When all the selections are finished on May 1, the NFL Draft could represent, from the Oakland perspective, a celebration of the talent Pitt football has produced under Pat Narduzzi.
Jaylen Twyman, Rashad Weaver, Patrick Jones, Damar Hamlin, Paris Ford and Jimmy Morrissey are all declared for the draft, all projected to be selected. And after strong pro day performances, players like Jason Pinnock and D.J. Turner have crept in as late-round possibilities, as well. It's no stretch to say that would be historic for Pitt football. Even if just six are selected, it would be the most since the 2004 class had six, led by Larry Fitzgerald.
But Pitt fans should be used to seeing NFL Draft success, even while the program hasn't had a season with nine or more wins or ranked inside the AP top 10 since 2009, including the 6-5 finish in 2020.
Getting rid of Narduzzi won't make that situation any better, especially now.
Narduzzi's program delivered a strong recruiting class that was ranked No. 25 in the country and No. 6 in the ACC by ESPN. And now on the other end, Pitt gets to celebrate the players its program has produced for the NFL to take.
That gets the attention of future recruits, and is pushing the narrative of Pitt in a positive direction. I talked about that with Dorin Dickerson on the H2P podcast last week.
Maybe Narduzzi won't make Pitt into a top-tier program the country anytime soon. But the talent he's attracted to, and kept in the program points in the right direction. That talent may be what determines if Narduzzi gets another extension beyond 2024 when his contract runs up.
YOUR TURN: Should Pitt's talent headed to the NFL buy Narduzzi more time?