Larry Fitzgerald was always in control as a Pitt football player.
Yet his emotions nearly got the best of him Thursday night when he was honored on the Acrisure Stadium turf where two decades ago he exhibited such impressive body control.
He played in only 26 games over two seasons (2002 and 2003), but few Pitt football players were as productive and none were as acrobatic as Fitzgerald, who returned to the North Shore as a College Football Hall of Fame electee.
“He only played two years, but this is his school,” former Pitt coach Walt Harris said on a video shown on the Jumbtron between the first and second quarters of the Panthers’ game against Syracuse.
The University of Pittsburgh and The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame jointly honored Fitzgerald during the game. Hall of Fame induction ceremonies for Fitzgerald and 21 others will be held at the National Football Foundation’s 66th annual awards dinner Dec. 10 at the Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.
“So many positive memories,” Fitzgerald said after a presentation on the field, his voice nearly overcome by emotion. “So many of my teammates showed up for this. I saw them on the sideline.
“This is a special place. It means a lot coming back here and spending time here.”
Fitzgerald said he grew as a person during his two seasons at Pitt.
“I was a kid when I came here. I lost my mother here, the toughest time of my entire life was that moment,” he said. “This group of people here, they did put their arms around me and made me feel so loved and appreciated.
“There’s nothing I can do to ever repay these people for what they did for me.”
Fitzgerald, who played in the 2002 and 2003 seasons, was a unanimous first-team All-American and Heisman Trophy runner-up in ’03. During that season, he was a mere sophomore, but he recorded 92 receptions for 1,672 yards (an 18.2 average) and a Pitt-record 22 touchdowns.
In two seasons, he totaled 161 catches — many while contorting his body to avoid defenders — for 2,677 yards (16.6 average) and 34 touchdowns, also a Pitt record. Fitzgerald set or tied four NCAA marks, eight Big East records and 11 Pitt standards. Among his NCAA records is a streak of 18 consecutive games catching a touchdown pass.
He was named the 2003 Walter Camp Player of the Year, the first sophomore to earn that honor. He also won the Biletnikoff Award as the country’s top receiver. He was second in Heisman Trophy voting but carried three voting regions, an unprecedented achievement for a sophomore.
Fitzgerald said failing to win the Heisman doesn’t matter nearly as much to him as the memories of playing for Pitt and the relationships he built.
“Coach Harris believing in me and seeing Chris LaSala (longtime Pitt athletics administration) and coach (Bob) Junko and so many of these men here who dedicated their lives to this university, it makes you so proud to be an alumnus.
“I’m just overcome with appreciation.”
In 2004, he was the third overall selection in the NFL Draft, going to the Arizona Cardinals and playing there 17 seasons through 2020. He is an 11-time Pro Bowler and member of the NFL 100 All-Time Team. He ranks second in NFL history in receiving yards (17,492) and receptions (1,432), and sixth with 121 touchdown catches.
A Minneapolis, Minn., native, Fitzgerald is the 20th Pitt player to enter the Hall, joining Joe Thompson (1902-06), Hube Wagner (1910-13), Bob Peck (1913-16), George McLaren (1915-18), Tom Davies (1918-21), Herb Stein (1918-21), Joe Donchess (1927-29), Joe Skladany (1931-33), Ave Daniell (1934-36), Marshall Goldberg (1936-38), Joe Schmidt 1950-52, Mike Ditka (1958-60), Tony Dorsett (1973-76), Hugh Green (1977-80), Mark May (1977-80), Jimbo Covert (1978-82), Dan Marino (1979-82), Bill Fralic (1981-84) and Ruben Brown (1991-94).
Hall of Fame coaches who headed the Panthers program include Len Casanova, Clark Shaughnessy, Jock Sutherland and Pop Warner. Sutherland holds the record for most victories by a coach in Pitt history with 111, with Pat Narduzzi standing second with 71 (before Thursday).
The College Football Hall of Fame 2024 class also includes Justin Blackmon (Oklahoma State), the late Paul Cameron (UCLA), Tim Couch (Kentucky), Warrick Dunn (Florida State), Armanti Edwards (Appalachian State), Deon Figures (Colorado), Toby Gerhart (Stanford), Dan Hampton (Arkansas), Steve Hutchinson (Michigan), Antonio Langham (Alabama), Randy Moss (Marshall), Julius Peppers (North Carolina), Paul Posluszny (Penn State), Dewey Selmon (Oklahoma), Alex Smith (Utah), Kevin Smith (Texas A&M), Chris Ward (Ohio State), Danny Woodhead (Chadron State, Neb.) and coaches Mark Dantonio (Cincinnati, Michigan State), Danny Hale (West Chester, Bloomsburg) and Frank Solich (Nebraska, Ohio).