BRONX, NY — The 2023 season introduced many, many disappointments for Pitt.
The place ought to I begin? The inexplicable waste of Rodney Hammond Jr. and Gavin Bartholomew, a poor offensive line and underutilization of younger expertise like Samuel Okunlola and Jimmy Scott and younger large receivers, particularly Kenny Johnson.
I may additionally point out the dearth of position or improvement for gamers like Nahki Johnson, Elliot Donald, Derrick Davis, Sean FitzSimmons, Jordan Bass, and the checklist goes on, however why are you nitpicking?
However surely, the most important disappointment that may comply with this season is the truth that Pitt will enter the 2024 season with no thought what they’ve at quarterback and if they’ve a quarterback to construct round.
I'm not saying Christian Veilleux or Nate Yarnell aren't adequate. As a result of ineptitude of offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti Jr. and poor offensive line play, nevertheless, we couldn't study sufficient about both.
As for Veilleux, I see a gunslinger with a adequate arm who can and likes to get the ball down. He's had moments that get you excited and lead you to consider he might be the man for the subsequent two years, however would I wager on that? No.
Nobody, together with the teaching employees, has any thought what they’ve in Yarnell. He seemed good and performed effectively sufficient in his solely begin final 12 months in opposition to Western Michigan, however that's about it. Since then, he has solely had mop-up duties in video games which have already been determined.
Pitt nonetheless has two video games left, however with the present state of Pitt soccer, we gained't hear something about Yarnell that solutions questions for subsequent season.
With that being stated, I do know there may be discuss of giving Yarnell an opportunity to begin and Narduzzi didn't rule it out after the sport, however Veilleux has to begin the final two video games.
Buying and selling a quarterback at this stage could be ridiculous, however however, it could be par for the course for this wasted season.
Veilleux is a younger quarterback with simply 5 profession begins, which is clearly not sufficient time to make any actual conclusions concerning the participant. So no matter how he completed the sport in opposition to Syracuse, Veilleux ought to begin in opposition to Boston School. Each younger participant wants reside repetition on the pitch and that’s definitely the case with Veilleux.
The scary factor for Pitt is that the quarterback will nonetheless be a query mark in 2024. In lieu of a quarterback to step in when Kenny Pickett graduated, Pitt was compelled to make use of the switch portal and lower Kedon Slovis and Phil Jurkovec.
The decision remains to be out on Veilleux, who got here to Pitt after transferring from Penn State.
In my view, Pitt wants to withstand the temptation to observe Portal for a 3rd season. It's time to determine on one in all your individual quarterbacks and develop them. Meaning Veilleux, Yarnell and even Ty Dieffenbach.
The primary order of enterprise must be to discover a new offensive coordinator and ensure he is ready to develop and set up a contemporary system that enables every of those quarterbacks to succeed.
Till they try this and have a quarterback and a system they will win with, the struggles of 2023 will likely be a recurring theme.
