PITTSBURGH — Kedon Slovis entered the transfer portal on Dec. 13 and signed with Pitt on Dec. 21. But really, Slovis was in the portal for only five days. That’s all it took for the USC quarterback to leave the Trojans and move 2,000 miles away.
But how did Slovis, a Scottsdale, Ariz., native, land here? And why did he spurn interest from across the country to play at Pitt? Well, a lot happened in that five-day period.
On Wednesday morning, Slovis — after throwing for 7,576 yards and 58 touchdowns in 27 games with USC — spoke to media members at Pitt’s South Side facility for the first time since joining the program. Slovis and head coach Pat Narduzzi explained how five factors contributed to the former Pac-12 star ending up with the Panthers.
1. Pitt wanted a transfer
First and foremost, the Panthers knew they’d be active in the portal. Narduzzi said he accepted this time last year that he wasn’t going to take a high school quarterback in the 2022 recruiting class. There just wasn’t “that guy” who stood out. So, they would look in the portal for depth and, potentially, Kenny Pickett’s replacement.
When the regular season ended, Narduzzi said Pitt was in on three quarterbacks. One of them was obviously Slovis. And while Narduzzi didn’t confirm who the other two were by name, Florida State’s Chubba Purdy visited on Dec. 10. There was also mutual interest in Texas A&M’s Zach Calzada, sources told the Post-Gazette. Purdy ended up at Nebraska, while Calzada transferred to Auburn.
“We were full steam ahead on three guys,” Narduzzi said. “We got the one we wanted. We got our Number 1 guy. But we actually had two other guys who tried to commit prior to that, and I had to say, ‘Slow down. We’re waiting.’ Which is a hard thing as a coach. ... That was a rough week, holding off, making sure we got the guy we wanted.”
2. Weapons returning
At first, the guy Pitt wanted didn’t understand what the Panthers had to offer.
“From afar, I kind of assumed that it was an older team and that everyone would be leaving. That was me not knowing anything,” Slovis said. “When I got the call, I realized everyone was staying except for Kenny. When I looked at the opportunity, it was a no-brainer. It jumped to the top of my list immediately.”
The idea of playing with Biletnikoff Award winner Jordan Addison, who had 100 catches, 1,593 yards and 17 touchdowns last season, appealed to Slovis. So did operating behind an entire offensive line that is returning, something he knew was happening before the public did.
Since his arrival on campus, Slovis said he’s been impressed with the players he’s been working out with on the side. Pitt’s fellow quarterbacks, including his direct competition in Nick Patti, have been “super welcoming.” And on Addison specifically, Slovis said: “Jordan’s a hell of a player. I saw his film and the stuff on tape. ... But Jordan’s better than I thought, better than advertised.”
3. Campus familiarity
Slovis was in the portal during a recruiting dead period, so he couldn’t visit any schools. The 2019 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year said he was sought after by Auburn and Notre Dame, among other programs, but had never been to those campuses.
Even though his recruitment was done entirely via Zoom — spearheaded by Narduzzi and director of player personnel Graham Wilbert — it was helpful that Slovis had been to Pitt a few times before enrolling in January.
Slovis’ girlfriend, Kate McKay, is a defender on the Pitt women’s soccer team. Some jumped to that being the end-all, be-all — the reason why Slovis chose Pitt. He said that wasn’t the case, and Narduzzi said it was hardly brought up during their recruitment calls. But Slovis did admit that it eased his mind having been to Pitt before, knowing where he’d spend the final year or two of his college career.
4. Conversation with Pickett
While Pitt pursued Slovis, Narduzzi encouraged him to reach out to Pickett. So the quarterbacks, who knew each other from last summer’s Manning Passing Academy in Louisiana, had a conversation or two.
Interestingly, their talks were about not only Pitt, but also another program. Former Pitt offensive coordinator Mark Whipple and his new school, Nebraska, were also recruiting Slovis. Doing his due diligence, Slovis asked Pickett about the Panthers, but also about Whipple, who called plays at Pitt the last three years and was integral to not only Pickett’s success, but the quarterback returning for the 2021 season in the first place.
Pickett had only good things to say about both parties, reinforcing what Slovis knew. Slovis also said Pickett’s review of Narduzzi, the team culture and the players he’d work with served as a “reassurance” in his decision to choose Pitt.
5. Trust in Narduzzi
Another thing that came up in Slovis and Pickett’s conversation was the vacancy at offensive coordinator. Coincidentally, Pickett signed out of high school shortly after Matt Canada left for LSU, so he understood what that process was like.
Narduzzi promised Slovis that he would be able to speak with Pitt’s new coordinator before he was hired — just as he did with Pickett years ago.
“Kenny called me and said, ‘Coach, I don’t know if he believes that he’s going to have a chance to talk to the coordinator before he walks on campus.’ I called Kedon out on that. Like, he thought there was no way,” Narduzzi said with a smile. “But that’s kind of how you have to do things.”
“It’s not that I didn’t believe coach, Slovis added. “But it’s really just a credit to him with how much he trusts his players, the input he allows us to give and how involved he keeps us. It’s not like he was keeping anything in the dark. ... There are only so many real dudes out here in college football, and he’s definitely one of them.”
