Pat Narduzzi Stands By Phil Jurkovec As Starting QB

Phil Jurkovec's coaches and teammates remain supportive despite another subpar performance in the Pitt Panthers' loss on Saturday.

PITTSBURGH -- The nightmares for the Pitt Panthers' passing offense continued in Saturday's loss to West Virginia, but coaches and teammates of Phil Jurkovec say he isn't to blame.

Jurkovec, coming off of a poor showing against Cincinnati, took an even bigger step back against the Mountaineers. He completed 8 of 20 passes for 81 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions, but Jake Kradel took the brunt of the blame.

"Phil’s been great. We just got to protect better,” Kradel said. "It starts with me as the center. I gotta make the best IDs, the best calls and put the guys in the best position to protect him and Phil will deliver.”

Head coach Pat Narduzzi echoed a similar sentiment as he further cemented his confidence in the signal caller. 

"Got a lot of faith in Phil," Narduzzi said. "You've got to give defenses credit. (We) took the opening drive down and got to the 3-yard line. You gotta score touchdowns and we didn't."

Narduzzi also took a stand against those who wanted to see Jurkovec pulled in favor of another quarterback option, saying that the blame should never be focused on one person. 

"You guys are fast to want to pull the plug on somebody, and that’s not how we do it,” Narduzzi said. “We’ll look at the tape, and it’s never one person. I know you guys want to point the finger at one person, but it’s not. We all had a part in it, and it starts with the game plan.”

Jurkovec has consistently earned praise for his leadership and mindset despite all of the hardships he's had to endure thus far, further endearing himself to his teammates. 

"Phil’s a great leader. That dude, there’s no question about him,” Kradel said. “He doesn’t waver at all. He keeps us up, we keep him up. I have so much confidence in that guy. Like I said, if we just continue to block for him and give him time to throw, he’ll make plays."

For as loud as the speculation has grown about a change at quarterback moving forward, as the Panthers look forward to the ACC opener against North Carolina next week, Narduzzi put a stop to it for the time being when asked if Jurkovec will remain in that role. 

"I'm gonna watch the tape but I believe so, yes," Narduzzi said. 

Make sure you bookmark Inside the Panthers for the latest news, exclusive interviews, recruiting coverage, and more!

Pitt's Passing Game Woes Continue in Loss to West Virginia

Pitt's Starting LT Leaves Backyard Brawl With Injury

Pitt Loses Starting LB in Backyard Brawl

Donovan McMillon Starts for Pitt Against WVU

Pitt Gets Reserve DT Back for West Virginia Game

Pitt Without Starting RG For Backyard Brawl

• Follow Inside the Panthers on Twitter: @InsidePitt