STANFORD, Calif. (AP) — Mason Heintschel threw for 304 yards and tied his season-high with three touchdown passes, leading Pittsburgh to a 35-20 win over Stanford on Saturday.
Pitt’s first true freshman starting quarterback since Kenny Pickett in 2017, Heintschel completed 23 of 38 passes and had a rating of 143.3 while guiding the Panthers (7-2, 5-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) to their fifth consecutive victory.
Ja’Kyrian Turner ran for a season-high 127 yards while Kenny Johnson, Raphael Williams Jr. and Jake Overman each caught touchdown passes for Pitt in its first game at Stanford since 1922.
Shawn Lee Jr. scored on a 30-yard interception, one of four turnovers forced by the Panthers.
That was part of a dominant day by Pitt's defense, which had five sacks and limited Stanford to minus-4 yards rushing and twice forced turnovers on downs.
Ben Gulbranson completed 17 of 30 throws for 228 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions for Stanford (3-6, 2-4) before getting benched in the second half.
CJ Williams had another big game for the Cardinal, with 122 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Sam Roush added his first career 100-yard game (104). Williams now has four 100-yard games this season.
The Panthers never trailed, scoring their first touchdown four plays after dropping Stanford for a two-yard loss on 4th-and-1 from the Cardinal 37 on the game’s opening drive.
Heintschel, the ACC’s leading passer, had touchdown throws of 17, 5 and 14 yards. It’s his third game this season with 300 yards or more and third with three touchdowns. Heintschel was intercepted twice by Brandon Nicholson, the first Cardinal with multiple interceptions in a game since Paulson Adebo in 2019.
Those interceptions were part of four Pittsburgh turnovers that Stanford forced, the team's most in a game since 2023.
Deuce Spann scored on a 4-yard run off a direct snap for the Panthers early in the second quarter.
Emmet Kenney had field goals from 39 and 45 yards for the Cardinal.
Stanford travels to face North Carolina next Saturday.