The Pitt Panthers started off the 2024 season on fire, winning their first seven games. A number of injuries and some inconsistent play led to Pitt losing the final six games. With a number of players returning in 2025, including quarterback Eli Holstein, All-American running back Desmond Reid and the dynamic linebacker duo of Kyle Louis and Rasheem Biles, Pitt is poised for bigger and better things in 2025. Head coach Pat Narduzzi is heading into his 11th season as Pitt’s head coach, amassing a record of 72-56. Below is a breakdown of Pitt’s 2025 schedule.
August 30--- vs Duquesne
The City Game will be played for the first time since 1939. This should be a typical blowout of an FCS program. Expect the backups to be playing just before or just after halftime. Pitt wins big, 1-0.
September 6---vs Central Michigan
The Chippewas are led by first year head coach Matt Drinkall who was on the Army staff for the last six seasons. Central Michigan brings back a lot of players from the 2024 roster but are going to be working on learning a new system with new terminology under the new staff. This should be a comfortable win by Pitt, 2-0.
September 13 at--- West Virginia
Last year Pitt won the Backyard Brawl at home 38-34. However, this year’s game is in Morgantown, where the Panthers seem to have trouble winning. Rich Rodriguez has been hired for a second stint as Mountaineers’ head coach. This time around there is massive roster turnover so the expectation may be that Pitt can sneak out of town with a win. But, this is a rivalry game, ask WVU about being favored to win and see if they think back to the last Brawl Rodriguez coached in. Pitt will get a much needed road win over their rival, 3-0.
September 27--- vs Louisville
After a bye week Pitt comes back home to open ACC play against Louisville. The Cardinals are picked by most people to be a serious contender in the ACC this season. QB Miller Moss transfers in from USC to give head coach Jeff Brohm a legitimate passer. The Louisville offensive line lost a lot of starts from last season but Brohm hit the transfer portal and landed a group of linemen who have combined for over 200 starts. This will be a tough out for Pitt and I think the Panthers get their first loss of the season here, 3-1.
October 4--- vs Boston College
The Eagles lose a lot of production in the run game including their top two rushers as well as QB Thomas Castellanos. Alabama transfer Dylan Lonergan steps in as the probable starter for head coach Bill O’Brien. The top two receivers are back in senior Lewis Bond and 6-foot-5-inch sophomore Reed Harris. The defense loses 5 of the top eight tacklers. I like Pitt getting the home win to get to 4-1.
October 11--- at Florida State
You have to think that last year’s 2-10 season for the Seminoles was an anomaly. The talent level of the players at Florida State should guarantee at least 5 wins. But that was not the case, which led to one of the biggest collapses in college football history, going from 13-1 in 2023 to 2-10 in 2024. Boston College transfer QB Thomas Castellanos will lead the Noles’ offense. Head coach Mike Norvell persuaded UCF head coach Gus Malzahn to be Florida State’s offensive coordinator. This will be a much better Florida State team who will get the win against the Panthers. 4-2
October 18---at Syracuse
The Orange were a surprise team in 2024, finishing 10-3, but one of those losses came at Pitt in a game where QB Kyle McCord threw 5 Ints. McCord is gone, as is most of the Orange offense from last season. Notre Dame transfer QB Steve Angeli will lead the offense in 2025, an offense that only returns two starters. Head coach Fran Brown has his work cut out for him in 2025. This will be a Pitt road win, moving the Panthers to 5-2.
October 25--- vs NC State
Last season, true freshman QB CJ Bailey was thrust into the starting role after Grayson McCall suffered a season-ending injury against Wake Forest. Bailey finished with 2,413 passing yards and 13 touchdowns. His 10 interceptions will need to be cleaned up and should be in year two as the starter. The Wolfpack will be breaking in a new defensive coordinator for the 88th ranked defense in the country in 2024. This could be a back and forth game and I see Pitt scrapping to get the win to get bowl eligible at 6-2.
November 1---at Stanford
Cross country trips are always difficult for the road team as the players have to adjust to a new time zone. Athletes are typically creatures of habit, so if this game is an evening start it may be even more difficult for Pitt. Stanford fired coach Troy Taylor in March of 2025 after two investigations into behavioral issues with the Stanford staff. Frank Reich was brought in for one season as the interim head coach and has hired former Pitt tight end Nate Byham as his offensive coordinator. Reich should be able to get a lot out of his players but in the end this will be another road win for Pitt, taking the Panthers to 7-2.
November 15--- vs Notre Dame
After the second bye week Pitt welcomes the Fighting Irish to Acrisure Stadium. Notre Dame lost to Ohio State in the 2024 National Championship game. The Irish will be starting the season with redshirt freshman CJ Carr at QB, who has not played a down in a collegiate game. By the time this game is played head coach Marcus Freeman should have an idea of how good his QB is. While the top two tacklers are gone, the defense is loaded and this will be another loss to the Irish by Pitt, dropping them to 7-3.
November 22--- at Georgia Tech
The Yellow Jackets are the dark horse pick for a number of people to make the ACC championship game. That is mostly built on their final three games of the 2024 season where they defeated Miami and NC State at home and took Georgia to 8 OTs before falling in Athens to the Bulldogs. QB Haynes King is back, healthy and should be the dual-threat option coach Brent Key relied upon in those final regular season games. The defense returns seven starters and should improve on last season’s performance. This will be back-to-back losses for the Panthers, dropping them to 7-4.
November 29---0 vs Miami (FL)
Georgia transfer QB Carson Beck will lead the Hurricanes’ offense. Beck had flashes of brilliance at Georgia but also some head scratching moments. The top six receivers from 2024 are all gone as are five of the top six tacklers on defense. Head coach Mario Cristobal has reloaded using the transfer portal. But Cristobal seems to me to be a Dave Wannstedt 2.0, great recruiter but questionable game day coach. By the time this game is played the Miami offense may be beat up. With it being senior day the Panthers will be playing with a little extra and can pull out the home win, finishing the regular season 8-4.
An 8-4 season for Pitt, avoiding another end of the season collapse, will be welcomed by the Panther faithful. The possibility to get to 9 wins after the bowl game will be a step in the right direction. The feeling at the end of the 2025 season should be much different for the Panthers than the feeling at the end of 2024.
(photo courtesy of Pitt Athletics)