Penn State goes 20-0, Mt. Lebanon’s Stout brothers square off on 1st day of NCAA wrestling
Three-time defending national champion Penn State went 20-0 and a pair of brothers from Mt. Lebanon stole the show on the first day of the NCAA wrestling championships Thursday in Philadelphia. The undefeated day for the Nittany Lions included the 100th career victory for 174-pounder Carter Starocci, an 18-2 technical...
Pitt notebook: Putting on pads will give Pat Narduzzi opportunity to ‘see what we really have’
Coach Pat Narduzzi and staff will get serious Saturday when Pitt’s players strap on full gear for the first full live practice of the spring. The closed session — scheduled for Acrisure Stadium, weather permitting — will consist of more than 100 plays, the coach said. “Full live is an...
Eli Holstein learned leadership long before he became Pitt’s starting quarterback
Eli Holstein knows the drill. He is Pitt’s starting quarterback and, as such, he is expected to learn the playbook better than he knows his name, get the football out of his hand on time and fight for those extra, precious yards — even when confronted by a taller, heavier...
Madden Monday: When it comes to Steelers’ QB quandary, ‘blowing it with (Kenny) Pickett set them back 4-5 years’
Debate continues to swirl regarding what the Pittsburgh Steelers will do for a starting quarterback in 2025. However, in this week’s “Madden Monday” podcast, Mark Madden of 105.9 The X and TribLive believes the franchise should have one singular agenda. “The only decision the Steelers need to make correctly in...
Pitt rewards offensive coordinator Kade Bell with contract extension
After a season of improved production on offense, Pitt extended the contract of offensive coordinator Kade Bell, senior associate athletic director Pat Bostick said Saturday on the “Panther Insider” Show on 93.7 FM. Pitt has signed offensive coordinator Kade Bell to a three-season contract extension, a source tells @On3sports. The...
Falling short of the NCAA Tournament, Pitt men’s basketball says it will decline all postseason invitations
After missing out on an NCAA Tournament berth for the second year in a row, Pitt basketball will decline any other postseason opportunities, athletic director Allen Greene announced Friday. Greene, who added that coach Jeff Capel is in agreement, said the immediate focus of the program will be on the...
Pitt’s Khadija Faye declares for 2025 WNBA Draft
Pitt women’s player Khadija Faye, who averaged a double-double and was named All-ACC first team this season after transferring from Texas, announced Thursday night her intention to enter the 2025 WNBA Draft. The draft is scheduled for April 14. Faye, who played only one season at Pitt as a graduate...
Pitt notebook: Spring drills offer Panthers opportunity to move past last season’s losing streak
Ryan Baer used the words “embarrassing” and “unacceptable.” Kyle Louis spoke unashamedly of his “missed assignments … missed tackles … many screw-ups” during his All-American season last year at outside linebacker. Eli Holstein, according to Baer, is making clear improvements as a leader at quarterback while “stepping up” his game...
Important tasks that Pitt’s Jeff Capel must get right lie ahead after deflating loss in ACC Tournament
If you thought life has been tough for Pitt coach Jeff Capel since the first days of the new year, even more difficult issues are on the way. And we’re not talking about unhappy fans. After Pitt lost to Notre Dame on Tuesday in the first round of the ACC...
Pitt bows out of ACC Tournament after 55-54 loss to Notre Dame
Jaland Lowe and Zack Austin spoke through tears Tuesday afternoon inside Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C., reflecting on Pitt’s 55-54 loss to Notre Dame in the first round of the ACC Tournament. “I’m just hurt, man. I’m just hurt,” said Austin, who played his last game after two seasons at...
Pitt players, coaches carry on after the death of freshman Mason Alexander
Pat Narduzzi opened practice Tuesday in the same manner that marked his 10 previous spring sessions as Pitt’s head football coach. There were the usual calisthentics, drills and meetings on and off the field, but Narduzzi walked around the Beano Cook Fields overseeing the proceedings with a heavy heart. This...
Mt. Pleasant grad Dayton Pitzer named Most Outstanding Wrestler as Pitt places 2nd at ACC Tournament
It was quite a weekend for the Pitt wrestling team. The Panthers finished second at the ACC Tournament at Duke, had three champions and qualified seven wrestlers for the NCAA Championships set for March 20-22, in Philadelphia. The winning trio were graduate student Reece Heller (184 pounds), Mt. Lebanon grad...
In ACC Tournament opener, Pitt confronts Irish team that still believes it can win, even with losing record
If you thought it was maddening to root for Pitt this season, you should talk to a Notre Dame fan. The Irish (14-17, 8-12) experienced five-, four-, three- and two-game (twice) losing streaks but still found a way to wriggle their way into the ACC Tournament as the No. 12...
Believe it or not, it’s football season and spring drills are set to begin at Pitt
Pitt football’s hopeful journey toward ACC title contention — not just respectability and relevance — began only days after the six-overtime, 4-minute, 38-second loss to Toledo in the GameAbove Sports Bowl. Cell phone at the ready, coach Pat Narduzzi got busy in the transfer portal, bringing in 13 players who...
Analysis: If Pitt can find a way to win, Irish/Tar Heels rematches may be feel-good tonics for disappointing season
For the purposes of advancement in the ACC Tournament, Pitt might have received the least favorable matchup for the first round that begins Tuesday in Charlotte, N.C. When league officials unraveled the five-way tie for ninth place, Pitt was seeded 13th — the lowest of the five — and must...
Pitt ends losing streak with 93-67 victory against Boston College
With the pressure off and its spot secured in the first round of the ACC Tournament, Pitt had nothing to lose and only confidence to restore Saturday night while cruising to a 93-67 victory against Boston College at Petersen Events Center. The No. 13-seeded Panthers (17-14, 8-12) will play No....
Pitt Take 5: Panthers fail to earn bye in ACC Tournament, will play Tuesday
The Petersen Events Center shuts its doors on college basketball until next fall Saturday when Pitt meets Boston College. Pitt (16-14, 7-12) has won its past two games with the Eagles by 19 and 25 points, but this is not the Pitt team of Blake Hinson and Jamarius Burton. This...
While preparing to honor Pitt’s seniors, Jeff Capel recalls his own special night at Duke
More than anything, the game matters to Jeff Capel, just as much then as it does now. So he is looking forward to Saturday night and celebrating his seniors in the final home game of the season when Pitt plays Boston College at Petersen Events Center. Ishmael Leggett, Zack Austin,...
After 71-63 loss to N.C. State, Pitt’s losing streak reaches 4 for the 3rd time this season
Perhaps the worst part of Pitt’s 71-63 loss at N.C. State’s Lenovo Center in Raleigh, N.C., on Wednesday night wasn’t the deflating reality of the Panthers’ third four-game losing streak of the season. No, it was Pitt allowing the Wolfpack, who had lost nine in a row earlier this season,...
Pitt women bow out of ACC Tournament with loss to Virginia
The Pitt women’s 64-50 loss to Virginia on Wednesday in the first round of the ACC Tournament in Greensboro, N.C., was mainly a matter of the Cavaliers’ playing stingy defense against the Panthers. Center Khadija Faye, named to the All-ACC first team earlier in the week, missed 16 of 19...
Pitt’s Khadija Faye named 1st-team All-ACC in women’s basketball
Graduate student Khadija Faye’s name will stand among the most decorated Pitt women’s basketball players of all-time after she was named Tuesday first-team All-ACC. Faye, a 6-foot-4 center, joins Liatu King (2024) and Brianna Kiesel (2015) as the only Pitt women named first-team All-ACC in basketball. Previously, six players —...
ACC, Clemson, Florida State approve settlement to end legal fight, change revenue-distribution model
The Atlantic Coast Conference, Clemson and Florida State are ready to move forward together after legal fights that threatened the stability of the league. Each approved a settlement Tuesday to end the crossfire of lawsuits between the member schools and the ACC, signing off on a deal that changes the...
Season isn’t over, but what happens in 2025-26 when Pitt must replace 3 veterans?
Pitt coach Jeff Capel isn’t looking past N.C. State, the Panthers’ next opponent Wednesday night in Raleigh, N.C., and he hopes his players are at the moment setting aside their offseason plans. But in the back of his mind, Capel knows there is plenty of work to do after the...
Struggling Pitt, N.C. State prepare to confront each other, plus a future based on finances
Over the next two weeks, seasons of profound disappointment will end for coaches Jeff Capel of Pitt and Kevin Keatts of N.C. State. Their teams will meet Wednesday at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, N.C., with those men bringing to their benches a combined 27 seasons of head coaching experience....
Analysis: Losing streaks suggest Pitt will need more NIL money to improve basketball program
Perhaps the problems connected to Pitt basketball — football, too, as a matter of fact — are as clear as Jeff Capel’s answer to a question in October on the day Chancellor Joan Gabel first introduced athletic director Allen Greene to the public. Always insightful on matters of college basketball,...
