Game Week: Pitt Heads to Annapolis for the 2025 Go Bowling Military Bowl

Saturday, December 27

Annapolis, MD

11 AM

Pitt

East Carolina

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Game Week: Pitt Heads to Annapolis for the 2025 Go Bowling Military Bowl

12/22/2025 11:14:00 AM | Football

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PITTSBURGH – The Pitt Panthers (8-4, 6-2 ACC) will close out their 2025 campaign at the Go Bowling Military Bowl in Annapolis, Md. against the East Carolina Pirates (8-4, 6-2 AAC).

This will be Pitt's second appearance in the Military Bowl, having previously played in the 2015 edition against Navy. By accepting the bid, the Panthers will make their 39th all-time bowl appearance and their eighth under head coach Pat Narduzzi.

Under Narduzzi's direction, Pitt is 2–5 in bowl games, with its most recent postseason victory coming in the 2022 Sun Bowl against UCLA.

This matchup will mark the fifth all-time meeting between Pitt and East Carolina, with the series tied 2–2. The teams last met in 1992, when ECU earned a 37–31 victory.

PITT vs. EAST CAROLINA

Go Bowling Military Bowl

December 27, 2025 • 11 AM

Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium (34,000/FieldTurf)

Annapolis, Md. • ESPN • 93.7 The Fan • Pitt Panthers Radio Network

PittsburghPanthers.com • @Pitt_FB

GAME STORYLINES

This will be Pitt's second appearance in the Military Bowl, having previously played in the 2015 edition against Navy. By accepting the bid, the Panthers will make their 39th all-time bowl appearance and their eighth under head coach Pat Narduzzi. Under Narduzzi's direction, Pitt is 2–5 in bowl games, with its most recent postseason victory coming in the 2022 Sun Bowl against UCLA.
This matchup will mark the fifth all-time meeting between Pitt and East Carolina, with the series tied 2–2. The teams last met in 1992, when ECU earned a 37–31 victory.

Pitt is seeking its ninth win for just the third time during Narduzzi's tenure and only the sixth time overall since 1982. The Panthers' nine plus-win seasons since 1982 came in 2022, 2021, 2009, 2008 and 2002.
Pitt's 2025 season may have begun with frustration, but it took a decisive turn in Week 6. When true freshman quarterback Mason Heintschel stepped into the starting role, the Panthers transformed. Pitt went 6–2 over the final eight games, won four-straight road contests, and defeated two ranked opponents.
In eight starts, Heintschel produced four 300-yard passing performances—the most by any ACC quarterback during that span—and helped unlock Pitt's young skill talent. Kenny Johnson, Desmond Reid, Raphael "Poppi" Williams Jr., Justin Holmes and Cataurus "Blue" Hicks all saw their production surge as the offense found its rhythm, and the Panthers finished the season with one of the ACC's most balanced and dynamic attacks.
Defensively, Pitt once again fielded one of the conference's toughest and most disruptive units. Linebacker Rasheem Biles, a two-time All-ACC Second Team selection, led the team with 84 tackles (9.4 per game), ranking second in the ACC. Alongside Kyle Louis and Braylan Lovelace, the linebacker trio anchored a defense that consistently flipped momentum, highlighted by Lovelace's memorable 100-yard pick-six at Georgia Tech—one of the defining plays of the season.
The youth movement extended well beyond Heintschel. Freshman running back Ja'Kyrian Turner emerged as a breakout star with a 200-yard performance at Georgia Tech, 127 yards at Stanford, and nearly 800 all-purpose yards on the season. In the secondary, Shawn Lee Jr. and Cruce Brookins established themselves as foundational pieces for the future, while transfer Kavir Baines-Marquez proved to be a seamless fit and will help anchor the defensive backfield moving forward.