Pittsburgh Panthers vs East Carolina Pirates Prediction, Odds and Picks for Saturday, 12/27/25

The Pittsburgh Panthers had a solid year in the ACC with an overall record of 8-4. They will now have the opportunity to finish their season off with a bowl game victory against the 8-4 East Carolina Pirates. Pittsburgh finished their season losing two of their last three games. After Eli Holstein went down with an injury earlier in the year, freshman Mason Heintschel took over and finished the season as the Panthers’ top passer at 2098 yards and 15 touchdowns. Running back Ja’Kyrian Turner led the team on the ground with 652 yards rushing and 7 touchdowns. East Carolina finished their season with wins in five of their last six games. The end of the year run helped the Panthers finish near the top of the American Conference. Senior quarterback Katin Houser led the team in passing this season with 3300 yards and 19 touchdowns. His top receiver was Anthony Smith, who finished the season with 897 yards receiving and 5 touchdowns. 

My first initial reaction when seeing this matchup was that East Carolina may have a chance if enough of Pittsburgh’s players opt-out, but it will actually be East Carolina that was ravaged by the transfer portal. The quarterback and receiver combo of Houser and Smith will both sit this game out. The team will also be without their top rusher London Montgomery. Montgomery finished the season with 742 yards rushing and 7 touchdowns. Finally, the offensive coordinator, John David Baker, and the defensive coordinator, Josh Aldridge, have already departed to their new coaching positions at another school. Pittsburgh will remain mostly intact with their key players. There was a time Pittsburgh was a college football playoff hopeful before they lost to Notre Dame. Heintschel had a great year filling in at quarterback, and he will look to finish this season on a high note to gain momentum for next year.

Pittsburgh -10.5 is available at the time of publishing. Playable at -12.5.