Competition arises midway through Pitt's spring drills

Apr. 6—The seemingly basic procedure of conducting spring football drills has turned out to be more difficult than usual this year. Not that Pat Narduzzi is surprised.

"It's still around," Pitt's coach said of the coronavirus that forced him to postpone a week's worth of drills last month.

But everyone is off quarantine now, and Narduzzi is pleased drills weren't canceled as they were last year after three sessions.

Tuesday marked Pitt's seventh of the 15 spring practices allowed by the NCAA. Five have been conducted in pads. So the Panthers already are far ahead of last year's spring that led to a 6-5 finish.

The university announced Tuesday that the Blue Gold intrasquad game will be delayed from April 17 to April 24 at Heinz Field. The extra week will allow the team to remain on schedule.

"I thought I'd be cheating the team if I practiced (Tuesday), then had another one (Wednesday) or have one on Good Friday," Narduzzi said. "Just didn't want to do it.

"We have to take our time, look at the tape, make all the corrections. That's what coaches do. To rush it, we'll rush our kids physically and mentally, and I don't think we'll get as much out of them."

Speaking with reporters Tuesday on a conference call, Narduzzi detailed some of the competitive situations evolving at practice. Here are a few of them:

Linebackers

The most significant development is rising junior SirVocea Dennis missing the entire spring with an injury. Dennis, named third team All-ACC last season, played outside linebacker, sharing the team lead in tackles for loss (14 1/2 ) with NFL-bound defensive end Rashad Weaver.

"He's lifting. He looks big," the coach said of Dennis. "You'd think he's playing right now."

Dennis is one of six players, including linebackers Leslie Smith and Bangally Kamara, who will miss spring drills with injuries. Safety Erick Hallett, defensive lineman Nate Temple and tight end Grant Carrigan (Pine-Richland) are the others.

Senior linebackers Phil Campbell III, Cam Bright and Chase Pine are being pushed by Wendell Davis in the middle and Penn State transfer John Petrishen (Central Catholic) at star.

Petrishen has excelled, Narduzzi said. "Light years ahead of where he was last year."

"We have our best group of linebackers since I've been here," said the coach, who is in his seventh season at Pitt. "It helps you win championships when you have depth and competition."

Offensive tackle

There's a three-way battle for two starting spots, with Carter Warren, Matt Goncalves and Gabe Houy (Upper St. Clair).

"Those are some good players," Narduzzi said. "I'm happy with all three of those guys. It's going to come down to who's consistent day-in and day-out."

Houy also can play guard.

Safety

This is a critical position after Pitt lost Damar Hamlin and Paris Ford.

Coaches know what Hallett can do. Among returning players, he tied cornerback Marquis Williams for the lead in interceptions (two) and pass breakups (four) last season. If he's healthy, his spring absence can be mitigated this summer.

Meanwhile, junior Judson Tallandier, Kentucky transfer M.J. Devonshire (Aliquippa) and freshman P.J. O'Brien earned mention from the coach.

"Those guys are getting a chance to step up and see if they can beat Hallett out in the fall," Narduzzi said.

Wide receiver

Holdovers Jordan Addison, Taysir Mack, Tre Tipton, Shocky Jacques-Louis, Jared Wayne and Jaylon Barden will be joined by Hawaii transfer Melquise Stovall this summer.

Narduzzi said there will be enough footballs to go around for everyone, but he has been especially impressed by Mack, whose numbers fell from 63/736/3 in 2019 to 23/305/2 last year in four fewer games.

"Taysir Mack is having an incredible spring so far," Narduzzi said. "I'm really happy with where he's come mentally and physically. He's playing fast."

Backup quarterback

One of the more serious problems caused by the cancellation of spring practice last year was the inability to get a good look at the players behind Kenny Pickett.

"We would be really under the gun if Kenny wasn't back, trying to get one of these guys to step up (and be the starter)," Narduzzi said.

Sophomore Davis Beville had the best performance "stat-wise" at a scrimmage last week, according to Narduzzi.

"He threw a nice one down the sideline to Addison. They've all shown some good things. It's a constant battle."

He's not ready to pick a No. 1 backup among Beville, Joey Yellen and Nick Patti. He added that freshman Nate Yarnell has shown good leadership skills.

Jerry DiPaola is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jerry by email at jdipaola@triblive.com or via Twitter .