Know your foe Pittsburgh: With Panthers could give Notre Dame problems

More than a few familiar faces the Irish will line up against on Saturday

There is going to be a somewhat familiar feel for a few [autotag]Pittsburgh[/autotag] players as they are set to face off against [autotag]Notre Dame football[/autotag] this weekend.

Why you ask? Well, a few of them were once members of the Irish football team, the most recognizable is quarterback, err tight end [autotag]Phil Jurkovec[/autotag], although we most likely won’t see him this weekend except for maybe special teams after he lost the starting job earlier this season. So, we won’t touch on him here anymore.

However, there are others on the Panther team that will be easily recognized by Irish fans. Let’s take a look at which Pittsburgh players could give Notre Dame problems this Saturday afternoon.

Pittsburgh statistical leaders through seven games

You might recognize a couple of these names.

Notre Dame fans will see a couple of familiar faces when their team battles Pittsburgh. That’s because the Panthers’ top quarterback and running back both once donned the blue and gold. In fact, a lot of the Panthers’ best players are transfers, either because they didn’t get the opportunities they sought at other programs or they wanted to use up college eligibility elsewhere. Either way, many of these Panthers didn’t start as Panthers.

Is that part of the reason the Panthers’ offense isn’t as strong as their defense? Perhaps, but either way, most of this season has not gone well for the Steel City program. The fact that they handled Louisville and the Irish didn’t is not a good look for [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] and his staff. Alas, nothing can be done to change that now.

Assuming the Panthers can make this a game, here are the players most likely to do that:

Report: Pittsburgh benches Jurkovec, expected to start Veilleux next week

Phil Jurkovec, who has 2 TDs and 3 INTs over his past three games, will reportedly no longer be the starter for the Pittsburgh Panthers.

The Pittsburgh Panthers have made a change at quarterback, according to a Wednesday report from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Noah Hiles.

The Panthers will trade senior Phil Jurkovec for sophomore Christian Veilleux when they next take the field against Louisville on Oct. 14.

Jurkovec, a three-year starter at Boston College who transferred to Pittsburgh before this season, has struggled so far in 2023. He’s completed a career-low 50.9% of his passes, he’s thrown more interceptions (3) than touchdowns (2) over his last three starts, and he’s been given a QBR below 35 in three of his five games.

Hiles reported Jurkovec told his teammates about the move during a players-only meeting on Wednesday morning.

Veilleux spent the past two seasons at Penn State before he also transferred to Pittsburgh this offseason. He’s thrown 27 passes in this season, completing 12 of them for 145 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions.

How Sam Hartman fared in his one start vs. Notre Dame

It was so nice of @dtranquill to introduce himself to Notre Dame’s future quarterback all those years ago…

Back in late September of 2018, Notre Dame was riding a 3-0 start but struggling mightily on offense. [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] decided before the Wake Forest game that [autotag]Ian Book[/autotag] would replace [autotag]Brandon Wimbush[/autotag] as the starting quarterback and after guiding the Irish to a 56-27 victory, the rest was pretty much history in terms of that quarterback controversy.

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Plenty of people thought they had seen a glimpse of Notre Dame’s future beyond Book at quarterback when [autotag]Phil Jurkovec[/autotag] got playing time late.  It was a different young quarterback from that afternoon that would go on to play for the Irish years later, though.

[autotag]Sam Hartman[/autotag] was a freshman playing in just his fourth game at Wake Forest that day.  It was a day he’s probably long forgotten or at least put in his past as it was one of his roughest for the Demon Deacons.

Hartman completed just 12 of 24 passes for 110 yards.  He threw for no scores, ran for no touchdowns, but didn’t turn the ball over, either.  After having rushed for over 60 yards in each of his first three games, Hartman was swallowed up by [autotag]Clark Lea[/autotag]’s defense, putting up just 11 rushing yards on 16 attempts (3 sacks included).

Here’s to hoping (and assuming) Hartman will play a lot better as a 23 year old for Notre Dame than he did as an 18 year old against them.

Related items –

5 immediate thoughts on Sam Hartman’s game-changing decision

Notre Dame fans clearly thrilled for Hartman’s arrival

Here are some pictures from that game five years ago in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Let’s get wild week 12: Stat predictions for Notre Dame against Boston College

Who has a big game for the Irish today?

The Irish are back at home with their final game of the 2022 season. They will honor the Seniors and welcome in Boston College as their opponent. This should be a banner day for Marcus Freeman and his first group of outgoing players. Notre Dame should be amped up and should put up some quality stats and here are some predictions as to who has big games for the Irish against the Eagles.

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Follow Mike on Twitter: @MikeFChen

Five keys for Notre Dame to defeat Boston College

What are your keys?

It was a tale of two halves for each of these two teams last week, the Irish narrowly hanging on to grab a road victory against Navy while BC scored the upset against NC State. Even with a less than stellar record, the Eagles have obvious talent to hang with the Irish. These five keys will help Notre Dame stave off the upset hungry visitors.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Mike on Twitter: @MikeFChen

Tale of the Tape: Starting QBs – Drew Pyne vs. Jurkovec/Morehead

Which BC QB would you rather see?

Notre Dame really has seen [autotag]Drew Pyne[/autotag] make strides this season. We saw what he is capable of during the first half against Navy, and he only stands to keep growing. His numbers are looking more and more like those of a quarterback who has had the starting job the entire season and looked good while fulfilling that role. He also has been decent at running the ball as we saw when he ran for a touchdown against the Midshipmen.

Boston College’s quarterback situation for Saturday is up in the air. Phil Jurkovec has been their main guy under center for the past few years, but he’s been dealing with an injury lately. Backup quarterback Emmett Morehead led the Eagles to an upset win over NC State last week, so he would be just as capable of handling an environment like Notre Dame Stadium. It would serve the Irish’s defense well to prepare for both.

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Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

College GameDay analyst: ‘Today could be a big trend-setting day for Clemson’

During ESPN’s College GameDay this morning, one of the analysts weighed in on tonight’s matchup between fifth-ranked Clemson (5-0, 3-0 ACC) and Boston College (2-3, 1-2) at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Mass. Before giving his thoughts on the …

During ESPN’s College GameDay this morning, one of the analysts weighed in on tonight’s matchup between fifth-ranked Clemson (5-0, 3-0 ACC) and Boston College (2-3, 1-2) at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Before giving his thoughts on the game, ESPN’s Pat McAfee noted that this is Boston College’s Red Bandana game — something the Eagles have done annually since 2014 in memory of Welles Crowther, a former Boston College lacrosse player turned equities trader who helped save lives before losing his own inside the World Trade Center following the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

“I think that game, obviously it’s a lot bigger than just football with the American hero that is Welles Crowther,” McAfee said. “If you don’t know the story, look it up.”

As for the teams playing in tonight’s game, Clemson is coming off a 30-20 victory over then-No. 10 NC State last Saturday at Death Valley, while Boston College played host to Louisville and narrowly came out on top over the Cardinals, 34-33.

DJ Uiagalelei passed for 209 yards and a score and ran for a career-high 73 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Tigers over the Wolfpack. The junior enters tonight’s game having completed 65.4 percent of his passes for 1,242 yards and 11 touchdowns with just one interception, to go with 242 rushing yards on 55 carries (4.4 average) and three scores on the ground.

Meanwhile, Boston College quarterback Phil Jurkovec has completed 64.0 percent of his passes for 1,147 yards and 10 touchdowns with six interceptions in five games this season. Last week against Louisville, he went 18-of-21 passing for 304 yards with three passing touchdowns and one pick.

“Clemson’s coming fresh off their best game since 2019,” McAfee said. “DJ Uiagalelei and the boys of the Tigers stepped on NC State like they were supposed to. But Boston College beats Louisville a week ago. They’re up and down. They’ve got a good quarterback out of Pittsburgh named Jurkovec. He’s supposed to go the NFL. We shall find out. But today’s bigger than football, baby.”

McAfee added this about the Tigers going into tonight’s game:

“If you saw what Clemson did last week… they looked like they were in control that entire time. … I think Clemson really can cement their legacy of being the Clemson of recent history. Last week, what they showed was not normal for this particular Clemson squad with DJ. DJ looked unbelievable. Today could be a big trend-setting day for Clemson, I believe.”

Kickoff of tonight’s game is set for 7:30 p.m. on ABC.

Dear Old Clemson is excited to announce a limited edition football and poster signed by Clemson’s Avengers.

Now there is a new way you can support Clemson student-athletes. Purchase collectibles from Dear Old Clemson and the proceeds with go to support Clemson student-athletes. Visit Dear Old Clemson to find out how you can help!

Should Notre Dame add another quarterback next year via the transfer portal?

Back to the portal for another QB?

No one really knew what would happen when the NCAA announced the transfer portal but after multiple years, we know how it works with quarterbacks. If they don’t play, they’re most likely looking for another destination. The Irish have been on both ends, as [autotag]Phil Jurkovec[/autotag] transferred out, while [autotag]Jack Coan[/autotag] transferred in.

In today’s meeting with the media, [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] was asked about this past off-season and this coming off-seasons decision about looking towards the portal for a quarterback. He explained that a discussion was had about taking one last year, but ultimately they opted to go with who was on campus. That might have not been the right choice, but hindsight is 50/50.

As for next year, it seems like it should be an easy yes for the Irish to recruit a transfer quarterback. [autotag]Tyler Buchner[/autotag] just can’t stay healthy and might not exactly fit into what offensive coordinator [autotag]Tommy Rees[/autotag] wants to do. [autotag]Drew Pyne[/autotag] showed us this weekend why the quarterback competition ended very quickly during fall camp. He’s a great spark off the bench but he’s not ready to be handed the keys just yet.

It remains to be seen who will enter the portal and a potential choice that Freeman and Rees make could really dictate how 2023 turns out. With no quarterback committed in the 2023 recruiting class, they surely can’t afford to enter next year with the same group. New blood needs to be brought in, even if it’s just to push the current crop of quarterbacks.

What I would like to see is more of a pocket-passer but one who is athletic enough to make things happen with their feet if needed. Coan flourished after getting his opportunity in South Bend and if Freeman and Rees could find someone in his mold, it would be a great idea.

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Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

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Former Notre Dame quarterback calls out Brian Kelly for lying

Big words

Notre Dame will host Boston College on senior day this November and that will be the final time 2018 quarterback recruit [autotag]Phil Jurkovec[/autotag] puts on the helmet and shoulder pads at Notre Dame Stadium.  The only thing is the former four-star recruit and perceived “quarterback of the future” at Notre Dame will be wearing number-five for Boston College.

Jurkovec redshirted as a freshman in 2018 before seeing action in six games a year later.  It was following that season that he decided to enter the transfer portal and eventually wound up at Boston College.

Why?

Jurkovec recently told Boston.com that following that 2019 season he was left in the dark on then Notre Dame quarterback [autotag]Ian Book[/autotag]’s status for 2020 and also wasn’t informed if then-offensive coordinator [autotag]Chip Long[/autotag] would be returning to the program.  According to Jurkovec, former Notre Dame head coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] is to blame as he misguided Jurkovec’s parents.

“(Brian) Kelly basically lied to their faces about what he would do, how he would talk to me to explain things about the future,” Jurkovec said.  “He basically lied to my parents so after that they were done with him.”

Strong words coming from Jurkovec and they make you wonder what his thoughts are on [autotag]Tommy Rees[/autotag] who remains at Notre Dame since that time.

Kelly is off to LSU with his fah-ma-lee but Jurkovec’s comments certainly only make that senior day matchup that much more interesting.

Related: FIW staff’s game-by-game predictions for Notre Dame in 2022

Check out a few pictures of Phil Jurkovec from his time at Notre Dame to his time at Boston College below.