CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2020 Pittsburgh

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

Schedule and results

Pittsburgh in 2020, game by game: won vs. Austin Peay 55–0; won vs. Syracuse 21–10; won vs. No. 24 Louisville 23–20; lost vs. NC State 29–30; lost at Boston College 30–31; lost at No. 13 Miami 19–31; lost vs. No. 3 Notre Dame 3–45; won at Florida State 41–17; won vs. Virginia Tech 47–14; lost at No. 4 Clemson 17–52; won at Georgia Tech 34–20+55−42Won 55–0 vs. Austin Peay+55Austin PeayWon 21–10 vs. Syracuse+11SyracuseWon 23–20 vs. No. 24 Louisville+3No. 24 LouisvilleLost 29–30 vs. NC State-1NC StateLost 30–31 at Boston College-1Boston CollegeLost 19–31 at No. 13 Miami-12No. 13 MiamiLost 3–45 vs. No. 3 Notre Dame-42No. 3 Notre DameWon 41–17 at Florida State+24Florida StateWon 47–14 vs. Virginia Tech+33Virginia TechLost 17–52 at No. 4 Clemson-35No. 4 ClemsonWon 34–20 at Georgia Tech+14Georgia Tech
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 12vsAustin PeayW 55–⁠076%
Sep 19vsSyracuseW 21–⁠1066%
Sep 26vs24LouisvilleW 23–⁠2065%
Oct 3vsNC StateL 29–⁠3076%
Oct 10atBoston CollegeL 30–⁠3146%
Oct 17at13MiamiL 19–⁠3140%
Oct 24vs3Notre DameL 3–⁠4533%
Nov 7atFlorida StateW 41–⁠1751%
Nov 21vsVirginia TechW 47–⁠1456%
Nov 28at4ClemsonL 17–⁠5217%
Dec 10atGeorgia TechW 34–⁠2062%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Georgia Tech 34–⁠20; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 6th in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 50th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 128 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 3: 25
  2. Wk 4: 21
  3. Wk 5: 24

Burlsworth TrophyJimmy Morrissey, C

2 consensus All-AmericansPatrick Jones II, DL; Rashad Weaver, DL

Record
6–⁠5
Conference
5–⁠5 tied for 6th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked peak No. 21
Points
319–⁠270
Coach
Pat Narduzzi
Elo
1590 +53 this season
SP+ rating
6.0 No. 41 of 130; offense No. 89, defense No. 14
Returning
74% of last season’s EPA, No. 46 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 44 roster talent No. 36 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Mark Whipple
Defensive coordinator
Randy Bates
Offense
Pro-style
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense105th of 127
  • Defense30th of 127
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted110th of 127
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted20th of 127
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0138%1.28105th of 127
Defense0.0337%1.4730th of 127
Opponent-adjusted0.04 off
0.04 def		39% off
36% def		—110th off
20th 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
Offense3.4own 3020% allowed
Defense3.2own 2923% caused

CORE rating 5.6, 43rd of 127 (offense -6.7, defense -12.2).

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. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsKenny Pickett QB2,408 yds
Passing touchdownsKenny Pickett QB13 TD
Rushing yardsVincent Davis RB626 yds
Rushing touchdownsKenny Pickett QB8 TD
Receiving yardsJordan Addison WR666 yds
Receiving touchdownsJordan Addison WR4 TD
TacklesDamar Hamlin DB66 tkl
SacksPatrick Jones II DL8.5 sacks
InterceptionsJason Pinnock DB3 INT

Top recruits in the 2020 class

Jordan Addison ATH★★★★No. 259
Dayon Hayes SDE★★★★No. 311
Israel Abanikanda RB★★★No. 425
Rashad Battle CB★★★No. 478
Jaylon Barden WR★★★No. 502

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

The 2020 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks12.00.768
Running backs13.00.888
Receivers23.00.876
Offensive line23.00.874
Defensive line33.30.866
Linebackers33.00.862
Defensive backs43.00.864
Athletes and specialists33.00.834
Whole class193.00.858

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 2021

The 2021 draft
Rd 3Patrick Jones II DEMinnesota Vikings
Rd 4Rashad Weaver DETennessee Titans
Rd 5Jason Pinnock CBNew York Jets
Rd 6Jaylen Twyman DTMinnesota Vikings
Rd 6Damar Hamlin SBuffalo Bills
Rd 7Jimmy Morrissey CLas Vegas Raiders

Roster 114

The 2020 roster

114 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2020 line; 67 have a stat line. See the roster

2020 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Notre Dame9–⁠010–⁠25
Clemson8–⁠110–⁠23
Miami7–⁠28–⁠322
North Carolina7–⁠38–⁠418
NC State7–⁠38–⁠4
Pittsburgh5–⁠56–⁠5
Boston College5–⁠56–⁠5
Virginia Tech5–⁠55–⁠6
Virginia4–⁠55–⁠5
Wake Forest3–⁠44–⁠5
Georgia Tech3–⁠63–⁠7
Louisville3–⁠74–⁠7
Florida State2–⁠63–⁠6
Duke1–⁠92–⁠9
Syracuse1–⁠91–⁠10

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