University Park, Pennsylvania:
The 126-year rivalry between No. 13 Penn State and Pittsburgh is going on indefinite hiatus for the second time in a generation. Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi gave both sides something to chew on until they meet again, no matter how long the break lasts.
Down a touchdown with the ball at the Penn State 1 and less than 5 minutes on the clock Saturday, Narduzzi opted to attempt a field goal on fourth down instead of going for it. Alex Kessman’s 19-yard kick clanged off the left upright, helping give the Nittany Lions the breathing room they needed to escape with a 17-10 victory.
“You need two scores to win the football game, unless you guys are playing for overtime,” Narduzzi said. “We’re trying to win the football game.”
The 53-year-old Narduzzi joked before the 100th clash between the schools separated by 139 miles that the next time they face off, he’ll either be retired or “in a coffin.” He was kidding at the time. The smile was gone as he tried to explain the rationale for taking the ball out of quarterback Kenny Pickett’s hands three feet from tying it.
“Again, we can look back at all the calls, guys,” Narduzzi said. “All the armchair quarterbacks, you guys got those armchair desks there. It’s easy to make those decisions. We were throwing the ball. We threw for over 300 yards.”
Yet needing just one to even it on the road late, the Panthers (1-2) came up short thanks in part to Penn State’s defense. Pickett rolled out on first-and-goal at the 1 and threw the ball away while getting chased by linebacker Cam Brown. A read-option on second down went nowhere, with Pickett unable to churn past Garrett Taylor and Jesse Luketa. Brown harassed Pickett into an incompletion on third down and out trotted Kessman.
“Players, we’re all in there saying ‘Let’s go for it,’” said Pickett, who threw for career-high 372 yards. “We all have confidence in (each other). I know my guys. I love them. They played so hard. It’s tough. A loss like this is tough.”
The Panthers had one more chance to draw even, moving from the Pitt 16 to the Penn State 26. But Pickett’s heave to Taysir Mack on the final snap was broken up by Brown and fell to the turf to give the Nittany Lions bragging rights for now and possibly forever. Penn State improved to 53-43-4 all-time against Pitt, including a 3-1 mark during a four-game renewal that began in 2016.
“We’re happy to be 3-1 in the series, we’re happy to be 1-0 (this week),” Nittany Lions coach James Franklin said.
Leaving Pitt 0-1, something Narduzzi insisted won’t linger even after instituting a media blackout for his players leading up to the game and admitting it would feel like “winning the Super Bowl” to beat the Lions for a second time in four years.
“A loss is a loss,” Narduzzi said. “It doesn’t matter who it’s to, when it is. It’s a nonconference game. All our goals are still ahead of us. We’ve got a resilient football team that I love. We’ll be fine. We’ll be just fine.”
