Pittsburgh defense finds its groove under Pat Narduzzi in win over Virginia Tech

Pat Narduzzi has breathed life into the Pittsburgh defense in his first year with the Panthers and after beating Virginia Tech looks like this unit is back.

It happened ladies and gentlemen, the Pittsburgh Panthers defense dictated the entire pace of a game, and won with a strong defensive effort to beat Virginia Tech.

Brenden Motley and the Virginia Tech offense were thinking of running all over the Pitt defense in a sloppy atmosphere in Lane Stadium but head coach Pat Narduzzi and defensive coordinator Josh Conklin had other plans.

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The Panthers found the path of least resistance to the backfield and found it often. They held Virginia Tech to 100 yards in total offense with only nine yards total on the ground. How bad is the rushing output you ask? I can’t even numerically enter it in this article! A single digit number is all they could muster up in sloppy conditions.

Defensively for Pitt, the front seven racked up a total of seven sacks, a total that could have been much higher if it weren’t for a few missed tackles early in the game. The Panthers also forced three turnovers, all of which came from the throwing arm of Hokie quarterback Brenden Motley.

Virginia Tech had many opportunities to wedge themselves back into the game, especially after a blocked field goal late in the fourth quarter that would have put Pitt up by a touchdown, but the defense of the Panthers stiffened up and made the idea of a comeback an afterthought.

The Panthers defense came into the game ranked No. 15 in the nation in rushing yards with 92 per game and I can only assume they will climb the rankings when this week is over. Head coach Pat Narduzzi and Conklin have revived a defensive unit that was on life support when the 2014 season concluded and if this is a sign of things to come, the Panthers should have their bite back on defense.

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