PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh coach Pat Narduzzi didn’t throw the ACC Coastal Division standings up on the wall during his team’s annual Sunday night meeting.

There was no need. Narduzzi is well aware his players know where the Panthers (5-4, 4-1 ACC) sit heading into Saturday’s visit from Virginia Tech (4-4, 3-2): in first place and in control of their own destiny.

“I’m not going to address it,” Narduzzi said Monday. “There’s still a bunch of hungry teams sitting below us. Doesn’t really matter. I know they read on Twitter all that stuff. I guess I don’t have to address it.”

Maybe, but that it’s even a topic of discussion is a testament to Pitt’s resiliency.

Narduzzi raised eyebrows when he told a group of fans at a kickoff luncheon in August to keep the first weekend of December open so they could plan a trip to Charlotte for the ACC title game. It’s a possibility that seemed remote at best after the Panthers were drilled by Penn State and Central Florida and then suffered a baffling loss to North Carolina, all in September.

And yet the Panthers have responded brilliantly, winning shootouts and defensive struggles alike during their three-game conference winning streak. Their taut 23-13 victory at Virginia last Friday may have been the closest they have come all season to fitting Narduzzi’s definition of “Pitt football.”

Darrin Hall ran for 229 yards and three touchdowns. The defense sacked Virginia quarterback Bryce Perkins five times. Alex Kessman drilled a 53-yard field goal and the Panthers pushed the Cavaliers around on the road.

“(It’s) kind of what you want,” Narduzzi said. “(An) old-school game. That’s who we are, what the city of Pittsburgh is.”

Still, Narduzzi stressed it’s far too early for the Panthers to think they’ve arrived.

“We haven’t done anything yet,” he said. “We’ve got a long way to go. Premature victories are no good.”