Sep 4, 2015 4 min read

PITTSBURGH – Pat Narduzzi cannot help but feel a little nostalgic entering his first game as Pitt’s head coach. The Panthers are facing a program he grew up around and played for.

Narduzzi’s father, Bill, was Youngstown State’s head coach from 1975 to 1985, leading the Penguins to two NCAA Division II playoff appearances, including the 1979 national championship game. Pat was a ballboy for some of those teams and went on to start at linebacker for his father in 1985, leading the Ohio Valley Conference in tackles as a freshman.

His connection to the Penguins goes even further. Narduzzi is close friends with first-year Youngstown State coach Bo Pelini, having coached against him for years and the two played for rival high schools in Youngstown.

Narduzzi was a standout senior linebacker for Ursuline in 1984, while Pelilni was the starting junior quarterback for Cardinal Mooney in a game that decided the Steel Valley Conference title. Ursuline won 35-0.

With the two facing one another today at Heinz Field (1 p.m.), it gave them the opportunity to reflect on those early days in Youngstown – a city that once lived for football on Friday nights and Saturday afternoons.

“You can’t let the emotions get to you,” Narduzzi said. “It’s great to go out against someone you know. I have a ton of respect for Bo. I went out and visited him, maybe about five years ago, at Nebraska because we’re friends and talked ball for a couple days.

“Being from (Youngstown) plays into it, but me or Bo aren’t going to play one down. We’ll shake hands, hug pregame, that’s about it and let the players take over.”

The two coached against each other for seven seasons when Narduzzi was defensive coordinator for Michigan State and Pelini was the head coach at Nebraska.

“I’ve known Pat for a fairly long time,” Pelini said Tuesday morning. “I have a lot of respect for him. I think he’s a good football coach. … He’s a Youngstown guy and, other than this game, I wish him well. I hope they win them all besides this one.”

The two coaches were at their previous schools when Youngstown State defeated Pitt, 31-17, at Heinz Field to open the 2012 season. It was the Penguins’ first win over a Power Five conference program. Much has changed since then. Now, the Panthers have one of the top running backs in the country.

Junior James Conner could be asked to carry the offense against the Penguins with junior wide receiver Tyler Boyd suspended stemming from a DUI charge over the summer. Conner rushed for 1,800 yards and 26 touchdowns last season, but he’ll run behind an offensive line that has battled injuries this summer and could have two redshirt freshmen.

The Penguins allowed an average of 23.5 points per game last year, while opponents ran for 4.3 yards per carry. Led by Washington High School graduate Jaylin Kelly, a junior starting middle linebacker, Youngstown State had 57 sacks – 24 combined from defensive ends Derek Rivers and Terrell Williams – and forced 14 turnovers.

Game planning for the Penguins has been a challenge for Pitt. The players are watching game film on Nebraska’s defense to see Pelini’s scheme and Youngstown State film to watch certain players.

“Bo’s defenses have always been very sound and very good,” Pitt offensive coordinator Jim Chaney said. “I look for them to run multiple and I look for them to pressure us early to see if we can handle the pressure. We’ve struggled a little bit with that in previous seasons in passing situations, so I’d say they’ll test our offensive line with blitzes like anyone would in game one.”

The Panthers are not overlooking the Penguins. A countdown clock to kickoff has been running on every television screen in the team’s practice facility on the South Side. Cornerback Lafayette Pitts remembers that loss in 2012 and the Panthers’ seniors have vowed to not let it happen again.

“That’s going to be on my mind,” Pitts said. “They came in to compete and we came walking in the building thinking that we’re just going to roll out and win the game. They showed us there’s more than that to winning in football.”