This morning the main Pitt beat writer for the Trib-Review wrote a piece on Pitt’s QB situation titled “Pitt backup QB brings experience” which immediatly caught my eye because that is the exact topic we all were discussing on here in the comments section just a day ago.
DiPaola wrote the article and relays this about the OC’s take on Manny Stocker:
Then, there’s this from Canada: “I’m very excited about putting the ball in Nathan’s hands when the game is on the line.”
But that doesn’t mean Stocker is being ignored. “Manny is getting better every day,” Canada said. “He’s playing like a senior needs to play.” Canada said the difference in Stocker from their time together three years ago is his attention to detail and willingness to tackle difficult situations.
“Pressure is a privilege,” Canada said. “Sometimes, we don’t like it. If you want to be the guy, there’s pressure, and he’s learning to embrace that and understand that and work at that.
“He’s attacking the details of the game.”
OK then; I read that and all the other stuff Canada and Narduzzi have said about the QB2 position so far this month and don’t see Ben Dinucci getting anything but some off hand and cursory discussion at all. Sorry to all the ‘local boy does well’ fans but I think we have to put that hope about Dinucci breaking into some real playing time as a ‘wait until next year’ scenario.
The Post-Gazette’s new Pitt football beat writer, 
Jenn Menendez writes about the new throwback uniforms:
Narduzzi intimated there is a strong chance the throwback uniform could become a regular fixture after it debuts Oct. 8. He added that his senior leadership group, referred to as the “Eagles,” will be tasked with making that decision on a weekly basis.
“I think it’s going to be something that seniors, our Eagles will kind of decide what do we want to do,” Narduzzi said. “If they like the look? I’m open to anything. I just want to coach football.”
This is very interesting as usually the school administration and the contracted apparel companies get together to maximize the ‘visibility’ of the different uniform items to make the biggest profits.
BTW – Ms. Menendez was the Post-Gazette’s hockey writer before coming over to Pitt football. Strange move all around and not to sound too critical but is this another example of the Panther’s football program not getting the respect it deserves from that paper? I don’t really understand the Post-Gazette.
It seems like once they determined that Paul Ziese shouldn’t cover Pitt football because his son was on the roster (a decision I thought was ridiclous as it implies Ziese couldn’t be professional enought to be a fair observer) we’ve had nothing but transitional reporters assigned to our football program. Sort of an afterthought as it were.
In the last few years we have had Ziese, Werner, Craig Myer and now Menendez and someone named Alex Iniguez who I haven’t heard of before today…. it seems like a game of musical chairs almost but it always seems to be only one – maybe two voices covering the team.
Over on the Trib we have Jerry DiPaola, John Grupp, John Harris, and for opinion pieces Rob Rossi. They just seem to take Pitt football more seriously – especially now that they roped in Rivals.com Chris Peak into doing those great podcasts.
Apparently the P-G’s Mr. Iniguez thinks the throwbacks are “Lit“. I think it is really way cool and total boss the way he works this slang into his article. I mean really bitchin’.
Pitt announced it will wear its throwback football uniforms for the homecoming game Oct. 8 against Georgia Tech at Heinz Field. Objectively, they are, as the kids say, lit. Seriously, look at these things. The royal blue. The mustard yellow. They’re beautiful.
Note to self. Let this young whippersnapper know that those colors are nowhere near mustard yellow – unless you only use <<<<this on your hot dog. But back in the day the 
mustard gold was based on this >>>.
If I can tell the difference so should someone who gets paid to report on it.
Speaking of DiPaola, he has a piece on how there are still starting position up in the air.
Wide receivers Dontez Ford, Quadree Henderson and Jester Weah were labeled “solid starters” by Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi on Wednesday. But the competition at that position — and at other places on the team — is far from finished.
“Those other guys are making plays, too,” he said. “I think they are solid starters right now, but I don’t think there is a whole lot of separation (from the rest of the group).
“It’s fall camp. It’s hard to separate.”
What ever does Narduzzi mean by that? Not to nit pick but he says one thing – they are solid starters, then in the same breath says they really aren’t. Fall camp is most certainly the time the coaching staff should be testing these WRs to their limits to see exactly who can do exactly what. It is the perfect time to separate them.
My thoughts: Ford, Challingsworth and Henderson open up the season as the Top Three WRs- but I also have heard that there will be a lot of rotation at the receiver’s positions.
Jerry D had an earlier article in the same vein but about the running backs competition:
“It seems like that’s a hot topic right now,” Powell said. Then, with simple logic, he tried to cool off the narrative. “We don’t play tomorrow,” he said.
So the competition continues, with James Conner at the front of the line looking nothing like a player who spent the past year rehabbing a knee injury and fighting cancer with 12 chemotherapy treatments.
“You wouldn’t know,” Powell said. “I think he’s 100 percent, physically.”Good offenses use several running backs in a typical season, and lining up the candidates behind Conner — sophomores Darrin Hall and Qadree Ollison, junior Rachid Ibrahim and freshman Chawntez Moss — could be the most difficult decision coaches will encounter in training camp.
I know fans always want the freshman phenom to come straight out of HS and become the star RB right off the bat. Lord knows we have had our share to do just that with guys like Dorsett and others. Here are the Pitt Freshman with over 1000 yards in their debut seasons:
| Player & Year |
Yards | YPC | TDs | RB They Replaced |
| Dion Lewis – 2009 | 1799 | 5.5 | 17 | LeSean McCoy |
| Tony Dorsett – 1973 | 1686 | 5.3 | 13 | Stan Ostrowski |
| LeSean McCoy – 2007 | 1328 | 4.8 | 14 | LaRod Stephens-Howling |
| Curvin Richards – 1988 | 1228 | 5.9 | 8 | Craig Heyward |
| Bryant Thomas – 1981 | 1132 | 5.2 | 7 | Randy McMillan |
You can see that each of these RBs really had no one else to contend with in their true or redshirt freshman years. That situation is definitely not the case for young Moss this season. If he redshirts, and with Conner and Ibrahim gone (assuming Conner declares for the draft after his JR year), then maybe having just Ollison and Hall as competition Moss could breakout in ’17.
This year though? If we see much of him it will be as a special teams player – we have deep RB talent on the roster ahead of him.
Pitt Football Training Camp Quotes, Day 10 (From Pitt’s Media Dept.)
The Panthers will hold their second two-a-day of camp on Wednesday.
Opening statement:
“We’re going into practice No. 11 this morning. We’ve got a two-a-day. We had some good meetings yesterday. It should be a little lively this morning, and we’ll be a little light in the afternoon. We’ll do a lot of special teams situational things tonight. I’m happy with where we were yesterday, but you’re never happy totally. There’s little things that we’ve got to improve at every position. There’s no perfection out there, that’s for sure.”
On why the linemen and quarterbacks wear knee braces during camp:
“It’s definitely preventative. We want all of our O-lineman [wearing them]. Do you really think our D-linemen want to wear those? As a matter of fact, on the first day we had a guy not wearing them in shorts. Anybody can fall on anybody, and that’s how you save on the doctor’s bills I guess. It’s a preventative thing.
For quarterbacks, it’s the same thing. The left knee when you’re getting back in the pocket, especially for a right-handed quarterback, can get fallen into. We’re just trying to save and protect these kids. The O-linemen generally wear them during the games as well. The defensive line takes them off. I’m not going to make them wear them in games if they don’t want to, if they don’t feel right. I think it’s a safety thing. We want to keep them as healthy as we can. You don’t want to lose guys in practice.”
On how the depth of the offensive line will help with the rushing attack:
“To be a great football team, you’ve got to be able to run the ball, and it starts with the offensive line. Although, you’d like running backs to be their own blockers—BYOB—you’ve got to have a strong offensive line. I’m happy with where they are. There will be more juggling going on at that position as well, and we do have some different tailbacks.”
On when the offensive line starters will be decided:
“We’re going to roll right into the first week. Maybe we’ll solidify things after this Saturday. You never really know, but it’s a process and it takes time. The more stuff you install, you find out what guys can do and don’t do well. That kind of formulates where you’re going to be at that position.”
On if it’s hard to get some of the younger players to get excited about special teams:
“I don’t think it’s tough to talk them into it. I think it’s a lot easier with the redshirt freshmen than it is with the true freshmen because I just don’t think that they know. If you sit in one of the offensive or defensive meetings that we sit in for 50 minutes, and then all of a sudden it’s 20 minutes of special teams, after the 40 or 50 minutes your head is already spinning.
So I don’t know if there’s a point where they don’t want to do it. I think it’s a point of where they’re like, ‘Woah.’ One particular individual, after his first meeting came up to me and was like, ‘Coach, I don’t know what is going on.’ That was a kid being honest. There were three more of them that didn’t know but didn’t say a word. I said, ‘Hey, don’t worry about it. You’re going to be fine. It just takes time.’”
On how you respond to a player not understanding what’s going on:
“Just like I did. ‘Hey, it’s going to be okay. Relax.’ Everybody is going to take it a little different. He just had these eyes about that big like, ‘Woah. What just happened to me?’ It’s hard to take it all in, especially for a freshman.”
On if offensive depth helps in evaluating quarterbacks:
“Yeah, they are surrounded with talent, and the quarterback needs to be protected. Sometimes behind the No. 2 offensive line you feel like that guy doesn’t have a chance when he gets out on the field because he’s worried about getting hit in the mouth. It certainly [is important], especially with the offensive line.”
If WR Quadree Henderson has accepted the challenge to step up:
“Quadree Henderson has always accepted it. He was a freshman that came in and played a lot for us and made some big plays for us, but I think he’s gotten better. I think you’ll see a much improved Quadree Henderson this year. He’s always been confident, and I think he’s always stepped up to the challenge.”
On if WR Quadree Henderson’s speed will give them the ability to stretch the field:
“I think so, but we’ll find out. Right now—today—it probably won’t, but Quadree [Henderson] is fast. He’s got good wheels.”
On if WRs Dontez Ford, Quadree Henderson and Jester Weah are looking like starters:
“All camp, it’s been hard to separate. Those other guys are making plays too. I think they’re solid. I think they’re solid starters right now, but there’s not a whole lot of separation. Those other guys can make plays too.”
Offensive Line Coach John Peterson – Video
On the continuing camp battles:
“I think we’ve got more than five guys who are capable. Camp allows guys to compete and play more than one position. It’s a long season and a long camp.”
On the evolution of OL Brian O’Neill:
“For a young player who has gone from tight end to tackle, he’s done very well. He is studying and is invested in being an offensive lineman. It’s night and day. His confidence is growing. Last year at this time every step and every verbiage was new to him. Now he doesn’t have to think about the verbiage or the language. He’s really fine-tuned his technique, his hands and feet and the finer points of offensive line play.”
On the importance of having depth:
“If it’s a hot game, you allow guys to roll in and stay fresh. Also, it’s a physical game and we want our guys to play physical. Hopefully we stay healthy—knock on wood. Last year was a unique situation where five guys maintained a healthy status for the whole season.”
On OL Alex Bookser:
“He’s played both guard and center throughout camp. He has taken a lot of snaps at the guard position and now he’s starting to get more snaps at center as camp goes on. He took more snaps at guard today than he had in the past, but again that’s that versatility. These guys are a very selfless group. They understand the big picture, and they’re all willing to do whatever it takes to help the team.”
On the decision-making process regarding starting jobs:
“Obviously when you get to game week you try to have a little more specific rotation idea. Until then, every day and every practice is a new identity. Everyone has a plan until something happens. You then have to react to the daily grind and the opportunities that camp brings to you. That is the great thing about having multiple guys that are able to do those things.”
On the significance of the upcoming practices:
“Every part of their play will be evaluated. That’s part of the process. They understand that.”
Offensive Lineman Brian O’Neill – Video
O’Neill was asked the question “When did you realize that you were actually a good OL?” and he answered “Georgia Tech, that when instead of running to the left side all the time they started running behind me.” That is a good example of little slices of info I like to hear.
On remembering being a tight end in the past:
“A little bit. I’m ready to go at tackle and that’s where I’m at, and I’m good with it.”
On his transition to offensive line last year to now:
“This time last year I was figuring out where I was going on the field and what I was supposed to be doing. Now [my focus] is on how I can do it to the best of my abilities, how our offensive line can be better as a whole and how we can help our team out. It’s not just what I’m doing, but what everyone else is doing and how it improves our offense as a whole.”
On being comfortable at the right tackle position:
“The less you think, the better you play, in terms of pre-snap and during the play. I can go now and T-off on guys and not have to worry if I’m doing it right. I know what I’m doing now. I feel comfortable doing it now.”
On the offensive line’s ability to create plays:
“We have three or four guys that can run better than most tackles that are out there. We have a super athletic group as a whole. If you look at the numbers in the weight room, it’s a pretty impressive group from top to bottom.”
On being able to open gaps for running backs:
“That’s something that we need to improve on from last year. We had so many three-, four-, five-yard runs last year. We need to make those runs 10-, 12-, 15-yard runs this year. Second-level blocking and getting to the edge quicker will help with that. We have a lot more pieces in place to do that from top to bottom this year than we did last year.”
Mike Caprara:
On what he’s learned about the defense so far in camp:
“I’ve learned that we’re getting more detailed. There are different coaching points and different things that we’re talking about in the meeting rooms now. There were even some situations out there today that the ball didn’t bounce our way on defense, but they were good learning opportunities.
Those situations that we went through, I don’t think that we could really talk that out that much when we first got this defense, when we were first learning it. I think that’s a good thing to build off.”
On if the defense has changed a lot from last year:
“No, not really. That’s one of the good things about Coach’s defense: it’s very sound. There are no gray areas. No matter if it’s a spread offense or a pro offense, a lot of the roles for the D-line, linebackers and the secondary don’t really change. That’s what you like to see as a player.”
On if having a lot of seniors on the defense will make a difference:
“Absolutely. A lot of the seniors are holding guys accountable. That’s a good thing to see because it’s a long season, and it’s going to take more than just 11 guys. Having that depth—not necessarily by position, but seniority—can go a long way.”
On how communicating defensively has improved in year two with this coaching staff:
“I think when you talk about that perspective of things, it’s all about communication. That part of the game is clicking right now. Sure, sometimes things don’t really bounce our way. The offense is going to make some plays and all that, but the communication is there, and that’s a good thing. That’s something that we can build off each day.”
On whether the defense asks lots of questions in meetings:
“There are a lot more questions being asked. We’re asking different things here and there about what we are seeing out there. Not necessarily what the plays are, or what we have set as a defense, but what our reads are. Why did we do this in the play? What did we see? When you know the defense, it becomes second nature.
You’re not just sound in your position. You’re seeing what’s going on in front of you. You’re getting a coverage call behind you. There’s a lot more parts coming together as whole before the snap of the ball and even during the play.”
Let’s all watch this again…
pittpov.com 
Really not at all worried about the offense. Unless Peterman goes down early of course.
With this line, and stable of backs they should be able to run over anyone.
The questions on D are still are, will they get a consistent pass rush,and will they be able to stop the run?
Redzone defense has nowhere to go but up, it can’t be any worse.
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A note about Jenn Menendez …. before she covered hockey, she was the Post-Gazette WVU beat writer for a few years, so she does have college FB experience.
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… Menendez is no novice
http://www.jennmenendez.com/career.html
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Wow, Brian O’Neil is an impressive young man. He is a great interview. I hope he keeps developing and becomes a star.
Jenn M. Has asked some good questions at the Narduzzi pressers. You can tell she has done football before.
Disagree on Challingsworth starting, if starting means getting the majority of snaps at the position. I think Narduzzi is looking for more speed at WR, DE, LB, DB. At least he should be.
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PG is bleeding money like a succulent human on a date with Hannibal Lector, and the turnover of reporters is immense.
Brian O’Neil was impressive in the interview and looks to be a future leader. The offense appears to be ahead of the team in terms of present talent and experience. It seems most of the big questions are on defense especially in the backfield and DL. The silence about the D Line is deafening.
Was that Sandusky holding the 93.7 microphone?
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@ Reed, to play your “keep it real” card concerning our RB depth and whether Moss has an opportunity to see the field. The reality is that injuries destroy football seasons for teams that lack depth at key positions. Pitt’s Achilles heel in that dept. is at QB and interior DL this year.
Last season only our extensive depth at RB kept us above a .500 record with a viable running game all season long. Conner-MCL tear, Ibrahim- blown out Achilles’ tendon, James, Ollison & Hall all nursing their own dings through the season. You just can’t have too many RBs.
Although Ollison won his ACC Award with his stellar play last year, let us not forget that he was the 4th string RB going into the season. Don’t jinx us by saying there are too many players ahead of Moss for him to see playing time, that might not be the case if the injury bug hits hard again this year.
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I think Jenn Melendez is a fine writer – the point wasn’t her so much as the revolving cast of characters that the P-G seems to go through in covering Pitt football.
NotRocket – IMO you can’t sacrifice talent for speed. Just because another WR may be faster – and remember Challingsworth ran another 4.5 just a couple of weeks ago – doesn’t necessarily mean they should start.
BTW – Tyler Boyd also had a 4.5 40 time.
You can have speed in the slot and as rotational resources also. But first you have to get open and catch the ball – which Challingsworth is good at. We’ll see – but in the passing game you go for route yards first then yards after the catch second.
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Agree with Reed. Speed at WR means nothing, zero, big goose egg if you can’t catch the ball. (Think Jester Weah)
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One of the big improvements this year should be pass protection. A couple more seconds on each play should make Peterman better and our wide receivers more open. O’Neil should be much better and Bookser or Officer at Center are both bigger stronger guys. Artie got bull rushed too often. Plus the depth is a whole lot better.
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Also agree with Reed… receivers have to create space, have sure hands, run good routes and have football “smarts” not necessarily be a rocket. Challingsworth seems to bring those elements to the table and should have a solid year.
I heard from the horses mouth that Weah is the “real deal.” We are rooting for you Jester. Would nice to have a deep threat this year (been missing)to stretch the defense and create more offensive opportunities. Canada will stretch the field this year- eh!!
Seems the Bengals have a rookie “deep threat” Couple of nice deepball grabs by Tyler during camp and the exhibition. Chaney was saving Tyler for his pro career…….
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Plus our backs should be better picking up the blitz this year.
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I grew up with the 70’s Stadium mustard, however I liked the 80’s 90’s French’s mustard a little more. More unique. So as a bit older alum and fan, I’m thrilled with the retro’s. I said before, the more I look at the other new uni’s unveiled in May, especially with a back drop, I like them also. I do hope that we end up wearing the retro’s several times a year though.
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Obviously the receiver has to have good hands. Everyone is counting Weah out because he had some drops. That doesn’t mean he has stone hands. I can name a bunch of pros that became stars that dropped some balls early in their careers.
I just think Weah will prove doubters wrong this year and become a good starting receiver. Don’t count Henderson out as more than a slot guy either.
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I also think Tipton is a player, if his body holds up.
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gc
I agree about Tipton also.
If you doubt Weah catching ability, remember he had 71 receptions for 1,436 yards (20.2 avg.) and 13 touchdowns over his junior and senior years in high school.
You all like the Hudl videos. Watch his. The kid can catch the ball. That is why I say he sticks as a starter.
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Plus Weah catches everything thrown to him in practices and scrimmages… At least we are able to debate small points of a receiving corps everyone just assumed is going to suck because Boyd left.
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A problem we had last year was that if we scored too fast our D was on the field too much and it cost us big time. If this years O is as good as we think it is we might have the same problem again! So, will this force Canada to have to have a more controlled O so the D isn’t on the field too long? I sure hope not but it certainly is a possibility.
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Wish I could say I am patiently waiting for the season to start. Unfortunately that is not the case. It cannot get here quick enough.
Weah needs to have a good first half against ‘Nova for two reasons. One for his own confidence and second because there will hopefully be a lot of receivers seeing the field especially in the second half. Do not think the coaching staff will tolerate many dropped balls in first game with PSU game next up. They will be looking for who are the game day players versus practice only players.
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It’s pretty simple Narduzzi and Canada know all too well that the opposition will likely stack the box as much as possible to negate our running game. They are hoping that with Weah’s speed he can stretch the field enough that the opposition safeties have to stay back to protect against the big play. I’m hoping that strategy works out. Making some big Weah plays in the Villanova game might just get PSU’s attention.
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PittsburghSportsToday reporting that Pine-Richland TE Craig Carrigan just committed to Pitt.
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Another big bump with the recruiting rankings.
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@ bj – right now we average 2.9 stars on 12 recruits. Yippee!!
I’m starting to wonder if some of the recruits are grabbed as favors to boosters or friends or something.
Sorry – but it is hard to believe that we couldn’t wait a few months to try to land someone better than a 6’7″ TE with 2*s and the only other offers are Kent State and Wake Forest.
Oh wait! We grabbed this young man when there were at least four other more highly rated TEs who hadn’t committed yet.
Narduzzi and Canada must be real happy with Chris Clark – and I’ll not hold my breath to see Clark on the field for us – because he’s the only underclassman we have at that position at this time.
Maybe they’ll move FB George Aston to TE like they did with Jaymar Parrish.
TE TARGETS
Alex Marshall TE 5.8 6’7″ 240 Andover, NH 7
Florida State
Erik Krommenhoek TE 5.8 6’5″ 235 Danville, CA 14
USC
Trey Pugh TE 5.7 6’5″ 225 Plain City, OH 18
Northwestern
Jeremiah Hall TE 5.7 6’3″ 225 Charlotte, NC 22
Oklahoma
Charles Reeves TE 5.6 6’5″ 240 Steubenville, OH 24
List
Jake Marwede TE 5.6 6’5″ 238 Wilmette, IL 25
Duke
Grant Carrigan TE 5.4 6’7″ 235 Gibsonia, PA
Pittsburgh
Mike’Quan Deane TE 5.6 6’4″ 235 Miami, OK
List
Andrew Park TE 5.5 6’5″ 235 Burke, VA
Maryland
Jeremy Patton TE 5.9 6’6″ 250 Yuma, AZ
Arkansas
Jake Paulson TE 5.6 6’5″ 245 Louisville, KY
List
Ravian Pierce TE 5.6 6’3″ 230 Summit, MS
Mississippi State
Kurt Rafdal TE 5.6 6’7″ 230 Carmel, IN
List
Tyler Sear TE 5.3 6’5″ 255 New Castle, PA
Temple
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Who knew Pitt had such clout over ACC scheduling…
http://www.espn.com/blog/acc/post/_/id/93618/could-virginia-tech-pitt-be-the-key-to-acc-schedule-change
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At this point last year this is the nine kids who we had onboard for an average stars of 3.1:
3* Brandon Ford OL Pittsburgh, PA 6’5″ 304 5.5 3/22/15
3* Thomas MacVittie QB Cincinnati, OH 6’4″ 213 5.6 3/26/15
3* Bricen Garner DB Pittsburgh, PA 6’1″ 159 5.5 6/19/15
3* Chawntez Moss RB Bedford, OH 5’11” 202 5.6 6/21/15
3* Chase Pine LB Williamsburg, VA 6’4″ 220 5.6 6/23/15
3* Maurice Ffrench WR New Brunswick, NJ 5’11” 179 5.6 6/26/15
4* Ruben Flowers WR Lima, OH 6’4″ 191 5.8 6/26/15
3* Bryce Hargrove DT Akron, OH 6’6″ 255 5.6 7/24/15
3* Rashad Wheeler DT Pittsburgh, PA 6’3″ 270 5.5 8/11/15
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Ah Ha… This Carrigan TE is a Pitt legacy – knew my gut feeling was correct on that…
“I really like Pitt,” Carrigan told Panther-Lair.com. “I think Coach (Pat) Narduzzi is doing a really good job. That would be one of my top options if they offered. I could see myself playing there.
“My dad played basketball at Pitt, I’ve been around Pitt all my life and I’ve always been aware of Pitt. That helps them a little bit because I’m really familiar with the campus and the staff and everything. I’m comfortable with everything there.”
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Instead of risking injury to Whitehead on those split end toss sweeps, let Jester, fastest kid on the team, run them.
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Love the mustard jars Reed. The Yellow Mustard color was used in the Alex Van Pelt era.
http://media.gettyimages.com/photos/sep-1989-quarterback-alex-van-pelt-of-the-pittsburgh-panthers-looks-picture-id1786514
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The Gulden’s Mustard was used in our last great period of 1973-1983.
http://media.gettyimages.com/photos/college-football-pittsburgh-tony-dorsett-in-action-rushing-vs-usc-at-picture-id522423344
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Gasman, speed is not the only ingredient needed for the split end toss sweep. How about having a “Antonio Brown” lookalike with both speed and agility on those sweeps.
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Be cool if Pitt got UCLA or USC back on the schedule. The Pitt/Usc game pic above feature TD vs. AD.
Tony Dorsett and Anthony Davis had many similarities being great Tailbacks. However 2 things stand out, they were both All-Americans and they both finished behind Archie Griffin in the Heisman balloting. IMO both of them were superior RB’s to the overhyped Ohio Fake Griffin.
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6’7″ 235, the kid should have some basketball skills. If not, he’s probably not too good.
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Back to MAC level recruiting. Kid should go to Geneva not Pitt. Do something Narduzzi. You are becoming Christ like.
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Nard is closer to Christ that Chryst is
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Jerry DiPaola @JDiPaola_Trib 5h
5 hours ago
Pitt has set an all-time record for full season-ticket sales. 55,630
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Emel.. yellow mustard ( canary yellow) started by Gottfried and continued under Hackett …
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Jeez Reed, you shouldn’t be dissing the high 2-low3 star recruits so much. You just retired from the Coast Guard. Isn’t that a 2 star branch of the service? Just above the zero star Eagle Scout and the 1 star park ranger.
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On the tight end recruit Grant Carrigan — Pictured here in this article for a better look:
http://triblive.com/sports/college/pitt/10993012-74/season-pitt-carrigan
Junior Year highlights in West Virginia with embarassing (maybe 14 year old) Quarterbacks (hard to get any publicity):
http://www.hudl.com/video/3/2682935/5721cbc94df6124b7017f1ad
He is an aggressive, willing blocker as a skinny kid in that video who blocks to the whistle, and he has great hands. Plus: 6’7”, and he can run. Boom, Scholarship, don’t think too much guys.
Every catch he has in his highlight video is probably almost every ball thrown his way his entire Junior year.
—-> And yes, he played basketball as well.
Fair Concern: 2 Star, and Only 2 MAC offers ….Well, there’s a story to that. Basically his 2 MAC offers are purely because of his great size and hands, because he literally has not played. Those MAC offers are solely based on pure speculation for Carrigan as a specimen.
Dude clearly was still growing into his body last year as a Junior into a gangly 6’6 kid —- PLUS in his highlights all he got to do is block and he played with a 5’6” high school QB who can barely throw it 30 yards. Before that he played in Las Vegas and might not have even grown yet.
Now Carrigan is 6’7”, listed at 250 as a 17 year old, and looking at his body he might become a Freak when Dave Andrews gets his hands on him and this kid builds-up at Pitt.
So now that Carrigan is the starting TE at Pine Richland (first year at Pine Richland — again played with a 5’2” JV kid at QB at a school in WV last year that didn’t even pass) and with Jurkovich (Jurkovick? Jurkovic?? Whatever he committed to Notre Dame anywhere so don’t-care lol) watch him put up monster numbers.
He’s a tight end, and from his tape he’s most definitely not a deadbeat, and his Dad was Pitt basketbal player (athletic genes), and he blocks hard already in high school. He just needs to hit the weights, then go out and be 6’7” , 260, and ‘Catch Ball when QB throw ball to you’.
He’ll be the biggest tight end by far Pitt in Wannstedt –> Hot Mess / Chryst —> Narduzzi eras, and watch the tape— he’s got great hands and blocks hard already (albeit only against Weak competition so far).
PLUS: Yeesh, the staff are obviously going to bring-in at least one more tight end. It’s a no-brainer to bring in a local player (who right now might be flying totally under the radar) who’s freakin’ 6’7, 250 and can move like he can. There’s no NCAA rule that says “One tight end in a class then you’re done.”
Honestly if I watch the tape and really don’t like a Player I’ll jump to say it (a la why is Lamont Wade rated so high as a Cornerback? Not Dominant in Single-A what are all the experts smoking that I’m not??).
But Narduzzi and co. are bringing in TWO Tight Ends this class come He** or High-Water, so I’m not upset about them getting on “Bird in the Hand” for an athletic, 6’7” , already 250lb still-skinny kid (You can’t Coach that) who’s clearly athletic and has great hands. Dunno….maybe I’d rather get a guy who’s 2 or 3 inches shorter and has the same catching ability but is 4 stars with 15 Power 5 offers, because then Pitt could be like James Franklin’s Nitters and brag about how we’re ranked in the top 15 recruiting by Rivals, Yay!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 haha jk jk
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Hey Dark Knight – if this kid – 6’7″ / 250 lbs already – loves peanut butter and has good feet, he has the potential already to be an OT! Think Brian O’Neil!
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exactly Savannah Panther … my gut tells me he’s moving to OL
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A second TE verbal in the same day today with Sears.
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@ Savannah Panther yup, always good to get the huge athletes who have the potential to play multiple “Huge Man” positions (TE , OT, DE, Big Rush-OLB, etc.)
http://www.hudl.com/video/3/2682935/5721cbc94df6124b7017f1ad
6’7”, 250lb. 17 years olds (with athletic genes, to boot, Dad played Bball at Pitt) who are skinny at that weight are incredibly rare. 6’7”, 250lb. skinny 17 year olds who are athletic, block hard, and can catch, are even more rare.
Nothing wrong with Carrigan being Pitt’s *** first *** Tight End commit for the 2016 class. @ Savannah Panther, it’s great to recruit great athletes at this size because Pitt as you mentioned has bright-star R.S. Sophomore Brian O’Niell (6’6”, 2 star tight end recruit) and out of dozens of other transitions, a pretty good player named J.J. Watt was a 6’6”, 2-3 star tight end who went to Central Michigan. Great athletes who areas huge as Grant Carrigan could possibly transform into an Athletic offensive Tackle, or even be an explosive Defensive End or Outside Linebacker.
Regardless Pat Narduzzi and the staff Have in all-likelihood informed every Tight End they’re recruiting that no matter what they’re bringing in 2 players this class. So clearly Grant Carrigan was fine with this and decided to commit to Pitt to come and compete and build Pitt Football.
Good recruit here —– and if Carrigan Lights-It-Up at Pine Richland in a few months (Grant Carrigan ain’t playin’ Tight End with 15 year-old Pipsqueak at QB in West Virgninia ‘No More’ ) with a Notre Dame-committed 5 star Quarterback, Pitt fans will be glad Narduzzi and Tim Salem scooped-up this freakish-specimen early.
http://www.hudl.com/video/3/1508823/5721ad4690eead5d909db2b9
^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Another maligned “Poor-Man’s Recruit” Jester Weah was a lowly-3 star recruit from Wisconsin with only MAC offers back in the Paul Chryst days, when Paul Chryst thought Explosiveness was just an adjective used to describe Action Movies —– and I’m Callin it!! Jester Weah this year taking over for Tyler Boyd last year, is gonna be the 2010 Dion Lewis act after LeSean McCoy declared for the NFL, as Jester Weah CRUSH IT this year. He’s going to turn the opposing team’s #1 Cornerbacks who try to cover him Man 1-on-1 into JESTERS. Play on words there.
Instead of declaring for the draft as a potential 2-3rd round pick after this Action-Packed, Thrill Ride Pitt 2016-17 season —- (Where all Pitt POV posters buy Reed Liquor and Beer galore after Nathan Peterman crushes Tyler Palko’s Pitt passing records) — Jester Weah is gonna ignore the man-crushes of Todd McShay and Mel Kiper Jr., to come back to Pitt for his RS Senior Year. Pitt and Jester Weah pick-up where we left-off, and Soul-Crushingly dominate PS ‘Who?’ at Beaver Stadium with Golden-Man-Child Thomas MacVittie.
Penn State fans all become incredibly envious of the University of Pittsburgh, and wonder at what exact moment in the years since 12-0 they fell behind Pitt and became truly irrelevant….Nationally, as well as in Pennsylvania 🙂 .
Some of your guys’ tepidness to embrace the “Age of Weee-Ahhh” (lol) is going to melt like finely-chopped ice on Broiling-Pavement in a 95 degree mid-day —> once you see just what the chomping-at-the-bit Matt Canada has in-store for the Untapped, Unlimited potential of Jester Weah.
Gonna happen, just like I typed it, and just like you read it, Verbatim 🙂 .
—- Pitt POV: Pitt Fans keeping ourselves occupied, while Pat Narduzzi deprives us completely of our Pitt Football Panthers, until 9/3/16. Haha Narduzzi, FEED US PLEASE, give the media something yikes.
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Hey I hope these two guys turn out to be all-time greats, but it is kind of funny how we have heard since last season about the hundred offers all over the country and two local guys are offered last weekend and there you go. Seems like a lot of time and money was wasted on the first 100 offers to the 4 and 5 star guys. Still think it isn’t going quite how they wanted it to go.
Anyway welcome to the new Panthers. Hope they turn out to be better than Holtz and Orndorf.
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WTF you smokin tonite Dark Knight?
Good to have you back Upitt, I was getting tired of reading only positive posts. BTW, Some rookie on the Bengals lit it up tonite with another awesome catch while being interfered with in their preseason game this evening. Can’t remember who the scrub was, think he was from Clairton, free agent or something I think.
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And BTW, NotRocket, yeah,,,,Weah has definitely “dropped a few balls” in his career so far at Pitt, like 100% of them. Comparing Weah to Boyd is hilarious DK! Jester couldn’t hold on to Tyler Boyd’s cleats long enough to put a good polish on them let alone be compared to his 2nd coming. Don’t get me wrong, I hope the guy has an epiphany and catches everything thrown his way this season but based on his initial body of work as an underclassman, he stinks. And I’m the designated optimist around here! That is just unrealistic unbridaled optimism!
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I sure hope the Pitt coaches saw something positive in both these 2 star commits that the rating agencies didn’t. Didn’t Pitt have several offers out there for some 3 and 4 star tight ends? I guess those offers are getting pulled now.
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I still think Pitt takes Reeves or Paulsen, but not both. If you compare Paulsen tape to Carrigan, it’s not close with foot speed and blocking prowess. That said, I think he could be a right tackle with a couple good eating years.
Upitt, you on medical cannabis? You are mellowing out my friend. ” Can I get a skunk haired dip chit” out of you or something. I hope you are coming up with some good ones for a bball coach. Did you have any issues with rain in Louisiana?
Watched the Dairy college and Georgia game. I hope we got faster this last year. Barkley scares me, DL needs to play tough!! I would so run blitz the dairy players, early and often.
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Huff – I’m in Texas.. Fort Worth. Doc – Carrigan Sucks and has zero muscle. Dark Night loves a kid with Geneva and Carlow as offers. Waste of a scholarship. Boyd still stinks. He is a 1/3 Wes Welker if that. 3 years and he and Devin Street are selling cars on Rt. 51.
Doc- Dinner soon. Within the month.
Huff – Live in same town as Dixon. How is that for Irony. By the way. The bald headed Vacuum Salesman joke coaching hoops will be fired before 2019 season by a new AD. Barnes and his 5 wives will be moving back to the Compound in Utah.
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LaRod Stephens-Howling signed as a graduate assistant for PItt according to the Trib.
In the CBSSports article about the best D1 team in each state, Marshall was determined (by CBS) to be the best team in West Virginia. A Hoopie friend of mine is steamed about it.
Huff – Barkley’s a threat to take it to the house on every carry. And, they have two stud WRs… though it remains to be seen if the new QB can deliver the ball to them. This will be a really difficult game for Pitt.
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