In this week's 3-2-1 column, we discuss a pair of news items that were dropped last Friday. The Pitt basketball team (correctly) opted not to participate in a postseason tournament, and we discuss the fallout from that decision and what lies ahead for Jeff Capel's program.
It was also leaked last week that Pitt is committing to offensive coordinator Kade Bell with an extension. Was is the right time to make that call after only one season? We get into that and a whole lot more.
THREE THINGS WE KNOW
Pitt commits to Bell
Last Friday, Pete Thamel of ESPN reported that Pitt offensive coordinator Kade Bell agreed to an extension which adds extra years and more money to his current deal. According to Thamel, the new contract will have Bell paid among the top play callers in the ACC for the upcoming 2025 season. Pitt has yet to confirm any type of extension as of Friday morning, but I think we can trust the reporting here from ESPN's lead college football writer and a new deal will be announced by the school sometime this spring.
This is an arrangement that makes a lot of sense for both sides. For Bell's part, who wouldn't take more money and more stability on his current contract? That much is obvious for the 32-year old offensive coordinator heading into his second season in Pittsburgh. As for Pitt's end, this feels like an investment and also a bet that they have the right guy for the job. It was clear as day following the 2023 season with a 3-9 record that Pat Narduzzi needed to try something different with his approach.
Narduzzi is a coach who is set in his ways to be certain, but his willingness to flip the script was also telling as he tries to adapt in the new age of college football. While I'm sure Narduzzi would love to win some 17-10 games with his defense being the heroes, that type of mindset is a bit antiquated in 2025.
Bell was essentially the exact opposite of what Narduzzi has typically valued in his previous hires at offensive coordinator. Unlike Frank Cignetti, Mark Whipple, Shawn Watson, and Jim Chaney, Bell was not super experienced going into this job. In fact, he never coached at the power-four level in any capacity prior to last season with most of his experience happening at the FCS level.
Aside from the experience factor, Bell also runs a completely different offensive philosophy that has ever been deployed at Pitt. In the 2024 season, there were clear signs of improvement in one year. Pitt's offensive numbers up and down the board were better, even with a disappointing finish to the season added to the equation. The Panthers had a much more viable passing game, they were more efficient in the red zone, and simply scored points, and that is the name of the game in today's college football and why Bell was brought in in the first place.
Anyone who follows Pitt football was obviously soured by the six-game losing streak to end this past season, but looking past that, there were a lot of things to like about Bell's approach. He was scheming up concepts that will work, so long as Pitt has the right personnel pieces, and that is where the extension comes in to play. Narduzzi did not just hire a new play caller, he changed how his entire football team is going to play. If you are making that type of switch, then you need to commit to the architect of that plan and the Bell extension allows for that to happen.
Bell's recruiting preferences have also been apparent. He is targeting speed above all else, and in order to play fast, you need offensive linemen who are conditioned to play at that tempo. Pitt had some of the right pieces in 2024, and were aided immensely by the presence of Desmond Reid, but in order to keep this going for the longterm, those are the type of players Bell is looking to build his offense around.
Pitt lacked depth in 2024, and as we saw, injuries derailed the season rather quickly. Bell certainly needs time to get his guys in the mix and build up the reinforcements so those issues don't occur again in the future.
Bell was definitely getting whispers for some other offensive coordinator gigs this past offseason. If he puts together a better 2025 campaign, than the interest in the young up-and-coming coach will only grow next offseason.
Pitt is hoping the extension makes him comfortable and invested in the job for the long haul. Coaching is obviously a transient profession, and Bell seems to be ambitious, but you still need to make the effort to keep him here if you believe in what he is doing, which clearly Narduzzi does.
In the past when Pitt lost offensive coordinators, Narduzzi would fill the void with a similar candidate who would run a similar scheme. Now, it's all different. The tempo-based attack is here to stay, seemingly, and so is Bell.
(Photo: Pitt Athletics )
Plenty is riding on Eli Holstein
The start off the 2025 regular season is a ways off, but the Pitt football team knows it can go into the year building its offense and defense around an All-American. Desmond Reid is electric with the ball in his hands, and there aren't many players as impactful as Kyle Louis is on defense.
That is a hell of a start for any team, but as we know at any level of football, quarterback is the catalyst to success. This Pitt program has felt that quite a bit since the graduation of Kenny Pickett, with the 2022, 2023, and 2024 teams all using three different starters to get through the season.
Holstein, the former top-100 recruit has the pedigree, and he flashed it quite often as a freshman starter. He earned five ACC Rookie of the Week honors, and had the Panthers off to an impressive e 7-0 start. Even before the injuries, and perhaps even in the middle of some of those wins, Holstein hit a bit of a freshman wall.
It's understandable, but after the hit in the Virginia game, he just never looked right. The awkward tackle in the Louisville game was enough to shut it down for the rest of the year too. It leaves Holstein's freshman year somewhat incomplete in a year that featured different several different story arcs for the young QB.
Yes, he was that unflappable freshman who engineered two fourth quarterback comebacks in rivalry games, but he was also a struggling rookie when the offense stagnated mid-year, then he was too injured to work his way out of that mid-year funk.
All three of those factors make up who Holstein is at this point in his career. For a young player going through his second camp at Pitt, and first as the defined starter, it has helped shape him and provided important lessons as he gears up for the 2025 season. Holstein spoke to the media earlier this week and one thing that stood out was him talking about being a leader. In order to be one of the team leaders, there has to be a sense of comfort in everything he is doing. It seems he has gotten to that point as well.
"I've had guys tell me, 'Hey, I need you to get on me,' and I told them I'm going to be on them, but they might not like me sometimes," Holstein told reporters on Tuesday. "You might throw a punch at me. We might tussle, but if that's what you want me to do, you're going to hear what you don't like sometimes."
I think at this stage in his career, that is what you want to see in a sophomore quarterback. Holstein's freshman season was a learning curve and at times a bumpy ride, but he knows that better than anyone. It is all about how he takes those experiences and applies them to this season. Pitt needs that growth from him as a player and a leader, and through two weeks of spring ball he is displaying those traits.
Declining NIT was right call
Pitt Director of Athletics Allen Greene released a statement last Friday indicating that the Panthers would be declining any potential postseason opportunities. This Pitt team likely would have been invited to the NIT, but it's hard to see any value in participating in that event for this particular group.
"Coach Capel and I are fully committed to positioning Pitt Basketball for sustained success in the ACC and NCAA Tournament. Our responsibility is to relentlessly evaluate and enhance every aspect of our program, ensuring it reflects the championship spirit of our city. Because that work is already underway, we've determined that the best path forward for our program is to forgo postseason tournaments this year as we build for the future."
In Greene's statement, he talked about moving forward and getting the roster in order for next season, and truthfully, that's the most important thing. Admittedly, I'm old school. I like watching trivial bowl games, and I typically enjoyed the NIT as well, but in the ever-changing landscape, the meaningless parts of the postseason are even more meaningless now.
Even beyond the decline of prestige to the NIT, I look at that tournament in several different ways. For a young team that started to play well late in the season, it can be an opportunity for them to keep working together for an extra game or two. In other cases, it's a great chance to reward for an overachieving team with some seniors who have never had much success in their careers.
I don't really know if Pitt fits into either category.
This was a group with lofty expectations that proceeded to go 5-13 over the final 18 games of the season. There is nothing about this team that suggested they wanted, needed, or even deserved the opportunity to keep playing. Frankly, it would have been a waste of assets and time to keep playing. I think most people understood that decision, but it was still met with some unpleasantries online when that news was dumped last Friday.
Whatever.
Pitt had nothing to gain by playing in the NIT, and this program needs to devote all of its time, attention, and resources in making sure they aren't in this position in 365 days from now. The season ended on the fluke foul called against Zack Austin, it did not need to be resurrected after that.
TWO QUESTIONS WE HAVE
What are the biggest needs in the transfer portal?
The college basketball transfer portal opens on Monday. While the floodgates have slightly opened already from players on teams that have already eliminated, the real fun begins on Monday after the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
It remains to be seen with what happens to Pitt's own roster. The Panthers have several players that would bring value should they return, but after a disappointing 17-15 season, it stands to reason there will be some movement off the current roster. Those moves will create corresponding ones, but until then, we can still look at this roster and identify some basic needs.
Pitt pursued, unsuccessfully might I add, to find a replacement for Blake Hinson last year. Names like Brandon Johnson, Adou Theiro, among others were out there, but Pitt failed to bring one into the fold. Jeff Capel's teams had some success with that stretch four type of player. Hinson was highly accomplished in his two years here, and even Mo Gueye before him played that role well. Pitt sort of tried to fit a square peg into a round hole with Guillermo Diaz Graham at that spot this year, but it's clear Pitt was missing that true catch and shoot option and it showed.
The Panthers also had success in 2023 and 2024 with multiple playmakers and distributors. When looking at the 2023 NCAA Tournament team, Pitt had Jamarius Burton and Nelly Cummings who could initiate offense. The following year Bub Carrington and Jaland Lowe shared those duties, but this past year missed that secondary playmaker and again, it was an obvious missing piece and placed too much pressure on Lowe.
The last one is probably the most glaring, and that's a center who is serviceable at defending and rebounding. There were plenty of shortcomings in Federiko Federiko's game, primarily on offense, but it seemed the Pitt coaches tried to overcompensate for his lack of offense with Cam Corhen. Then junior center produced a solid 11.0 point per game average this season, but Pitt got bullied inside more often than not this season whether on the glass or with allowing points in the paint.
It's clear this team needs some more muscle. I'm not sure if Pitt has to totally recreate the 2022-23 roster, but there were a lot of elements from that team that worked for how Capel likes to play: two guards who can create offense, a four who can stretch the floor, and a center that is comfortable having the defense collapse on him.
There will be more determinations on what this team based on who is back and who enters the portal. Pitt has some good pieces like Lowe, Brandin Cummings, and the twins, and others who would all add value to next year's roster, we'll just have to wait and see how that unfolds. Even with the uncertainty around Pitt's roster, there are some obvious areas that need addressed that would make for a more competitive team in 2025-26.
2026 defensive tackle Lincoln Hoke
2026 defensive tackle Lincoln Hoke
Can Pitt land some recruits out of the WPIAL?
Pitt's recruiting efforts are coming along in the class of 2026. The Panthers have a pair of commitments to date with Texas quarterback Angelo Renda and Ohio defensive back Isaac Patterson. Most of the work in this class will happen in June, which has been the approach for this staff for the better part of the decade.
At this stage, Pitt is setting their recruiting board and hosting visits here in the spring. One aspect of this year's efforts seem to be centered around Pitt's backyard. It has been no secret Pitt's recruiting in the WPIAL has been up and down in recent years. There have been some instances where Pitt brings in multiple in-state recruits, and other classes where that number has been nonexistent.
Pitt is prioritizing a few local products right now, and seem to have traction with all four of them. That group includes a pair of Peters Township stars: tight end Lucas Shanaflet and defensive end Reston Lehman. The Panthers also seem to be working hard on defensive back Lawrence 'Jay' Timmons from Pine Richland, as well as North Allegheny's Lincoln Hoke, a defensive tackle.
Some of those names may be familiar for several reasons. For starters, we have been writing about those four players quite a bit this offseason as they are all near the top of Pitt's recruiting board. Plus, Timmons and Hoke are sons of former Pittsburgh Steelers players as well. This is an notable group and one the Pitt coaches have been spending quite a bit of effort in recruiting.
As it stands now, it feels like the added emphasis is paying off for the Panthers. All four of those players have been around the Panthers during the spring, and it's likely they will be back a few more times before spring practice concludes in April. Hoke, Lehman, and Shanafelt all have official visits planned for June, and it's likely they'll get one scheduled for Timmons as well.
Obviously, there's competition brewing. Pitt was in on most of these guys early, but other power-four programs are following suit, which was to be expected. The key to recruiting is to stay persistent, sell your program, and in today's world, have some NIL and revenue sharing to be competitive.
I think Pitt is doing everything right thus far, and it should pay dividends when these guys come to making their decisions. While the WPIAL talent has fluctuated through the years, it's still an area vital to this program, and Pitt should have the means to start doing a better job in its own backyard.
ONE PREDICTION
Pitt women's basketball will turn the corner soon
In today's college sports there is football, then men's basketball, but after that an argument could be made what the third most important and popular college sport is after those two.
In reality, the answer is women's college basketball. There is legitimate star power in the sport. From Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese last year, to JuJu Watkins this year. These are popular athletes who command NIL and get television ratings.
Women's college basketball is a thriving and growing in popularity by the year. It is also no secret that Pitt is lagging behind in that department. The Panthers have little history to speak of, and the recent results have been nothing to write home about either.
Pitt just wrapped up a 13-19 campaign in 2025, the tenth consecutive losing season for the program. Although that represented a five-game improvement from 2024. Second-year coach Tory Verdi is seen as a program-builder after his success at UMass, and he obviously has his work cut out for him here in Pittsburgh.
Given Pitt's longterm history and lack of recent success, it may have turned some heads earlier this week when the Panthers landed a commitment from a Nylah Wilson, the No. 59 recruit in the country according to 247Sports. Other outlets have her as a five-star, and as you might guess, five stars usually do not show up on Pitt's doorstep very often, if ever.
That also did not happen by accident.
While football and mens basketball takes up much of the attention when it comes to NIL and revenue sharing, but as mentioned above, women's basketball has carved out a place at a lot of schools as well. I'm not sure if Pitt is all the sudden going to become a huge player in attracting the best talent in women's hoops, but I also feel there is some sort of commitment to not being one of the worst power-five programs as well.
This is a sport that is hard to climb the ladder, but I think the Panthers are getting there slowly but surely. It might not happen in 2025-26, but this program is going to start winning some games in the near future.