Pitt Playing For ACC Respect vs Cincinnati

The Pitt Panthers will be defending conference pride against a Big 12 opponent.

PITTSBURGH -- Week 1 of the 2023 college football season was headlined by marquee matchups between SEC and ACC teams and, after the Pitt Panthers' league came out on top in both games, Pat Narduzzi wants in on the action. 

Pitt will get their chance to defend conference pride this week against one of the Big 12's many new expansion members, Cincinnati. After North Carolina and Florida State made statements against South Carolina and LSU, Narduzzi sees a similar opportunity for his team against the Bearcats. 

“Oh for sure, I think there’s a respect factor," Narduzzi said. "Great win by Mack Brown down in North Carolina, great win by Coach Norvell and Florida State. I was really excited for those guys. You hear so much about how much money [the SEC] gets. You always hear about how much money they make. Well, how about winning a football game?"

College football has been dominated by rumors of and concrete conference realignment moves as everyone seeks to maximize the revenue made primarily through lucrative television deals. 

Oklahoma and Texas kicked things off by announcing their intention to leave the Big 12 for the SEC in 2021. USC and UCLA followed in 2022 by revealing they'd abandon the Pac 12 for the Big 10. Those four schools will join their new leagues next academic year. 

Ever since, the Big 12 has attempted to shore up its own position by adding Cincinnati, BYU, Houston and UCF. Utah, Colorado, Arizona and Arizona State will follow them next year. Meanwhile, the ACC has announced they will bring in Cal, Stanford and SMU.

Narduzzi has gone on record saying he's not a fan of how certain conferences approached realignment. He doesn't mind the SEC's moves, which maintained some geographic continuity in the conference. 

"You can add whoever you want," he said. "We can add UConn and all these other schools. Does it make you better? It’s about adding quality and things that make sense."

But most of all, Narduzzi dislikes discussions about relative conference prestige. He would rather settle things on the field and is eager to do so this weekend, as Pitt faces its first real test against a Cincinnati team taking its first step up to the Power 5.

"It’s a pride thing. Some people think the Big 12 is bigger than the ACC right now," Narduzzi said. "Well here’s our chance to go and prove that. They’ve got numbers but I’ll take our quality in the ACC.”

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