North Carolina will host Pittsburgh in its eighth game of the season closing out the month of October.

A year ago, Pittsburg won, 30-23, in overtime at Heinz Field, after a UNC comeback fell jjst short. The Tar Heels trailed 17-0 at one point that night.

In the overtime period, Pitt scored the first points. Unfortunately for the Heels, heavy wind and rain started when it was their turn to respond, making throwing the ball nearly impossible. The weather made UNC Coach Mack Brown regret his decision to kick a field goal late in the fourth quarter instead of going for the touchdown.

"I should have gone for the fourth-and-two at the end," Brown said that night. "Because the way it ended up, the rain was really hard and put us in an awful position in overtime."

Today, we preview UNC's game with Pittsburgh:

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Oct. 29, Kenan Stadium

Head Coach:

Pat Narduzzi enters his eighth season with the Panthers and coming off his best year with Pitt, as the Panthers went 11-3 and won the ACC championship. Plus, quarterback Kenny Pickett finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting. Narduzzi still doesn’t believe his program gets enough recognition for its growth during his tenure.

"I think we've built a program at Pittsburgh," Narduzzi said at The ACC Kickoff last week. "It's not just a one-year splash.”

Noteworthy:

Pitt ranks No.23 in the Athlon Sports preseason top 25.

Returning starters:

Pittsburgh returns the most starters of any school in the Coastal Division with 14; seven on offense and seven on defense.

Stars:

The offensive line is the foundation of the Pittsburgh offense. The Panthers return all five starters from a line that led the Pitt offense to 149 rushing yards per game.

First-team All-ACC defensive lineman Calijah Kancey returns to Pitt after a 2021 season that saw him record 13 tackles for loss.

Second-team All-ACC defensive end Habakkuk Baldonado recorded 12 tackles behind the line of scrimmage for the Panthers last season, including a team-leading nine sacks.

Key Stats:

Pittsburgh ranked No.2 nationally in sacks per game with 3.86.

My thoughts:

Carolina must win this game if it wants to take a step towards prominence. UNC is 0-2 versus Pitt since Brown returned following the 2018 campaign.

Narduzzi has built a consistent program and was rewarded with an ACC Championship last season. The Panthers, as a result, are in a new position as defending champions and getting everyone's best shot this season. How Pitt responds to this will go a long way in determining its success.

The Pittsburgh game is another matchup that will test the Tar Heels’ offensive line. Pittsburgh led the ACC in sacks per game, while the Heels led the ACC in sacks allowed, including a five-sack performance against Pitt last season. As disappointing as a season UNC had in 2021, Carolina was at the doorstep of victory in the Steel City and was perhaps a monsoon away from upsetting the ACC champs.

However, if a few things go differently this season, Carolina has a chance to flip the results of the 2021 campaign.