AMHERST — UMass knows what’s coming.
Pittsburgh coach Pat Narduzzi, a longtime defensive coordinator, doesn’t make it a secret. When the Minutemen kick off the 2021 season at 4 p.m. Saturday at Heinz Field, they expect a physicality rarely reached in this age of college football.
“Any time you’re going against a football team and Pat Narduzzi is a part of it, you know a couple things: they’re going to be gritty, they’re gong to be tough, they’re going to tackle well,” UMass coach Walt Bell said. “They’re going to be really good fundamentally, and they’re going to make you earn it the hard way.”
The Panthers led the nation with 111 tackles for loss last season (and ranked second in the country on a per game basis at 10.1 behind Colorado State’s 10.5). They boasted the ACC’s second-best total defense allowing 339.5 yards per game and third-stingiest scoring defense at 24.5 points per game.
That defense sent five players to the NFL in this year’s draft: edge rushers Patrick Jones II (Minnesota Vikings) and Rashad Weaver (Tennessee Titans), defensive tackle Jaylen Twyman (Minnesota Vikings) and defensive backs Jackson Pinnock (New York Jets) and Damar Hamlin (Buffalo Bills).
Though the ingredients are different, the foundation remains the same.
“They’re really base. They’re going to run the same thing, come in our face, and they want to play a very aggressive game,” UMass tight end Taylor Edwards said. “We just have to execute at a very high level to exploit the negatives they have on the field.”
Execution eluded the Minutemen for most of last season’s 0-4, COVID-19 shortened and disrupted campaign. They only had 10 practices in camp and were limited by strict quarantine procedures after returning from all road games. If nothing else, the 2021 edition will be better prepared.
Experience will play a large part in that. Twenty one of the 48 players listed on UMass’ offensive and defensive depth charts (there are four potential tight end starters and backups instead of two) are upperclassmen. Many received game reps they likely wouldn’t have last season in normal circumstances. A handful (starting quarterback Tyler Lytle, running back Kay’Ron Adams, lineman Willie Allen and defensive backs Bryce Watts and Bryson Richardson) attended Power 5 schools before making their way to UMass.
“It’s a totally different football team,” Narduzzi said of UMass. “It’s not like you’re going to see the same team we saw last year.”
The Minutemen, on the other hand, might have déjà vu looking at Pitt’s offense. Longtime UMass coach Mark Whipple is in his third year as the Panthers’ offensive coordinator. It’s his third season working with redshirt senior quarterback Kenny Pickett, a candidate for the Maxwell, Davey O’Brien, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm and Manning Awards. He threw for 267.6 yards per game last season, third in the ACC.
“The easy thing to say is the arm talent, which he absolutely possesses. He’ll be a draft pick. He’s had multiple years in the system so he’s got a great level of comfort,” Bell said. “The thing people forget about him is he’s a very good athlete. His ability to make reactionary plays when things break down, create for himself on his feet, he’s hard to get on the ground. He’s the whole package.”
Pitt (6-5 last season) also returns three of its top four receivers and all of its top four rushers (Pickett is No. 3) from last year. The Panthers will also have a healthy Lucas Krull, a 6-foot-6, 260 pound tight end who transferred from Florida last season. He only played in one game before an injury knocked him out for the rest of the season.
The Panthers regularly employ a fast-paced offense, which the Minutemen hope to combat with communication and discipline.
“They got a couple teams lat year with that and there was busted coverages because they weren’t ready to go,” UMass corner Josh Wallace said. “We’re trying to be aware of a lot of shifts and motions.”
Facing Pitt presents UMass’ latest opportunity to take down a Power 5 school. The Minutemen have not fared well historically. Since joining the FBS in 2012, UMass is 0-20 against teams from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC (0-21 including Notre Dame in 2015). The closest the Minutemen came to victory was a 41-38 loss against Colorado in 2014.
UMass has three shots lined up this season against ACC foes: Saturday at Pittsburgh, next weekend’s home opener against Boston College and an Oct. 23 date with Florida State in Tallahassee, Fla.
“Number one, any time you play great competition, it raises your level, raises your standard in your building. We don’t care who we play, when we play them or where they’re from or what the logo on the side of their helmet says,” Bell said. “We’ve got to come out and play our best football no matter who we play. Regardless of what conference they’re from, we just want to go out and want to be better every time we play a football game.”