Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi is many things, but a coach who bites his tongue is not one of them.
And Narduzzi did not hold back Saturday afternoon after his Panthers stunned host and No. 25-ranked Florida State, 34-31, in Tallahassee, Florida.
In addition to knocking Mike Norvell's Seminoles from the top-25 rankings and in the process sending them to their third-straight defeat, Narduzzi also had a message for Florida State's coaches and players. The veteran Pitt leader had taken exception to what he said was Florida State's disrespect directed at the Panthers in pre-game warmups.
"I guess they're pretty damn good," Narduzzi said of his Pitt offensive line, which gashed Florida State for 155 net rushing yards as part of a 476-yard offensive output. "I'll take them any day. ...
"I'll take them over that (Florida State) O-line for sure."
There were a number of notable elements to the Panthers' first win away from home since Oct. 5, 2024, at North Carolina.
Pitt listed 19 players out on its official ACC participation chart.
Freshman quarterback Mason Heintschel was starting a road contest for the first time ever in only his second-ever collegiate start.
And the last time the Panthers played on the road, at West Virginia four weeks ago, they suffered one of their all-time worst defeats under Narduzzi in a 31-24, come-from-ahead overtime-defeat against the Mountaineers.
On this day, Pitt was relentless and in the process elevated questions about the direction of Mike Norvell's FSU program.
The Seminoles opened this season with a captivating upset of top-10 Alabama, but they have sputtered in this three-game skid in which ACC foes are averaging 36 points per game in sending them to an 0-3 hole in league play.
Pat Narduzzi said there was some trash talk on the field pregame, allegedly some FSU players telling Pitt's o-line that it "wasn't any good."
— stephen thompson (@stephenethom) October 11, 2025
"I guess they're pretty damn good. ... I'll take them any day. I'll take them over that o-line for sure."
Florida State's College Football Playoff hopes are shot, with almost no plausible scenario to rally back into ACC contention for a spot in the league's year-end title bout.
Moreover, Florida State now has posted just a 5-13 mark since the start of the 2024 season. Only two of those victories are against Power Conference foes.
Pittsburgh, however, has positioned itself to be a legitimate contender in the ACC race. The Panthers now are 2-1 in ACC play, get both North Carolina State and Miami at home and do not face Georgia Tech on the road until the regular season's penultimate weekend.
"Every win, it's hard to win," Narduzzi said. "It's hard to win on the road.
"Our kids, like I said, they deserve it. They fought all year. We've been in some games. We had a couple tough ones. We're this far from being an undefeated football team right now. I think we got one heck of a football team, and we get to go out and do it again this weekend at Syracuse. And our guys are fired up."