In the middle of the 2017 season, Pitt’s quarterback situation was a mess. Max Browne had gotten hurt versus Syracuse, Ben DiNucci was barely serviceable in replacing him, and Kenny Pickett had burned his redshirt on a single Hail Mary pass at the end of the Syracuse game.
It speaks volumes that Thomas Macvittie as a redshirt freshman did not get a shot considering those circumstances. It’s not clear why, because Macvittie was a fairly highly rated prospect, and some of the reviews of him out of practice were pretty positive. However, once Pickett seized the starting role after Virginia Tech, Macvittie joined Dinucci in looking for opportunities elsewhere.