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2015 Pittsburgh

8–⁠5 (6–⁠2 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Pat Narduzzi.

Schedule and results

Pittsburgh in 2015, game by game: won vs. Youngstown State 45–37; won at Akron 24–7; lost at Iowa 24–27; won at Virginia Tech 17–13; won vs. Virginia 26–19; won at Georgia Tech 31–28; won at Syracuse 23–20; lost vs. North Carolina 19–26; lost vs. No. 8 Notre Dame 30–42; won at Duke 31–13; won vs. Louisville 45–34; lost vs. Miami 24–29; lost vs. No. 21 Navy 28–44+18−16Won 45–37 vs. Youngstown State+8Youngstown StateWon 24–7 at Akron+17AkronLost 24–27 at Iowa-3IowaWon 17–13 at Virginia Tech+4Virginia TechWon 26–19 vs. Virginia+7VirginiaWon 31–28 at Georgia Tech+3Georgia TechWon 23–20 at Syracuse+3SyracuseLost 19–26 vs. North Carolina-7North CarolinaLost 30–42 vs. No. 8 Notre Dame-12No. 8 Notre DameWon 31–13 at Duke+18DukeWon 45–34 vs. Louisville+11LouisvilleLost 24–29 vs. Miami-5MiamiLost 28–44 vs. No. 21 Navy-16No. 21 Navy
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 5vsYoungstown StateW 45–⁠3777%
Sep 12atAkronW 24–⁠759%
Sep 19atIowaL 24–⁠2738%
Oct 3atVirginia TechW 17–⁠1341%
Oct 10vsVirginiaW 26–⁠1973%
Oct 17atGeorgia TechW 31–⁠2841%
Oct 24atSyracuseW 23–⁠2065%
Oct 29vsNorth CarolinaL 19–⁠2656%
Nov 7vs8Notre DameL 30–⁠4239%
Nov 14atDukeW 31–⁠1338%
Nov 21vsLouisvilleW 45–⁠3452%
Nov 27vsMiamiL 24–⁠2963%
Dec 28Bowls & playoffvs21NavyMilitary BowlL 28–⁠4441%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Navy 44–⁠28 in the Military Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 3rd in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 58th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 128 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 8: 25
  2. Wk 9: 23
Record
8–⁠5
Conference
6–⁠2 tied for 3rd in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked peak No. 23
Points
367–⁠339
Coach
Pat Narduzzi
Elo
1561 +51 this season
SP+ rating
11.1 No. 33 of 128; offense No. 40, defense No. 35, special teams No. 81
SRS
7.2 No. 40 of 128 in FBS
Returning
84% of last season’s EPA, No. 22 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 46 roster talent No. 42 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Jim Chaney
Defensive coordinator
Josh Conklin
Offense
Pro-style
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense41st of 128
  • Defense85th of 128
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted43rd of 128
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted63rd of 128
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1446%1.0941st of 128
Defense0.1342%1.2985th of 128
Opponent-adjusted0.14 off
0.08 def		46% off
40% def		—43rd off
63rd def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.6own 313% allowed
Defense3.9own 261% caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsNathan Peterman QB2,287 yds
Passing touchdownsNathan Peterman QB20 TD
Rushing yardsQadree Ollison RB1,121 yds
Rushing touchdownsQadree Ollison RB11 TD
Receiving yardsTyler Boyd WR926 yds
Receiving touchdownsTyler Boyd WR6 TD
InterceptionsAvonte Maddox DB3 INT

Top recruits in the 2015 class

Jordan Whitehead CB★★★★No. 105
Darrin Hall RB★★★★No. 294
Anthony McKee OLB★★★No. 357
Alex Paulina OG★★★No. 647
Saleem Brightwell OLB★★★No. 755

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2015 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.818
Running backs14.00.900
Receivers23.00.821
Offensive line13.00.863
Linebackers23.00.874
Defensive backs23.50.883
Whole class93.20.860

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2016

The 2016 draft
Rd 2Tyler Boyd WRCincinnati Bengals

Roster 106

The 2015 roster

106 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2015 line; 28 have a stat line. See the roster

2015 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Clemson8–⁠014–⁠12
North Carolina8–⁠011–⁠315
Florida State6–⁠210–⁠314
Pittsburgh6–⁠28–⁠5
Miami5–⁠38–⁠5
Louisville5–⁠38–⁠5
Duke4–⁠48–⁠5
Virginia Tech4–⁠47–⁠6
NC State3–⁠57–⁠6
Virginia3–⁠54–⁠8
Syracuse2–⁠64–⁠8
Georgia Tech1–⁠73–⁠9
Wake Forest1–⁠73–⁠9
Boston College0–⁠83–⁠9

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.