Pitt throttlesYoungstown State with 73-17 Victory, Extends Winning Streak to 4-0

Tagged under: District 7, News, Pennsylvania Colleges, pfn

Ryan Thielet | September 22, 2024

The Pitt Panthers steamrolled the Youngstown State Penguins in a dominant performance. The Panthers’ offense struck hard and fast, executing almost flawlessly throughout the game. Pitt opened the first quarter by scoring 21 straight points. The Penguins scored 10 points in the second quarter, but Pitt responded by adding another 21 points to their total. In the third quarter, Pitt’s offense slowed slightly, putting up 10 points compared to the Penguins’ 7. However, the Panthers regained momentum in the fourth quarter, scoring 21 more points to secure a 73-17 victory. This 73-point total was the most Pitt has scored in a game since their 2016 matchup against Syracuse, where they tallied 76 points.

To start the game, the Panthers received the ball. They marched right down the field on their first drive, capping it off with a 6-yard touchdown pass from Eli Holstein to Raphael Williams Jr., putting Pitt on the board early with a score of 7-0 at 11:27 in the first quarter.

On the Penguins’ next drive, a recurring theme began as they went three-and-out, giving the ball back to the Panthers with 8:59 left in the first quarter. Pitt wasted no time, scoring in just two plays. This touchdown came from a 24-yard run by Daniel Carter, extending the lead to 14-0 with 8:24 left in the first quarter.

For the second straight drive, Youngstown State went three-and-out, handing the ball back to Pitt’s red-hot offense. The Panthers capitalized again, scoring on their third consecutive drive. This time, Holstein ran it in on a quarterback-designed play, making it 21-0 with 8:24 remaining in the first quarter, marking 21 unanswered points.

Youngstown State got the ball back and managed to hold on to it as the first quarter ended, with the score standing at Pitt 21, YSU 0.

The Penguins got on the board for the first time in the second quarter, with 12:33 remaining, as Andrew Lastovka kicked a 46-yard field goal to make it 21-3 Panthers. However, Pitt quickly responded with another touchdown, this time on a short 10-yard pass from Eli Holstein to Kenny Johnson, extending their lead to 28-3 with 10:34 left in the half.

On the Penguins’ next drive, they failed to score again as Kyle Louis snagged his second interception in two weeks, setting up Pitt’s offense once more. The Panthers needed just two plays to capitalize, with Daniel Carter running 34 yards for a touchdown, increasing the lead to 35-3 with 8:08 remaining in the half.

Youngstown State finally managed a touchdown when Cyrus Traugh caught a 25-yard pass, narrowing the score to 35-10 with 1:47 left in the half. But Pitt’s offense struck back immediately. On the next play, Eli Holstein connected with Censere Lee on an 82-yard touchdown pass, extending Pitt’s lead to 42-10 with 1:34 left.

That would be the final score of the half, as YSU ran out the clock, sending both teams into the locker room with Pitt leading 42-10.

Youngstown State received the ball to start the third quarter and began driving down the field, looking poised to score. However, Pitt linebacker Kyle Louis forced another turnover, this time causing a fumble that was recovered by the Panthers with 11:45 left in the third. Despite the opportunity, the Panthers were unable to capitalize on this turnover, as their offense was stopped for the first time in the game.

On the Penguins’ next drive, they scored on a 44-yard touchdown pass to Cyrus Traugh, narrowing the score to 42-17 in Pitt’s favor with 9:16 remaining in the third quarter. Pitt responded quickly, as Ben Sauls nailed a 49-yard field goal, extending the lead to 45-17 with 6:52 left in the third.

After the Penguins went three-and-out on their next possession, Pitt’s offense struck again. Eli Holstein scored his second rushing touchdown of the game, pushing the Panthers’ lead to 52-17 by the end of the third quarter.

That was the final drive for former ACC Rookie of the Week Eli Holstein, who finished his day completing 16 of 24 passes for 247 yards and 3 passing touchdowns, along with 93 rushing yards and 2 rushing touchdowns. This credits him with 340 total yards and 5 touchdowns by himself.

Moving into the fourth quarter, the Penguins continued their drive from the previous quarter, but it stalled out once again. The Panthers, now with Nate Yarnell in at quarterback, didn’t miss a beat. They drove down the field and scored another touchdown, courtesy of Daniel Carter, extending the lead to 59-17 with 10:25 left in the game. The Penguins’ struggles continued, committing another costly turnover. This time, Tamarion intercepted the ball and took it to the house for a pick-six, pushing the score to 66-17 in Pitt’s favor.

After yet another three-and-out by Youngstown State, Pitt tallied the game’s final points. The last nail in the coffin came from a 57-yard rushing touchdown by Che Nwabuko, bringing the Panthers’ total to 73 points. That would be the final scoring drive, with the game ending at 73-17 in Pitt’s favor.

Pitt’s offense was on fire today, scoring more points than plays run. They amassed a total of 644 yards on just 61 plays. Daniel Carter, after six years in the Pitt program, had a standout performance, rushing for 109 yards on 7 attempts with two rushing touchdowns and one receiving touchdown. The defense dominated the line of scrimmage, allowing only 106 rushing yards. On top of that now with just 4 games under his belt, Eli Holstein is over 1,000 yards passing on the season. Kyle Louis continued to impress, forcing 3 turnovers in two games, including two interceptions.

For the first time in program history, Pitt won all of their out-of-conference games to start the season, going 4-0 for the first time since 2000. This win was particularly meaningful for Coach Narduzzi, whose late father was a former coach at YSU. In honor of his father, Narduzzi wore his dad’s signature cut-off dress shirt and tie on the sideline.

The Panthers will look to continue their winning streak after a bye week. They will next face the North Carolina Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, NC. The time for that game is still to be determined as of September 22.

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