Pat Narduzzi completely overhauled his offensive staff over the offseason after a forgettable 2023 that produced the Pitt program's worst record in his tenure.
Kade Bell's "play fast, score fast" offense was one of the best in Football Championship Subdivision over his tenure at Western Carolina. Narduzzi replaced Frank Cignetti Jr. with the upstart in a move that contrasted Narduzzi's older ways of hiring the experienced, well-traveled coach. This venture is new for everybody, but the new offensive coordinator's translation of the meaning of "fast" will be everything for the success of the Panthers in 2024.
Pitt had the worst offense in the ACC in 2023. It was last in yards per game, points per game and rushing yards per game. Changes had to be made to this side of the ball, but Narduzzi kicked everything up several notches.
Here is a look at the current state of the Panthers' offense:
• QUARTERBACK
Depth chart: Nate Yarnell (R-Jr.), Eli Holstein (R-Fr.), Ty Dieffenbach (R-Fr.), Julian Dugger (Fr.), Jake Frantl (R-Jr.), David Lynch (R-Fr.).
The headlining act of this offense will be Yarnell, the redshirt junior who sat behind Kenny Pickett, Kedon Slovis, Nick Patti, Phil Jurkovec, and Christian Veilleux before, at last, earning his shot. Yarnell was called into action for one game in 2022, but the game plan kept things conservative and leaned on a run-heavy scheme. Once dubbed the team's "Beethoven," he auditioned for this role after Jurkovec's play was so errant that he had to switch positions and Veilleux's play was far too inconsistent.
Yarnell seized his chance at the end of the 2023 season. He was the leader of the pack entering the spring session. The team is now his.
Yarnell completed 11 of 19 passes for 207 yards and a touchdown in Pitt's win over Boston College and then completed 25 of 35 for 265 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in Pitt's loss at Duke to close the season. Those two performances provided a clear vision of the direction the program needed to go. The post-Pickett era began with three failed transfer products. That direction changes with the homegrown Yarnell.
Veilleux is on his way to Georgia State after spending one season at Pitt. Holstein transferred from Alabama and was unquestionably the second-best quarterback behind Yarnell in the spring. This team could be his to inherit after Yarnell wraps up his final two seasons. Dieffenbach and Dugger are the project pieces who are still a ways away from seeing the field, if they see it at all.
• RUNNING BACK
Depth chart: Rodney Hammond Jr. (Sr.), Daniel Carter (R-Sr.), Derrick Davis (R-Jr.), Desmond Reid (Jr.), Montravius Lloyd (R-Fr.), Juelz Goff (Fr.), Caleb Williams (R-Fr.).
The running backs room is a far cry from when Israel Abanikanda led the ACC in rushing two seasons ago. The Panthers ranked 119th out of 130 Football Bowl Subdivision teams in rushing in 2023. They were the seventh-worst Power Five team when it came to running the ball. Only Michigan State and Arkansas had fewer rushing touchdowns than Pitt did, among Power Fives.
That should change under Bell, whose Western Carolina offense was 22nd in FCS in rushing.
Neither Hammond nor Carter boast the same explosiveness that Abanikanda did in that 2022 season, however. Reid had a respectable 897 yards and 13 touchdowns on the ground last season but, at 5-foot-8 and 170 pounds and out of the lower-level high-school football ranks in Miami, there is no guarantee that Reid's ability will translate from Western Carolina against the size and speed of the ACC.
Hammond is the clear lead. He net 547 yards and 4.6 per carry with four rushing touchdowns in a less-than-100-percent season. He ceded touches to C'Bo Flemister but remained productive. He lost just 17 yards on 118 rushing attempts.
• WIDE RECEIVER
Depth chart: Kenny Johnson (So.), Konata Mumpfield (Sr.), Daejon Reynolds (R-Jr.), CJ Lee (Jr.), Poppi Williams (R-Jr.), Zion Fowler-El (R-Fr.), Cam Montiero (Fr.), Jake McConnachie (R-Sr.), Lamar Seymore (R-Fr.), Che Nwabuko (R-So.), Peter Vardzel (R-Jr.), Caden Smith (R-So.), Devin Whitlock (R-Fr.), Benny Haselrig (R-Fr.), Thaddeus Shaw (R-Fr.).
The wide receivers room has potential, even after losing Bub Means to the NFL. The excitement around Johnson's play-making ability is palpable after he was named as an All-ACC honorable mention for special teams. He started in three games and had two games of four catches as a receiver. His explosiveness at 6-1, 195 pounds helped separate him from the pack of freshmen alongside Fowler-El and Seymore, who should have expanded roles this season.
Mumpfield is entering his third season with this program after transferring from Akron. He has never had an opportunity to work as Pitt's No. 1 receiver with Jared Wayne and Means ahead of him in prior seasons, but this year looks to be different. He led returning Panthers with 44 catches -- a team-high overall -- for 576 yards and five touchdowns last season.
Reynolds did not record a touchdown reception in his first season as a Panther after transferring from Florida. Lee joins Reed as a Western Carolina export, and he was Bell's leading receiver with 46 receptions for 792 yards and eight touchdowns in 2023. Lee is a former three-star recruit out of the Clearwater, Fla., area, and he held an offer from two-time defending FCS national champion South Dakota State.
• TIGHT END
Depth chart: Gavin Bartholomew (Sr.), Jake Overman (R-Sr.), Jake Renda (R-Jr.), Adam Howanitz (R-Fr.), Josh Altsman (R-So.).
Bartholomew and Cignetti meshed like oil and water. Bartholomew was misused in every way by his former offensive coordinator and had two seasons of relatively low production as a result.
Because of his measurements and potential, the tight end was thought to be a hot commodity through the transfer portal. He heard from Big Ten, ACC and SEC schools and had some temptation to leave. He revealed in January he had NIL offers "well into the six figures" from other schools, and those easily would have eclipsed anything Pitt offered a football player in 2023.
He chose to return, and he should be a top target for Yarnell and a versatile weapon for Bell to utilize. Bartholomew missed the final game of the season with an injury but had just 18 catches and a touchdown in the 11 games he played in. He had 39 catches over two seasons playing for Cignetti. That should not happen under Bell.
Karter Johnson transferred to Florida A&M and Malcolm Epps graduated, which leaves a question of depth behind Bartholomew. Overman had seven catches for 51 yards in 2022 for Oregon State, but he played in just four games in 2023. Renda had two catches for 14 yards last season.
• OFFENSIVE LINE
Depth chart: Branson Taylor (R-Sr.), Ryan Jacoby (R-Sr.), Terrence Moore (R-Jr.), BJ Williams (So.), Ryan Baer (R-So.), Terrence Enos Jr. (R-Jr.), Jason Collier (R-Sr.), Lyndon Cooper (R-Jr.), Isaiah Montgomery (R-So.), Jackson Brown (R-So.), Brody Riffe (R-Fr.), Graysen Riffe (R-Fr.), Moritz Schmoranzer (Fr.), Matt Altsman (R-Sr.), Tai Ray (R-Fr.), Matt Metrosky (R-Jr.), Ryan Carretta (R-Fr.).
The starting offensive line, from left to right, should be Taylor, Jacoby, Moore, Williams and Baer. The unit lost Matt Goncalves and Jake Kradel to the NFL, though Goncalves missed the majority of last season and Kradel dealt with minor injuries along the way. Moore and Baer picked up more experience than expected last year as a result, which could benefit them in 2023.
Williams picked up more playing time in 2023 when Jacoby lost his season in training camp due to a knee injury. Williams built on that and was the offense's recipient of the Conway Award, which is given to the most improved player of the spring period.
All five starters along the offensive line are holdovers from former coach Dave Borbely and his tenure. Coach Jeremy Darveau joined Bell via Western Carolina, so his familiarity with Bell's system should be a benefit to those returners and holdovers.
The blocking, overall, needed to be better last year. The unit allowed 1.92 sacks per game. The 205 yards lost off of sacks were the fifth-most in the ACC.
