PITTSBURGH (AP) — Kenny Pickett crossed Pat Narduzzi’s mind last week when the longtime Pittsburgh football coach decided to make a quarterback switch and give control of his offense to true freshman Mason Heintschel.

In a 48-7 home rout of Boston College on Saturday, Heintschel became the first true freshman quarterback at Pitt to win his first career start since Pickett did in an upset of Miami in 2017.

“Last time we went with a starting freshman quarterback was the last game of the season when we beat No. 2 Miami, and it was Kenny Pickett,” Narduzzi said. “We think (Heintschel) has that kind of ability. One game doesn’t define you. He’s got a lot of work to do. But it’s stacking those wins and stacking the execution.”

Pickett went on to have a decorated career with the Panthers tha

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