QB Nate Yarnell can't do it alone, so here are 5 units that need to step up for Pitt this season

Before compiling a list of the most important players who will populate the Beano Cook Fields when Pitt begins prepping for a new season Wednesday, we need to first identify the obvious choice for leader of the class:

The quarterback, Nate Yarnell.

There are several players who are as important as Yarnell, who is entering his junior season. (Has it been two years already?) But no one will be more central to Pitt’s success or failure.

All indications are that Yarnell has taken firm control of the team in and out of the huddle, but it’s his grasp of coordinator Kade Bell’s offensive scheme that will matter most — not just in practice against friendly fire, when hopes are high and everyone is 0-0. But in the ACC, where the expectation is to reach the title game of the now 17-team conference.

That’s a story to be told over time, but there are several player groupings that need to excel for coach Pat Narduzzi to even come close to that second ACC ring he was talking to reporters about last week in Charlotte, N.C.

Here are five units to watch:

Defensive tackle

Narduzzi was horrified by how Pitt played against the run last season, finishing in the middle of the ACC pack (eighth, allowing an average of 150.2 yards on the ground plus a total of 20 touchdowns).

Then, he lost line coach Charlie Partridge to the Indianapolis Colts; interior linemen Devin Danielson, David Green and Tyler Bentley exhausted their eligibility; and Deandre Jules transferred.

That leaves three WPIAL graduates — Sean FitzSimmons of Central Valley, Nahki Johnson of West Mifflin and Elliot Donald of Central Catholic — staring at a huge opportunities. Johnson is an interesting athlete to watch now that he has transformed from a 255-pound end to a 280-pound tackle.

Nick James came through the transfer portal from Indiana, but he has no starting experience. All four players must grow up in a hurry to help Pitt restore its treasured reputation for stopping the run.

Linebacker

Sixth-year middle linebacker Brandon George wanted to transfer at the end of last season, but he changed his mind and will be the leader of this group. He has been mainly a reserve but part of every team since 2019.

Now that George is starting, Narduzzi will expect to see more of what he put on display against premier competition last season. He had 2 1/2 TFLs against Florida State, nine tackles at West Virginia, a 14-yard sack in the Louisville game and an interception against Notre Dame.

Keye Thompson, a transfer from Ohio and a first-team All-Mid-American Conference choice last season, sat out spring ball with an injury. But in five seasons and 45 games for the Bobcats, he totaled 23 TFLs, 4 1/2 sacks, six fumble recoveries and three interceptions. At 6-foot, 230 pounds, he’ll fight for playing time with sophomores Kyle Louis, Jordan Bass, Rasheem Biles and Braylan Lovelace (Leechburg). Expect Louis to step to the top of the depth chart early in camp.

Offensive line

Bell is known as a clever play-caller, but his players need space in which to operate.

Narduzzi fired offensive line coach Dave Borbely after the season — collateral damage from a 3-9 season — but he didn’t leave an empty pantry for his successor, Jeremy Darveau.

Senior tackle Branson Taylor leads a group of seven juniors and seniors, plus returning sophomore starters B.J. Williams and Ryan Baer. Overall, tackles Taylor and Baer, center Terrence Moore and guards B.J. Williams and Jason Collier started a total of 42 games last season. Also returning is guard Ryan Jacoby, an Ohio State transfer and presumed 2023 starter until he suffered a season-ending injury in training camp.

Running back

It was no coincidence Pitt’s 3-9 record coincided with ranking last in the ACC in rushing yards per game, barely surpassing the century mark at an unacceptable 101.9.

Bell likes a fast-paced offense with plenty of shifts, RPOs and aerial production. But the R in RPO matters, too. Narduzzi has made that clear over his first nine seasons at Pitt.

Senior Rodney Hammond is almost a dinosaur in college football these days as a running back whose loyalty and whatever NIL incentives are involved have kept him at his school for four seasons. He will be the starter, but he doesn’t mind sharing the load.

Shifty Desmond Reid and speedy Derrick Davis Jr. (Gateway) could assume complementary roles (at least). Davis couldn’t get on the field last season after transferring from LSU, and Reid comes from Western Carolina, where he rushed for 1,723 yards and 17 touchdowns in 18 games (eight starts) in 2022 and 2023.

The name that kept popping up this spring in conversations with coaches, players and other observers of the program is that of 18-year-old freshman Juelz Goff. At 5-foot-9, 190 pounds, he broke a 48-year-old rushing record at Central York High School by rushing for 3,761 career yards.

Wide receiver

There is depth at wide receiver, giving Yarnell plenty of potential playmakers.

Konata Mumpfield, Kenny Johnson and Daejon Reynolds form a strong starting nucleus, and Bell helped lure to Pitt former Western Carolina receivers Raphael Williams Jr. and Censere Lee. Total stats: 202 receptions, 3,043 yards and 29 touchdowns.

Just in case Williams and Lee can’t compile similar numbers in a power conference, Pitt has Zion Fowler-El and Lamar Seymore, who were highly touted freshmen last season, plus redshirt sophomore Che Nwabuko, a gold medal-winning sprinter at Manor High School in Austin, Texas.