The scene was bittersweet.
The Pitt Panthers had just hung on to remain undefeated with a win over Virginia Tech when a Hokies field goal sailed wide left by just inches. It was a potentially season-defining victory for Pittsburgh. Except there was Mason Heintschel, no longer in uniform.
Heintschel had watched the closing stages of the game from a folding chair beyond one of the end zones. He was in the Pitt polo shirt he would’ve arrived to the game in, and he could only move around on crutches.
The sophomore quarterback had gotten injured. Scrambling for a first down, he had been brought down by two tackles, with the late arrival causing what looked to be a painful collision with Heintschel’s right knee.
Pittsburgh initially ruled Heintschel questionable to return before ruling him out for the remainder of the game.
Pitt won anyway, but the calculus of its season could depend on Heintschel’s status.
Pat Narduzzi Update
Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi “wouldn’t get into specifics on Heintschel’s injury,” according to ESPN.
Narduzzi instead took the postgame opportunity to praise his team as a whole, and to point out to the poll voters that this Panthers team should be ranked now — and probably already should’ve been.
“Just finding a different way to win,” Narduzzi said, via ESPN. “We talk about respect. I hope the country will respect the Panthers now… I tell our guys all the time that there’s going to be ups and downs. Our guys rode the wave and never gave in. They never batted an eye. They believed until the end. Faith and belief, that’s what this football team’s got. They’ve got a lot of guts in that locker room.”
Backup QB Holden Geriner Update
The Panthers had to put Holden Geriner into the game. He has never started a college football game, but has played at Auburn and Texas State.
The TD pass he threw on Friday night was the second of his college career.
“This is what I’ve prayed for my whole life,” Geriner said postgame, via ESPN. “My thoughts and prayers are with Mason. If that’s the case, I’m going to do everything I can to continue preparing, as I’ve been doing, to lead this team.”
Geriner helped close out a victory in which Pittsburgh was outgained 499 to 295. Virginia Tech QB Ethan Grunkemeyer threw for 434 yards.
The Hokies came up just wide.
“We had a chance to win it at the end,” Virginia Tech coach James Franklin said afterward, via ESPN. “Everyone is going to focus on the last play. This isn’t coachspeak, but we’re going to watch this tape and there are going to be 20 plays that we could have made to put us in a better position and not be in that situation at the end.”
Virginia Tech entered the game undefeated, too, so it was a crucial outcome on both sides.
But the biggest story of the night, as far as the rest of the season is concerned, could come down to Heintschel’s knee.
Pitt’s Mason Heintschel Latest Injury News Leaves Doubt via Backup QB Update