PITTSBURGH — Around this time last year — Dec. 15, 2020, to be exact — Pitt's football fortunes took a major turn. That was the day quarterback Kenny Pickett surprisingly announced he would return for a fifth season.
Pickett wound up throwing for more touchdown passes (42) than in his previous four years combined and made a legit run at the Heisman Trophy. But a big-picture thought lingered, all the way through Pitt's victory in the ACC championship: This would probably be a one-and-done for the program, right?
It would probably return to its customary level of mediocrity mixed with a big upset win now and again.
Right?
Maybe. But I'm starting to lean the other way. I'm wondering if we might look back on Dec. 21, 2021, as another landmark occasion.
That was the day Southern California transfer Kedon Slovis announced his commitment to Pitt, and before you ask the obvious question — "Who is Kedon Slovis?" — know this: He was among the top 10 favorites for the Heisman Trophy coming into the season. (We'll tell the rest of the story in a minute).
A day after the Slovis news, the good vibes kept flowing. Faced with the prospect of a major breakup, Pitt's entire offensive line announced it would instead return intact.
Did I mention the reigning Biletnikoff winner — Jordan Addison — will be back for another season of brilliance?
Suddenly, amazingly, Pitt looks like the most stable program in the ACC's Coastal Division — seven starters are anticipated back on defense, as well. The program that once went through coaches like coffee filters suddenly has a coach with more tenure — seven years at his school — than all the other Coastal coaches at their schools combined, if you can believe that.
This is no longer a "Pitt Stop."
It has become a "Pat Stop."
It's true that Narduzzi might never have an easier non-conference schedule than this year's — rematch at Western Michigan next season notwithstanding — and might never again play an entire regular season without facing a ranked team. (Clemson was unranked when the teams played.) But how can you not like next year's prospects?
As for Slovis, things went sideways at Southern California this season, but I look at that more as a Southern California problem than a Slovis problem. He had less time to throw, worse receivers to throw to and the program blew up around him. The school fired another coach in-season, which has become a habit out there.
The fact that Slovis struggled and eventually was replaced can't erase the tape from his fabulous freshman season of 2019. He began that year as a 3-star recruit and finished as a legit NFL prospect after throwing for 30 touchdowns against nine interceptions and completing 71.9 percent of his passes.
One off year doesn't negate the fact that Slovis stands 6-foot-3 and can make every throw, either.
A mid-November piece from 247sports.com uncovered these nuggets via Pro Football Focus:
— Slovis had less time to throw on dropbacks (2.69 seconds) than at any time in his career, yet his percentage of "big-time throws" — a precise pass further down the field, into a tight window — was "higher than it's ever been."
I don't want to go too crazy here. Shoulder issues reportedly impacted Slovis' accuracy in the pandemic-shortened year of 2020 — he finished with 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions. But, man, check out the highlights from his freshman year. Those are real. And he has two years of eligibility remaining.
I'll bet nobody hates the transfer portal anymore. And I'll bet Pitt's relative stability — can you believe we're saying that? — helped attract Slovis here.
"We were looking for the best available (quarterback)," Narduzzi told reporters Wednesday. "We hunted and we searched and we had some good guys in the bucket. And we were able to land our No. 1 guy."
That seems to be the way of it with Pitt football these days.
Things have changed.
