Pitt HC Narduzzi: 'Obviously We Didn't' Do a Good Job Replacing Talent amid Struggles

Following a tough loss against Notre Dame, Pittsburgh head coach Pat Narduzzi criticized the roster makeup for the team as a key to the team's struggles in 2023.

The Panthers fell 58-7 to the Fighting Irish, surrendering 27 points in the third quarter alone. The loss dropped Pittsburgh to 2-6 on the season and Narduzzi said that the team's inability to replace talent from previous season is a key to the low performance.

"I'll go back, as a football coach you lose a lot of good players from a year ago and you think as a coach you're going to replace them and obviously we haven't," Narduzzi said, per Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "Again, it starts with me. I didn't do a good enough job coaching today. Put it on me and we've got to make plays."

The Panthers have had a winning record in every season since 2017 and are just two seasons removed from an ACC Championship. The 2023 season hasn't been all bad, with an upset victory over then-undefeated Louisville just a week ago appearing to be a turning point, but the blowout loss to the Fighting Irish shows just how far Pittsburgh is from the upper echelon of college football.

Pittsburgh ranks 113th in total offense and the struggles Saturday show just why the unit has that ranking. The team produced just 255 yards of total offense and had five turnovers while going 1-of-11 on third down.

The Panthers will look to try to salvage the season going forward, but the next matchup provides no room for relief. Pittsburgh will host No. 4 Florida State next week.