Pitt searches for first 4-0 start in 24 years as Youngstown State visits

Youngstown State (1-2) at Pittsburgh (3-0), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ACC Network Extra)

BetMGM College Football Odds: No line.

Series record: Pitt leads 4-1.

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

The Panthers are seeking their first 4-0 start since 2000, heady territory for a program coming off a 3-9 mark a year ago. Pitt is one of the nation’s early-season surprises behind redshirt freshman quarterback Eli Holstein, who has thrown for over 300 yards in each of his first three games. The Penguins are coming off a 28-25 loss to Duquesne last week.

KEY MATCHUP

Youngstown State’s offensive line vs. Pitt’s front seven. The Panthers are young along the defensive line and at linebacker and while the inexperience has shown early, the aggressiveness that’s become the program’s calling card during coach Pat Narduzzi’s 10-year tenure hasn’t gone anywhere. Pitt has 10 sacks through three games, good enough for 16th nationally. If the Penguins can’t protect quarterback Beau Brungard, any chance of an upset like the one they pulled against the Panthers 12 years ago vanishes.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Youngstown State: Brungard. The sophomore is blossoming into a dangerous dual threat in his first season as a starter. Brungard leads the Penguins with 315 yards rushing on an average of 8.3 yards per carry, a number that would be even higher if sacks didn’t count against Brungard’s rushing total. He is also completing 70% of his passes (48 of 68) for an offense that is averaging a healthy 415 yards per game.

Pitt: RB Desmond Reid. The 5-foot-8 Reid leads the ACC in all-purpose yards (564) and touchdowns (five) through three weeks. He’s a threat in the passing game, hauling in a pair of scores in last week’s thriller against West Virginia. The only real question is durability. He found himself on the sideline late against the Mountaineers because he was “dinged up,” according Narduzzi.

FACTS & FIGURES

The Penguins have not been an easy out for the Panthers. Youngstown State upset Pitt in the 2012 season opener and tested the Panthers again in both 2015 (a 45-37 setback) and 2017 (a 28-21 overtime victory for Pitt). … Narduzzi’s father Bill was head coach at Youngstown State from 1974-85, twice leading the Penguins to the NCAA Division II playoffs, including a berth in the 1979 title game. Pat Narduzzi was a freshman linebacker for his father at Youngstown State in 1985. … Holstein is the first freshman QB in Pitt history to top 300 yards in each of his first three starts. … Pitt has overcome double-digit second-half deficits in each of the last two weeks, rallying from 21 down in the third quarter to stun Cincinnati then scoring 14 points in the final 3:15 to surge past the Mountaineers in the 107th edition of the Backyard Brawl.

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