Pat Narduzzi knows that his team is still developing. However, the long-time Pittsburgh coach is pleased with the progress he has seen from the 22nd-ranked Panthers after five impressive games, marking the program’s best start in 33 years.
“I like their attitude,” Narduzzi said. “I like the selflessness that they’ve shown. Doesn’t matter who catches the ball, who has the big game as a receiver, who makes a sack. They’re celebrating together.”
So much so that Pitt (5-0, 1-0 ACC) has made its way back into the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2022 after last week’s significant 34-24 win over North Carolina, which was their first victory ever in Chapel Hill.
There were both big and small plays throughout the game, and a determination that allowed Pitt to pull ahead in the second half. This has been the pattern for most of the Panthers’ surprising season, which has included both comebacks and big wins.
“They’re focused on the ‘We, We’ and not the ‘Me, Me, What’s good for me?’ which we continue to emphasize,” Narduzzi said. “You just enjoy coaching this football team.”
Despite this success, Narduzzi insists that the Panthers are staying grounded. Not with California coming to visit on Saturday. The Bears (3-2, 0-2) are traveling east for the third time this season after losing a 25-point lead in the second half against now sixth-ranked Miami last week.
Cal quarterback Fernando Mendoza noted he had the matchup with the Hurricanes marked on his calendar as soon as the Bears’ 2024 schedule was released. How Cal responds will likely influence the rest of their season.
“With this large adversity, we can either get stronger or weaker and that’s what the message has been,” Mendoza said. “Such a brutal loss like that, and we acknowledge it’s a brutal loss, it’s easy to fold.”
Mendoza believes the Bears won’t give in. During a team meeting earlier in the week, several transfers shared their past experiences and how their previous teams responded to tough situations, for better or worse.
If there’s a lesson to take from this, Cal tight end Jack Endries said, it’s that the Bears can never “let our foot off the gas again.”
