The Panthers’ defense carried their high-powered offense to victory for the second straight game.

However, unlike the 17-15 win over Cal back on October 12, we’ll never know if the defense truly had to carry the offense in Pitt’s 41-13 laugher over Syracuse at a rockin’ Acrisure Stadium on Thursday night. Why? Because Kade Bell’s unit had so few chances to be on the field. Why? Because the defense took three of its four first-half interceptions of Orange quarterback Kyle McCord and returned them to the house.

The first one occurred on Syracuse’s first possession of the night. On second and 10 from the Orange 33, linebacker Rasheem Biles stepped in front of an out-pass by McCord and raced down the near sideline for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead for the home team.

The Orange second drive ended in yet another interception when a pass over the middle from McCord was deflected up in the air, and linebacker Brandon George, who was lying on his belly, happened to look up at the last second and reached out to secure the pigskin just before it hit the grass of Acrisure Stadium. Pitt’s offense took over at the Syracuse 44 but only managed to navigate 13 yards before settling for a Ben Sauls’s 49-yard field goal and a 10-0 first-quarter advantage.

Believe it or not, Syracuse’s third drive ended in yet another interception by a linebacker; this time, Kyle Louis did the honors before muscling his way 59 yards for the second pick-six of the first quarter and a 17-0 lead for the Panthers.

The Orange managed to go on a sustained drive on their next possession, but it ultimately ended with zero points after they unsuccessfully went for it on fourth and six from the Panthers’ 35 early in the second quarter.

Pitt’s offense finally got in on the act and immediately drove 65 yards on seven plays to make it 24-0 when quarterback Eli Holstein connected with receiver Censere Lee on a 20-yard touchdown with 12:30 left in the second quarter.

Fast-forward to late in the first half. Braylan Lovelace got in on the linebacker interception party before charming his way into the Pick-Six VIP room by returning it 33 yards for a score to make it 31-0 at halftime.

And the rout was officially on.

The only question would be if the Orange could come back in the second half. They did take the opening kickoff of the third quarter and eventually scored a touchdown when McCord snuck it in on third and goal from the one. But “eventually” did a lot of heavy lifting in the last sentence. That’s because Syracuse’s scoring drive lasted 18 plays and consumed 9:38 of the game clock. You combine the long scoring drive with the failed two-point conversion and, no, the Orange weren’t going to make a comeback in the second half.

Following a Panthers’ punt, McCord was intercepted for a fifth time in the game; Phillip O’Brien, a defensive back and not a linebacker, was the recipient and was quickly downed at the Syracuse 45.

Despite O’Brien breaking up the linebacker pick-six party, the Panthers offense was able to convert the takeaway into more points when Holstein found receiver Raphael Williams for a 29-yard touchdown to make it 38-6.

The Panthers’ only scare of the night occurred on their next possession when Holstein scrambled for 13 yards before being tackled; he immediately removed himself from the game due to an apparent injury. That drive ended in more points when the dependable and dangerous Sauls came on to connect from 57 yards away to make it 41-6.

The Orange scored a touchdown in garbage time to put the finishing touches on Pitt’s blowout victory.

To recap: Pitt’s defense intercepted five McCord passes and returned three of them to the house.

As for the Syracuse ground game, it only netted six yards on 29 carries.

The Panthers offense only accrued 217 yards on the night, but again, it’s hard to say if the struggles against Cal were still there or if the low output was the result of not being on the field. And when I say Pitt’s offense wasn’t on the field against Syracuse, I mean it. The Panthers had just 10 offensive series and only 18:48 in time of possession.

But who needs possessions and minutes when your defense returns three interceptions for touchdowns?

As for Holstein, he completed 11 of 15 passes for 108 yards and two touchdowns before leaving the game. Speaking of his apparent injury, head coach Pat Narduzzi talked to reporters after the game and said it was nothing serious.

The victory improves the Panthers record to 7-0 on the season and 3-0 in the ACC.

Next up for Pitt is a huge showdown on the road at SMU on Saturday, November 2. The Mustangs, who just joined the ACC this year, head into Week 9 at 6-1 and 3-0 in conference play.

No matter what the Mustangs do this weekend (they go on the road to face a Duke squad that is also 6-1), they will be a stern test for Pitt on November 2.

If the Panthers can get past SMU and remain undefeated after eight games, their fans may, I say, may begin to dream the impossible.