A few off the top – no Roundtable Call-in this week as today is my son’s birthday and we are celebrating at our house. We’ll do it again next week…
Addressing those great comments on the last “upgrade, downgrade or draw” articles about the interior DL… we may be forgetting that these are a ‘first run’ series of articles looking at the individual units… and that I have said in each of them we will re-visit the units after the fall camp is closed (the week of opener). Thus now we are only addressing the current roster.
But again – the way we all look at these players – both already on roster and in-coming is interesting I think. It is apparent that some fans and commenters are always optimistic regarding Pitt players and that is fine. But I don’t really hear anything when those same players fail to live up to those high expectations. It does happen sometimes guys – as much as we pull for the young men not all deliver the goods.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL POLLS
As to our discussions of the drop in rankings both 2016’s post-season and now this year’s preseason; first off that Orlando Sentinel prediction is ridiculous and I think somewhat lazy journalism. I get that we are replacing more players this season than we have in many years (see chart at end) but it just is skewed way downward in my opinion.
For those readers who didn’t see before it here are the opening paragraphs:
The Pittsburgh Panthers are No. 82 in the Orlando Sentinel 2017 preseason college football rankings. Pitt loses some elite talent on offense and have problems to address on defense, but the Panthers are heading in a promising direction.
Our ranking: No. 82
Coach: Pat Narduzzi (8-5, entering third season; 16-10 overall)
2016 record: 8-5, 5-3 in Atlantic Coast Conference, finished fourth in Coastal Division
Look back: Behind star RB James Conner and QB Nathan Peterman, who were both selected in the 2017 NFL draft, Pitt set new school records with 532 total points, 40.9 points per game, and 5,808 yards of total offense in 2016.
The offensive outburst turned Pitt into one of the scariest opponents in the country. Just ask national champion Clemson, which suffered its only loss of the season — at home in Death Valley — to the Panthers.
Unfortunately for Pitt, its defense often fell short at the most inopportune times. Of the five defeats suffered last season, the Panthers lost by 7 points or fewer in four of those games.
Pitt will have to replace its starting quarterback, running back and offensive coordinator Matt Canada, who left for the same post at LSU. But the Panthers are encouraged about building on their success heading into 2017.
Well, read the rest as it is very informative actually but I can’t for the life of me figure out how the number 82 came about. The author must have thrown a dart at a number line.
pittpov.com 