Being a WVU guy, trust me, giving Pitt credit doesn’t exactly come naturally. But sometimes you have to put the rivalry to the side and call it like it is.

Pitt football has produced some absolute MONSTERS.

And Larry Fitzgerald’s induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame is another reminder of just how ridiculous the list really is. Fitzgerald officially entered Canton as part of the 2026 class, becoming the 11th former Pitt Panther elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Think about some of the names that have come through that program. Dan Marino. Tony Dorsett. Mike Ditka. Curtis Martin. Rickey Jackson. Chris Doleman. Russ Grimm. Darrelle Revis. Larry Fitzgerald. And eventually, you have to believe Aaron Donald is going to join them.

We aren’t talking about guys who simply had good NFL careers. We’re talking about some of the greatest players EVER at their positions.

That’s what makes Pitt football one of the strangest programs in college football history to me.

 

All That Talent — But Where Is the Team Success?

Here’s the part that blows my mind.

For a school capable of producing that level of individual talent, Pitt hasn’t experienced anything close to that same level of sustained success as a college football TEAM in the modern era.

Pitt’s last major bowl victory came after the 1981 season, when Dan Marino led the Panthers to a 24-20 Sugar Bowl victory over Georgia. That team went 11-1 and finished No. 4 in the country and after that season, Pitt has gone 44 consecutive seasons without finishing with fewer than three losses.

That was more than four decades ago.

Think about that.

During those decades, Pitt has sent players into the NFL who became All-Pros, Super Bowl champions, NFL record holders and Hall of Famers. Yet the Panthers haven’t been able to turn that incredible pipeline of talent into sustained national championship contention.

That’s fascinating to me.

 

Larry Fitzgerald Is the Perfect Example

I have said for years that Larry Fitzgerald is the greatest college football player I have ever personally watched. And remember, I’m a WVU guy saying that about a Pitt Panther.

That’s how special he was.

Fitzgerald only played two seasons at Pitt, but anybody who watched college football during that time knew exactly who he was. In 2003, he won the Biletnikoff Award, was a unanimous All-American and finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Then he went to the NFL and somehow became even greater. Seventeen seasons. Second all-time in NFL receiving yards. Second all-time in receptions. And now a gold jacket.

Pitt deserves its flowers for producing him.

But Fitzgerald also represents the larger mystery. How does a program recruit and develop a player THAT good without becoming a dominant program nationally?

 

And Then There’s Aaron Donald

Then years later, Pitt somehow did it again.

Aaron Donald came through Pittsburgh and developed into one of the greatest defensive players football has ever seen.

Not just one of the best defensive tackles. One of the greatest defensive players, period. When Donald becomes eligible for Canton in 2029, there’s a very good chance another Pitt Panther will be standing on that stage receiving a gold jacket.

That’s remarkable.

But it raises the same question. How can one university keep producing historically great NFL players without producing historically great college football teams?

 

Pitt Has Produced NFL Greatness Better Than Most Schools

Here’s what really puts it into perspective.

With Fitzgerald’s election, Pitt reached 11 Pro Football Hall of Famers. That puts Pitt in territory with some of the biggest brands in college football.

Think about the schools Pitt is competing with when we’re talking about producing Hall of Fame NFL talent.

Not just regional programs. We’re talking about the elite of the elite. Yet nobody today puts Pitt football in the same category nationally as Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia, Michigan, Notre Dame or USC.

That’s the disconnect.

Pitt’s NFL résumé screams college football powerhouse. Its modern team résumé doesn’t.

 

Why Hasn’t Pitt Been Able to Put It Together?

That’s the question I’d love to hear Pitt fans answer.

Is it recruiting? Coaching turnover? Facilities? Conference changes? Losing Western Pennsylvania talent to national programs? Not having an on-campus stadium? Or has Pitt simply had incredible individual players scattered across different generations without enough elite talent surrounding them at the same time?

Because when you look at the names individually, it’s almost impossible to understand. Marino. Dorsett. Fitzgerald. Revis. Martin. Donald. Most schools would love to produce ONE player of that caliber.

Pitt has produced them across multiple eras.

 

Respect From a WVU Guy

And again, this is coming from somebody who will never be confused for a Pitt fan.

I’m WVU all day. The Backyard Brawl is the Backyard Brawl.

But I’m also a sports historian, and I’m not going to let a rivalry stop me from respecting greatness.

Pitt’s ability to produce legendary football players deserves respect. Larry Fitzgerald getting his gold jacket is another chapter in an incredible football history.

But it also makes Pitt’s lack of sustained national success over the last four-plus decades even more confusing.

Few programs have produced individual greatness like Pitt. Few programs with that kind of individual greatness have gotten so little national team success out of it.

And that might be the greatest mystery in Pitt football history.