Tyler Palko Shares Best Memories of Pitt

Former Pitt Panthers quarterback Tyler Palko spoke on his time with the program in the 2000s.

Nov 16, 2006; Pittsburgh , PA, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers quarterback Tyler Palko (3) delivers a pass against West Virginia Mountaineers in the second half at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, PA. Mandatory Credit: Jason Bridge-USA TODAY Sports Copyright (c) 2006 Jason Bridge / Jason Bridge-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- Former Pitt Panthers quarterback Tyler Palko came back to Acrisure Stadium for the Football Kickoff Luncheon, imparting some wisdom on the seniors on the team.

Palko served as the speaker for the event, where he spoke to the seniors on the Panthers, as well as to their family and other members of Pitt athletics in the crowd. He spoke on his time with the program, thanked those for keeping him in line during his playing days and the advice he had for the seniors, as they enter into their final season.

“Probably the message to the seniors is about that this is the start of their last year right?," Palko said in a press conference. "You sit up here and you hope to end it with an ACC Championship and a College Football Playoff Championship, but you don’t get no more do-overs right. This is kind of the beginning of the end for these seniors and just to really take advantage of it, empty the tank and leave no stone unturned and just enjoy the ride, the ups and the downs this season is going to take."

Palko hails from nearby Imperial, Pa. and played high school for his dad Bob Palko at West Allegheny High School. The two worked together as father-and-son and would win both the 2001 WPIAL and PIAA Class 3A titles.

He came to Pitt as the AP Pennsylvania Big School Player of the Year and USA Today All-American Second Team honoree in 2001.

Palko would play in six games as a freshman in 2002, but wouldn't play quarterback until the Insight Bowl, where he compelted 2-of-3 passes for 12 yards, while rushing for an eight-yard touchdown in the win over Oregon State. He would redshirt in 2003.

He had an excellent 2004 season, his first as starter, completing 230-of-409 passes (56.2%), for 3,067 yards and 24 touchdowns to seven interceptions, earning Second Team All-Big East honors. His passing yards and passing touchdowns rank sixth and seventh most in a season in program history, respectively.

Palko had two incredible games that season for Pitt. He completed 26-of-42 passes for five touchdowns in a late 41-38 victory over rival and then ranked No. 24 Notre Dame in Week 9, making him the first visiting quarterback to throw for five touchdowns at Notre Dame.

The most memorable moment from this game happened immediately after the win, with Palko giving a post game interview, where he used an expletive, forever immortalizing him into Pitt fan lore for eternity.

"You’d be surprised at the amount of times I’ve been in business meetings, in airports and the men’s grill or on the golf course where someone finds out that I’m there and it’s an unbelievable ice-breaker," Palko said on that post-game interview. "It’s fun to talk about in conversations. It’s not too fun when you’re talking to Notre Dame fans about it, but college football fans in general and Pitt fans, it’s super fun. Like I said, it was a really wonderful experience. Great game, great win for the program and I don’t mind talking about it. I can’t believe people still remember it. I have a hard time remembering what I ate for breakfast yesterday, let alone 20 years ago, but it was great."

Palko helped Pitt finish 4-2 in the Big East, earning a share of the conference title and making the Fiesta Bowl, where they lost to Utah, 35-7.

Pitt struggled in the 2005 season, going 5-6 and missing a bowl game. Palko still had a solid year, completing 193-of-341 passes (56.6%) for 2,392 yards and 17 touchdowns to nine interceptions, earning Second Team All-Big East honors again.

Palko would bounce back as a redshirt senior in 2006, completing 220-of-322 passes (68.3%) for 2,871 yards and 25 touchdowns to nine interceptions. His passing touchdowns and passing yards rank sixth and 10th best in a single season in Panthers history, respectively. 

He finished his Pitt career with 645-of-1,075 passes completed (60.0%), 8.343 yards, 66 passing touchdowns to 25 interceptions and 12 rushing touchdowns. His career passing touchdowns and passing yards rank third and fifth most in program history, respecitvely, while his 78 total touchdowns rank third behind Dan Marino and Kenny Pickett.

While Palko was one of the better quarterbacks in recent history for Pitt, he also spent his final three seasons as a captain, where he led the team in their best and worst moments. Pitt named their starting captains for the season as well, a tradition they do every year at the Kickoff Luncheon.

"A leader of a team," Palko said on the role of captain. "Your job is to kind of be the steward of the coaching staff. The best teams I’ve ever been on have been run by the team, by the captains and that’s the kind of the message I’ll send to them, but the role of the captain really is to just kind of set the example. You’re the leader of the team. When things are great, you got to keep them going. When things are bad, you can’t ever let things get too off track. Your job is to be kind of the true north star. I was fortunate enough to do that for three years. I was a captain for three years here. Something I don’t take very lightly."

Palko left Pittsburgh following the end of his college career and spent time in the NFL, playing four teams and finishing out with the Kansas City Chiefs. He still comes back once a month for work with Solutions 21, a business management consultant in Pittsburgh, serving as their chief revenues officer

He also comes back for a game or two a season and despite almost 20 years since he last played for Pitt, it feels almost exactly the same.

“I think one of the unique things about Pittsburgh and about the University of Pittsburgh is that it’s timeless," Palko said. "Insert coach, insert players, insert whatever, it really never changes and I think that’s really the uniqueness and cuteness of this city, this town. It’s about the logo, it’s about the colors, it’s about the university and I think everyone really embraces it. So you come back, it’s really the same people."

Palko also has great support for Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi and the culture he's brought to the program. He loved watching the high-tempo practice, contrary to his time with the program, and that he Narduzzi coming from Youngstown makes him fit right with Pittsburgh.

"...He’s a true Pittsburgher," Palko said. "This is a unique place and you’ve got to have the right mentality, especially for 10 years. I don’t know the stat on that, but I would imagine that if you don’t have that gene of Pittsburgher in you, then you’re not going to last 10 years. So coach Duzz has been great. Great to me and my family anytime we’ve been in town. So wishing them the best and can’t say enough good things about him."

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