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POV Roundtable Call-In; Sept 6th, 2017

We had a great, but small, Roundtable Call-in last evening with Richman, Pittman4ever and myself… and Pitt-Cocks was in at the start but had to attend other duties so he helped me set things up then signed off.

Here are the questions I had scribbled down before we started…

⊗What was your previous season prediction for the Panthers and are you revising that after this last game against YSU?

⊗Are there any changes you would make to the two-deep that Head Coach Pat Narduzzi put out last Saturday?

⊗Who was the hero of the YSU game?  Who was the goat of the game?

⊗What do you see as the score against PSU?

⊗How important is this PSU game for the whole of the 2017 season?

⊗What are your first memories of Pitt vs Penn State?

What are your takes on those?

We should have a new article by Chris Logue sometime today or tomorrow morning, I’ll post that as soon as I get it.  Here are some Bits & Pieces to tide us over:

I see P-G’s Joe Starky’s point about a PSU upset maybe being bigger than 13-9, but don’t agree 100%.

Pitt sports historian Sam Sciullo would list a win Saturday as the fifth-biggest upset in school history. His top five:

1. Pitt 13, WVU 9

2. Pitt 13, Fordham 0.

3. Pitt 43, Clemson 42 (Pitt was around a 21-point underdog in that one, too).

4. Pitt 7, Georgia 7, 1973. A tie? Sciullo recalled that Georgia was a 17-point favorite at home in the first game for Johnny Majors and Tony Dorsett, so I guess I’ll buy it.

5. Pitt 22, Notre Dame 19, 1952, at South Bend.

Read the article – good food for thought and discussion in comments.

Here is a weird source for opinion on the upcoming game, but I must say I do agree with the silliness of this 100% media blackout by Narduzzi.  But then again, he has made so many media missteps with a program that is desperate for competing media attention with the Steelers and Penn State in the local papers  and with trying to grab much-needed new fans and alumni donations that now it is just par for the course.

“A generation later, he thinks Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi’s media blackout has the potential to rob the series of some of that past character as it tries to regain its footing as one of college football’s premier blood feuds. 

“I think if you want to play the quiet routine to too much of an extent, you’re not promoting your rivalry,” Parlavecchio said. “

I always like Brian Batko’s P-G’s Pitt mailbag pieces and this week is no exception.  Here it is and see if you can find the common thread of utter frustration among Pitt fans after last week’s less than ideal effort by the Panthers. This one is funny:

H2P333: Don’t you think that recruiting matters?!?! Pitt struggled against a FCS opponent! It comes down to the material and/or coaching. I expected better from both fronts in Year 3 of Narduzzi. Neither appears to be getting better and that is concerning.

Brian Batko: Recruiting very much matters, but I suspect that was a rhetorical question. YSU recruits much better than the average FCS school; if I had a dollar for every time Pat Narduzzi mentioned the amount of FBS transfers on Bo Pelini’s roster last week, I might’ve quit this damn job (kidding).

Oy Vey! Too bad Pitt doesn’t recruit much better than an average FBS school…

Jumping over to the Trib, Jerry DiPaola is fun to read – here is   a piece on Narduzzi opinion of our practices since Saturday:

Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi closed practice and eliminated media access to his team this week, but he gave a glimpse Wednesday (albeit a small one) at how preparations for Penn State are progressing.

“I think we had two of the best practices,” he said on the ACC coaches conference call, adding this disclaimer: “That doesn’t always equal a win, I can promise you that.”

Well – I can promise you that after all the hype about how great Fall Camp went that doesn’t equal even average play against a FCS team.  Man, I’d give a dollar a word if he’d just come out once  and give us an unvarnished true personal opinion about something negative that happened to his team or his program.   I get he’s a morale builder and keeper  but I think the fans deserve a clean look at issues sometimes.

How many years has Narduzzi been involved in the defensive side of college football again?  Here is an article talking about how crappy our defense was against the Wheel route (broken record sounds…) .

Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi said his team wasn’t prepared for the wheel routes Youngstown State used successfully Saturday in the Panthers’ 28-21 overtime victory.

“We did a bad job as coaches,” he said. “It starts with me.”

He also said there were some illegal pick plays that might have helped YSU pass catchers get loose on the wheel routes in which the pass catcher cut toward the sideline, caught the football and quickly turned upfield. YSU running back Christian Turner had five catches for 124 yards and scored twice on wheel routes (25 and 42 yards).

But there might have been more to it.

“There were a couple picks,” Narduzzi said. “They did a good job acting. Picks are illegal, only if they get called. And we didn’t do a good job adjusting; one time it was a miscommunication, really twice.”

Heavens above – YSU actually used the Pick Play against our LBs.  Pitt would never in a million years try that in a game – its unethical!!!  So – it really wasn’t Zeise looking like he should have stayed at WR out there?  I’m confused.

Leave it to youth to deal in simple truths. They aren’t beholden to any masters yet…

The Pitt News has the best headline regarding the YSU game that I have read. “Max Browne buckles in Panthers debut“. Well – as we said in an earlier article and in the video above stats do lie sometimes.  If you look at Brown’s passing line for the YSU game you’d think he did reasonably well.  If you were at the game and watched him in action? Different take altogether.

As redshirt senior quarterback Max Browne hit wide receiver Jester Weah for the game-winning touchdown this Saturday against Youngstown State, Panther fans saw a flash of what made Browne a five-star recruit coming out of high school.

But that wasn’t an accurate representation of Browne’s Panther debut. If anything, it was an outlier.  Throughout the game, Browne looked uncomfortable in the pocket and relied on simple throws to move the offense.

Spare me the ‘we held back our offense for PSU’ drivel.  First off Browne threw four passes over 30 yards and completed one.  All those other completions were either locked-in to the primary receiver or safety valve short throws.

Browne will play better later in the season, I believe that and have said that I think he’ll have played much like an average D1 QB when the dust settles – I just think we’ll see more of the same play we saw last week again this weekend against that stoudt PSU defense.  He didn’t stink out the joint against YSU, but he didn’t play anything like a fifth year rsSR QB should play at all in my opinion.

OK – we’ll have our Know The Enemy piece up soon and then we’ll get into our  game score predictions on Friday – then will follow that up with an open Gameday thread starting at 3:30 on Saturday afternoon.

Enjoy the video above and I’ll be mailing out some blue shirts today.  One thing about them – I mentioned the shirt company screwed up the silkscreen printing on my first order but some were OK enough not to donate to charity.

I’ll mail those out today – but if you get one that is screwed up please let me know ASAP via email and I’ll replace it from my corrected order which I should receive soon… and I’ll be passing those and some of the white shirts also out at the OK State tailgate.

HTP!!  And Beat Penn State!!

94 thoughts on “POV Roundtable Call-In; Sept 6th, 2017”

  1. 6-6 before, 6-6 after… and that is a significant accomplishment given what the team is lost and how tough the schedule is

    I liked what Bricen Garner did out there, but Stocker almost took a punt block to the house so tough to say he should lose his (temp) job. It seemed like all the DE’s were ineffective. I think Dane Jackson played pretty well and should be moved ahead to full starter.
    Hero is Garner – definitively ended the game with a Pitt win. You could make a case for Ollison (120 all purp yards and 2 TDS) or Weah with the nice TD catch in OT. GOAT has to be Kessman
    Penn St 42 Pitt 28
    Not huge loss because its so expected and also because its not a conference game. Obviously Penn St (and Clemson) showed last year that one loss is not season-ending
    Pretty young so my first real memories were of the classic 99 game that Pitt showed a ton of heart in.

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  2. whoops the comment above didn’t come out numbered as intended – these are my answers to your first set of questions

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  3. Give that Pitt News sports writer an A for his analysis of Browne’s performance last Saturday. I expect we will witness an even worse performance this week.

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  4. The WVU upset is the biggest by far.. 13-9 happened with trip to the National Championship game all but guaranteed for WVU. This is Week 2. There’s simply no comparison. But, when does Starkey ever make a valid point? (By the way, Starkey’s excuse that White was injured is ridiculous- Pitt knocked him out of that game.)

    ⊗What was your previous season prediction for the Panthers and are you revising that after this last game against YSU?

    6-6 (plus bowl win); 6-6 (plus bowl win)

    ⊗Are there any changes you would make to the two-deep that Head Coach Pat Narduzzi put out last Saturday?

    Depth charts are merely a suggestion- who starts, rarely matters as long as the coaching staff makes in-game adjustments impacted by the opponent’s play-calling, personnel, etc.

    ⊗Who was the hero of the YSU game? Who was the goat of the game?

    Hero- You must be joking.
    Goat- Narduzzi. 28-21 OT win against an FCS team is unacceptable, no matter how many excuses people give.

    ⊗What do you see as the score against PSU?

    45-17. I hear from a source who knows many of the PSU players that they plan to dominate us like they did to Akron. Does that make them ripe for an upset? Or, just motivated to throttle us? I guess we’ll find out in 2 days.

    ⊗How important is this PSU game for the whole of the 2017 season?

    To the team, it’s ultimately unimportant– it’s not an ACC game. To me, it’s the only game that matters.

    ⊗What are your first memories of Pitt vs Penn State?

    I remember watching the 1980 game at my Uncle’s house in Somerset County (I was 7 at the time) on TV with my Dad (who had gone to football camp at PSU in the mid 1960’s) and my Uncle (who had attended PSU at that same time). My Dad had bet my cousin a quarter on the game (she was a BIG Pitt fan at the time) and I still have a picture of her in front of the TV holding her quarter with the score Pitt 14 Penn State 9 clearly on the screen. I’ve been a Pitt fan ever since.

    Will there be a POV tailgate at the game Saturday?

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  5. I was a sophomore for the Pitt 13-9 win over WVU and that was by far my favorite game while I was at Pitt (although favorite home game was the win over ND).

    Hoping for a close game Saturday but I’m thinking 42-21 PSU – they look too good and against our defense – yikes. But stranger things have happened

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  6. ⊗What was your previous season prediction for the Panthers and are you revising that after this last game against YSU? 8 .. 6 or 7
    ⊗Are there any changes you would make to the two-deep that Head Coach Pat Narduzzi put out last Saturday? not yet, since I haven’t seen many of these guys play yet
    ⊗Who was the hero of the YSU game? Who was the goat of the game? Gricen Kessman (I guess)
    ⊗What do you see as the score against PSU? 38-17
    ⊗How important is this PSU game for the whole of the 2017 season? important but certainly not make/break
    ⊗What are your first memories of Pitt vs Penn State? I have 3 memories of the 60s ..
    (1) Pitt not going to a bowl game in ’63 despite being ranked 3rd or 4th, probably because PSU game was pushed back due to JFK assasination
    (2) Pitt beat PS is ’65 on last second FG by my local congressman’s son. Big headlines in New Castle News, local newspaper
    (3) attended my first Pitt-PSU game in ’69 …. 63 to 7. Little Davey Havern being chased all over the filed by bullies Mike Reid and Steve Smear.

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    1. actually, those headlines might have been from Sunday Youngstown Vindicator … since Congressman Clark’s lived only about 10 minutes or so from Poland, OH … a southeastern suburb of Youngstown

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  7. ⊗What was your previous season prediction for the Panthers and are you revising that after this last game against YSU?

    No 8-4 regular season

    ⊗Are there any changes you would make to the two-deep that Head Coach Pat Narduzzi put out last Saturday?

    Yes Bookser should be starting and O line lineup should shift out the young center. Slide Officer back to center.

    Sit Darrin Hall and insert AJ Davis as the first back off the bench.

    ⊗Who was the hero of the YSU game? Who was the goat of the game?

    Hero was Jester Weah. He made a touch catch (his only one of the day) when we absolutely needed it.

    There were many players that had bad games.

    The Secondary, The Linebackers, and The kicker was bad. However, I was really surprised to see Brain O’Neil overpowered at times.

    ⊗What do you see as the score against PSU?

    Pitt 35 PSU 28

    ⊗How important is this PSU game for the whole of the 2017 season?

    If we win this game we will have a chance for a double digit win total in the regular season for the first time since Foge was coach. God that hurts to say. But this makes it vitally important for the program.

    ⊗What are your first memories of Pitt vs Penn State?

    Well a lot. I say the late 80’s I recall the 1988 win in happy valley (We watched this at one of my mothers co-workers house..I was 5 years old). The first game I attended against PSU was at Pitt Stadium in 1998. We played them tough and we had a lousy team that year. If I recall the final score might have 20 to 13 and they beat us because they had a kid that was a specialist similar to Q. Henderson by the name of Eddie Drumond (he went on to play for the Eagles if I remember correctly). Late in the fourth quarter he broke a big return that sealed the win for PSU.

    My grandfather first purchased Pitt season tickets in 1969 and someone in the family has carried the torch every year since. At least one of my family members were at each PITT PSU home match-up and also attending occasionally at the steel erector set away games. In fact my cousin was in the Pitt band and traveled to PSU in 1997 where they were spit on and had balloons with urine tossed on them. I guess this is what Franklin means when he says be classy PSU.

    My father and grandfather were in attendance in 1976 at Three Rivers when TD was moved fullback in the second half and PSU didn’t have an answer. I have heard that story about that game my entire life LOL. In fact my Dad has told it to me several times this week.

    We are from Altoona which is in PSU country but my Pap always said that Pitt played a major league schedule where as Penn St played cupcakes. Also the toughness of the City of Pittsburgh aligned with my families blue collar industrial roots. The entire family worked in Manufacturing or the Rail Industry and we didn’t identify with the farm school near bye.

    Alright I will get off my soap box now. Sorry.

    Go Beat PSU! H2P

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    1. Altoona_josh,

      You really think the DB’s played that bad?

      I was pleasantly surprised. I thought Stocker, Garner, and Jackson all played pretty well. Didn’t see any atrocious plays out of Maddox or Briggs.

      I might be wrong but I think most of the damage done thru the air was with wheel routes where Ziese lost coverage…

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      1. I thought Jackson played well. I still up and applauded the broken up pass eary in the game because that was about the same total we had last year.

        Some of the Wheels Maddox had a hand in the miscommunication and one we was lost one and they slipped it to the TE how was Maddox man.

        They Didn’t Really Suck but they still sucked. How is that.

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    2. I went to that game too in 1976. I worked for a paving co. driving truck and got a free ticket from the boss. Still have the ticket…

      We went to Oakland afterwards to celebrate.

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  8. Somewhere Ike is smiling…

    “Well – as we said in an earlier article and in the video above stats do lie sometimes. If you look at Brown’s passing line for the YSU game you’d think he did reasonably well. If you were at the game and watched him in action? Different take altogether.”

    7-6 record
    Start Bookser and Garner. If Maddox isn’t 100% start Mathis.
    Hero of YSU is Weah. Goat is D-Line.
    PSU 48 Pitt 14
    The significance of Pitt-PSU will be a wakeup call.
    The 1975 Pitt-PSU game was my earliest memory. Pitt lost because of kicking issues. My perhaps foggy recollection is that Pitt largely dominated the game defensively.

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  9. That was an entertaining round-table guys. Looks like you guys had a blast. Sorry about the ghost appearance. Jim can sure tell a good story and Richman may be oversexed? < but funny.

    Also some great comments in this article. I’ll try and tackle the questions.

    ⊗What was your previous season prediction for the Panthers and are you revising that after this last game against YSU? —-THE YSU GAME MEANS NOTHING OTHER THAN A WIN. PRETTY MUCH THE SAME 8-4 (WITH A BOWL WIN)!!!!!!!!

    ⊗Are there any changes you would make to the two-deep that Head Coach Pat Narduzzi put out last Saturday? YEP, INSERT BOOKSER

    ⊗Who was the hero of the YSU game? Who was the goat of the game? WEAH THE HERO, KESSMAN AND WELLS THE GOATS. REMEMBER WE WON.

    ⊗What do you see as the score against PSU? 42-24

    ⊗How important is this PSU game for the whole of the 2017 season? HELL! IT’S MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE BOWL GAME WILL BE. YET I THROW THIS GAME AWAY AND HOPE FOR ACC WINS.

    ⊗What are your first memories of Pitt vs Penn State? SEE BELOW.

    My one son who many may know as waltharris4prez started out a psu fan believe it or not. His baby sitter’s family were all psu people. We had a beautiful dog named Ginger, half german shepard half golden retriever.

    We started a tradition of putting out 2 paper plates with any type of food you could think of and put them in front of Ginger. Whichever plate she ate first were the colors she would wear the rest of the day. (just a few ribbons and bows)

    I started following PITT around the age of 8 for whatever reason. I was one of those goofy kids that read the sports section at a very early age. Didn’t take long to realize that the PITT psu game was a big rivalry.

    PITT held back some playbook and some schemes for the YSU game, book that
    Did PITT win or lose last years bowl game? … . . . . ike

    H2P!

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  10. The hero(s) have to be both Weah/Garner in OT. The goat, Kessman, for sure, especially in light of the “sure $$” Menziel sign he’d given right before missing his second FG at the end of the game. You do have to admire his chutzpah though to do so, but you do have to be able to back it up then, don’t you think?

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    1. Browne, Ollie & Maddox better be heroes or we’re toast…..
      Agree though on Weah. They plan on stopping Henderson.

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  11. ⊗What was your previous season prediction for the Panthers and are you revising that after this last game against YSU? 10-4 no revisions
    ⊗Are there any changes you would make to the two-deep that Head Coach Pat Narduzzi put out last Saturday? Bookser to start
    ⊗Who was the hero of the YSU game? Who was the goat of the game? Garner & Weah / Kessman, Duzz, LB-ers, Hendrix, JJ and O’Neill
    ⊗What do you see as the score against PSU? 43-42 (Pitt wins)
    ⊗How important is this PSU game for the whole of the 2017 season? In the scheme of the ACC Coastal – important for getting our talent some experience. For me, most important game of the season.
    ⊗What are your first memories of Pitt vs Penn State? ’76 National Championship / Early 80’s when Marino & company jumped to a 14-0 lead and never scored again in a lopsided blowout / Best game was 2106 – loudest crowd I have ever witnessed live.

    HTP!

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  12. I finally got a chance to view the roundtable video. And I agree Browne looked bad, but no QB is good with constant pressure on him, not even Tom Brady. Trouble is that this week looks to be just as bad.

    However, I don’t agree that his stats were good …. 140 yards on 24 attempts is not good at all ….5.8 ypa (that’s per attempt. not per completion)

    FWIW, I thought our DL was worse than the DBs last week. But again, he entire DL is brand new … only 3 starts before last week. I didn’t think Jarrett or Soto played particularly well until their senior year and E Price came around in his 5th.

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  13. Our cornerbacks were the stalwarts of the defense last week.
    Allow that to sink in for a moment.
    We need to have career games on all fronts to be competitive, not only this week, but to have a winning record.
    GT is better, Cuse is better, NCState is no slouch.
    If HCPN is hankering for a raise, it’s time to earn it.

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    1. I honestly didn’t think the safeties were bad either… Garner looked fine, Stocker had a big kick block return and Briggs didn’t blow any obvious coverages.

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  14. Erie Express..

    10-4? 14 games means we play in the ACC Championship game, no?

    What strain are they growing over there in York? I’d sure like to pack a pipe with that stuff- for medicinal purposes, of course. After Saturday’s beating, we’ll all probably qualify for a “medical card.”

    BTW.. I really enjoyed golfing with you, Dan72 and Major Majors. Hopefully, I’ll be able to make it to a tailgate this season. Or, we live close enough to get together for a drink and watch a road game on tv. I live a few minutes from Hershey. Deer Valley Golf Course is across the street and I have a large bar room. You’re definitely invited.

    Dan72.. MD isn’t that far away for you either.

    Major Majors.. Pittsburgh is a bit of a drive, but if you want to get the foursome together, come on down. I’ve got enough guest rooms for all 3 of you.

    Hail to Pitt!.. But some divine intervention is needed this weekend.

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    1. Jay91 – Dan72 and I are trying to set a golf date later in September to play in Lancaster – I’ll keep you posted.

      My original prediction had Pitt tied for 1st in the Coastal and winning the tie breaker. I of course thought about changing my predictions after the YSU game. But, what fun is that and maybe, just maybe Duzz was really playing “possum” with the Penguins so as to lure James from state college into the shower for a Sandusky.

      I’m golfing with psu fans tomorrow and Saturday morning. I found Pitt script head covers while in Pittsburgh last week – I’m going to flaunt all things Pitt in the next few days. 42-39 ain’t going away yet.

      HTP!

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      1. I admire your optimism.. I think almost 40 years of Pitt fandom has really taken its toll on my psyche. Will you be at the game? I was at the 1992 game at Happy Valley (my sophomore year at Pitt) and watched us get pasted, 57-13. I will be at this one with my son (a freshman at Pitt). I expect things to be about the same. Uggh!

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      2. Erie I am very happy that you scheduled your golf dates with your PSU buddies before the game on Saturday. I’m not so sure you would want to have to have to deal with them come Sunday morning.

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  15. My favorite was the 76(or was it 75 season) when they finally beat the Nitters after being dominated so long. It was the famous move TD to fullback after the half. It led to the last Pitt NC I will see, and exercised a lot of demons. The other games were fun, but this led us to the big time!

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  16. Joe Know,
    Just did some research and the home game(s) at 3 Rivers Stadium verse PSU were actually both 1975 and 1976! I was at the 75 game where Carson Long missed a couple field goals and the extra point (I think) – which we lost 7-6. It was the 1976 championship year where Majors put Dorsett in the fullback position which threw off PSU’s defensive timing and gave us a 24-7 victory.
    Hence, I probably hung that “Let’s Go Pitt” sign in downtown Pittsburgh during the 76 year because they were undefeated. FYIW.

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  17. Oh, forgot

    1) before season I said I’d be optimistic and say 5-7. Lots of guys questioned my mental stability. They will be lucky to get there. Some say there are no games they can’t win. I say what games are locks to win?? Stand by my pick.
    2) goat, that’s easy, the entire coaching staff, hands down. Hero, not this time. None, zip, zero, nada.
    3) PSU game, you have no idea how much this pains me, I mean TRULY pains me, but 61-13, not us.
    4) how important, well, not very as it will just be one of a gaggle of clusters. But if I could only win one more game……………
    5) In the early 60s my dad would go to the games with all my uncles. He was the only Pitt fan. Still remember him calling that field a cow pasture and a decent high school field.

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  18. Gasman, good call. The D-backs did play well enough. What worries some about blowing the lead means something a little different to me.

    21-0 tells me PITT came out ready and jumped out to a nice lead. No, I wasn’t one of those that felt any trepidation going into half time. Now the second half was very frustrating. Quite frankly I think a lot more is being made of the YSU game than is warranted.

    Second half while shutting off their downfield passing game and missed kicks along with players going through the motions is a recipe for disaster and it nearly turned into one. but…. when PITT needed to, they pulled through. Like many have said. Lumpy loses that game. Well he did.

    Having said that. PITT does have it’s wart’s this year and I’m not so sure how this all will play out but I’m sure as heck not going to judge the entire season on that one game though. I do think PITT may struggle big time this coming Saturday…. and this just in… I won’t judge this game with too much emphasis as long as they play like a well coached team

    The fact that PITT did run jet sweeps is by no means an indication that they ran their entire playbook. After-all, psu got a good look at them last year so ….. sounds and looks like Narduzzi setting up psu for something a little different.

    I think the PITT surprise this year for psu will be schemes. I believe that is what they held back the most. Narduzzi is one hell of a coach and most likely, a good poker player. We will see come Saturday. … ike

    Clap On
    Clap Off
    We All We Got
    We All We Need
    H2P!

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  19. After the 75 Loss they asked Coach Majors how tough it was to lose by a field to the Nits and he responded “Well even my mother burns the biscuits once and a while”.

    Also loved that story and it really is the message that a Pitt fan can identify with.

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  21. First prediction to the PITT folks that go up there. You ain’t going to be welcomed. That’s no joke. All the pedo joke’s and all the visceral buildup along with the loss last year. You may not be welcomed with open arms so be careful

    state college is not exactly a community that excepts outsiders. Maybe one step above Morgantown. Then again, maybe not. Richman, I know your one that’s traveling up, leave your pretty lady at home.

    Seriously, that’s not a nice group of cultist’s up there. Good Luck and watch your back if you know what I mean. Never know if jerry escapes before game-time? …. ike ……

    H2P!

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  22. ^Jay91, 2 eight win regular season wins is how I came up with that. This with a team of players that hadn’t won eight games for years. 16 regular season wins in two years hasn’t happened at PITT only a few times since the early 80’s.

    Oh the bowl losses rears their ugly heads again.

    Oh and Narduzzi did that without a bonafide D-1 QB on the roster when he took over. Everyone has their opinions I guess. ike

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  23. ^Oh and Jay91, based on beating the Big Ten Champions and the National Champions the same season. Again, with a QB that wasn’t on the roster when he took over. ike

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  24. Ike I hate to say it again but right now at least IMO Narduzzi doesn’t have a bonafide D-1 QB starting at this point in time. And to set the record straight didn’t he have Peterman(via transfer) on the roster in his first season at Pitt?

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  25. Wannstedt won 27 games in a 3-year span.. and got run out of town. And in those years he did it with players HE recruited (His first 3 seasons he had Walts’s players). And NO ONE, including me, would refer to him a a “hell of a coach.” And I love Wanny.

    Narduzzi has 18 wins with “Potato Sack Paul’s” guys. This is his third year and most of us reasonable fans expect 6-7 wins. I LOVED the Narduzzi hire.. He’s fiery. He’s from our kind of town. He likes “smash mouth” football.. on and on and on.

    But he’s been 16-10 through 2 seasons. That’s a .615 winning percentage. 14-10 against FBS or .583. He’s 1-3 versus ranked teams. We beat PSU and Clemson last year. Well, Wanny beat ND and WVU.

    I’m rooting like hell for us every damn weekend. But I hope our BOT doesn’t think a 58% winning percentage equates to one “hell of a coach” or we’re doomed to another 35 years of mediocrity.

    I too, will be at PSU this year and agree that it’s always a horrible experience. Give me a trip to ND any day.

    I’ll say this.. You’re a great Pitt fan and appreciate your optimism- even if i have ZERO idea where it comes from.

    H2P!

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    1. Wanny start winning in his 4th year. Last year PC’s 4th and 5th year players blossomed (Ornddorf, Johnson, Officer, Biz, Conner, Price, Jarrett, Weah, Ford ,etc) This is a transition year … don’t judge PN’s recruits until next year when they get some seasoning.

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  26. I have a Carson Long story – after that 1975 Penn Sate game – where we lost 7-6 and Long missed all those field goals, I stayed in Oakland drinking until about 8 pm then walked up Ellsworth to Shadyside. Sitting on one of those big stone walls in front of the houses was Carson Long – in his uniform jersey – and he had two quarts of Iron City – one was empty. I asked if he was OK and he said – “Sure, it’s not like anyone knows who I am, right?” But with a smile…

    Great sense of humor and I could see he wanted to be alone – I invited him to the Encore where I was bar tending and told him the drinks were on me, but he never showed up – but Johnny Majors did around midnight… sloshed.

    Actually Majors did a lot his drinking in Shadyside either at the Encore or the Mardi Gras which was my ‘home’ bar. Had many wet conversations with him.

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  28. Just a point of interest. Saying narduzzi is 1-3 versus ranked teams provides a very limited view of how his team does versus ranked teams.

    As we all know, we don’t have any idea how good teams are until the season is over.
    Most teams will be overrated comming into the season and sometimes even during the season, for monetary reasons.

    If you want a much better gauge at how one team has faired, apply the end of the season rankings, of all of their opponents, to their results.

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  30. And with Narduzzi’s players as juniors, he still doesn’t have a QB. Wasn’t that a knock on Wanny? As was written on this blog previously (not by me) this is Narduzzi’s third year and STILL a majority of the starters are Chryst’s guys. So, either Narduzzi can’t recruit good enough talent, or his staff can’t develop them enough to get on the field. That’s where we are NOW.

    The future is the future. You can’t see it any better than the rest of us.. or can you?

    But, I’m happy to buy you a drink of your choosing, hopefully at Pitt’s first appearance in the Bowl Championship Playoffs.

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    1. Most good players are red shirted, so just starting his 2nd year as HC means little. Even if his recruits start, they are true freshman. It takes 5 full years to evaluate a coach based on recruiting and player development IMO.

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  31. I have a different take on the media blackout. I believe Narduzzi does not want any player saying something stupid (intentionally or more likely unintentionally). He is protecting the players. I don’t have a problem with this at all.

    HTP and if the football gods are with us, please smile down on Pitt this Saturday.

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    1. He doesn’t want anyone bragging about last year or shooting off their mouth. He figures this beat-down is going to be bad enough as it is.

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  32. A final take on YSU game – I loved seeing Jaryd-Jones helping up the runner after every play. This is an underrated act on the field that shows care and leadership. Every play. I hope he does well this year.

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  33. Thanks for the offer Jay. Narduzzi’s recruits are eligible to be juniors but most or almost all are rs sophomores and that’s only after one game, which they won. Let’s wait another year, I hear Pickett is going to tear it up for PITT next year?

    Let’s take a look. Whitehead, Garner, Camp, Zeise, Brightwell, Idowu are starters and almost all the top defensive backups are Narduzzi recruits I believe. Not sure who brought in Hendrix and Edwards?

    Offense? Browne, Clarke, Morrissey, and Hall with just about every back-up O-Lineman is a Narduzzi recruit.

    This list doesn’t include Paris Ford, AJ Davis T Sibley, Ffrench, Matthews, Hamlin ,the wr from Florida and all the new incoming freshman. I’m not on that page either.

    I just can’t see the negativity. It’s only been two years and one game. That put’s HCPN record at 17-8 regular season. Dam those bowl game losses… ike

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  34. He had 3 weeks of recruiting and a new staff back in Jan 2015. About the only QB available was DiNucci. He then brought in Peterman. While the jury is still out on MacV (despite what Reed says) .. Pickett looks like a good one. And so does Patti for next year …. but of course, it is way too early

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  35. Pitt BB ACC schedule out (from Pitt athletic site):

    Pitt opens ACC play in late December for the third consecutive season, welcoming Miami to the Petersen Events Center for a Saturday, Dec. 30 contest. The Panthers remaining ACC home schedule is comprised of Duke (Jan. 10), Georgia Tech (Jan. 13), NC State (Jan. 24), Syracuse (Jan. 27), Louisville (Feb. 11), Boston College (Feb. 13), Wake Forest (Feb. 21) and Virginia (Feb. 24).

    The road schedule begins with trips to Louisville (Jan. 2) and Virginia Tech (Jan. 6) in early January. The Panthers make back-to-back trips to Syracuse (Jan. 16) and Duke (Jan. 20) as well as a three-game road trip to Miami (Jan. 31), North Carolina (Feb. 3) and Clemson (Feb. 8). Pitt also travels to Florida State (Feb. 18) before closing out league play at Notre Dame (Feb. 28).

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  37. PItt4ever Reed speaking of Carson Long in 75 I remember his quote, paraphrased ‘I tried to hang myself by standing on a stool with a rope around my neck but I kicked at the leg of the stool and missed’.

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  38. Living in the State College area and being a Pitt fan is not the easiest thing to do. Grew up in Oakmont. Relocated to this area back in 91. I work with basically all PS fans. Thank goodness I am close to retirement and will be relocating to NC in less than 5 years.
    Pitt hopefully makes a game of it. An upset would be great. But I don’t see it this year. No one really stands out as being a difference maker for Pitt. I am thinking 35-10.
    To be honest. It is a cult around here. When you see it every day. It really is a cult. I will be at the game Saturday. And I will be hopeful to see Pitt play a decent game and at least put a scare into them.
    If there is any POVers planning to tailgate. Let me know. I will be with my PS fan girlfriend. But I bought the tickets and I am driving. So she might be a Pitt fan for the day.

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    1. Hang in there JPK I can’t even imagine dealing with that on a daily basis. Hopefully, you’ve met some Nitters that didn’t put football ahead of the safety of young boys. I have many a PSU family member and most are really good people and at least a couple of them have said that Joe knew decades earlier. The others are in denial.

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  39. I agree he needs and should get more time. My confusion was based on the comment that he’s a “hell of a coach.” I think the jury is certainly out. As you stated yourself, his players aren’t on the field.

    Hail to Pitt!

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  40. JPK.

    I’ll be there with my son and a few other Pitt fans. I’m not sure where I’ll be parked but if you shoot me a text, I’d be happy to have you join us. We’re gonna need to stay together for this one.

    Jason
    (717) 576-8748

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  41. Sorry to disagree, but i find the Nit fans to be lower in the evolutionary swamp muck than WVCC boosters. The in-breds realize they are a crowd of couch-burning, coin-tossing neanderthals and thats why they take great pride in beating the city folk up north. On the other hand, the Nits, despite the lack of any objective evidence, actually believe themselves to be superior to not only Pitt, but EVERYONE, and are completely devoid of understanding and remorse in what was the most heinous act in all of college sports.
    409 and JVP placards, We Are Because He Was stickers. A trustee labeling the abused as ‘so-called victims.’ They would actually place statues in front of every building in cow-town, if given the option. And, they voted JayPa to their BOT (as if he didn’t know what was going on).

    So, as for the game, I would rather lose them all as long as we beat the cult.
    Hi-Ho, Hi-Ho, how I hate them so.
    Just one fella’s opinion.
    H2P!

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  42. I wish all a fun and safe tailgate. Most Nitters will just leave you alone. But you will hear the arrogance on full display. If I were coach, I would seek any way to win. That means any way. Its bragging rights and its worth a personal foul or two, playing in the the gray areas, outright cheating if you must. But a win is YUGE. Bigger than JINA.

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  43. In lieu of my pessimism and negativity surrounding this game, I would like to extend an offer to POV’ers only. I would like to offer an Autographed Rickey Jackson Pitt Jersey (with COA) in an open auction here on the site. The ENTIRE amount will be donated to the charity of Reed’s choosing or the POV itself, whichever he prefers. We sell them for $129.99 in our store but remember, this is for charity/donation… and few are readily available

    Rickey Jackson won TWICE in Happy Valley (1979 & 1980) and perhaps this little show of altruism will please the football gods. Anything it takes, right?

    Reed.. are you ok with this?

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    1. Jay91 – I’m interested when Reed gives the ok. I’ll be on the golf course with psu friends tomorrow – check in when I can…

      Defeat the enablers in creepy valley.

      HTP!

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  44. Ike I am married,….no way in heck I am oversexed.
    Me and three other die hard fans are leaving here on Saturday morning at 8:30. Up and back same day. I am not the driver so I may, just may, be a little tipsy.
    Hope to see some of you there.

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  45. LOL Richman. Marriage, now that explains your somewhat obsession with perky you know what’s. Jus kidding Rich 🙂 . . . .ike

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  46. imo A head coach should get 4 to 5 years to try and get his players that fit his system and in the case of a first time head coach maybe even a little longer to put his product on the field.

    Narduzzi needs to make the inroads with the local schools and gain the trust of the area’s head coaches. When all things are considered I again, imo, think HCPN has done a good job. Not great but has turned lemons into lemonade.

    Paul Chryst is looked upon favorably with a lot of PITT brass and fans and he didn’t much for PITT wins. I just don’t get why Narduzzi isn’t being given the proper respect and time that some other coaches who didn’t deserve as much respect?

    I also believe that Pat Narduzzi is as hard on himself in retrospect as anyone else. Half of you worry about him leaving and half worry about him staying. I don’t get it? As the saying goes, be careful of what you wish for.

    I think that some may just figure he’s going to walk out the door on you and the dislike starts before it is even warranted? Let’s wait and see, if PITT win’s another 8 games this year and he leaves, then hell, PITT is back on the map! . . . . .ike

    H2P!

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  49. LOL Urban. It must be nice to be on your side of the coin. Like it’s equal and all that? Money talks, bull-crap walks. Seems like he has the best o both worlds? ike

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  51. Ok my best Penn State story…..it was 1983 (I think) and my buddy Nate and I go up to State College to see Pitt play as huge underdogs. We agree to leave at halftime if the Nits are up by 24 or more. Pitt plays their asses off and pulls a huge upset. I am completely trashed and we stop at Boiling Springs Tavern to celebrate further on the way home. I drop Nate off in Carlisle and am driving home when a PA State cop pulls me over. I am literally ….dead drunk. He asks me where I’ve been and where I’m going and where I’ve been. I told him I was at the Penn State game and he looks at me and says “just a horrible loss!” As I am kicking my Pitt stuff under the seat ….I agree….”just horrible” I say! I swear to God, he lets me go and tells me he will follow me a little while to make sure I am safe! He did and I was…true story.

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  52. Dan I am amazed that in an intoxicated state you were able to play the role of a crying Nitter impressive self control. 🙂

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  53. @pittitis….Jarred Jones picking up the running backs off the turf is not leadership. I think he is giving them a handshake and apologizing for missing the block that put the runner down. LOL. When is the last time we saw an offensive lineman pancake an opponent?

    Whoever wins the trenches on Saturday wins the game.

    Personally, I feel the dairy school has a defensive weakness which are their cornerbacks. If we “MaX” protect Browne we have a chance with Weah, FFrench and MAthews outside.

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  54. Late article in the PG hasPSU 2018 recruiting class rated #3 getting 4’s and 5s everywhere. Narduzzi is getting crushed at # 55 with nothing but 3s. Big loss to Oklahoma tonight. Mr. Ego trip and his staff need to pick it up!!

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  55. Do you think Pitt’s performance in the game last Saturday helped to convince the prized recruit to pick Oklahoma? If not it sure didn’t help.

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      1. BTW, he is a Columbus native and committed to the team who is coming to Columbus to play this weekend .. against the local team that did not recruit him.

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  56. Chiming in from La LA Land, here. No chemical enhancements, btw. I expect Browne to have stats much like his Stanford game last year with USC, except Pitt wins. Sticking with 10-4 overall, losing one of our two post season games. PSU not that good.

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  57. FYI – Kareem Hunt played at Willoughby South, the district where Chas Rich lives. Back in 2013, Pitt was on his finalist list before he chose to go Toledo. That was the same class as James Conner … wonder if James Conner would have emerged like he did if Hunt came to Pitt.

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  58. Last night at Atlanta when the Braves hosted the Marlins .. the song “Rock You Like a Hurricane” was played over the PA. Maybe not the best timing here

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  59. Reed and others here …. the perfect example of why pre-game player interviews are senseless occurred yesterday at State College, PA when Trace McSorley commented about Pit’s secondary being very active and aggressive. Just heard it on The Fan 93.7.

    The fact is .. and I mean this wholeheartedly .. I wish pre-game player interviews were banned every week, by every team. They are nothing but a waste of time, and I have tuned them out for years.

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  60. The recruiting loss of LB Osamoah (sp) to Oklahoma is not a shocker, but it is a miss by Harley & Duzz. That LB recruit wouldn’t help Pitt tomorrow – our LB-ers on the current roster must show up and perform above and beyond what we have seen from them to date or it will be a long afternoon.

    Trying to remain optimistic this morning in Central PA – the Kool-aid is a little bitter this morning.

    Predictions and perceptions all get thrown out the window tomorrow at 3:30pm. It’ll be “Go Time” and “Show Time” – what is coach Duzz going to show Pitt fans? Can’t wait…

    Cat Fight in creepy valley – you don’t want to miss it.

    HTP!

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  61. Know The Enemy article is now posted.

    Blue Chippers are keeping away from Pitt in droves and that is very strange to me based on our two 8 win seasons and Narduzzi… but honestly, not everyone, and their parents, like his type of personality.

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  62. Certainly disconcerting so many defensive players are getting an NFL check and we were so horrid last year.
    And the blue choppers seem to avoid us.
    Steeler practice facility?
    Educatin?
    Heinz?
    Or something else?

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  63. I seem to remember that when Carson Long missed all his kicks against PSU that his girlfriend gave birth to his baby that day and the coaches would not let him see it. Does anyone else remember that? Or is my old brain in the crapper?

    My older sister is a Nitter so I remember the Pitt-PSU games from those days in the early 70s. Didn’t they play on Thanksgiving once or twice? Btw, she drank the Koolaid, still drinks the Koolaid, has season tickets there, but was not a JoePa supporter when the proverbial soap hit the shower floor.

    I’m skipping the questions since I was nodding my head as I read everybody else’s answers. Yes to all.

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