Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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42 OCT. 28, 2023 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED GAME PREVIEW: PITTSBURGH sacks on Jurkovec. The former top-100 recruit for Notre Dame passed 22 times, completing only 11 but throwing for an efficient 235 yards. He finished the game as the quarterback of the 106th- most productive passing offense in the country. Narduzzi didn't have any answers. "Offensively, we didn't do anything," Narduzzi told the Associated Press. "We had two explosive plays, but other than that, I didn't feel it at all. We'll gather in the open week, do a major self-scout, figure out where we are and what we have to do to right the ship." The result of Pitt's self-scouting was to bench Jurkovec for Veilleux, who is expected to start against Notre Dame. Veilleux played significant time in a 41- 24 loss to North Carolina on Sept. 23, completing 7 of 18 passes for 85 yards with no touchdowns and 2 intercep- tions. Multiple outlets, including the Pitts- burgh Post-Gazette and The Athletic, reported that Jurkovec planned to switch to tight end for the second half of his sixth and final season of college football. Narduzzi, however, denied those reports. "No," Narduzzi said after being asked if Jurkovec will play tight end, accord- ing to the Johnstown Tribune-Dem- ocrat. "Again, rumors get out there, I guess, whatever you want to call it. He's been in the quarterback meetings. He's a quarterback, and that's what he is. Could he be a tight end someday? Yeah, but I'm talking down the line. He's a quarterback here at Pitt." Jurkovec was the backup quarterback when Narduzzi made those remarks, Three Things To Know About Pitt 1. Phil Jurkovec Won't Get Another Shot At The Irish For the second straight year, former Notre Dame quarterback Phil Jurk- ovec is on the roster of a team facing the Fighting Irish. And for the second straight year, he probably won't play against the team he originally signed with out of high school. Jurkovec was benched for Christian Veilleux five games into the 2023 season. Last year with Boston College, Jurkovec did not play against the Irish because of an injury. Through five games this year, Jurkovec had com- pleted 57 of 112 (50.9 percent) passes for 818 yards with 6 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Pitt went 1-4 in those games. There were rumblings Notre Dame might see Jurkovec play as a tight end, but head coach Pat Narduzzi shot those down Oct. 9. "He's a quarterback, and that's what he is," Narduzzi said. Just not a starting quarterback anymore. 2. Feeble Rushing Game Jurkovec wasn't getting much help from Pitt's running game, or lack thereof. Through five games, the Panthers' leading rusher was Rodney Hammond Jr. with 46 carries for 196 yards. Jurkovec had the second-most rushing attempts on the team at that time with 38 totes for 59 yards. Former Notre Dame running back C'Bo Flemister was at 32 carries for 150 yards, and Daniel Carter had 23 carries for 104 yards. None of Pitt's four most-used ball carriers had an average of at least 5.0 yards per carry. It all added up to the nation's No. 110 rushing offense in terms of total yards per game on the ground. Pitt could only muster a mark of 115.6 through five games. Pitt averaged 90.3 yards per game against the first four FBS opponents it faced. Virginia Tech held the Panthers to 24 carries for 38 yards. The Notre Dame defense should be able to do a number against the Panthers in this facet of the game. 3. Capable Linebacking Corps Pittsburgh isn't going to wow you a whole lot defensively, but the Panthers do have some linebackers who can make plays. One of them is former Notre Dame linebacker Shayne Simon, who through five games had 19 total tackles, 4 tackles for loss and 2 sacks. Solomon DeShields had 29 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and 1 sack. Simon likely would have gotten some run at Notre Dame the last two years if he didn't elect to transfer after a season-ending shoulder injury suffered in September 2021. In a season and a half at Pitt, Simon has compiled 65 total tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss and 2 sacks. In the same span, Notre Dame linebacker Marist Liufau has 80 total tackles but just 6 tackles for loss and 1 sack. It'll be a homecoming of sorts for Simon, and he has the tools to disrupt the Notre Dame offense a time or two. — Tyler Horka Former Irish linebacker Shayne Simon has compiled 65 total stops, 9.5 tackles for loss and 2 sacks in a season and a half with the Panthers. PHOTO COURTESY PITT ATHLETICS