Pat Narduzzi evidently is not over Jordan Addison's decision this offseason to leave Pitt for greener pastures — or, in this case, the West Coast.
Narduzzi, in a media scrum Thursday at the ACC Kickoff in Charlotte, N.C., claimed that Pitt helped the 2021 Biletnikoff Award winner "get where he is today." He also said of Addison that, "sometimes people forget how they got where they are."
"I'm focused on our guys that want to be here at Pitt,” Narduzzi said. "And that's going to be the key. Jordan’s a great kid, great player. We had fun with him for two years. I think we helped him get where he is today. I think we helped him win a Biletnikoff and be the player that he is.
"I think Kenny Pickett was pretty good. He had one of the best quarterbacks in the country throwing the ball every day. I think sometimes people forget how they got where they are. It was a special year. Got a ton of respect for Jordan, but young men got to make decisions based on what they know or what they thought and we kind of move on.”
MORE: Why is Jordan Addison transferring from Pitt? Breaking down potential destinations
Adding to Narduzzi's frustration is his suspicion that USC tampered to get Addison to transfer. ESPN's Pete Thamel gave a brief summation of the situation in a May appearance on "The Paul Finebaum Show"; he reported that Narduzzi had multiple phone calls with Lincoln Riley to express his displeasure with the first-year Trojans coach.
“Multiple phone calls from Pat Narduzzi to Lincoln Riley regarding this Jordan Addison situation,” Thamel said at the time. “And the general notion at Pitt is that some type of tampering has occurred. To my knowledge, there’s been no specific evidence of that yet.
"There’s a whole complicated underworld that is now kind of overworld a little bit. Likely the mechanics of all this went through all that. It is a complex situation, there’s a lot of moving parts. I’m not in any position to predict the outcome right now.”
USC was considered a favorite for Addison before he ended up transferring there. Other options included Alabama, which has returning Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Bryce Young; Texas, whose coach, Steve Sarkisian, was the architect of Alabama's record-breaking 2020 offense; and staying at Pitt.
Ultimately, Addison joined former Oklahoma quarterback Caleb Williams and a significant number of other transfers who came to USC to play for Riley.
MORE: Riley's transfer portal wins: Looking at USC roster after Addison joins Williams
One aspect of Addison's transfer is Pitt's personnel in 2022. Addison would not only be without Pickett, a first-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, but also offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti Jr. and receivers coach Tiquan Underwood.
With that combination, Addison caught 100 passes for 1,593 and 17 touchdowns in 2021. The year prior, he caught 60 passes for 666 yards and four touchdowns in earning freshman All-America honors.
At USC, Addison will have one of college football's best young quarterbacks throwing to him and an offensive-minded coach. If the transfer was purely motivated by development ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft, then the Trojans were a logical choice.
That doesn't make it any easier for the coaches and teammates Addison left behind, as Narduzzi so clearly illustrated Thursday.
