We’ve written about Pittsburgh before and we’ll likely write about them again, but this past weekend they did a fantastic job creating pressure against UCF. Now, there’s a qualifier here. UCF’s QB, Alonza Barnett III, is slippery and escaped that pressure well at times. But the Pitt Panthers kept coming all night, and I don’t remember the last time a QB got harassed quite like Pitt harassed him last weekend.
Bringing Four
We all know Pitt and Narduzzi are known for their pressures, but they also created pressure through simple defensive line stunts all night. One of those stunts we’ll call a “ton” stunt, where the two interior defensive linemen set a pick for each other. I’m keeping it simple here, knowing that the pick setter isn’t a defensive lineman, but starts in a similar position.
The beauty of this stunt is that Pitt doesn’t even execute it perfectly, but it doesn’t matter. The pick never truly gets set, the wrap isn’t great, but the picker does a great job swiping back across the guard to get the sack. In many cases on this stunt, and all stunts, the player who sets the pick makes the play if he just works vertical after setting that pick.
Here’s one more example. Sorry for the weird angle, but apparently ESPN had to pull cameramen because their lightning policy for their personnel extends further than the policy on whether the game can be played or not. Anyways, here we see the “ton” stunt again, but from a shade and a five tech, again call it what you want but it’s an interior pick stunt. Number eleven sets the pick, the center decides to pass him off, but like I said earlier, the guard who’s picked doesn’t take him, which happens more often than you’d think, and after setting the pick he gets vertical and almost makes the sack.
Simulated Pressure
Everyone has different names for simulated pressure paths, so I’ll just say this is a double A gap simulated pressure, dropping the defensive tackles into coverage with a modified Cover 4 look. The immediacy of double A gap pressures is always tough for the offense to handle, and if it weren’t for Barnett’s legs, this is a sack.
Bringing Five
Five man pressure with Deuce Coverage has become popular over the last handful of years. Pitt has also added it to their fire zone family.
Trigger warning: I use the path names we called them when we built them into our defense at the high school level. Name it whatever you want!
Here the Panthers defense brings one of those Deuce Pressures, double edge with the Nickel and Will, while also adding a “pop” stunt inside, which UCF struggled with all night. The pick is set, the wrap comes clean, and Barnett has to make another throw with a defender close enough to touch him. The result is another incomplete pass. There’s certainly a window here, but the Panthers sped up the decision and got a favorable result instead.
Here’s another Deuce Pressure, this time with a “six up” mugged alignment, then the linebackers drop and the corner comes. Again we get that two under four deep look, but Pitt disguises it presnap with that four across the sticks umbrella look, insert FSU joke here.
Bringing Six
Narduzzi never fails to bring new and exciting hot pressures from year to year, and I love this path, but more importantly the way they teach vision break is ungodly. First we have a “starcat” inspired path bringing the corner and nickel off the edges, then that’s combined with that interior “pop” stunt we keep referring to. The result off the full slide protection is two defenders free off the edge. UCF slips the running back underneath them and hits him in stride, making it feel like a victory. However, the vision break safety, taking the deep third, plays patient, doesn’t gain depth when he’s not threatened, and when the ball is dumped off in the flat he triggers downhill and makes a nice tackle for a minimal gain on third and six, forcing a punt. This is how hot pressures are intended to work on third down. Force the offense into a quick decision, then rally to the ball and make tackles short of the sticks.
This one is a unique hot pressure on the front and back end. First we get a coffeehouse rush, I didn’t name it, from the front six. Then on the back end we get an inverted two under, three deep hot, or eyes coverage. On paper neither of these is outrageous, but it’s another example of the Pitt defense changing the picture for the quarterback and forcing them into favorable decisions. Barnett throws the stick route here and Pitt puts UCF in a third and six situation. Ultimately they seal the game two plays later on fourth down with a sack.
Final Thoughts
Pitt continues to be a very good defense in 2026, and they lost several key players, including a standout linebacker to the draft along with two corners and safeties, and another linebacker transfer to Texas. They do this through disguise within their system. In theory they run a handful of things: press quarters, Cover 2, Deuce Pressures, and hot pressures. Yes, they do a few other things, but a large majority of their snaps involve those four things. However, as you can see above, Pitt dresses them up by using defensive line stunts with or without pressure added, they change the picture on the back end with the safeties and corners, and they make it a moving target. As we all know, a moving target is much tougher to hit. And it’s not shocking that these principles show up in many defenses on Saturdays and Sundays, especially in Minnesota.