Pitt to Face East Carolina in Military Bowl

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers have been assigned their bowl game to conclude the 2025 season.

Pitt will face the East Carolina Pirates in the Go Bowling Military Bowl. The bowl game will kick off at 11 a.m. on Dec. 27 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Md.

This will be the Panthers' second-ever appearance in the Military Bowl. Pitt lost to Navy 44-28 in 2015. It was the team's first season under Pat Narduzzi.

Dec 28, 2015; Annapolis, MD, USA; Navy Midshipmen head coach Ken Niumatalolo and Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi speak after the game at Navy-Marine Corps. Stadium. Navy Midshipmen defeated Pittsburgh Panthers 44-28. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

Quick Preview of East Carolina

East Carolina finished 8-4 this regular season and fourth in the American. The Pirates went 0-2 against Power 4 opponents in a 24-17 loss to NC State in Week 1 and a 34-13 loss to BYU. The other two losses were a 58-24 loss to UTSA and a 26-19 loss to Tulane, which made the College Football Playoff.

East Carolina's top win of the season came in a 31-27 victory over 8-3 Memphis. The Tigers finished with an 8-4 record in the regular season.

The Pirates boast a top-15 offense in the country, ranking 39th in rushing, 16th in passing and 24th in scoring.

Former Michigan State transfer quarterback, Katin Houser, threw for 3,300 yards, 19 touchdowns, six interceptions and completed 66% of his throws. Former Penn State running back, London Montgomery, led the rushing attack with 742 yards, seven scores and averaged 4.8 yards per attempt. Anthony Smith, a former NC State wideout, led the Pirates in receiving with 60 catches for 897 yards and five touchdowns.

On defense, East Carolina's unit ranks in the top-50 nationwide, ranking 28th in scoring, 29th in rushing and 89th in passing.

Defensive back Ja'Marley Riddle leads the Pirates' defense in tackles with 70, defensive lineman Zion Wilson leads with seven sacks and Riddle leads with a team-high three interceptions and six pass breakups.

Recapping Pitt's 2025 Regular Season

Pitt came into this year after suffering six-straight losses to end its 2024 season, including a 48-46 six-overtime loss to Toledo in the GameAbove Sports Bowl.

This season, the Panthers struggled to begin the year, and there was a point where there was some doubt that Pitt would even be bowl eligible this season.

The Panthers suffered consecutive losses to West Virginia and Louisville, where they allowed 17 unanswered second half points in each game. Sitting at 2-2, Pitt still had ranked games against Florida State, Notre Dame, Georgia Tech and Miami still on the schedule, and was staring at a 6-6 record.

However, Narduzzi decided to make a quarterback change the following week and started true freshman Mason Heintschel over Eli Holstein against Boston College.

Pittsburgh Panthers quarterback Mason Heintschel (6) prepares to fire the ball downfield while being pressured by Notre Dame Fighting Irish linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa (27) during the first half at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, PA on November 15, 2025. | Michael Longo / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

That decision helped spur a five-game winning streak and remove any doubt of being bowl eligible by placing Pitt in the middle of the ACC Championship conversation.

Pitt closed out the season with a win over No. 16 Georgia Tech and disappointing losses to No. 9 Notre Dame and Miami, ultimately eliminating the Panthers from the conference championship and College Football Playoff contention.

The Panthers have a chance to go 9-4 this season, which would be the team's best record since 2022, when they beat UCLA 37-35 in the Sun Bowl.

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