Pitt: 2015 Football Season Fan Poll Awards
Nov 21, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers defensive back Lafayette Pitts (6) leads the Panthers in pre-game hype before facing the Louisville Cardinals at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
2015 was a great season for first year head coach Pat Narduzzi and the Pitt Panthers. The fans have voted for the best players, performances, and memories that the season had to offer and the results are about to be revealed!
With Pat Narduzzi at the helm in his first season as a head coach, he paced the Panthers to their most victories in a single season since 2009(8) and delivered the best conference record in the storied history of the Panthers(6-2).
After a rough opening weekend against Youngstown State, winning 45-37 against a pesky Penguins team, they also lost all-american running back James Conner for the season. No worries for the Panthers as Qadree Ollison was able to lift the immense load.
With the consistent Ollison and the emergence of quarterback Nathan Peterman, the Panthers raced out to a 6-1 record, the only loss coming on a time-expiring 57-yard field goal against a rising Iowa Hawkeyes team.
As football karma would have it, Pitt was able to play spoiler themselves against a big-play Georgia Tech team. Chris Blewitt was able to strike from 56-yards and stole a victory from the falling yet upset minded Yellow Jackets.
Pitt went on to drop the final three-of-five contests to conclude the season. Two of the losses were handed to the Panthers by teams playing at the highest capacity in all of the country. North Carolina and Notre Dame were able to simply overpower the home-standing Panthers using height and pure talent. As some fans will tell you, the refs might have had an influence in one of those games. We will leave that discussion at the door, however.
After a deflating loss to Miami to conclude the 2015 regular season, Pitt was awarded the opportunity to play the Navy Midshipmen in the Military Bowl, set to take place on Monday at 2:30 in Annapolis, Maryland.
When the regular season concluded, I challenged fans to cast their votes for the best players, performances and moments from 2015; they certainly responded. Throughout each category, I will present my choice in who I voted for in comparison to the rest of the raucous Panther fan base.
Using the arrow keys or the next button on a mobile device, each winner of the category will be revealed!
Thank you for voting and hope you enjoy!
Next: Surprise of the Year