Pittsburgh coach Pat Narduzzi says Panthers ‘didn’t do a good job’ replacing talent, players react

Narduzzi said Pittsburgh lost talent and didn’t do a good job replacing it, a sentiment his players seemed frustrated by.

Pittsburgh lost to Notre Dame 58-7 on Saturday, and Panthers coach Pat Narduzzi teed off on his roster after the game.

“We lost a lot of good players last year,” Narduzzi said. “We thought we’d replace them and we obviously didn’t do a good job of that.”

Narduzzi expanded upon his thoughts more, saying it starts with him and he didn’t coach well enough on Saturday, but the damage was done. His comments ignited a firestorm in his locker room, with players like tight end Gavin Bartholomew, running backs Rodney Hammond and Derrick Davis, and defensive back Ryland Gandy all responding to the quote on social media with varyingly clear displays of frustration.

The coach clarified his comments further on social media after the game.

Narduzzi signed a contract extension through 2030 after the 2021 season, which saw the Panthers win the ACC behind Heisman finalist Kenny Pickett’s quarterback play. His buyout is not currently known, but the USA TODAY Sports database says the Pittsburgh coach is due to make $5,875,817 this season, the 28th-highest-paid coach in the sport.