Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh is 6-3 and No. 45 of 138 in the machine's ratings, 5.8 points better than an average FBS team. Last game: won 34-11 vs Georgia Tech in Week 9.
Week 11: vs Florida State, Friday, Nov 13: the matchup, unit by unit
Why Pittsburgh is No. 45
- Pittsburgh's rating is 5.8: the machine's estimate that Pittsburgh is 5.8 points better than an average FBS team on a neutral field. That is No. 45 of 138. For scale, 0 is an average FBS team: right now the closest to it is No. 68 Arizona State (0.2).
- It started the season at 6.6, ESPN's preseason Football Power Index from July. Its results since have moved it down 0.8.
- The biggest weekly moves: +5.2 after Week 1 (W 59-14 vs Miami (OH)) and −1.6 after Week 5 (W 35-33 at Virginia Tech).
- Its record is 6-3. The 3 losses were to No. 6 Miami, No. 30 North Carolina, No. 71 Boston College, by 13.0 points on average. The 6 wins came by 24.7 points on average; the best was over No. 49 Virginia Tech. The rating weighs how much a team won or lost by and against whom, not just the win-loss count.
- Its FBS opponents so far average No. 58 in the machine's ratings.
- Just above is No. 44 Mississippi State (6.2); just below is No. 46 Kansas (5.6).
The rating, week by week
Strengths and weak spots
Head coach
Pat Narduzzi is in his 12th season at Pittsburgh (since 2015). This season: 6-3. At Pittsburgh overall: 86-64, counting this season.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Team stats
Season totals and averages over 9 games, each with its national rank among 138 FBS teams (No. 1 = best). The game-by-game story is in the season, week by week.
Passing
| Completions-attempts | 192-315 |
|---|---|
| Passing yards | 2506 |
| Touchdowns-interceptions | 21-6 |
| Yards per attempt* | 7.8No. 48 of 138 |
| Explosive pass rate | 11.1%No. 55 of 138 |
| Sacks allowed (rate) | 3.1%No. 20 of 138 |
Rushing
| Carries-yards | 333-1509 |
|---|---|
| Yards per carry | 4.5No. 59 of 138 |
| 10-plus-yard runs (rate) | 13.8%No. 71 of 138 |
| Stuffed at or behind the line (rate) | 15.6%No. 47 of 138 |
Scoring
| Points per game | 31.9No. 46 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play | 6.22No. 41 of 138 |
| Third-down rate | 40.8%No. 61 of 138 |
| Red-zone TD rate | 52.9%No. 107 of 138 |
| Giveaways | 11No. 67 of 138 |
Defense
| Points allowed per game | 19.8No. 32 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play allowed | 5.09No. 36 of 138 |
| Yards per pass attempt allowed | 7.5No. 96 of 138 |
| Yards per carry allowed | 2.3No. 2 of 138 |
| Sack rate | 5.6%No. 76 of 138 |
| Takeaways | 13No. 45 of 138 |
| Third-down rate allowed | 34.9%No. 39 of 138 |
Totals are the official box score. * Yards per attempt and the rates come from the play-by-play, where passing yards count on completions only, so they can differ from the box score by a play or two.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Player leaders
The top 3 in each category over the same games. Passing yards count every completion (official box score).
Passing
- Mason Heintschel98-148, 1304 yds, 14 TD, 1 INT
- Holden Geriner77-132, 886 yds, 4 TD, 2 INT
- Corey Dailey17-35, 316 yds, 3 TD, 3 INT
Rushing
- Damon Ferguson Jr.123 carries, 662 yds, 6 TD
- La'Vell Wright76 carries, 305 yds, 5 TD
- Ja'Kyrian Turner30 carries, 131 yds, 1 TD
Receiving
- Cataurus Hicks34 catches, 698 yds, 6 TD
- Carson Kent30 catches, 317 yds, 1 TD
- Censere Lee24 catches, 270 yds, 4 TD
Tackles
- Cruce Brookins61
- Jeremiah Marcelin53
- Alex Sanford43
Sacks
- Jaeden Moore4
- Nick James3.5
- Jeremiah Marcelin3
Interceptions
- Raion Strader3
- Braylan Lovelace1
- Cameron Lindsey1
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Who's playing
Based on who has actually played this season, from the box scores, not the team's published depth chart. Each bar is that player's share of the team's attempts, carries (quarterbacks left out), catches or tackles. The box score lists no positions, so there is no offensive line here.
Throwing
- Mason Heintschel5 games148 attempts47%
- Holden GerinerMost passes in the last game6 games132 attempts42%
- Corey Dailey4 games35 attempts11%
Carrying
- Damon Ferguson Jr.9 games123 carries45%
- La'Vell Wright8 games76 carries28%
- Ja'Kyrian Turner3 games30 carries11%
- Justin Cook5 games12 carries4%
Catching
- Cataurus Hicks9 games34 catches18%
- Carson Kent9 games30 catches16%
- Censere Lee9 games24 catches12%
- Bryce Yates7 games18 catches9%
Tackling
- Cruce Brookins8 games61 tackles11%
- Jeremiah Marcelin9 games53 tackles10%
- Alex Sanford9 games43 tackles8%
- Braylan Lovelace9 games40 tackles7%
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
The season, week by week
- Week 1 W 59–14 vs Miami (OH). The run defense was the strength: Miami (OH) got 1.3 yards a carry, 3.4 under what it usually gains. Its most yards an attempt of the season.
- Week 2 W 12–7 vs UCF. The run defense was the strength: UCF got 0.9 yards a carry, 3.0 under what it usually gains. Its fewest yards a carry of the season.
- Week 3 W 27–13 vs Syracuse. The run game was the strength: 6.6 yards a carry, 2.7 more than Syracuse usually allows. Its most yards a carry of the season.
- Week 4 W 59–0 vs Bucknell. Bucknell is an FCS team, so there is no FBS baseline to grade this one against.
- Week 5 W 35–33 at Virginia Tech. The pass defense gave ground: Virginia Tech got 10.6 yards an attempt, 3.2 over what it usually gains. Won the turnover battle by 4.
- Week 6 L 17–21 vs North Carolina. The run defense was the strength: North Carolina got 0.8 yards a carry, 3.0 under what it usually gains. Its fewest yards an attempt of the season.
- Week 7 L 21–27 at Boston College. The pass defense gave ground: Boston College got 10.5 yards an attempt, 4.2 over what it usually gains. The machine had Pittsburgh by 7.0 (67%), so this was a loss it did not see coming.
- Week 8 L 23–52 at Miami. The run defense was the strength: Miami got 3.1 yards a carry, 1.8 under what it usually gains.
- Week 9 W 34–11 vs Georgia Tech. The pass defense was the strength: Georgia Tech got 3.3 yards an attempt, 3.9 under what it usually gains. The fewest yards an attempt it has allowed all season.