Pittsburgh slipped to a 5–7 record in 2017. The Panthers kicked off the season on September 2, defeating FCS Youngstown State in overtime by a score of 28–21. One week later, Pitt lost the Keystone Classic to archrival No. 4 Penn State by a margin of 33–14. In the season's third game, Narduzzi's squad lost its second straight contest with a 59–21 defeat at the hands of No. 9 Oklahoma State. After a 42–10 victory over Rice, the Panthers lost another two straight; falling to Syracuse by a margin of 27–24 and No. 20 NC State by a score of 35–17. Pitt then won their next two; defeating Duke by a margin of 24–17 and Virginia by a score of 31–14. After a 34–31 loss to North Carolina and a 20–14 defeat to No. 17 Virginia Tech knocked the Panthers out of bowl contention, Narduzzi's team finished the season with a big upset victory, stunning No. 2 Miami by a score of 24–14. On December 6, 2017, the University of Pittsburgh administration signed Narduzzi to another contract extension and raise, extending his deal by seven years. Narduzzi led Pitt to its first ACC Coastal Division Championship in 2018.