Pitt names former USC QB Browne as starter

Aug 23, 2017 - 6:07 AM Former Southern California quarterback Max Browne was named as Pittsburgh's starting quarterback on Tuesday for its Sept. 2 opener against Youngstown State.

Browne, won a battle that started in the spring with Ben Dinucci for the job.

"There's some decisions to make as coaches, and it obviously wasn't an easy one, but Max Browne is going to be our starting quarterback," Panthers coach Pat Narduzzi said after practice. "We've got a lot of confidence in him."

After four years at USC, Browne came to Pitt last winter. He had lost the starting job with the Trojans to Sam Darnold after a loss to Stanford last September.

Browne started three games before Darnold supplanted him. Darnold is now a Heisman Trophy candidate.

At USC, Browne completed 58 of 93 passes for 507 yards with two touch¬downs and two interceptions last season. In two of his three starts, the Trojans were blown out by Alabama and Stanford.

But he should feel comfortable at Pitt, which has a history of starting graduate transfer quarterbacks such as Brown. He is the third one -- Tom Savage and Nate Peterman came before him -- in the last four years.