Long after most people finish their work day, Kade Bell is still in his office, reviewing video, planning Pitt's next practice, or thinking of new ways to move the football.
When Bell is leaving, quarterback Nate Yarnell sometimes arrives for his second shift.
After practice on Thursday, Pitt’s offensive coordinator said, “I go home to my family late, and he’s walking in to watch film until about 9 o’clock.”
Regardless of the offense’s challenges, Yarnell is putting in the time this spring to make them go away.
“He loves football,” Bell said. “He wants to be great. He doesn’t want to be average. He just doesn’t want to win six or seven games. He wants to go to the ACC championship.”
On practice days, the redshirt junior quarterback from Austin, Texas has a long day. To relax, he plays the piano in the players’ lounge. He usually plays “Hotel California.”
According to Bell, Yarnell is showing the leadership qualities needed to keep the job.
“The one thing I love about Nate at practice, it’s never someone else’s fault,” Bell said. “That’s what great quarterbacks are: They take responsibility. The kids see that.”
It should be noted that this is just the beginning of Bell’s overhaul of the Pitt offense. It will continue for two more weeks with coaches and in the summer in players-only workouts.
Bell said Yarnell’s progress will directly impact the season’s outcome.
“The quarterback is the difference between winning a championship and not, right?” he said, speaking generically. “You have to put good players around them, but when it comes down to it, I have to see what the quarterbacks can do.”
The challenges include knowing when to hand off or throw when running a run/pass option. Bell mentioned that the offense threw 86 passes in the scrimmage last Saturday, but that wasn’t the plan. “Really about 60-something. About 12 times (the quarterback) should have handed the ball off with the RPOs.
“We’re getting better with that stuff. I’m putting them in some tough situations.”
Bell said the complexities of Pitt’s defense might be just what the offense needs in its early stage.
“It’s actually making them tougher mentally,” he said, “because they’re having to go through some challenges, which I love. We got a lot better in the past two days.
“The biggest thing is communication. Everybody be on the same page. You want to be able to throw the ball before (pass catchers) break. You have to be able to trust exactly where he’s supposed to be. With a new offense, it makes quarterbacks sometimes be hesitant because you want to make sure they’re where they’re supposed to be.”
The other change is Bell’s desire for his quarterbacks to throw quickly.
The way we teach everything is to be fast, including lining up, motioning, and communicating quickly. The goal is to avoid negative plays by getting rid of the ball fast.
Doing things faster makes it harder for the defense to react, creating opportunities for easy passes or handoffs due to their confusion.
Bell mentioned that Yarnell has a good understanding of the offense to some extent.
Nobody fully understands exactly what I want yet because our teaching methods and offensive style are very different. We focus on quickly reading the game and getting the ball out, not holding onto it and taking sacks.
Bell is sure that there is enough time to address the challenges before the first game on Aug. 31.
He mentioned that there is a lot of time, about five months, to improve before the first game.
Yarnell stated that he has improved greatly since the start of spring drills.
He mentioned that Coach Bell is demanding a lot from him, which is exactly what he wants.
