The home win against Syracuse on Saturday hardly salvaged Pitt's season.
Even if it wins its final three regular season games, it will finish with an 8-4 record and a trip to a lower-level bowl. That would be a major disappointment considering the expectations before the season when Pitt planned on winning a second consecutive ACC championship. That is not going to happen.
But the 19-9 win at Arcrisure Stadium surely beat the alternative.
Syracuse came in ranked No. 20 in the College Football Playoff poll despite losing its two previous games to Notre Dame and Clemson. Pitt had lost two in a row and three of its previous four games and appeared to be careening out of control. This seemed like the day Syracuse would stand up against Pitt after losing 17 of the previous 20 games in the series. A Pitt collapse seemed possible, not just in this game, but down the stretch with games at Virginia, home against Duke and at Miami. Was anyone ruling out a 5-7 or even 4-8 finish with no bowl game?
I wasn't.
Pitt's defense didn't allow the team to fail on Saturday. It rattled backup quarterback Carlos Del Rio-Wilson — in for injured Garrett Shrader — all day and finished with six sacks, the final one by defensive end Deslin Alexandre resulting in a safety with 1:35 left. It held Syracuse to a silly-low 25 yards on 25 rushes. It also made impressive stands at two important points of the game. It forced a field goal early after Syracuse had a second-and-goal at the Pitt 1 and a missed field goal late after Syracuse took possession at Pitt's 27 after a 2-yard punt.
Were you thinking what I was thinking after that feeble punt?
That Pitt was going to crash-and-burn again in the fourth quarter?
Pitt was outscored, 17-0, in the final quarter of a 24-10 loss at Louisville on Oct. 22. It was outscored, 21-0, in the final quarter of a 42-24 loss at North Carolina on Oct. 29.
Not on this day.
"We got that crappy punt and it was like, 'Are you kidding me?' " Pat Narduzzi said. "Our defense went out and it was three-and-out. That's dominating defense. They were all over the place. To hold them to three field goals is good defense. That's what we expect every weekend."
Pitt's running game was just as important in the win. While Syracuse struggled without its starting quarterback, Pitt flourished without its best offensive player, injured running back Israel Abanikanda, who came into Saturday leading the country in all-purpose yards and rushing touchdowns. Rodney Hammond Jr. started and rushed for 124 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries. C'Bo Flemister spelled Hammond Jr. and ran for 42 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries. Ten of Flemister's carries came on the 11-play touchdown drive that gave Pitt a 17-6 lead late in the third quarter.
"We look at Rodney as a starter. It's just hard to get Izzy off the field," Narduzzi said.
"I think [Abanikanda] probably could have gone if we wanted to. But he's smiling in the locker room and happy that we got the win without him. The thing I told him, 'You're going to be really healthy for [next] week.' "
Quarterback Kedon Slovis and receiver Jared Wayne provided most of the rest of the offense for Pitt. Slovis threw an early bad interception in the Syracuse end zone under pressure and also fumbled a snap on a third-and-1 play to kill a drive. But he did connect with Wayne six times for 102 yards. It was Wayne's second consecutive 100-yard receiving day.
"Jared Wayne is a football player," Narduzzi said. "He's been our go-to guy. He's our deep-ball guy. I know Key trusts him. The offensive staff trusts him."
As for Slovis, who has struggled all season to follow Heisman Trophy finalist Kenny Pickett?
"I thought he was solid," Narduzzi said. "He played good enough to win the football game."
A win Pitt desperately needed.
