New offense, Holstein shine in season-opening romp vs. Kent State

If Pitt's season-opening win over Kent State on Saturday at Acrisure Stadium was any indication of what Kade Bell's offense is capable of, then the Panthers are in for a fast-paced and high-scoring season.

Behind Eli Holstein's impressive college football debut that saw him throw for 330 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, the Panthers snapped the ball 80 times, recorded 570 yards of total offense -- with 369 yards coming through the air -- and cruised to a 55-24 victory. It started and stopped with the offense though as it was on display from the very first snap.

After the Golden Flashes won the toss and deferred to the second half, Holstein marched the offense 90 yards by completing his first six passes, which included a 46-yard pass to Kenny Johnson that put the Panthers on Kent State's doorstep. Two plays later, Holstein hit Konata Mumpfield for an 11-yard touchdown. It capped off the electric nine-play drive and the offense left Acrisure Stadium in awe.

"It was a lot of fun to be able to get the ball to those guys and let them go make plays," Holstein said. "Just seeing those guys out there running great routes, being in the right spot, knowing exactly what to do. I feel like we trusted each other a lot that drive, trusting the O-line, tight ends, running back, everyone just doing their job. It was a lot of fun and putting a drive together like that was pretty big."

Pitt's opening drive was the perfect example of what Bell's offense is capable of. The Panthers got to the line quickly, kept the defense off balance and showcased a myriad of things. That first drive saw Holstein complete passes to four different receivers, hand the ball off to Desmond Reid -- who had an impressive Pitt debut himself, rushing for 145 yards and a touchdown along with a punt return score -- three times and also scamper into the end zone on a one-yard rush, but it was called back due to holding. 

The offense then continued that trend throughout the game as nine different players caught at least one pass, six caught four or more and four players finished with 50 or more receiving yards. Johnson led the way with seven catches for 105 yards and a touchdown. I mean, just take a look at it:

"I think schematically, coach Bell and the offensive staff does a great job of scheming you up and putting our kids in position to make those plays," Pat Narduzzi said in his post-game press conference. "The ball is getting spread out and you can't just focus on that guy over there, we have different ways of getting guys the ball and we try to get everyone involved."

There was no shortage of that against the Golden Flashes as Bell and Holstein want to get the ball to their playmakers in space. Big Gavin Bartholomew, who was underutilized last year, catching only 18 passes all year, caught five passes for 66 yards. Censere Lee, another Western Carolina transfer, tallied six catches for 72 yards and while he only caught four passes for 31 yards, Raphael Williams found the end zone twice.

But while Bell, Holstein and Pitt had success in the air throughout the afternoon, they also were successful on the ground. Reid showcased his abilities on a 46-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter that capped off a three-play, 69-yard drive which lasted a total of 52 seconds. 

Holstein said as soon as he handed the ball off to Reid on that play, he knew he was gone: "Me and Branson (Taylor) hugged each other and waved bye to Des because we knew he was going to score." That's the type of talent and explosion that Reid presented on this day in Pittsburgh.

Derrick Davis Jr. and Daniel Carter both got into the mix as well. Davis found the end zone from two yards out for Pitt's second offensive touchdown and Carter had a few strong runs that led to Holstein's touchdown pass to Williams.

And while the offense turned in a strong performance on this day, there is still more meat on the bone. On Pitt's second offensive drive, Holstein was sacked on back-to-back plays and Kent State racked up four on the day. Narduzzi didn't have an answer when asked about it after the game but did say that they'd watch it and figure it out moving forward: "We've got to do a good job of picking up corners and knowing they're coming. The ones you can't see, we've got to do a better job."

Holstein was also adamant that he had room for improvement as well. At the beginning of the third quarter, he had a few low passes and also threw an interception late in the second quarter when the Panthers were threatening on Kent State's seven-yard line. 

It was a soft pass that Kent State's Alex Branch was able to jump and return 60 yards the other way. When looking back on that play, Holstein already knew he made the wrong decision.

"We were trying to get them to bite down on the run and they called a great coverage," Holstein said about the interception. "They were playing man and we didn't want that versus man. I saw Pop (Williams) and I thought I had a little bit of pressure, but I didn't, I should've just stepped up in the pocket and delivered the ball. Next time when I see that, I'm probably going to just throw the ball away, that's probably what I should've done and just make sure we can go to the next play."

That type of mindset also starts with Bell and trickles down to his players. He's the type of coach that demands perfection. That's what he expects and when asked about the offense after the game, Narduzzi said Bell was mad in the locker room: "He felt like he left three touchdowns out there. So that's what I like about that."

Pitt's season-opening win sets the stage for a bounce-back season after recording its lowest win total since 1998 last season. A lot of Pitt's deficiencies last season started with the offense and the Panthers have already begun to flip the script in 2024 and they've done it in a fast and exciting way. But, it was also just the first game of the season 

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Pitt (1-0, 0-0) will travel to Cincinnati to take on the Bearcats (1-0, 0-0) at noon on Saturday at Nippert Stadium. I will have you covered from Cincinnati.

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