Breaking down the Two-deep: Pitt at Boston College

QB - 1. Chad Voytik 2. Trey Anderson

Pitt only attempted 14 passes in week one against Delaware. I am not overly concerned with that, because Pitt was gaining so much on the ground, it truly was not necessary to pass the ball. Still, it would have been nice to allow Voytik to maybe attempt a 3rd and long, or something along those lines. His first serious game experience came in a bowl game, so Voytik won't be overly overwhelmed with playing on the road on national tv Friday night, at least we don't think he will.

RB - 1. James Conner 2. Isaac Bennett

Pitt gave their top four running backs 48 carries split among Conner, Ibrahim, and James with those three getting 14 each, while Isaac Bennett touched the ball for six carries. First of all, that answers some of the questions. Qadree Ollison may be heading for a redshirt if he did not see a carry in that kind of blowout, and that takes things down to a firm four man rotation. This week's game will definitely have Conner as the workhorse, but after that, it remains questionable.  Isaac Bennett ran well the other day, but so did Chris James and even Ibrahim for that matter. Bennett remains on the officially listed two-deep, but Chris James may be taking his role.

HB - 1. Jaymar Parrish  2. Scott Orndoff

I talked about this being a position with two very different kind of players on the two-deep. Parrish is a blocker that takes on a Fullbacks persona, while Orndoff resembles a traditional tight end. Orndoff came up with one catch that went for a score in the second half against the Blue Hens.

WR - 1. Tyler Boyd, Manasseh Garner    2. Ronald Jones, Kevin Weatherspoon

The big story around Pittsburgh this week is Tyler Boyd's finger, and it turns out, it isn't much of a story at all. Boyd probably wouldn't have played much longer last week, and though he missed some time, he appears to be a go for Friday night. He made some plays against Delaware, but with the running game at the level it was, he didn't have to do too much.  Ronald Jones recorded three catches, and Garner hauled in two.  Weatherspoon did not make a catch, and the only other receiver that did was Chris Wuestner. We will see if a guy like Wuestner or Adonis Jennings eventually takes Weatherspoon's spot.

TE - 1. JP Holtz  2. Devon Edwards

Scott Orndoff was the only tight end to make a catch last week, and it was just a two yard touchdown reception. I expect Pitt will have to pull out some more passing plays this week, and the tight ends may fit into the offense more.  Voytik does not have the Tom Savage arm strength, so dumping off to the tight ends seems like it would be likely when he is not looking for Tyler Boyd. Either way, both players are important to the running game.

LT - 1. Adam Bisnowaty  2. Jaryd Jones-Smith

LG - 1. Dorian Johnson  2. Carson Baker

C - 1. Artie Rowell  2. Alex Officer

RG - 1. Matt Rotheram 2. Gabe Roberts

RT - 1. T.J. Clemmings  2. Alex Bookser

Pitt dominated on the ground last week for rushing over 400 yards and 7 touchdowns on the ground. Boston College only surrendered 55 rushing yards last week in their season opening win, so something has to give this week and this will be one of the more important battles of the day.  Matt Rotheram was named the ACC Lineman of the week, and the rest of the group looked sharp as well. As far as personnel goes, the same playing time struggle is with Dorian Johnson and Jaryd Jones-Smith.  The whole line shuffled last week with the game being so easy, so seeing how Chryst handles it this week against better competition will be a telling sign for the rest of the season.

DE - 1. Shakir Soto, David Durham   2. Rori Blair, Luke Maclean

Shakir Soto had a quiet game last week, and that is not a good thing. He is Pitt's most physically gifted end, and he needs to show more production if they want to be successful.  David Durham made a huge play, and gave it back with a silly penalty. Overall he looks better, but the jury is still out on Durham and Soto. Luke Maclean had a few nice plays, and Rori Blair was out there early. Still an unknown commodity for this entire unit.

DT - 1. Darryl Render  2. Justin Moody

Same two as last week, and I thought Render played well. He came up with three total tackles, and he moves very well for an interior guy. Moody played some, and recorded an assisted tackle.  I still think more defensive linemen will rotate in, but for now these are the two guys.

NT - 1. Khaynin Mosley-Smith 2. Tyrique Jarrett

Khaynin Mosley-Smith did not record a tackle in the Delaware game.  Tyrique Jarrett was in on a few stops and clogged some lanes.  Hard to judge performances in games like this, but Mosley-Smith often failed to show up on the stat sheet in his first two years also.  It is going to take a group effort to get some production from the interior spots to offset Aaron Donald's departure.

FREEZE - Nicholas Grigsby

Grigsby seemed to have figured things out after a slow start to his career, and is a very valuable piece to this defense. He looked sharp and confident in week one, and is one of the leaders of this team after rumbles of him wanting to transfer a few years ago. With Boston College having a mobile QB, expect to see Grigsby on the field.

SAM Linebacker - 1. Anthony Gonzalez  2. Bam Bradley

Anthony Gonzalez and Bam Bradley looked solid on Saturday, and these two could be due for big games this week. Both will see lots of time, and as I mentioned about Grigsby, Bradley will be on the field more with a mobile QB out there.

MLB - 1. Matt Galambos  2. Mike Caprara

Matt Galambos nearly had a pick six on Friday, and Caprara has 5 solo tackles. Both players can play, and both will need to have strong games with a good rushing attack coming right at them all night long. Caprara is a guy that will continue to get a long look, as he is a productive guy that seems to find his way around the ball.

WILL LB - 1. Todd Thomas 2. Quintin Wirginis

Todd Thomas had an interception and opened the game with a big stop for a loss. Thomas is a good player and Pitt needs him to do big things this season. WIrginis is a true freshman that made his debut last week after a good camp.

CB -  1.  Lafayette Pitts, Reggie Mitchell 2. Avonte Maddox, Ryan Lewis

Both starting corners looked good in run support. Reggie Mitchell made a big play on a corner blitz, and Pitts had a stop in the backfield himself.  It is hard to gauge where Pitt is with the corner position after the Delaware game They need to stay healthy, at least we know that much.

FS - 1. Ray Vinopal 2. Pat Amara

Ray Vinopal is one of the leaders on the defense, and he will need to have a solid start on Friday. Boston College is going to come right at the Panthers, and all levels of the defense need to be aware of the running quarterback, Tyler Murphy.

SS - 1. Terrish Webb 2. Jevonte Pitts

Terrish Webb is a good looking player, and I think the Panthers may have found a really good player. Webb made a break on the ball, and came up with one of the three interceptions Saturday.

K - Chris Blewitt P - Ryan Winslow LS - David Murphy

Chris Blewitt missed an extra point, only his second ever miss while being the Pitt kicker. Ryan Winslow didn't have much to do with Pitt playing so well on offense, his role could be more important Friday.

PR - 1. Tyler Boyd 2. Kevin Weatherspoon

Tyler Boyd is still listed as the punt returner, whether he does or not remains to be seen. Weatherspoon did not look good on Saturday.  I think Ronald Jones would do a fine job here. Obviously after Boyd's initial return you would love to see him out there, but the injury reminds you why it is a gamble too.

KR - 1. Tyler Boyd  2. Ronald Jones 3. Avonte Maddox

Pitt only had one of these on Saturday, should be a few more this week.