October 26, 2015
Pat Narduzzi Press Conference
North Carolina Week
PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO: Narduzzi UNC Preview
PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO: QB Nate Peterman
PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO: LB Matt Galambos
PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT (HTML LINK): Narduzzi Text Transcript
Opening Statement:
“Normally on a Monday it’s an academic day for our kids, but things get sped up, so it’s a little bit of a different schedule for our kids. We try to cut some time out of practice but we’re trying to get ready for the Tar Heels who are coming in here on Thursday night. We have Ruben Brown who will be our honorary captain this weekend—he’s also getting honored for being in the College Football Hall of Fame. So we’re excited to have him back on campus and have him around our team.
“As far as last week’s game—that’s over. The kids are excited. We put an end to that game last night with a quick team meeting. The coaches worked through the weekend in preparation for today. It was a normally Tuesday practice that we had them prepare for since we had a little less time on Sunday. I didn’t get to go to church but we’re putting it in for the Panthers.”
On how game preparation changes with a Thursday night game and if there’s a “24-hour rule” for celebrating wins:
“I wish we had 24 hours. Some coaches do but you never seem to enjoy it, even if you won by one or by 50 [points]. Yes, it definitely changes things. Usually we come in on a Sunday and watch the entire game and the kids use it as a learning tool. But, we had to pick out certain plays. Actually, I sat here with the defense and watched the plays we wanted to watch with them.
Then Coach [Jim] Chaney sat here with the offense and watched plays with them. Then, the rest of our staff was working and game planning. We changed it a lot to be ahead. Normally on Tuesday practices, which is really what today’s practice was, we’re working on normal down and distances, red zone and O-line situations on both sides of the ball, so we want to keep the kids in the same rhythm as what we’re in.
We don’t want to change and say, ‘Well we didn’t have the time to get the red zone and O-line done today.’ We worked late into the evening and got done what we needed to do. So we’re caught up right now and now we’re normal for the rest of the week.”
On if he is able to focus the team with the short week and a national television game:
“I hope they’re focusing. We’re preparing for the next game with only five days. I don’t know if that changes the focus but I think winning changes the focus. They kind of get those big eyes like ‘Wow, let’s go.’ I think that’s what really [prepares them]. Good work and preparation. The kids stepped up and are paying attention to detail.”
On if he’s able to hit every detail in a short week:
“That’s why we try to get that done. I think we have them [I’s] crossed and [T’s] dotted—yes, on both sides of the ball and special teams. You don’t get to practice as much, that’s going to be the big deal. The important thing is that we’re fresh. They have to know what to do but we can’t go in there and beat them up. Usually we go in there and practice Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, but we’re going to have to practice all three of those days but cut down on the amount of time in each practice just so we can be fresh out there.
We can do [what we normally do] and go out there with dead legs but we would have issues. We have to keep them fresh but they have to know what they’re doing as well. There’s a fine line there and we’re trying to find that fine line.”
On if he felt the tackling performance was up to par at Syracuse:
“No, not even close. It was disappointing and for whatever reason it wasn’t close. It was embarrassing to be honest with you.”
On North Carolina quarterback Marquise Williams what he has done against Pitt:
“I haven’t looked at the past couple of years with what he’s done against Pitt because it doesn’t matter. But, Marquise [Williams] is a great player, a big athlete, makes great decisions. I think he’s thrown around nine touchdowns and only one interception if I recall. He doesn’t make mistakes. He’s not a guy who’s easy to get down on the ground. He operates with no-huddle tempo offense, that’s why they’re number one in the ACC in scoring offense because he does a good job. That’s a guy who controls.
He’s a special guy and Coach [Larry] Fedora and Seth Littrell have done a nice job with that offense. I’ve had some experience with Seth when he was at Indiana in 2012 and 2013. He was the offensive coordinator there, with I believe, Kevin Wilson, because it looks very similar. We’ve been practicing a lot of 2012, 2013 stuff that they tried to do against us [at Michigan State] back in those years. That’s the tempo and the stuff they like to do so that’s been an extra bonus for us.”
On the deep passing game:
“Everyone would like to give their team shots but no one wants to go second down and ten. Like I said before, it’s nice to get that going. But until they really stop the run and take away that short game, you get what you get. I have no problem with all those runs with the 90-yard drive. I don’t care if the ball can go deep. It’s about winning and that’s what our offense managed to do—help us win each week.”
On the lack of sacks the past two games:
“First, we missed a few of them the last two weeks. Number one, you’re not practicing getting to the quarterback against Georgia Tech. He’s a great athlete. Got out of his way and even on that last play where he looks and runs 100 yards on one play, throwing the ball down the field, it’s a scrambling quarterback. We haven’t been athletic enough to get him down and same thing last week. I told you guys at the press conference last Monday that [Eric Dungey] for Syracuse was a good athlete and their best player, and he really was. He made a ton of plays with his feet and we had guys there who didn’t make it. Same as earlier, we weren’t a very good tackling team not only on the tailback but on the quarterback so it’s something we have to straighten out.”
On if winning close games was emphasized to the team heading into the season:
“No, not really. It’s what we’ve always done. If you look back through my history, and the last 11 years, you win championships with defense. Normally if you’re winning it with defense it’s going to be a close game, if you don’t outscore them a whole bunch. It doesn’t matter what the score is. At the end of the day you have to win the game.
If it’s a close game you have to step up and make something happen. Our offense did it this weekend and our defense did it this past couple [weekends]. But you have to win close games, that’s the name of the game. You get 60 minutes, that’s no secret. You just have to do it and have that attitude to win football games.”
On teaching the defense to tackle and strip the football:
“No, we try to make a tackle. We’re not going for strips. That wasn’t the problem. The problem was we had our head down and we weren’t taking shots and focusing on the little things. Jordan [Whitehead] didn’t have a whole lot of practice, he might have been the worst one out there tackling. I’ll put that on my side. That’s not his fault. That’s my fault because we didn’t want him taking a lot of hits last week to keep his body healthy. That’s something where you live and learn.
Some guys can not tackle during the week and be fine on Saturday and sometimes they can’t. It’s a lesson learned for coaches on who that guy is. We’ll try to make sure that doesn’t happen again, but he’s still the best safety out there and I don’t think we’ll have that problem this week.”
On what he would say to those asking if Pitt is for real:
“We’ll find out this weekend I guess, right? My answer would be we’ll find out this weekend. It doesn’t matter what you did in the past. I don’t care what our record is. Right now we’re 0-0 and trying to be 1-0 this weekend. Outside this room I really don’t care what they say or what they think. It really matters what we think in this room. I think we’re a darn good football team. You find ways to win and our only loss has been on a 57-yard field goal to a team that’s in the top 10. I’m assuming, I don’t know where they are. Iowa’s a pretty good football team, though.”
On the strong competition remaining on the schedule:
“I’ll tell you what, I mean, Youngstown State was tough. I mean they gave us everything they had and every week it gets tough. There are no easy ones. Like I said after Syracuse, I mean that’s a good football team that played hard and has some good athletes. You sit there watching pregame and watch them run around and you look at them and kind of go, ‘Whoa.’ You know?
They gave us a great effort and, again, every week is a battle. It doesn’t matter. We’re just happy to come back home and be back in our own stadium for four out of the last five. I know this week is North Carolina’s second road trip of the year, out of the state at least. I know they played in Charlotte, but this will be their second road trip of the year.
So they have to come in to a hostile environment. The Panther Pitt [student section] has to be unbelievable this weekend. [North Carolina] runs that no-huddle offense, so we need that 12th man in the stands this week. It has to get loud to the point where they have problems communicating. That’s what we need out of [the Panther Pitt]. So I appreciate you putting that word out there.”
On if he relies on older players to not let the team pay attention to their ranking:
“I don’t think they have time to think about that. You guys have time. You sit in the café and drink your coffee and go steal a banana with some peanut butter or something like that. [Laughter] That’s one of my favorites. They don’t have time. These guys go to class all day. I didn’t even know when we came in here last night at seven o’clock where we were ranked. I asked them. I said, ‘I’m sure we moved up, so where are we?’ And they were like bang, bang, bang. I mean, they know. But you just tell them, again, it doesn’t really matter. We need to move on. I guarantee after practice today they’re not thinking about it after practice. I can promise you that.”
On if he hears the buzz around his team:
“Well, you get text messages from guys. I just got a great text message—I won’t share it with you, I’ll share it with the team—from T.J. Clemmings. We hear from the outside and I’m sure our kids are getting patted on the back and all that, but we’re in a little cocoon in here. This is like our little world. We don’t get outside the doors much to hear what’s going on.
I haven’t been up to campus for a couple of weeks. Usually I have a once-a-week meeting with the A.D. [Scott Barnes], but we’ve been kind of tight down here and haven’t gotten a chance to get that one in. We keep postponing it, one or the other, just trying to get some work done. We don’t know what’s happening outside, I think. Our kids may hear something when they go to class, but that’s about it.”
On if the coaches’ hours will run long this week:
“No. You talk about the players being fresh. I really believe our players have to be fresh, and I believe our coaches have to be fresh, too. Some of us went home after the game and worked and we came in early Sunday morning. We’re back to where we need to be. As coaches, we’re going to stay on the same schedule the rest of the week and not work any longer than we normally do.
We should be on schedule right now. We got the first practice in and now the schedule doesn’t change. It’s just like today’s Tuesday instead of Monday. So we’re right where we need to be right now and there should be no need. I want our coaches just as fresh as our kids.”
On if Tyler Boyd will be restricted this week to keep him fresh for Thursday:
“Yeah, I think Coach Chaney might’ve held him a little bit. He probably didn’t run him quite so hard, but he’s a work horse. [Tyler Boyd] wants more. He’s a guy that’s never going to say [he’s tired]. I asked him today I said, ‘How do you feel?’ He said, ‘Coach, I feel great.’ So, okay, let’s go. He’s our playmaker and we’ve have to run.”
On what he observes about North Carolina’s defense:
“Yeah, Gene Chizik has done a nice job on defense. New coordinator. They’re very, very sound. They line up, you know what they’re going to do, and they do it well. I’d say they give a pretty similar look that we do defensively. I mean, Gene is an experienced defensive coordinator and a former head football coach. He’s got those guys believing on defense. He’s done a nice job. Offensively, they get to a point where they get up on you on offense and then what does the other team do? They have to chuck it to get back in the game.
So they have a good pass defense. Then what do you do? You throw three incomplete passes and it puts that offense back on the field. We have to be leery of that and stick to our game plan. It’s got to be the offense helping the defense, the defense helping the offense and the special teams being superior like they’ve been the last few weeks.”
On what difference Tyler Boyd makes when he lines up in the backfield:
“He’s a good passer, he’s a good runner, and he’s a good catcher. He does it all. He’s done it all. I don’t know why people aren’t talking about him for the Heisman because the guy does it all. I mean, some guys just catch it and some guys just run it. That guy does it all. What has he not done? Punt returner, kick returner, he’s a special football player. He’s going to play for a long time.”
On if some players will be back from injury this week:
“I hope so. I think they’re all feeling a little bit better, so we’ll see. That’ll be a work in progress as the week goes here.”
On if he addressed the penalties after the Syracuse game:
“Yeah. We had six penalties when we’re one of the lowest penalized teams in the country. We’ve been good all year about it. It was a little of us and a little bit of them. A couple of them, you know, you’re going to have a false start here or there. Those aren’t the ones. It was those unforced errors where Jordan [Whitehead] goes down thinking a guy is blocking him.
Maybe he didn’t see the fair catch, whatever, and he runs into a guy. I don’t think it was flagrant. But there were a lot of things missed as well. I think there was 12 guys [for Syracuse] on the field the one time when we hit somebody. Artie [Rowell] had a penalty that can’t happen. Basically what I said was, ‘Players play, coaches coach, and officials officiate.’ You stretch them out, go back home and let me take care of it.”
—PITT—
“That’s why we try to get that done. I think we have them [I’s] crossed and [T’s] dotted—yes,”
T’s and I’s backwards.
“No, not even close. It was disappointing and for whatever reason it wasn’t close. It was embarrassing to be honest with you.”
Exactly. That looked like the old Pitt. I want to watch the new Pitt, please.
Hard to tell how good they are. They have played a very weak schedule. This is a must win because their only other tough game will be vs. Duke unless VT shows up again. Their non-coastal were Wake and are NCST. They lost to South Carolina who are having a bad year.
You could say the same about our schedule, so I guess we will learn a lot on Thursday.
I like our chances and think we will see another hard fought close game.
And we owe them one.
Last year, he passed for 276 yards with 0 INTs vs Pitt. That may have to change.
Of course a sparse and quiet crowd will do that.
I think a lot of the ACC teams deal with that…
If I had to put it into tiers, it would be
Tier 1:
Clemson, FSU, Virginia Tech
Tier 2:
Everyone else not in Tier 1 or 3
Tier 3:
Duke, Wake, BC
Some like those high seats because they are under a roof but…
If you eliminated 10-15,000 seats the place would look much better.
Lose on Thursday and you will see some real pessimism.
In terms of home field advantage.
I know Duke is renovating – but even then – they’re still gonna be under 40K – and it’s currently closer to 30k.. So even if they hit 75% capacity – which is pretty good for most home games I would argue – That’s less than 25K fans. Not much of an advantage.
Would love to know our all-time record at PS@HF (PITT Stadium @ Heinz Field) Since they don’t practice on it regularly, how could it “feel” like home? Seats filled with asses can change that. Duzz is fulfilling his end of the deal..we have to do our part.
How many of you Blatherites ever participated in intramurals at the Original PITT Stadium..I did and probably many of you played on the same field as all of the Panther greats!!that old bowl served a lot of purposes and it was close-up and personal if you spent time on her turf..what memories..now I am yearning for a New PITT Stadium on-campus..oh well..I sent the AD and Assist AD Mustard and Blue car magnets..remember what Tyler Palko said after the YSU game several years ago when they came out in the Johnny Majors 1 uni’s “I finally feel like a PITT Panther!!!” Even Wanny did not want to give up the Mustard..Heading up from Carolina to cheer on our boys…Lets Go PITT
Throughout the greater part of the past decade when I was in town, I had visitor sideline season tix , and they were always between the 35 and 50 yard lines … easy to get.
The “Sweet Caroline” crowd is in for a real wake-up when Penn State comes to town in 2016
I loved Pitt Stafium with every bit of my soul and will never forgive SP for mounting a 1 sided campaign to tear it down with no replacement.
I played IM sports there as well as pitched JV Baseball in intrasquad games. Doc Medich hit a home run off of me that still hasn’t landed. Bobby Lewis even commented that I might want to think again before I throw that curve. Home plate was near the entrance of the football team on game days and we played caddy cornered.
If I can ever be of help to you or anyone else in promoting an on campus stadium or traditional colors just let me know.
I know a new stadium is a lost cause but back in the late 70s when the Golden Panthers were formed and the football team rocked, I learned their were no lost causes! Deja vu upcoming!
H2P
It’s like these fans have no memories! Did these guys miss all of the memos over the last few years that the Panthers were the definition of mediocre, at best! I feel that before you can be appropriately DISrespected, by inference, previously you must have been respected at some point as a prerequisite. Before this season, anybody who followed college football really just disregarded Pitt football as an entity. They were irrelevant. Seriously.
ND vs. Pitt a nooner, oh the disgrace! Who cares? Just beat ND. Hopefully the weather will be bright and sunny to help warm up the afternoon of the game. And won’t it be nice to see scrolling across the crawl line at the bottom of the TV’s in the nation all day long the final score of the Pitt win over the Irish???!!!
Then the Vegas line has us as underdogs against UNC, how dare the bettors not take Pitt and their home field advantage as the favorites. Hello? Pitt has no home field advantage at Heinz Field. Not just yet, anyhow. But keep winning and I bet AD Barnes & Coach Narduzzi change the fan culture around here for the better too. A filled up Heinz Field that finishes the 4th Q just like their home team does would then be a true home field advantage. Let’s make it happen.
Until then, Narduzzi’s staff and team are taking care of the things that they can control. Playing their best for the entire game and not embarrassing themselves like so many Pitt teams of the past have done. Keep that up for an entire season and some respect will be forthcoming in future seasons, because by then it will have been earned by this program over the long haul and people in the know will have realized that this Panther team is much more than just a flash in the pan upstart.
Until then, I’m absolutely positive that Narduzzi is preaching to his guys that none of that BS matters anyhow. What is the difference maker goes on inside those endzones & sidelines over the 60 minutes of game time beginning at 7 pm on Thursday evening, that is what matters. He probably is explaining that they should cherish the opportunity to continue playing the underdog roll, as long as it lasts because of the advantage that it gives when your opponent initially underestimates your potential.
Narduzzi now has these kids truly believing that if they play synergistic team football for a full 60 minutes and never let up that they can beat anybody on their schedule. They’ve seen these positive results six times this season already. The mind leads and the body follows. Once you’ve won their minds you can get them to play better than they ever imagined themselves. That’s when the magic happens. Let’s hope that Narduzzi continues his sorcery with this team come Thursday night. Hail to Pitt! Tattoo the Tarheels!
H2P
Those who know me in real life would tell you that Upitt is a blazing optimist compared to me. I really blast all things Pitt for the failures and heartbreaks. Now they have a team that we should embrace and support, one that needs asses in the seats, not some puss who can’t get out of bed! I will drag myself there if it kills me(almost) and in some small way send out some brainwaves. I hope everyone that possibly can get there does, and that the only yellow seen is on our helmets!!
H2P
Pitt’s defense seemed so dominant in the VT win because we rushed the QB so effectively produced multiple sacks and hurries. In the GT game that same consistent pressure wasn’t evident and they GT offense was productive, at least until the coaching staff made some solid halftime adjustments.We keep Williams scrambling around for his life on Thursday and we could win this one handedly.
The last two times we played these Tarheels, I’ve been there in the stands. These guys are nothing special. They have some real talented individual players but they have always struck me as a team that thinks they are better than they actually are. It is hard to put your finger on it but it is kind of a false bravado that these guys project.
I really saw it early in our bowl game against us when their star WR caught a nice TD pass and then pounded his chest while prancing around in the end zone ending the performance by whipping the ball twenty rows up into the stands. Completely selfish and resulted in a penalty on the kickoff. That kind of showboating will always be detrimental to the team and will help get you beat when up against a more disaplined team like Narduzzi’s is proving to be.
Plus I think these guys will be very susecptable to being hurt by a grind it out running game. I thought that final Pitt drive was a thing of beauty, although it did stall requiring that trick play for the 1st down with the successful faked punt. If we’re able to run on these guys and eat clock like that all night long, then that paired with a rested Pitt defense more able to pressure the QB consistently should be enough for another hard fought Pitt win.
I’m definitely no whining about being the underdog in Vegas…we still have a lot to prove especially with an “elite defense” that pretty much showed some gaping holes in it the last 2 weeks.
What I do find comical is the kickoff time compared to the two other games that are lined up at the 3:30pm slot (outside of Clemson & FSU).
I never expected to get the primetime slot given OSU is playing and they are ESPN’s darling. Also Mich St vs Nebraska are playing (which IMO is a better Prime Time draw which I’ll certainly be watching).
Just win baby!
My I suggest plenty of OJ and herbal teas for the hydration plus 1000 mg vitamin C daily. You’ll be playing injured come Thursday night but I trust that you will be feeling much better by then and can make the game. Dress warmly for it, and since all the students are being encouraged to wear Halloween costumes, why don’t you wear a mask yourself so you won’t get fired if your boss just happens to see you on national TV at the game after missing work for the days leading up to it!
Keep that chip on Pitt’s shoulders … it gives them an edge.
10-2
Seriously, NC seems like a team that will play great if things go well and tank if we get up on them. All I know is this has been fun so far! And for once, and I mean just once I would like to see a little home cookin!
8-2 going into very winable 2 last games. That would translate into at least 9-10 wins going into the bowl game….without Conner!
The home field advantage for us this game is that we don’t have to travel on the short week. We have to slay the nationally televised game curse too…
NC doesn’t have the patent on it by any means.
This is what has really bugged me about Pitt over the years – they, both as a team and individuals, get big heads because the win a game or two in a row and it has always backfired against them.
I’m hoping that Narduzzi isn’t allowing that to happen and so far it hasn’t so that’s a change.
I just have been so pissed of when Pitt starts puffing out their chests and then fall quickly back to earth. 2006 was a prime example but we saw other years also…
drtom – you are so right on so many points in your epistle! It didn’t take us too long to become irrelevant, but it will take some time to become respected again. Only one way to do it. Just win, baby.
Can’t wait to see what Conk n Nard dial up for the tar heels, resplendent in their Baby Blues.
However, I must point out that the Heels have a distinct advantage over us: since they don’t go to class anymore, they have much more time to practice!
A big win on National TV that means something to the schedule and season.
I think we kick butt.
H2P
Next stop Greensboro, NC. For 3 days. Sucks being sick and being sick on the road and having to put a smile on.
Any of you guys in Greensboro?
I will say that we will have an advantage with specials team, especially in the kick return game and if TB is on, he may take a KR to the promised land.
The NC receivers throw a high percentage of passes for touchdowns, so this will accentuate the need for a disciplined, tough hitting defense.
Bad field conditions favor the mudders. Hopefully our guys are practicing outside at night to get them used to the cold and rain. Weather should be a small advantage for us.
Pitt will be 1-0 on games played Thursday, 10-29-15! Trench warfare being critical.
Have very fond memories of playing IM football in Pitt Stadium. Still tell the story of how my team had the ball on the last play of the first half at our own 8 yard line. We played the games across the field so the IM field was only 50 yards long. I grew up in Latrobe and used to go to St. Vincent’s fields after the Steelers were done with training camp and practice kicking field goals. So in my intramural game I lined up from the 42 and kicked a 52 yard field goal. So I too would love to see them back on campus.
“I’ve had some experience with Seth (UNC’s OC) when he was at Indiana in 2012 and 2013. He was the offensive coordinator there, with I believe, Kevin Wilson, because it looks very similar. We’ve been practicing a lot of 2012, 2013 stuff that they tried to do against us [at Michigan State] back in those years. That’s the tempo and the stuff they like to do so that’s been an extra bonus for us.”
Dog & Conk will be ready – they have a short week to get our D players prepared. But remember, this game is part of the revenge tour. One possession at a time – fight to win the one in front of you and get our O back on the field. Let the RB trio of Smash, Dash & Cash run the ball down the baby blue blood’s throats. (QO, CJ and TB)
HTP!
P.S I have long thought covering the seats (w a huge script) in the top tier end zone would go a long way, give ADSB a minute he’s trying to figure it out (exhibits A&B $6 seats & express student buses post game) BELIEVE Pittisit
Passing = 36 for 514 & 5 TDs
Rushing = 10 for 56 & 0 TDs
Total: 46 touches for 570 & 5 TDs
2015: Boyd has six games played; Team Record = 6-1
Passing = 53 for 489 & 4 TDs
Rushing = 15 for 68 & 0 TDs
Total: 68 touches for 557 & 4 TDs (with one less game played than last season)
