli played really good I think uh I was really happy with where he was you know he had the one um interception you know kind of threw it off his heels I I think um we'll go back and look and see what he did there but um you know overall he got the ball out of his hand when he needed to I think one series we gave up two sacks in a row which you know is disappointing you know we'll see if he needed to get rid of it or uh we had a protection problems I think the corner came one time but you know overall 30 or 40 for what 300 plus yards uh I would say he looked pretty darn good it looked like Eli I think he completed the four different receivers two tight ends and two running backs and from both Sidelines deep intermediate what was what did what can you say about his grasp of this playbook for being a red shirt freshman that transferred to you guys in last year I mean he's he's he's a good football player I told you you know and so is Nate um but you know you know I think schematically I think coach Bell and the offens staff does a great job at scheming you up and and putting our kids in position to make those plays the ball's getting spread out I don't know how many different receivers caught balls here uh today but uh you know um you know but when you look at the targets and Kenny I mean it was just some good stuff the ball spread out you can't just focus on that guy over there um we got different ways of getting guys balls and and uh you know we got try to get everybody involved and you said that you had hop that after the first game it was pretty obvious who your starting quarterback would be do you go in next week rest of the season feeling pretty good that you as your starter yeah I mean you know that's something I you know you know we'll talk about that Monday I want to sit down with the offense and and sit down with Kade but you know I think things look pretty good today what we kind of thought coming out of camp and and uh Eli was sharp uh you know uh things didn't look sharp early we probably you know pulled them earlier and just to see what you know Nate had but you know so I I told you earlier I think I told you on Thursday didn't have a plan for when what uh to do but uh you know the way he you know played with composure obviously it's going to be you know we're going to see a little bit more uh next uh Saturday uh 3:30 I think at Cincinnati so just getting locked into that one called Desmond read explosive on Thursday so that kind of what you're were talking about his performance this that's what I was talking about I mean the kid's been like that and he's tough you know he gets a little calf down there and he comes right back he just he doesn't say boo he just keeps going he's like a ever ever ready battery I mean he just goes um you know the punt return I me even the punt return we had our base defense on the field that was just we're in punt safe uh we were keeping our base defense on the field they made some blocks and he made some plays and you know he can pop through I told you he could break one you know it happened to be Izzy was here today bandana was here and and uh he's he's that kind of back they can go break one and you know I thought Derrick Davis did some good things and and um and Daniel Carter did some nice things as well um so we got you know we got a lot of people involved we got a lot of guys playing football today uh we got our second offensive line in there we got you know shoot I think we got our thirds you know dine you know juster um you know got in there Whittington you know got in and got some good things in I think the last three plays defense we were tfls I did not like the way our defense came out in the third quarter um we'll address that I didn't I didn't like that at all I don't know what they were doing what they were thinking I can't wait to watch the videotape but that was not how I wanted to come out in that third quarter mentioned but you guys gave up a few big plays especially in that third quarter did you did you notice anything common anything that you guys were no I mean just you know execution and and details I don't know I mean I don't know if they felt like you know I don't know what they came out in the second half last but uh you know I'll get on the defensive coaches it starts with us as coaches make sure their minds are right and they don't think this this game is easy and it's it's in the bag you guys ask out a lot of Ken out of Kenny Johnson as a sophomore whether it was red Red Zone deep ball over the middle catching it catching it off the ground uh what have you seen that allowed him to that's allowed him to make the kind of improvements he's had you know he didn't practice a lot this fall so I mean I can't I can't tell you it was cuz practice makes perfect you know I mean he was banged up a lot and uh we were you know able to get him and CJ Lee back you know on game day which is good CJ was banged up more than he was and I think he had a few few catches today as well but uh um you know we'll continue to uh to get better there are the penalties one thing you're most concerned about today I am you know but we talk about eight things critical to winning and penalties isn't one of them penalties doesn't lose games you know the one thing I you know how many you know legal procedures do we have you know zero unforced there's going to be some aggressive penalties that we had but there were some ones early you know and I don't have I don't have my book on me here um but U you know there was some early that just you know shouldn't happen and um but they were aggressive ones and you know uh I don't anticipate those you know I think the first one was a you know blocking the back or a holding on PT return uh just shouldn't happen and you know we'll get that cleaned up I think for sure what is your biggest concern concern in going forward um I have a million concerns Jerry I mean we got a million concerns my first concern is that next week EJ gets these seats backed up so I can really see your whole body and not just the top of your forehead that's you know concerned but I mean that concerns me that we got the seats moved up closer than they've ever been in 10 years um but there's I'm going to pick and pick and pick you know there's all kinds of stuff that that uh we can clean up but um I'm not going to sit here and say I'm worried about penalties cuz that's not critical to winning um but it can cost you a game um you know we just got to clean that up up it's just bad ball one of the concerns uh pass protection four sacks allowed and a couple of those I think coming kind of early with with pressure yeah I mean you know we'll look at that again sometimes it's plays I mean the one thing I can tell you about our offense is we're going to get five receivers out so I mean we like all the explosive plays and guys out of the back field and get it to so quarterback's got to get the ball out you know at times if we're if we're putting five I mean as you guys watch if you're putting five out in the route then the quarterback is hot off of somebody and we got to do a good job of picking up corners and knowing they're coming you know those ones that you can't see that we got to do a better job but you know and that sometimes goes with fast tempo as well when you fast tempo sometimes you can't see it coming um so you know if we're you know we just got to do a better job of that and that that comes with the experience I think at the quarterback position and and Coach Bell knowing what he's got there too what you think about how the linebackers play today especially Kyle Lewis you know what again you know I refer to the video tape of Kyle Lewis at one time he came through there and smacked that guy you know the quarterback got beat up today I hope he's healthy um but he took a beating today by our you know our guys you we might not have got would we get five sacks you know but it was like you know five sacks and and another 10 hits after that so it's 15 hits on a quarterback he took a he took some licks and he's a tough kid from Camden New Jersey so give him a lot of credit um but um you know Kyle Lewis and you know I think rashim BS had the first sack of the year um you know uh we'll just continue to get better our guys you know we got a young front we talked about it but I think you probably saw a lot of penetration even all the way down to the threes um at the end there um you know but um I thought the linebackers did a nice job we we'll valuate wait it as we go Brew was a guy you talked about a lot throughout the fall is there any reason you didn't play with that yeah um Jerry tell him sorry P I can't help these guys I can't help them yeah we hope we hope we get them back but again that's why I sit there you know I can get to put all those ores on there and something happens during the week you know you don't anticipate but he's been healthy all all summer camp it was you know uh unfortunate that uh that he wasn't ready to go today but uh hope to have him back next week there was a third and long that you guys converted off a draw spread out the the defense really wide with your wide outs and then Des Reed just gets it and he goes 20 28 yards is that something that you guys uniquely design up for him because of his ability or is that just a normal play call Play It's drawing third and long you know drawing third and long when you're throwing it a lot and all of a sudden you catch him by surprise they had a four-man Twist on and the offensive line did a great job sometimes you know the twist or you know will negate the draw sometimes but again it's a great job by you know Jeremy darvo our offensive line coach of getting it picked up and coaching it and and no one had to expect but uh you know again it comes down to coaching and players making plays it's it's a little bit of both so uh it's it's great play call by coach Bell how about a couple more before we wrap it up else can you uh offer any Clarity on Rodney situation you know we we made announce about all you know about that already and you know got nothing further to uh to talk about one final Co how important was it for you to have such an offensive explosion first game um really important I mean I think our kids I mean you know there's a different bounce uh there's a there's a there's a different bounce about our kids I mean I watched them last night coming out of you know offensive meetings last night at 8 8:30 p.m. and it's just like the smiles on their faces they're excited um they had a lot of confidence going in again it's a tribute to our offensive staff and Coach Bell and what he's brought to the offense there's a lot of confidence about what they're doing how they're doing it and um you know it was it was important to come out there and put some points up like they did and you know he's and the great thing about him is he's in the locker room all mad because he feels like he left three touchdowns out there okay so that's what I like about that