College Football Predictions – Pittsburgh Panthers 2019 College Football Preview
2018 Recap
Record – 7-7
ATS – 8-5-1
Boom.
The Panthers started out with a record of 3-4 but proceeded to rattle off four ACC victories in a row (Duke, at Virginia, Virginia Tech, at Wake Forest) to take control of the division. They couldn’t make a dent in the Clemson JUGGERNAUT and got blown out in the ACC Championship Game by a score of 42-10. Pitt gets full marks for hanging in there when things didn’t look great and becoming the 2018 Coastal Division SURPRISE PACKAGE.
What will Pitt do for an encore?
2019 MEGALOCKS Opening Power Rating
Coastal Division – #5
ACC -#11
Pittsburgh Panthers 2019 Outlook
OFFENSE
Tough times may be ahead for the Panthers as they need to find a way to win without their PAIR of 1,000-yard rushers from a season ago. Qadree Ollison and Darrin Hall ROLLED over the opposition to the tune of 2,357 rushing yards and 21 TDs last year and will be greatly missed. Pitt has a way of replacing RBs like nobody’s business and maybe highly-touted specimen AJ Davis will be NEXT MAN UP? The offensive line deserves a ton of credit for last year’s performance in the ground game but only return one starter. The good news? Junior QB Kenny Pickett has quite a bit of experience under his belt and also has a nice group of receivers at his disposal. Maurice Ffrench had 6 TDs LY and Taysir Mack averaged 22.3 (!) yards per reception.
New OC Mark Whipple will be able to coax more out of a THROW GAME that was pathetic last year (142 YPG, #13 ACC) but the rushing attack will not be close to the 2018 version. We expect an overall level of production similar to the prior year (25.6 PPG).
DEFENSE
The Panthers did just enough a season ago. They allowed 27.8 PPG (#8 ACC) and 388 YPG (#5 ACC) whilst bagging 30+ sacks for the third time in the past four seasons (32). They did their best work when it mattered most as they held Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Wake Forest to a combined 48 points in a critical three-game stretch. Six starters return to the stop unit which is obviously handy but they need to do a better job vs the run (178 YPG, #9 ACC LY). Rashad Weaver is an emerging star at his DE spot (14 TFL,10 QBH LY) and the Panthers will be happy to have MLB Elias Reynolds back in the fold as well as leading tackler FS Damar Hamlin. Pitt has done a good job vs the pass the last two years (about 55% completions on each occasion) and that should be the strength of their D once again. We don’t expect miracles but think the Panthers can perform at the same level as last season.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Yes, guy.
This just might be the strength of the team. PK Alex Kessman nailed 13/17 three-pointers including 4/5 (!) from 50+ a season ago and KR Maurice Ffrench is phenomenal on KRs (27.4, 2 TD LY).
Schedule Analysis
Overall – It’s a bit nasty. Check out the non-conference action (at Penn St, UCF, Ohio). They start out with the stingy Cavaliers on August 31.
Potential ATS Trouble Spot – Ohio (September 7)
This is your classic SANDWICH GAME (Virginia, at Penn St). Added bonus? Ohio is the most talented team in the MAC.
Season Win Total
Over 6 -115
Under 6 -105
MEGALOCKS says:
Slight LEANAGE to the under but not on it yet. It’s hard to see this team getting to 7 wins.
MEGAmazing Tidbits
The Panthers have lost six of their last seven bowl games.
RB Tony Dorsett was the first FBS player to rush for 6,000 yards in a career.
Check this out, yo. The first known use of numbers on the uniforms of football uniforms was instituted by Pitt in 1908. Amaze your STALKER EX-GIRLFRIEND with that trivia nugget.
MEGALOCKS ATS Outlook: Negative
There are a lot of teams trending upwards in the Coastal Division. Pitt may be taking a step backwards this year. They lose a ton of production at RB and the defense is decent, but not great. Fun fact: Pitt has allowed more points than they have scored in each of the past two seasons.
The Panthers feel like an ATS fade for the most part, particularly when they are in the role of home chalk as they are just 5-10-1 (33%) vs Vegas in that position during the tenure of HC Pat Narduzzi. Proceed with caution.
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NEWS
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http://bleacherreport.com/pitt-football
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