Pat Narduzzi wasn’t shy about voicing his frustration about his team’s performance on fourth down last fall. While the Panthers had solid moments throughout 2022 on special teams as a whole, the punt unit was the group’s biggest area of weakness from start to finish, something that never sat well with the Pitt head coach.
“That punt team has not been a pretty sight this year,” Narduzzi told reporters in early November. “... By the end of the year. we'll have our guy for next year, I can guarantee you that, but it's taking a while, and it's not easy sitting back there. Not only is it a new punter, it's a new snapper, as well.”
The trio of Sam Vander Haar, Cam Guess and Caleb Junko all split time at punter last fall, but none of the three was able to establish himself as the runaway candidate to start in 2023. With a new season on the horizon, the Panthers could be putting their fourth down faith into the hands of a newcomer.
Special teams coach Andre Powell informed reporters Thursday afternoon that Junko and junior walk-on Jeff Yurk have taken the majority of punting snaps this spring. Powell added that Yurk, who transferred into Pitt this offseason from Elon, is, as of now, the only punter challenging Junko for the starting spot to which he earned in the tail end of last season.
“He’s a strong-legged guy,” Powell said of Yurk. “He’s got a strong leg. He’s got to work on hang time — he kicks the ball too far without the appropriate hang time.”
To go along with the punting battle, Powell said returning long snapper Byron Floyd is in a battle for his starting job, as well. While the special teams coach didn’t indicate which Panther was challenging the redshirt junior, redshirt sophomore James Fineran and redshirt freshman Brock Wilkins are the only two other long snappers on Pitt’s roster.
Pitt averaged just 35.6 yards a punt last fall, which was 12th in the ACC. The Panthers also allowed a pair of blocks in 2022 against West Virginia and Virginia Tech, both games Narduzzi’s team managed to win. Powell believes regardless of who wins the starting jobs, the unit as a whole will be better in 2023 because of its collective experience.
“We changed some things around,” Powell said. “It’s still a lot of the things we’ve already done, but we’ve organized it better, given it better terminology and we’re a lot more specific.”
Ready and waiting
While the majority of the starting spots on Pitt’s offense will likely be determined prior to the start of training camp this summer, the true position battles to keep an eye on this offseason are at the reserve roles.
Position groups like the offensive line and wide receiver return a bulk of starters but few experienced backups waiting behind them. With four impactful senior offensive linemen gone, a younger player some believe will step up is Ryan Baer, a 6-foot-7, 335-pound redshirt freshman out of Eastlake High School in Ohio.
Baer came to Pitt in 2022 as a tackle but has also taken reps at guard this spring, allowing him to be used off the bench when any of the Panthers’ five projected starters up front need a break. While some would rather put the bulk of their focus into one position, Baer says he enjoys the challenge of being versatile.
“Guard teaches you how to be more aggressive,” Baer said. “Everything is kind of more close combat. Guard you’re running out and blocking guys lined up wider. I think it helps me get my footwork down and to be a bit faster.”
As Baer looks to take on a bigger role up front, redshirt sophomore Myles Alston hopes to do the same at receiver. Alston saw brief time on the field in 2022 following the departure of Jaden Bradley but failed to haul in a reception. After having a full year to learn Frank Cignetti’s offense, the 6--1, 180-pound pass catcher hopes to be a dependable option through the air in 2023.
“My goal was to come in and make sure I got better each day,” Alston said. “I just want to keep climbing the depth chart and working on the little things. I’ve been asking coaches what they saw from me each day and what I can improve on. I want to be undeniable. I want to be someone who can help our team this season.”
Noah Hiles: nhiles@post-gazette.com and Twitter @_NoahHiles
First Published: March 30, 2023, 5:30 p.m.
