If you all remember I did a series of articles in June of 2017 that looked at the departing starters from the 2016 season and who I thought would be replacing them for 2017. With that I assigned a grade of “Upgrade“, “Downgrade” or “Draw‘.
What I’ll do first is look at each position, or unit, along the offense as of today and write down who I think will be the starter and why it will be that guy. Then I’ll assign a ranking of “Upgrade” if I see an upgrade in player quality, “Downgrade’ if I see a lessening of talent or “Draw” if I think we’ll match last year’s player(s) in the position or unit.
This particular article is written by our fellow reader and commenter Ike… I’ll throw in the POV’s point of view (funny that, huh?) in my comment.
DEFENSIVE ENDS
This looks like another unit that may be hard to judge by a few of the commenters on the POV but not so much for me. The changes for 2018 are the departures of Allen Edwards and Reed’s favorite whipping boy our old Defensive Coordinator Josh Conklin. He, as you all know, has been replaced by DC Randy Bates, the longtime linebackers coach at NW.
We really don’t know what type of defense Bates will employ. What will be interesting to try to figure out is whether Narduzzi is the one running the defense (which means more of the same emphasis on strong and constant pressure on the opposing QBs by the defensive front seven) and remain in charge there or will Bates have some room to do his thing?
Above are the changes, so who is returning at the ends and who are the newbies?
OLD GUYS
Dewayne Hendrix
Rashad Weaver
James Folston Jr
Patrick Jones II
NEW GUYS
Habakkuk Baldonado
Kaymar Mimes
John Morgan
Noah Palmer
First thing I notice are the small numbers and I went back to check the best my brain allows me to find if I missed a bunch of players and I didn’t find any.
I’ll start with the “old guys” and with returnee rsSR Dewayne Hendrix; I’m not saying he played great last season but I did not see the failure that others saw. I thought he put pressure on the QB at times and I noticed his hustle. This is his last chance and because of limited talent back-ups, I expect him to play a lot and his production to go up pretty significantly.
rsSR James Folston Jr has been around for a while and has done some nice things but he really hasn’t separated himself, yet I feel he’s a valuable backup and a luxury to have.
rsSO Patrick Jones II is interesting. It looks like he will be Weaver’s wing-man this year and has shown some flashes. He’s got nice size and quickness with speed. He will bring a lot of energy when he comes in against a tired defense. He could have a good year.
rsSO Rashad Weaver… I love this young man. He plays all over the D-Line and we watched him standing up last year. There is no doubting his athleticism but I think it was his brain that got him onto the field last year. This DE has a very bright future and PITT cannot afford to lose him this year.
Two players; freshman David Green, who is only 6’0″ 260 lbs and Deslin Alexandre 6’4″ 270 lbs have been moved to the interior of the line but could be used at the DE position if the two-deep fails.
Alexandre was an early enrollee last January and still took a redshirt but I did hear some good things about him. Green impressed me the couple of times I watched him play on TV in high school but he reminded me of Aaron Donald back when he was in high school. Because of his smaller size I wouldn’t be surprised if PITT slid him outside to take advantage of his quickness and speed.
It looks like Alexandre put on some weight but I’m not sure why they moved him to the interior of the line because it looks like they have enough bodies at the DT spot. Which makes me think he’ll end up back on the edge
To be fair, I can’t talk much about the incoming freshmen players as I know very little about them and I don’t expect any of them to get much playing time although the new redshirt rule will allow them to play four games so maybe we will see them at different times. I’ll throw true freshman John Morgan’s name out there as the one who may get quality time if any of them do. I believe he comes from a big-time high school program and his father is a coach.
So what’s all the rumpus? Well, some may say this group sucked last year so they will suck this year too. Not me. I’ve said in a hundred times, PITT recruits 3* players and it takes these type of players time to grow in maturity and physicality. I expect the whole PITT defense to put a smile on many PITT faces this coming season.
UPGRADE
pittpov.com 
Was this article written by Reed?
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No, Ike wrote it. I’ll add my 2 cents later.
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Anyone that drinks Dark and Stormys from a trophy is ok in my book Bernie. Haha.
Thanks for the article Ike… Pulling for Central Catholic’s David Green. Vote upgrade.
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I see it as an upgrade. I actually think the line and not linebackers will be the strength of the D
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Great article, Ike.
I agree – upgrade.
One final node: could never understand what Allen Edwards never made more of an impact.
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Good article Iek…. got me to wondering- when was the last time we had a pair of DEs who could bring the heat every play ???
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About 1980 – Hugh and Rickey.
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To Bernie’s point that’s what Bates wants out of the D. He spoke to us at the LOI event in that regard. Fast and aggressive.
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I agree, this should be the best pass rush in years. Also Narduzzi has stockpiled some depth.
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I olinect
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How bout those two smiling faces up top? Two fellows I’m proud to call friends for sure. Not much to the article just trying to chip in for another great pal in Reed. Isn’t life good. YES IT IS!
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This will surely be an UPGRADE. I can’t comment on the new talent, but I can on the DE’s I saw play last year. I’m with IKE on Weaver, he’s a stud. I also love what I saw from Patrick Jones. IMO he’s going to be highly productive, and may be a starter later in the season.
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Hey Pittman4ever and ever….. My mantra is really they are just words until they make someone feel like they are hurtful. Otherwise they are just words. Hope all is great in your life and world… ike
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Great article Iek! I concur with your assessment !
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Folston and Hendricks are redshirt Seniors. They are known quantities in that they have been around awhile, are experienced but may not improve much over last season. They both have solid experience and should do well..
Weaver played well last season and showed so flashes of a big upside. Jones is very capable and looks the part.. Jones may improve the most year over year.
DE (and especially interior linemen) rotate in and out a lot. It will be nice to have four experienced guys in the DE rotation. I will give the DE position an upgrade. The DE is a solid, but unremarkable unit. with some upside
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Nice post by old Ike. I’m from the old ITH board (pitttothetop) and have been lurking here for awhile. I need other crazy fans to commiserate with about Pitt FB. I hope as the season develops I can add to the conversation. With respect to Ike’s well-written article, I believe Weaver and Hendrix have to really put on a show this year. We need the pressure they can bring to slow things down for the DBs. I miss the old days of Sheard and Romeous. We need that kind of play from these guys. I hope Bates feels the same way.
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This is one position we are lacking experienced depth. The four written about are good players – Pitt needs one or two to be very good to great players or the D struggles again under Narduzzi.
Regarding the four trueFR, one or two will end up playing meaningful minutes this season which bodes well for the future.
Good article Ike – I vote upgrade because of Weaver alone. This 2* needs to play at an All-ACC 1st team level and exceed expectations with double digit sack totals.
H2P!
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Very well written Ike. Thank you.
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he d… please expound !
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Good article Ike. I concur with your upgrade.
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I’m surprised Narduzzi hasn’t gone after a JuCo defensive end in this class. It will be Weaver and Jones as juniors in 2019 with inexperienced players behind them.
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Welcome Sam…keep posting buddy. The more the merrier. Stop by a tailgate of you’re local.
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I saw a few flashes from Hendrix last year. I think this is the year he lives up to his pedigree.
The young guys are unknown, but are Narduzzi recruits and the future good or bad.
We only lose Folston and Hendrix after this year, so the future looks pretty good at this position as well.
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The FR will get some snaps because of the new rule but that will be it unless one is spectacular or there is injury.
I think there are a few guys that can move to the outside for reps like Alexandre, Wheeler and Camp.
I was curious about the size of our DL. Excluding true FR.
Pitt DE average weight is 260
Pitt DT average weight is 288.1
PSU DE average weight is 249.9
PSU DT average weight is 296.1
DEs in the NFL draft first two rounds 267.6
DTs in the NFL draft first two rounds 311 (skewed by the one huge guy at 347).
Conclusion for me, Pitt could use a little more beef in the middle. I like the size of the outside guys.
Obviously your defensive philosophy plays into this. Some DEs are more like huge LBs and some coaches would rather have the lighter faster guys (a good question for PN). Then you have exceptions like Aaron Donald that screw up the norms.
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It better be an upgrade, even though there is a new guy in charge, Duzz is still the head man. His defense is always going to rely on getting pressure on QB’s. Not as optimistic as most you guys on this unit, hope I’m wrong…
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I don’t have the numbers in front of me right now. But last night Ike and I had a conversation on the phone about tackles-for-loss and sacks.
The numbers that Hendrix and Weaver and the other guys put up last year are so low compared to the past years it’s almost amazing.
Granted in the recent past we had Ejuan Price but even when you go back to times under Paul Chryst with Dave Durham and Brian Murphy and guys like that they were still outperforming what we saw last year from our defensive ends.
This group has to get better by Leaps and Bounds or we’re going to have the same problem we have had the last 3 years with everything ending up on the defensive backs’ shoulders.
So I agree that just because of the little bit extra experience in the two deep this position should be labeled an upgrade.
But I also agree with the poster above who said it’s an upgrade of not a very good Bunch. These are not good athletes overall and not that good defensive ball players were having here….again with the exception of Weaver who must breakout.
Weaver is the best of the bunch and if Jones doesn’t play up to or even past over his potential then we’re going to have problems for another few years with this position.
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The athleticism of this defense is not as good as say the 2017 team? Our LBs had athleticism? Our Nose Guard was athletic? Our DBs and Safeties were athletic? We had a (that’s the singular article)DE that was athletic I will give you that. But that’s all I will give you. And I could disparage the athleticism of the 2016 defense as well (except for JW).
There is no question at least in my judgment that the 2018 defense is far more athletic than any team defense since after 2014 which is all I feel competent to speak about.
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Maybe it is wishful thinking, but I think these guys grew up a lot from beginning to end of season and that it will pay dividends this year. Will it be good enough who knows, but you have much more mature and experienced guys on the whole front seven and this has to amount to something or we are truly screwed.
None of these guys play in a vacuum and individuals will play better when the guy next to them is doing his job. D-End play does depend on individual skills, strength and speed, but knowing the linebacker is right there backing you up, or that there is pressure coming from the middle or the other side will help a great deal.
With maturity fewer mistakes are made. Pitt has been extremely susceptible to the big play, hopefully that changes this year. It is time these guys start making the big plays instead of giving them up.
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Sam I am (PittToTheTop) I sure do remember you from ITH. A real good contributor over there. Welcome and please continue to share your thoughts with all of us. Hope to finally meet you at one of POV’s Fran and JoeL’s tailgate this coming fall.
I can’t be more specific here due to the POV’s HIPPA rules but Reed has a very important Dr’s visit today addressing an old nagging problem. Keep him in your prayers today. Hope you don’t mind me mentioning this Reed but I thought you could use some extra prayers. ike
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Praying for you. Heard you had to have a follow appt for your penile reduction surgery. Must of been a tough problem all those years. Thinking of you big guy. No pun intended all the way from Mexico.
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Hate to be a tease as I’m not sure of the rules about copy and pasting articles from other sites but there is a super duper interesting read about Oscar Tshiebwe the real good big man from Kennedy Christian high school over on PSN. Looks like Dixon screwed PITT big time before he left.
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Capel with two big misses in the past 24 hours. What is his 4* recruit count currently at right now? 1 comes to mind…
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Capel has cooled down but Tshiebwe is not on him. Konato is one of the best players in the country going into next year and Dixon never offered. Their custodian holds a great grudge due to that fact. bummer.
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Here is what we have done in recent years as far as Sacks and TFLs go:
’17 = 56 TFLs and 23 Sacks
’16 = 90 TFLs and 43 Sacks
’15 = 88 TFLs and 37 Sacks
’14 = 54 TFLs and 19 Sacks
’13 = 86 TFLs and 25 Sacks
’12 = 78 TFLs and 24 Sacks
’11 = 98 TFLs and 43 Sacks
Just had the worse year as far as QB pressure goes in a while, save 2014, and in the six previous years we averaged 82 TFLs and 32 Sacks.
So last season the exact same personnel, minus Edwards,was off the average by 26 TFLs and 9 Sacks and that is huge. This takes into account Graham and Chryst’s teams also. Narduzzi’s third year as HC was almost as bad as 2014 from a HC who wasn’t know for defense.
It may be an ‘upgrade’ based on experience but it still isn’t a very good unit. Honestly if our DBs don’t really step up and show something we are going into the season with almost exactly the same front seven – and three of the Top four LBs are Chryst recruits who weren’t really that good in the first place – except for one guy in Idowu.
Where is the new blood Narduzzi was supposed to be recruiting?
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Last years numbers do suck. The sack totals and QB pressures have to go way up.
PN had a choice last year:
Play Zeise (coming off an injury), Brightwell (had to play the middle as he was the only LB experienced at that position to call plays) and Idowu.
OR
Throw Reynolds and Pine into the fire.
His philosophy is to obviously play the older players first and ease younger players into games. By the end of the year Reynolds and Pine played.
Is this neccessarily a bad way to go? Idowu had a breakout year (as I think Zeise will this year). Reynolds and Pine got experience and will not miss a beat when they start next year. Now there is depth.
This philosophy does not mean Pine and Reynolds will not be very good linebackers. I think he is trying to make sure they have depth at each spot. I do agree he does sometimes incorrectly stick with older players like Briggs but I do not think LB or DL is a spot where he did this.
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Nice job, ike. And best wishes to the Commander.
Met Weaver at the spring game. If any player on this team has an NFL body, it’s Weaver. Now to make more plays…
I see an upgrade based on being a year more mature and based on a very aggressive Bates lighting a fire under theses guys…
Go Pitt.
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Last year was an awful year by any evaluation. A lot of first year guys on the front seven plus a very tough schedule and zero offense. The D was on its heels most of the time. We have to hope that maturity and Wirginis will help.
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High hopes we will soon see the famed, nationally awarded Duzz Defense….
I am really concerned about his recruiting on the OL. We lost several highly rated OL players to other schools the last couple of years and the trend doesn’t seem to be changing. You have to be good on both sides of the ball to get to those 9-10 wins seasons.
Our 1st OL recruit is a big boy but any 6’5″ 270 and bigger who starts for a high school team is going to get a look from D1 program. Duzz isn’t “choosy. Maybe he can develop OLineman, after-all, he is an award winning defensive assistant.
If a coaching change happens, I hope Heather looks down south to the land of Cotton..memories of great Pitt FB are not forgotten….Look away Heather..Look away.. Dixieland -for the next one
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….. and you guys wondered why I call the man Biggie B Bernie get’s his groove on
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I’m not from Missouri but this 4th season under PN is absolutely a “show me” situation as in I’ll believe it when I see it.
Optimism was rampant with Pitt fans overall last year at this time (some on here not so much) and we saw what happened.
I’m getting to the point that I really have a hard time trusting PN’s personnel decisions across the board.
That includes recruiting first and foremost then his staff hires.
I’d feel much more comfortable if our DC hire had more than one lone year as a DC with an FCS school 13 years ago.
But he seems knowledgeable I guess but I’m not betting the house he’ll be that good in his first year…but then again I truly believe anyone is better than Conklin.
Sticking with him for 3 seasons was one of the worse moves I’ve seen in college ball.
I can’t wait to see how the DBs shake out but losing Maddox and Whitehead is a big deal..However I think our DBs are by far the most talented unit on D even with those departures.
Camp starts in two days and as if last night no schedule posted for the media, etc.
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Agree Reed. The “show me” year!
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Yes, recruiting has been very mediocre, and nothing ratcheted up the concern level like this week’s commitment; and truly no offense the young man, but with few scholarships left to give out and this being a position of need, it does raise alarms, eh?
DE? – I say Draw. I think we may be a tiny bit better, but not enough for me to call it an upgrade. That’s said, it wouldn’t surprise me if I’m wrong and this unit earns an upgrade result. I hope they do. I do think the play of the interior DL will impact the performance of the DE’s, so if the DE’s perform better this year, then I suspect there will be some credit due to the DT’s.
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It’s an upgrade simply because we only lost Edwards who gave us little. The added experience of the back ups along with “Weavers” potential is enough of a reason to give this an upgrade vote. But if this upgraded group does get us more pressure on the opposition QB/s it might not mean much in the end.—Nice job Ike.
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1618mt..exactly what I was talking about regarding the recruit and i hope I eat crow..but giving the 1st OL scholarship to a young man with no big offers should be a red flag…even the young man from Latrobe, who I hear has a mean streak in him and a good athlete, is silent…he certainly didn’t jump on his 1st D1 offer from PITT.
We lost 2 locals last year to ND, Kristofek and a coaches son this year-WOW, what if ??? Coulda been the making of one helluva OL….I can dream can’t I ? Something just isn’t kosher….
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Blame Pitt for these kids leaving the area to play elsewhere. Firing Wannstedt, firing Haywood, Graham leaving after one year, the 6 and 6-ers coaching staff of Chryst. Narduzzi wasn’t changing these kids’ minds right away. Not sure why some on here thought he was this saint. He is growing into the job and needs much more time.
Pitt would be more appealing without so many coaching changes this decade. The university is its own worst enemy, not the yellow seats.
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I believe that Ike got the rating correct, but possibly for a different reason. I think that the biggest reason for the pathetic TFL and Sack results last year had to do with the weak play of the LBs, and especially the DBs in pass coverage. Its darn hard to put pressure, let alone sack, a QB who can release the ball long before the DEs can engage and then beat the OL.
Brightwell as an OLB could be very good, but he’s out of place at MLB. Zeise and Idowu are now experienced, albeit with a different defensive scheme, so hopefully they both can play much faster, and think much less. They were terrible and always seemed to be late dropping into coverage. Hopefully, Pine/Reynolds can step up and backup Wirginnis allowing Brightwell to play outside where he belongs.
If Jackson can perform like a shutdown CB, allowing the safeties to help the other side of the field, and the LBs read the pass plays early enough to be effective dropping into coverage, I think Weaver and Co. could greatly improve on their TFL and Sack numbers. I’m going with Upgrade because I believe the above “if” will be a “yes”, but if not no reason the DEs will be anything but another pathetic Draw.
Reed all the best to you, your in all our prayers, and Ike good job and thanks for stepping up. Although I seldom post, I don’t ever miss a read.
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Have also not heard anything about football camp yet. When does it begin?
There is currently nothing about it on Pitt’s website.
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Well covered DEs and D and agree it should be an upgrade because of where we were last year. Dealt with management development and training part of my career and my biggest concern for our whole team is the Peter Principle ie Narduzzie. I still have not seen Narduzzie perform as a D1 HEAD COACH. He has not mastered beiing the maestro at the top who manages his staff who make it happen ie week assts that stay around too long and good ones he looses. His gameday decisions are often flawed or his guys can’t do what he thinks they can. Many unexplained losses of good local talent .I remember him saying he came to Pitt because much of his recruiting could be within 60 miles. So how is that working. I still can’t believe the sideline confusion surrounding putting Pickett into the Cuse game. Of course until his pay raise we did have the 121st lowest paid Di coach and just as bad a purse for Assts. I hope Pitt is finally breaking that mould because you do get what you pay for in this business . Really hope we break out but I still see us as 5/7 to6/6 this year and I hope I am wrong.H2P
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Heard partial comment about some sort of workouts starting Fri.8/3 on WTAE as to camp.
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It’s definitely this Friday. Reed still waiting for his invitation from his good friend Pat.
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Another Pat Signal today. Get ready folks for some nasty comments UNLESS Pitt gets a 5 star to flip from PSU. Chances of that happening are about 1 in 10,000,000.
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OT! …Kennedy Catholic’s Oscar Tshiebwe left PITT off his final eight list. Apparently his guardian is the same man that took care of Konate who is now with WVU and never received an offer from Dixon and told Oscar to rid PITT off his list out of spite?? Two really good big time players.
https://247sports.com/…/Four-star-center-Oscar-Tshiebwe-lists-Illinois-Fighting-Illini-i…
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I can feel it now jrn, the stomping of feet. Here’s some music for them.
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That was the second album I ever bought – circular, sliver album cover shaped like a coin with the phrase “E Pluribus Funk” on the bottom.
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Ike – thanks for the article. Read through it and missed the part where Reed said you wrote it at first. It makes sense now… Hope you are right…
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Recruit is an OL with no other P5 offers! Way to go Duzz!!!! This class he is building makes me physically ill! It sucks a fat one, seriously does…
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Reed…hope my thoughts on class wasn’t out of bounds, if so I’m sorry, unlike you I never spent no time on the water, but I got a mouth like a sailor….
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jrnpitt,
I enjoy reading ur positive comments ( unless they’re about POVers) and then, unfortunately, they can get somewhat negative.
I ask this in gist, but should we assume the “jrn” part is your actual initials – which leads me to wonder if the last name of “n” stands for Narduzzi? Coach Duzz, is that really you???? (LOL)
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Urban creating some news…
https://mobile.twitter.com/RalphCindrich/status/1024690094429466625
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Pap76… I haven’t heard anything about the afternoon’s Pat Signal….
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College Sports Sirius channel 84 was all about Urban all day. Could Pitt benefit from potential exodus of recruits from OSU if Meyer is jettisoned?
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https://www.google.com/amp/s/nypost.com/2018/08/01/urban-meyer-placed-on-leave-in-bombshell-ohio-state-move/amp/
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Scum most always surfaces sooner or later. Ask the predators at psu. Hey didn’t Woody punch an opposing player in the throat?
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BTW, thanks to Reed for doctoring up my article much thanks and well done. ike
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Woody was “ into it!!!” 3 yards and a cloud of dust….
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Pap were you kidding about an Oline man with no offers?? If sontbis class may finish in 60’s. What a fraud this guy is. All talk and no substance.
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the kid is a no star from the Aleutian Islands. Rated as Alaska’s number 1 prospect. Narduzzi is hoping to convert him into a 300 pound Tight End. Right now, Kamik is too embarrassed to post on Twitter since he knows what comments await.
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Great article, ike. I agree that this category should be an upgrade. My criteria has always been prior experience as the main ingredient. These guys have played quite a bit, and despite the relatively average performance last year the experience should teach them something and bring about improvement this year. Another off season in the weight room won’t hurt either. So, nice work, ike!
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Jus to lighten it up a bit and for schitts and giggles. Maybe Urban is having this same problem tonight and he should be.
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Ike,
He went into the locker room with dark blue pants and came out with beige pants!!! A wardrobe malfunction? We thinketh not. :>)
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bad things happen when you worship false idols
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Wow Tex! A picture is worth a thousand words!
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Good article if you were a fan of Ironhead.
https://247sports.com/college/pittsburgh/Article/Steelers-fans-surprise-Cam-Heyward-with-fathers-old-Pitt-jersey-120261093
H2P!
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ACC coaches appear to thing it’s an upgrade too …
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tOSU football is in the news 365 here in Columbus. So, I’m not surprised that the local ABC affiliate spent 13 minutes on the story. More time than any Pgh channel would spend on the Panthers if they won the national championship. H2P!
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Got home late from the track, and I see the Urban story. I’m sure this runs deep in all college athletics but the BiG sure seems to have more than it’s fair share of problems. PSU,OSU, MSU, I mean the hits just keep on coming. I truly wonder if these programs will stop at nothing to preserve their brand. I’m getting pretty disgusted with the whole filthy mess.
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Our latest recruit was upgraded from Unranked to 2* after he committed.
Folks usually a ‘commitment upgrade’ is to at least 3s…but apparently if it is to Pitt now the kid gets only 2s.
Awesome!
Combine that with his offer sheet and HCPN is hitting home runs…
https://n.rivals.com/content/prospects/2019/matthew-goncalves-227951
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Maybe he will prove us wrong, but this sure smells like desperation.
He does have size, played Tight End in high school so possibly good feet.
They liked him in camp.
Go figure.
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https://www.hudl.com/video/3/6428643/5a558c2957987d0e10259bc3
He actually looks pretty athletic for a big man.
He looks like with a little strength and meanness…
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I’ve been reading from afar for a month or more but felt compelled to comment on the “Ox” resignation reported a week or so ago and its possible effect on the football program..
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Some of you have flippantly dismissed this as a “non issue.” It’s pretty clear to me (from 2 sources I will not disclose) that there are ongoing “issues” with this team. That a 30-year employee and alum would leave the program so abruptly should throw up red flags. And it shows either a blind allegiance to Narduzzi or complete disregard to people in general when POV posters say, “He’s just an equipment guy. Who cares?” or, “Most coaches have their own guys in that position. This is a non-issue.” Well, it’s clear that current and former players think it’s an issue. This guy survived Majors II, Steve Pedersen TWICE and Fraud Graham. But, after 3 years of Narduzzi he’s gone?
I think we’re in for another 5 years of mediocrity. I truly fear Narduzzi will be 5-7 again this year, and with no “big upset” win to bail him out. If the Enright incident is true, it is another example of Narduzzi alienating alumni– I’m hearing former players are EXTREMELY upset and many have further separated from the program. I’m sure Lyke is seeing this and she doesn’t seem to be real patient with mediocrity or boorish behavior and knows how necessary it is to have support from alumni and former players. I think he’s gone in December.
That said, more turnover is the last thing we need. And Narduzzi is leaving bare cupboards for the next coach. Maybe the $3.5M (or more) salary will entice a good one. Unlike many, I fully believe Pitt CAN compete at the highest level– but only if it really wants that to happen. The jury is still out, but I’m really starting to have some faith in the administration regarding sports. I think maybe this group gets it. See, I am an optimist!
H2P!
(I hope you READ my comment before attacking. I was EXCITED about the Narduzzi hire. I DON’T WANT Narduzzi to fail. I DON’T WANT Pitt to lose ANY games. I’m NOT HAPPY that our recruiting has declined over each of Narduzzi’s classes. I DON’T WANT Narduzzi to be fired. I just see things the way I see them. I hope I’m wrong. When it comes to Pitt football.. I’m usually not.)
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Jay91,
Thanks for sharing! This appears to be the same things that Reed has tried to share on the POV but has had to tread lightly on as to not cause a riot on here. I’m confident the Commander has much more to say about this topic but he is patiently holding his tongue for now (me thnkth).
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Lower level recruits on offense is not surprising to me. The same posters liking these lower level recruits will be wondering in 2-4 years why they are not playing.
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Looks like he’s playing against a bunch of grade school kids?
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^^ Jay is right. As I mention a littler further up on top Narduzzi has fallen fast with image and the Ox situation is at the forefront as the main reason. Former players are really upset over this.
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Pitt wins 8 games this year and 10 next year, no one will care. Winning is the tonic for any issues. Every coach has detractors. There is less of them when you win.
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Jay – I’m not doubting you or your sources, but please share with us the gist of the issue and reason that Ox got fired.
I gave it little thought until now and assumed it had to do with Ox’s performance (or his team’s performance). Things like – he didn’t open up the equipment room on time during summer workouts, he didn’t bring the right cleats, he forgot to order the right supplies, his equipment crew was rude to the players, he talked poorly about the coaches behind their backs and it came out or a thousand other legitimate reasons. You are saying that that is not the case. So, what is the issue/reason?
I ask this all respectfully.
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I can’t provide details on this specific incident without betraying a source- so I will not. However, I can assure you that it was NOT performance related and he was not “dismissed.” He left because he no longer wanted to be in the current environment. I can also assure you that this is not an isolated incident- as others in the program are not necessarily “fond” of Narduzzi.
This information (regarding multiple incidents) comes from 3 sources I know and trust. You can choose to believe me or not.
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Thanks Jay. Good to know. I thought that he may have been dismissed and didn’t know that he chose to leave because of an incident. And, I thought the hush hush nature of the dismissal (which wasn’t a dismissal) could have been for performance or related (we recently dismissed a guy because of how he treats women, for example). Evidently it wasn’t. Duzz must be rubbing people the wrong way. Would be more accepted if he is winning 9 or 10 games a year.
And, no need to get defensive with the “you can choose to believe me or not” comment. When you post something like the above, you have to expect that other posters will want to know any details that can be shared.
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It just never seems to end with Pitt. I completely buy in to what Jay is saying. By the way, what kind of rating system do Rivals and others use if a middle P5 school offers and a guy goes from non-rated to 2 stars? Is there no objective way of rating these kids? Based on the “adjustment” of ranking scores these services come up with, I don’t have faith in ANY rating service. If a kid wants his ranking to go up, he should attend many camps, get seen by many different schools, which will inevitably lead to offers, and then watch is ranking skyrocket!
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Scott McCillop’s post on his twitter account was very interesting after the Ox firing.
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McKillop was a Graduate Assistant for Narduzzi in 2015. Here’s his tweet..
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
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That’s exactly right VOR, Rivals for instance will rate all the players starting with a 5.3. That is their lowest rating. They don’t have a one star and the minute this new kid committed to PITT they bumped him up to the lowest rating because they didn’t have a clue about him and still don’t. It’s a subjective exercise and should be taken for what it’s worth.
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I was a no star back in high school. I wish Pitt would have offered me.
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I’m thinking that unless he is oblivious, Narduzzi is already feeling some heat. I am sure recruiting has been even more frustrating to him than it has to us. He knows that he isn’t getting the kids he wants and has been settling for the best that will come. All coaches know that below .500 years are not good for job security and that another one pushes him closer to the door.
He has seen that Heather will pull the trigger although his situation is not nearly as dire as Stallings. I still think he has two years, which is fair unless he goes 2-8, then who knows. I was hoping that he would finish recruiting with some flourish as he has done in the past, but it seems to be going the other way. There appears to be no immediate help in this class.
The lack of buzz in recruiting and for the upcoming season is appalling. This year and last year are the worst I can remember. It is still early but there is no hype and I fear PSU fans are going to overwhelm Heinz this year.
This better be the year that the defense turns it up several notches and Narduzzi lives up to his defensive rep.
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TX,
Did you go to a TX HS?
I’ve lived in TX now for 35 years. ( Garland, Amarillo, and now Atascocita (in Walden on Lake Houston).
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Went to HS in WPA. And we all know a no star in PA is actually a negative star. If I went to HS in Texas, I might of had a chance. 🙂
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gc..I watched the young man’s video rarely comment on and will keep my opinion to myself on the young man but it is apparent the high school football world has moved on from PITT just like a lot of local kids have no idea who “Catfish” Hunter is/was and they live in his “backyard.” One would think there would be 1 OL player who would want to be at PITT..and there doesn’t appear to be one..that I find troubling.
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I meant a quality, highly recruited lineman..forgot to add the qualifier.
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Agree BigB, the lack of local kids is hurting and we have missed the few good ones lately.
Narduzzi offering all the 4’s and 5’s has been a total waste of time, but obviously Borbely and Watson have nothing up their sleeves.
Chryst was able to get linemen to come, Narduzzi seems to be able to get D-backs to come.
Pitt’s history of great O-linemen is just that history.
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Too bad the scandals at tOSU won’t free up some players, they would probably pick PSU or Michigan anyway. The trend on offer sheets for our latest guys is not going in the right direction.
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PITT is and will remain a 3* recruit school until they could put up a few 9-10 win seasons. If we can see all the four* recruits that have come to PITT in the past, I think we would see most are from the area and or they are last minute signing’s. I think the Devonshire kid is the only 4* recruit in the WPIAL this year and Narduzzi didn’t extend a scholarship until late. I think this young man had OSU high on his list so this latest Urban development might help PITT a little but I doubt that.
This takes us back to the OOC schedule and why Huff the third is right. Wins count more than fun games and attendance right now for a football program like PITT. …but of course you are not going to buyout psu or Notre Dame. Maybe try and buyout psu next year though but i’m pretty sure PITT will kick their asses up there.
For the first time in years I plan on buying a college football magazine and buckling down to give an honest prognostication of this coming football season. I need to know more about the competition this time around. ike
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Pitt will become a no star or two star program under Narduzzi. Chryst at least got us 3 stars.
If I was Heather, I’d be building a case to fire Narduzzi with cause after another 5 win season.
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Don’t worry about Narduzzi, he is headed to tOSU! It could happen.
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As a waterboy
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Lol. He has a better shot at ending up at YSU.
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Narduzzi to OSU? Two words..
Buh bye…
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as the DB coach after Heather fires him this year
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Ill chime in on the Ox Enright issue a bit.
What precipitated Enright’s leaving was 100% on Pat Narduzzi and the result of something that is truly mind boggling coming from a supposed mature adult who represents a major university.
When you have a ton of ex-players both from the WH and DW years on through to now complaining about it publicly…plus local sports writers Gorman (and this has nothing to do his being a PSU grad) and Jerry DiPaola weighing in…and others speaking on the radio about the situation you know it was a big deal.
Enright was as highly respected at Pitt as someone like Bob Junko is – long term and integral components of the university’s football program for over 30 years. Those two guys were the heart and soul of Pitt football for decades and while Junko is still there Enright left.
FYI an equipment manager at a P5 school, especially if he has been there that long is absolutely a valued employee. Fans see about 5% of what their job entails and it is so much more than cleats or jerseys.
Enright was a sounding board for the players, especially those away from home for the first time and was valued and wellnloved by everyone but, it seems, Narduzzi.
Enright took his 30 year pension and left as I would have also.
Btw, all you have to do is listen to PN’s remarks at the ACC conference media days to see what he’s about. Here’s a quote from DiPaola of the Trib:
“But Narduzzi said, “We probably got as far as we could” under Conklin. It’s important to note Narduzzi, not Conklin, set the tone for the defense, strategically and philosophically.
“I really think we upgraded in the hire of Randy Bates (long-time Northwestern linebackers coach), and that’s no disrespect to Josh,” Narduzzi said. “It’s just a different guy with different ideas. I love his passion about the game.”
Narduzzi’s intent was to praise Bates, but he did not handle it well. Conklin did not deserve such treatment.
Narduzzi also questioned the leadership capabilities of last year’s senior class, soiling the reputations of highly respected players Brian O’Neill, Avonte Maddox, Ryan Winslow and others, who were loyal to the program since before Narduzzi arrived.”
Note the phrase: “It’s important to note Narduzzi, not Conklin, set the tone for the defense, strategically and philosophically.”
Of course none of it was his fault. Just like “poor” leadership from the senior players had nothing to do with him either.
He is a piece of work for sure.
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Ike I have been buying them all including my favorite Phil Steele and doing my own composite for several years and that is why I go with 5/7 this year. Simplest forecast just put an L on each team ranked higher. Steel’s observation is we do not know enough hence 2 to 10 wins. But his confidence level has Pitt ranked below his top 60. Watching the recruiting go south is what really scares me for the coming years. The recruiting is on the entire staff but if Narduzzie is a problem we are done. Joe Moore used to own the O line recruits in this area. The right people in there and Pitt could again. Even if we only got 1/2 the local O line recruits.
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I hear you Pitt60 but I’d look more at the match-up, strength against strength or weakness. I think this PITT defense will surprise many. Potential 1-3 against OOC games puts this team behind the eight-ball for sure.
Why would Ohio State want the worst head coach in college football who can’t recruit? Sometimes I just have to scratch my head in pure amazement.
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Been right all along on narduzzi. Ming Dynasty and the other jabroni lifer he hired. All yes men no one wants. Heather fire this clown and I gurantee he doesn’t get a D1 job as a HC. Guy is a tool.
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Who cares if he never landed another D-1 job.
Most importantly, how much further would firing Narduzzi set the program back?
Who would be the next hot coordinator Pitt would hire only to find out early on the guy has no balls when coaching and can’t overcome the yellow seats when it came to recruiting?
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And worse yet a cocky tool who doesn’t win.
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It’s possible another player has left the team – we’ll know more when Narduzzi addresses the media after Friday’s first camp session. Here is the schedule: note a few things – sprinkled in are completely closed practices. Also, now the 30 minutes or so the media has in the beginning are now the “Photography Window” and not drills – but maybe they will still do that.
Also – download a 2018 media guide – tons of good info in there.
PHOTOGRAPHY/VIDEOGRAPHY:
Photography and videography are permitted only during the practice media viewing windows. Videographers are not permitted to shoot 11-on-11 drills or formations. Video angles must be tight. Please consult an athletics communications staff member if you have any questions regarding video guidelines and what can be shot. All photographers (video and still) should shoot from the sidelines and refrain from stepping onto the practice field.
ADDITIONAL GUIDELINES:
Use of Twitter, live blogging and reporting of injuries during viewing windows are strictly prohibited.
PITT FOOTBALL MEDIA GUIDE:
A PDF of the Panthers’ 2018 football media guide can be accessed at this link: Pitt Football Media Guide. Requests for hardcopies should be sent to Celeste Welsh, athletic communications coordinator, at cwelsh@athletics.pitt.edu.
2018 PITT FOOTBALL TRAINING CAMP MEDIA SCHEDULE (subject to change)
Friday, August 3
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (Coach Narduzzi briefing/select players and assistants)
Saturday, August 4
Coach Narduzzi Briefing: 9:35 a.m.
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)
Sunday, August 5
Practice closed.
Monday, August 6
Coach Narduzzi Briefing: 9:35 a.m.
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)
Tuesday, August 7
Coach Narduzzi Briefing: Time TBA
Photography Window: Time TBA
Interviews: Time TBA (select players and assistants)
Wednesday, August 8
Players off day.
Thursday, August 9 (MEDIA DAY)
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Coach Narduzzi Press Conference: 1 p.m. (second floor team room)
Offense-Defense Interviews: 1:30-3:15 p.m.
Friday, August 10
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)
Saturday-Sunday, August 11-12
Practices closed.
Monday, August 13
Players off day.
Tuesday, August 14
Coach Narduzzi Briefing: 9:35 a.m.
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)
Wednesday, August 15
Coach Narduzzi Briefing: 9:35 a.m.
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)
Thursday, August 16
Coach Narduzzi Briefing: 9:35 a.m.
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)
Friday, August 17
Coach Narduzzi Briefing: 9:35 a.m.
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)
Saturday-Sunday, August 18-19
Practices closed.
Monday, August 20
Players off day.
Tuesday, August 21
Coach Narduzzi Briefing: 9:35 a.m.
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)
Wednesday, August 22
Coach Narduzzi Briefing: 9:35 a.m.
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)
Thursday, August 23
Coach Narduzzi Briefing: 9:35 a.m.
Photography Window: 10-10:30 a.m.
Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)
Friday, August 24
Pitt Football Kickoff Luncheon (Heinz Field): 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
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Reed are you coming up for any media days?
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The new recruit looks awfully slow in space to be a future TE, and speed is not an easy attribute to teach.
Although stars seldom win the day for me, this doesn’t smell like “Team Spirit”, but more like “Desperado.
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I just got through listening to Cook and Poni in the car, and the entire college segment was about Ohio State. This is one day before camp opens, and practically nothing about Pitt. Does Pitt ever get any local publicity?
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When your camp is closed to everyone, you won’t talk to the media, and if you have to talk to them you are hostile and don’t answer much, what kind of local publicity do you want?
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Was Ron defending Meyer since Cook loves the powerful programs?
Same guy who defended Paterno and PSU along with Jamies Winston because Ron’s daughter went to Florida State.
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Cook is a B1G guy…
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The problem is the program not the media. They create zero excitement and it is all bc of Narduzzi and his recruiting of Gannon esque players.
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You guys think Narduzzi isn’t liked here? Check out what Urban Meyers ex-players are saying (saw this in Twitter)
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Cook always sounds like he is in la la land. He doesn’t know what side to be on, waiting until everyone else weighs in. Poni thinks Meyer will get a suspension but could return before the season ends. Cook did point out that Title IX REQUIRES a university employee to report these types of incidents. Also, apparently, Meyer’s wife had been texting with the assist coach’s wife about this so she knew all about it. She is a university employee so she could get fired as well.
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The reason I mentioned the completely closed practices sprinkled in the camp schedule – and earlier I have written about the last week of August being completely closed for opening game preparations… along with completely closed practices during the season… is that these camp practices have nothing to do with game planning, trick plays, expanded playbooks for a particular opponent, etc… those issues are already addressed by the formal closed practices a HC already has on the schedule.
In other words letting the media have access to the fall camp practices (those not designated closed in advance) has absolutely no bearing on wins and losses.
If ever Narduzzi needs to change his stance on this and open the bulk of the actual practices to get the media and fans more engaged in the team and players it is this fall camp.
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BTW I’m having fusion surgery for two discs in the lower back in September. The surgeon wanted to do it the first week of Sept but I told him it would have to be later – at least after the Pitt-PSU game.
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Praying it goes well Reed….
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Reed,
Thank you for the POV and all you continue to do for this blog!
Sincerely,
Jim (Pittman4ever)
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This says it all:
?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1025044686015217665&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpittsburgh.forums.rivals.com%2Fthreads%2Fi-know-he-sucks-but.134562%2F
A walk-on Center who was about average in play and rated the 33rd best at his position is the highest rated returning Pitt player on this website.
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yet some are predicting 10 wins
the same people who believe in fairies and unicorns
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Wow and just wow, it really was a bad season.
Reed, hope your fusion goes as well as mine did. It is certainly no fun, but hopefully worth it.
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Here is an interesting article about ACC coaches speaking anonymously about the other coaches:
https://athlonsports.com/college-football/acc-coaches-talk-anonymously-about-conference-foes-2018?amp
Pittsburgh
“Pat (Narduzzi) is one of my favorite guys in the business. A tough guy, a fair guy, a fun guy. That team plays exactly to his personality and I mean that in a good way.”
“They really started playing well on defense near the end of the season, and you really saw what they could do in the Miami game. They’re going to be very good on defense this year. That front seven is filthy. They look a lot like those Michigan State defenses he had that were the foundation of that program becoming elite.”
“Hindsight is 20/20, but I think if you ask Pat, he’ll tell you he should’ve played QB Kenny Pickett a lot sooner. He played really well the last two games of the season against Virginia Tech and Miami, and in difficult spots. You watch the tape of those two games, and he’s a difference maker. When you’re completing 60 percent in your first two starts, that’s a big deal.”
“They’re just average on the offensive line, and that was part of the problem early on last year. They have to get better. They’re not nearly as physical as they were in Pat’s first year, and they don’t have the players at tailback like they did.”
“As good as Pickett can be, they have to find some pieces around him both in the run game and on the outside. Darrin Hall is a serviceable guy at tailback, but he’s not the elite that they’ve had their in the past. They don’t have that pile pusher, that guy that can get those third and short gains to move the sticks. That puts a lot of pressure on a young quarterback to be perfect.”
I’ll disagree with some of this – i don’t believe our ‘front seven is going to be filthy’ but they’ll be OK – a bit above P5 average IMO. But they are spot on about Hall and the OL if even I’m a bit more optimistic about the OL than I am.
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I’ll point out that the last Pitt HC who was also a former Big10 assistant coach that went on to accept a Big10 HC position is doing quite well as a HC…I seem to recall very few positive comments on this blog about that coach as well!
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Narduzzi doesn’t make a pimple on Paul Chryst’s ass and Chryst is just average. He can recruit and is humble but he was given keys to a brand new car with a full tank.
Narduzzi wiuldnt be a DB coach at OSU.
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Well Reed, you know we all wish you the best. Hope this allows you to come up for the psu game. BigB is a Big Boy. He can carry you to the stadium if needed.
I haven’t seen anyone predict a 10 win season Tx. Maybe you should get out of that hot Texas sun you guys have been experiencing?
Morrissey was a preferred walk-on who now has a scholarship. You can look at that in many ways, Ill take the high road. Maybe Narduzzi knew what he was doing when he offered him?
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LOL Ike. Yep that is it. A genius this guy is. 4-7. Thank Me Later.
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This sounds more and more like The Narduzzi POV. We Are Keeping Our Eyes on Pat!
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I guess I’m with Ike let the games begin and let’s see if Pitt rises or falls this coming season. Stars and gradings are over my grade level and thus trying to comment on such items.—@Pittman4ever, yes the N in jrn does represent the beginning initial of my last name. And no it is not Narduzzi and unless Narduzzi is a Hungarian derivative I don’t believe we are even 15th cousins once removed. As far as me being negative to the POVers who IMO know not of what they speak(or post) I guess I’m guilty as charged.
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No worries jrnpitt! Thx for your comment!
P.S. Hungarian = Good Food
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Really? We are really worried about how or why an equipment manager retired. That is hysterical. When he and Narduzzi come out and speak about it I will have an opinion.
I know I know, the rumor is he didn’t clean up after a party at Narduzzi’s house. Kordel Stewart was with his boyfirend in Schenley Park the same night and Walt Harris and Mike Gotfried attended the party with their cheerleader girlfriends.
If the equipment manager is truly “the heart and soul of Pitt football”, that explains the lack of success the program has had. No offense to his position but he is support staff. I didn’t like that the hot secretary that flirted left work, but life goes on and the company didn’t fold.
There are two sides to every story and the truth is usually somewhere in the middle. Ever think maybe he wasn’t good at his job. They just kept him around because of his seniority and the players liked him. I mean, not like the Pitt athetic department has been a model for success.
🙂
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That wasn’t the whole story, but have it your way.
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Teflon Pat. Is it really because he is from Youngstown?
Recruiting D
Coaching D
Hiring C
Retention D
Attitude F
Won with Paul’s players.
His own recruiting is atrocious.
From an hour and a half from the burg and all is fine.
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As an example today Pap76 makes a post about the latest recruit “yet to be announced” about him being an OLman having no P5 offers and Upitt promptly comments that Narduzzi is a fraud that is all talk. Now I guess we don’t even have to wait for the name to be announced before some POVers want to verse their opinion on the subject matter.
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““Pat (Narduzzi) is one of my favorite guys in the business. A tough guy, a fair guy, a fun guy.”
He does sound awful.
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Coaches protecting coaches. Reed alludes to this all the time. How many idiot caoches complimented that moron Stallings???
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You do understand nobody attached their name to this, right?
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Yep
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NRS…read the whole article about the other HCs and their teams…not one negative comment about any of the HCs from other HCs.
They just never do that in public.
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Good list Upitt. My grades…
Recruiting C+, D this year so far.
Coaching C, pretty much a .500 record.
Hiring D – why the cheap hires if their really is a big budget?
Retention – does this mean he can’t remamber stuff?
Attitude A – everyone says the guy is enthusiastic, positive and full of energy. He just doesn’t like the press.
Won with Paul’s players that Paul could not win with. Hmmm.
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these are grades after 3 years
in most circles, this GPA would get a coach fired
i dont see much grade improvement this year
so is it all or nothing come year 5?
Appears that way
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Your A in attitude is off by a couple I think. Maybe what the fans see is an A or B but why do you think is recruiting has gone downhill and we can’t get the better local kids?
I’d ask the local HS coaches about his attitude.
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The yellow seats at Heinz Field?
The constant negative Pittsburgh press ragging on the Panthers?
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Reed..hope you get the out-come ole Tiger Woods received on his 4th round of surgery..starting to get back into his groove and we haven’t even heard from his harem !
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It was Chryst 3rd year and as you all like to point out for Pat players don’t make an impact till year 3-4.
Retention means he can’t keep good staff but holds onto non performers.
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The rumpus here is that former players have come out of the woodwork to complain about the Ox retirement. Yes retirement, the best day of my life I tell ya. It would be great to keep former players on the PITT side but this isn’t a big story. It’s hyperbole with Narduzzi dislikers. I feel like once again PITT is off to an 0-7 start to the 2018 season. We get it, I like to give the benefit of the doubt and often misunderstood and some of you just don’t plain like the guy. Case closed.
Mark (Upitt) looks like in the gold outing pics you have a big nose? 🙂 I use to have big ears when I was younger but my head grew around them and are now equally per-portioned. 🙂 ike
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You inply I’m lying about what? How 3.5m is being wasted on a non performer no one likes?
I will check back when we are 4-7 and all the we will win 7,8,9 games crowd can say fire pat. Remember I would if saved us 2 years. Now Heather appears to hire real
Coaches his time is numbered. Attendence will be terrible as PSU folks throw away the remaining tickets and yellow seats abound.
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Urban Meyer makes 7.3M
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If Pitt is 4-7 I will be agreeing with you.
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If you are talking to me Mark. No implication like that. Where does that come from? I’m saying you don’t like the guy plain and simple. Now it is interesting you mentioned the word lying after i kidded you about having a big nose Pinocchio. I don’t even think you have a big nose if was a joke about your constant references to Narduzzi’s gorilla arms.
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Oh sorry I’m mentally slow while in mexico. Guys I hope we win 12 games but I just don’t see the talent. Defense will be better but no offense. We also have one or the other never both. If we had a defense thw year with Conner and Boyd and Peterman we could of won 11 games.
Sick of being bad in football. I remember going to AM and beating them and that was awesome. We pay enough money to demand a winner and not treated like scum verse supporting alumni by Narduzzi.
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Yes. I have always been honest for my dislike of him. I don’t like cocky people especially the ones that have done nothing worthy to be cocky about.
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May I suggest since the vast majority of you hate PItt, hate Narduzzi, hate Pitt football… hell… you probably hate your hound dog too… you make that 60 minute drive south to beautiful Morgantown WV to watch some real college football. Y’all are welcome!
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My Dad and Mom lived in Beckley for 4 years. I’m impressed with your grammar and spelling honestly. WVU should do well with Grier this season
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I actually love Pitt and my bird dog.
But I do dislike the Nard Dog and the state of the football program
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Pitt AD has to realize we get ND on an ACC predetermined schedule, we get an Atlantic crossover on an ACC predetermined , so why the hell can’t they schedule OOC games accordingly to give us a fighting chance at least until somebody builds a competitive program. As Wanny has said “I miss the pro pre season games”. I think our previous Adm. people just like to take the Nitter ticket bucks win lose or draw. My only hope on scheduling is Heather, I think she gets it. Hope Narduzzie does it but my confidence is gone.H2P
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FRANKCAN Cup is in my possession and is heading to the engraver to add the ” Liptaks ans Emsurak’s” Names that will live in infamy.
The story behind the pic of BigB and Lastrow as I tell it….Last Saturday on my run to Pa I decided to drive down to River Forest Manor to see Fran/Lastrow. Fran wanted to know what was in a Dark n Stormy. He had some of the supplies, short on ginger beer but earlier in the day I did a Laytroge loop to see brother Iek who just happened to leave me with a Dark and Stormy Do-IT-Yo-self travel kit. After 1 or 2 D n S’sFran got the hang of it and developed a taste for the beverage..a good D n S doesn’t last long in the small copper mug..so what does Fran do next – that’s right- he breaks out the FRANkCAN CUP and makes a double or triple and sits down to drink. As he lifted the CUP to his lips I shouted, “stop Lastrow, I got to go to my truck and fetch something.” To Fran’s surprise I entered with my Trophy CUP which was stowed conveniently in my truck. You never know when a Trophy drinking party might break-out! Don’t leave home without it.
(In looking at the pic one thing that I notice something is out of order…we forgot to put on out white gloves.)
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I was wondering about the picture. You two looked like you were having a ball.
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Laytrobe
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ike.
This is a BIG deal. Ox did not “retire”. He’s a 52-year old(ish) man who had worked somewhere long enough to grab a pension and go. He didn’t want to leave.
You can claim hyperbole all you want but I can assure you.. if you knew what happened, you’d be disgusted.
This is not about a few disgruntled ex-players. This is about virtually ALL ex-players from Ox’s tenure. In modern parlance, “He got did wrong.” and there’s absolutely no justifying what happened.
I will say this.. you blamed my criticism of Narduzzi on me “not liking him” even though that wasn’t the case. However, I can now say, “You’re right, ike! I don’t like him.”
Note: I am extremely confident that I have an accurate account of the situation. I have spoken to THREE different sources that to my knowledge don’t communicate with each other and all three told me the same story.
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Jay, I am pretty sure I know the story and have it right as well and Narduzzi should be ashamed of himself. No one told Ox to retire though and you should know that. Look, I don’t like what Narduzzi did and I do not condone his actions but I will not engage any further with this story. It sucks but I do not feel it warrants all this attention. ike
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For what it’s worth I’d fire my mother if I didn’t like the job she was doing. My hunch is that Upitt would do the same also. So right now the buck stops at Narduzzi and he will pay the price in the long run for his decisions. It’s that way in business and it should be that way in big time sports. Sounds a little cruel doesn’t it? Ask Jack Welch when he ran GE how long he put up with a “non performwer”.
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Less than one year.
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Fran, just looked at yours and BigB’s picture above again and notice the walker in the background and it reminded me of your wife’s surgery. Hope your she is recovering well. Did Bernie give her a free therapy session while he visited? Anyway, this one is for your wife. Some of you may want to avoid this one it’s a bit cheesy. btw, this Hangout festival is on my bucket list. ike
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Seems like a lot of PSU trolls in this site. Here’s hoping Narduzzi and Pitt have a great year .I have watched the replay of the. Miami game four times.Pitt is 4 -0 in my house
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OT: RUMOR has it the latest recruit is Jared Wayne WR out of Canada. His offer sheet includes Old Dominion, Bowling Green and South Florida. Have at it POVers.
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The former schools offered because they saw the kid at Pitt’s camp. The latter because Wayne is now in Florida to play his senior year. His offer list will swell once the football season begins.
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Bernie, you sure know how to spin a yarn Big fellow.
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jrn I think he’s actually out of Clearwater Florida and a 3*, He sucks, Narduzzi sucks, PITT sucks, everyone sucks, the whole world sucks! Did I sum up the reaction to this kid’s verbal correctly? That’s if this is the new verbal?
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Tell them Ike that’s what some of the people on this site want to hear. By the way South Florida was 10 -2 last year..
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Shawn Watson not pleased with this post…..
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Some of you crack me up…for years you complained about the fact the Pitt was playing MAC teams (loosing some as well) and why weren’t we playing better teams…well this year’s schedule has 5 teams ranked in the pre-season top 25, which is probably why UPitt is predicting 4-7. Toughest college schedule, unproven O-line, still a young team, makes 6-6 a challenge, even though I think they’ll go 7-5. Also 6 weeks ago, the complaint was no recruits, now we have what, 13 and we complain about the lack of 4 stars…should be a dramatic year!
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HCPC landed DJ due to the PSU scandal. Bookser is the next highest rated OL at 5.8 and kudos to him. . Officer at 5.6 and the rest at 5.4. Not exactly killing it was it. And that was his so called strength. Pickett gives this team a chance to win 8 games if D is as good as I think it will be and Ol is OK. AJ Woods runs a 4.38 and is a hitter. Great grades, no problem with that kid. OT 6-7 over 300, nice feet and runs a 40 around 5.0 according to Harry P. Has 80 inch wing span. Not a bad reach here. Yes it is a reach but he has nice numbers. See Twyman today? Lost 40 pounds of fat and added 20 pounds of muscle. Kids a beast. If P Ford can’t crack the top 4, nice problem to have. Pitt is putting some big time physical specimens on the field this year and next. Narduzzi is building the program like him or not.
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He has this and next year to prove it. Poor Recruiting, player development and not being able to punch through an 8 win ceiling may doom him. Heck he may become one of the only Pitt coaches to never win a bowl game. But despite his flaws, he’s still a more decent person than Meyer at tOSU.
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Chet stop with the positive stuff some don’t want to read it . Talk about deep hatred . Stats from the the. Pitt Miami game . Miami had 45 yards rushing on 23 carries. How did that happen?
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Ok Fred I will play along, we had a really good game against Miami. Now, what about the rest of the season, how did we end up with 5 wins total? Even if your counting the Miami game as 4 wins, the rest of the country does not.
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You didn’t answer my question.
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Gee, we really kicked that 2-8 NC’s ass didn’t we? Win that and we’re in a bowl game. No? How about losing to SYR or going into overtime against YSU?
We were 5-7 in his 3rd year. That says a lot right there.
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Hard to believe you’re a Pitt fan.
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Pitt fans should call out the SOP crap
If Pitt wants to win 10 games, it must schedule better, recruit better, develop players better, and play better
I dont think we have the coach that can consistently reach 10 win seasons for long stretches
And if my opinion becomes reality (and its close to fruition), you cant put up with a coach who is an arse
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Henderson fumbles at the 1 versus Carolina and Narduzzi sucks because of it.
Blewitt blows a 26-yard FG for the win versus Duke in 2014 and the loss doesn’t fall on Chryst.
Dave beat Carolina and never lost to YSU, but four kids get into trouble early in 2010 and he is fired (not counting Sheard since I believe in defending one’s self) and the program still hasn’t recovered.
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What do you mean the loss doesn’t fall on Chryst – of course it did, all losses fall on the HC. That is what he’s there for to get credit for wins and take blame for losses.
Otherwise we’d be drilling down to find blame for the kid off the bench who missed a special teams tackle.
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If Watson has a problem with this site, I suggest he go out and recruit somebody. Maybe a 4 star for a change.
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Clmon Ike. You can’t tell me that in his 4th full recruiting class you were expecting recruits like he’s getting now…or were you?
His recruiting went downhill after starting off with two 8 win seasons…every other HC gets better recruits when that happens but with PN it is the opposite. He’s gone from four 4* kids to three to one to zero. On top of that not one recruit who committed to him as played anywhere near stardom.
Doesn’t that concern you at all?
Tell me that doesn’t say something about how he and Pitt are now being viewed by local and other recruits and their parents.
Forget about the off-field stuff…this alone is alarming and coupled with a seven loss season you have to really wonder.
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Couple things Reed.
I do forget about the off the field stuff. That doesn’t carry “MUCH” weight with me anymore. psu has taught me how to be a real football fan. << That’s not true in their case but an equipment mgr getting yelled at? Stupid and terrible move by Pat but?
This recruiting season is far from over and we still don’t have a clue how good or bad these kids are. You keep on wanting to jump the gun and evaluate recruiting classes and then the next moment tell us it can’t be done. You have to wait for 2 or 3 years. Well, that year has arrived. I believe I have made my position very clear about that. PITT is a 3* recruiting football program and it takes the fourth year to see the crux of the efforts.
PITT is not going to get a 4* from out of the area until the kid is leftover at the end of the recruiting season. The 3* players will take a few years to develop. If 4* player’s are the answer why are they fleeing the PITT ship. They are not locks because of their attitudes and laziness. Narduzzi has gotten his share. They all mostly sucked and left the team or have been hurt. but 2* Weaver has been good. Get off this recruiting crucifixion binge, lets see how the team plays this year. ike
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That offer from the hoopie fan sounds more enticing each day.
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Anonymous, if you think the offer to be a WVU fan is enticing, take him up on it.
None will miss you…no one even knows who you are
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You have my blessing’s Mr Anonymous. It’s not east cutting it to be a PITT football fan. Maybe you should roll on down there. Hell, you even get extra credit for having proper grammar when you’re from there.
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Hesus Mr Stubby, you beat me to it by mere seconds.
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During Narduzzi’s first year, a couple guys I know in Pgh sports media told me it was only going to be a matter of time before HCPN would get the boot because of how he treats people. Two in particular said he could get away with it if he won, but only as long as he did. And these guys are well-established.
I was hoping they were wrong, but its really starting to appear that they knew what they were talking about. Jerry DiPaolo strikes me a real gentleman and a professional – a guy just trying to do his job (and he isn’t one of the guys I know, btw). For him to write what he did yesterday about Narduzzi speaks volumes.
You can be a jerk to a certain extent and keep your job for a while if you win. You can run a mediocre program and keep your job for a while if you are a great guy who people admire. But….
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Canadian WR new commit… eh !
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I agree with JoeL. PN needs a life lesson or two.
Jared Wayne is indeed PITT’s new commitment. 6’3″ WR who is from Canada, sorry for the wrong correction jrn, he’s going to play high school football in Fla this coming season, a dreaded 3*
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but we all know a Florida 3 star is really a 4 star even if he is Canadien
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I guess I shouldnt get my hopes up waiting for a 4 star
Pitt probably finishes ranked in the 50’s behind the likes of GT, Duke and Virginia
That is inexcusable come year 4
Those are Chryst like figures
I want my Wanny…I’ll put up with his coaching if only for a 5 star
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PITT is ranked #30 right now Tx, “calm down, have some dip”. << George Carlin…
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But the dip here in Texas has got hot sauce. 🙂
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First P5 offer. Only had abother ofer and that was from Old Dominion. If a real D1 coach from a real program signed this kid he woukd be fired before his coffee got cold.
The joke continues.
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When p5 coaches are recruiting players that ZERO other p5 coaches want its a MAJOR red flag.
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Now that he’ll play his senior season in Clearwater, Florida, he’ll start receiving more P5 offers as the games progress.
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You guys eat that for breakfast Tx, here’s some highlights but I don’t think the kid catches a pass??
https://www.hudl.com/video/2/80682/5a0d1096a68124088cf1334a
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Ike you are smarter than this regarding talent. Look at the kids on the field in the highlight tape. There is zero talent on the field. Kid will never see the field and is slow against slow no talent canadians. Kid won’t survive in Florida against kids with talent who play the game vs hockey.
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Mark c’mon brother. I didn’t say one word about this kids talent or otherwise. I provided his highlight tape from Hudl. You took to busting my balls today my friend. You have to make it to the psu game day tailgate. You and I will straighten out Corso.
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Haha….. I am a little hard on you today. You deserve it I’m sure. Not sure what Corso means but I know what Cigar and Whiskey means.
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stupid Corso will put on a JoePa face and pick Penn State
ike – you should hand Corso some poopy pants. He should wear those for picking the Nitters
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I don’t understand why the positive POVers can’t accept the negatives reason for being optimistic. I’m hopeful the team will have a tenacious MSU like defense as it had when PN was its AD and the offense led by Pickett will be OK. That could mean 7 or more wins. But am I confident about that? Of course not – that would be crazy.
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Meant “negatives’ reasons for being pessimistic”. My bad.
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Reed, hope your surgery goes well, and you come back in tiptop shape! While you’re in the hospital, look for a few shrinks with some time on their hands who can pro bono treat some of these confused and misunderstood POVers…
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^^ Like himself 🙂
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Lee Corso on ESPN hope this is an a psu game-day event. Back off boogaloo you been riding my ash all day long Here’s two for you friend. Party hard and party safe Mark.
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Jay, I know the Ox story also from a PG writer. It puts Duzz in a very “assholish” Light to quote Chas at the Blather.
I don’t expect my HC to be a great guy. Just expect him to win. I played for Jim Gillooly at Baldwin who was a SOB to everyone. He was a hell of a coach and Baldwin has not had 2 winning seasons since he left 36 years ago.
I approach this season optimistically! Can we at least wait and see how it goes before we crucify Duzz. There will be plenty of time left for that if the Albany game goes into OT and Pitt is blown out by State and Tech!
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Our newest commit is unrated & unranked.
He is just transitioning to WR after playing QB earlier in HS.
His name is Jared Wayne, he is 6’2” and after watching tape on the kid, reminds me of a young Antonio Bryant.
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I also saw some T.Boyd in his film – that may not impress some on this board.
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Anyone remember Moe Becker? Coaches don’t have to be nice guys although he was one. Not just not to the media.
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Nqrduzzi could recruit 4 star player but he wants to irritate those on this site. What team is ranked number 30 in the country in 2019 recruiting . That’s better than Wisconsin , Friday , Iowa ,qnd WVU.
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Wisconsin was 13-1 last year.
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look at the avg stars (Rivals):
Whisky = 3.25
Iowa = 3.00
WVCC = 2.92
Pitt = 2.82
Narduzzi is doing a good job at building a case for his firing
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You’re in for a long couple of years. he’s not going anywhere.How sad for you.
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Coach is now highly compensated. He has $3.5 Million reasons to begin earning his pay. He’s not earning it with 5 win seasons and 2 star recruiting. I’m sad that he’ll have a chance to prove me right because I want the program to succeed. Pitt cannot afford another season without going to a bowl, another season of mediocrity, another year of 25k yellow seats. Narduzzi is not the coach to take Pitt to the next level. We’ve all been in for long years since Jackie. I want the pain to end.
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Narduzzi is colluding with mediocrity. He will be found guilty of conspiracy to destroy the football program. 2 star recruiting is an attack on Pitt.
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Personally, I think a full season of Kenny Pickett will improve recruiting.
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wanny’s ceiling was 10 wins. i dont think he would have been the coach to give Pitt a magical and special 12 win season. he was a 2 steps forward and 1 step back sort of coach. i agreed that it was time for him to move on but not due to player troubles but due to results versus expectations. and i very much disagreed as do many others with the way his ‘resignation’ went down.
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The QB spot would always be Dave’s weakness, but he had a solid team coming back in 2011. Not to mention the schedules in 2011 and ’12 were pretty easy but the coaching turnover and recruiting being decimated was too much to overcome. How Saint Paul went 6-6 in 2012 against the easiest schedule in Pitt’s history is still mind blowing.
Wanny was a face for a program that definitely needed one. The continuity he brought would have paid off in the long run had he stayed as coach for another four or five years. He also had a nice staff, inroads to New Jersey. Having his recruiting budget killed Florida recruiting, but we can thank Nordy and Smiley for that one.
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Plus, Wanny would have cleaned up on recruiting when Pedo was sanctioned. What could have been…
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Plus Dave would have taken some kids who would have transferred. Deion Barnes comes to mind first.
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Results……surely you jest Tex. Wanny won 27 games in 3 years at Pitt. Hadn’t been done at Pitt in like over 30 years..going back to Jackie S.
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Wanny was like Dixon….a lot of wins but couldn’t win the one.
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Pitt hasn’t won a big one since 1976 and never will unless it goes rogue, which it won’t. That is why continuity should be stressed (see Iowa, Wisconsin).
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Well he did win the one…..the one that got us to double digit wins at 10….first time since the 11 of Sherrill in 1981. Only Urban’s fake heart attack took the notoriety from that, that day.
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Wannstedt was building a very solid top 25 program. His firing was the biggest shame job ever. He did everything thay we all complain about recruit,build support with alumni, owned wpial, and was loyal with a love for Pitt like no other.
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Do you realize there may be three 2* players starting on D at the start of this season?
DE Weaver
CB Jackson
S Briggs
Two of the three may end up on the 1st team All-ACC. The key word is “may” – both Weaver and Jackson have shown the potential to be great.
Reed – I’m sorry to hear about your back. All kidding aside, I hope your doctor is a 5* and performs an exceptional procedure.
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Reed, hope your dury goes well… will be praying for you.
Bernie, good story telling…that’s exactly how it went down.
Iek, my lovely bride is progressing nicely…thanks for asking. She will be using the walker for a few more weeks.
Duzz will be on the FAN 93.7 tomorrow morning at 6:30.
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Surgery…
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Been a little jammed up at work and missed a few things, but want to make a comment.
The last two commits were discovered at Pitt’s June Camp. The problem with the June camp is that the majority of the invites don’t have many P5 offers and as such, you have someone competing against inferior competition and looking good. They probably look like 4 stars.
Now, if you tell me that the wr was timed at a 4.4 forty at the camp, then I pause. And then i hope alot.
Same with the big OL. He was probably the biggest OL at the June camp going against smaller DL’s and dominating. If he runs a 4.8 and can bench press two Ike’s that would be great.
Fill up the june camps with 4 stars and let the low stars earn it against alleged superior competition. Let’s not let a 2 or 3 star dominate against no stars to earn the offer. Just a thought. I hope the two new dudes are better than the folks they went up against in June.
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Tex – you cherry picked the recruiting. We are going to end up agreeing when you read the rest.
Wisconsin played Utah St., FL Atl, BYU, Northwestern, Nebraska, Purdue, Illinois, Maryland, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Mich.
Tell me again about scheduling? Who would you worry about on that schedule? Most think Wisconsin is great, but doesn’t look at the cake schedule! It was another scheduling scam….again. Barry gets it! Now, their recruiting is getting better with regard to stars. Who would have figured that out. Wisconsin recruiting numbers below on the left, Pitt in the middle and WV high school on the right.
2019 3.25 stars 2.82 2.92
2018 3.05 stars 3.05 3.04
2017 3.11 stars 3.04 2.74
2016 3.08 stars 3.08 2.64
2015 2.95 stars 2.80 3.05
Yet, we complain about our 3.0 stars. I am telling you, it is the schedule!! Fix it.
Or, it is the coach, but many think that Chryst was an average coach. How does Chryst go 11-1 with the same type of recruits? Well, he does get better linemen which covers for less talented players.
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Whisky also plays in a much weaker division than Pitt. Pitt goes up against Va Tech and Miami. Those schools haul in 3.2 – 3.4 avg stars. Pitt needs to do a far better job in recruiting or it wont compete in the Coastal.
The OOC should produce 3 wins if scheduled correctly. A good coach should be able to win 6 games each year in the Division. Thats 9 wins and in special years 10-11. That should be doable.
I just dont see Narduzzi as a good coach and I think Chryst was a better coach than many of us thought. Plus PC surrounds himself with good assistants. Now Paulie is recruiting much better at Whisky. No reason why they can consistently win 10 games each year.
Pitt needs a new coach, new assistants, softer OOC and better recruiting to do that.
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Yea Paulie’s a great recruiter. He has the gift of gab. lol Wisconsin doesn’t really recruit that great considering their success over the last 25 years. They are currently below Pitt in recruiting. And as Huff posted above, Wisky and Pitt are almost equals in recruiting numbers since 2015.
Which doesn’t say for much for the Badgers. Since 2014 they are 45 wins and 10 losses.
Pitt is 27 wins and 24 losses. Throw in the fact they in that time period went to the Orange Bowl,
the Cotton Bowl, and the Outback Bowl and 3 Rose Bowls a couple years bowl before that and their
recruiting isn’t very good, for a team with those numbers and Major Bowl appearances.
Pitt which has equal recruiting results to them has been in a litany of no-name bowls in the same time
period. Whereas Wisconsin played in 3 straight Rose Bowls, Pitt played in three straight BBVA Cumquat Bowls, along with a Pizza Bowl in charming Detroit, the 4th rate Armed Forces Bowl, a home game for Navy and the choke job at Yankee stadium to a 6-6 Bigjoke team.
I’d say Wisconsin’s recruiting is pathetic considering their results, rankings and Bowl appearances.
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How they end up 10-3 or 11-2 or 12-1 is a question only the BigJoke knows. But you do have to have somewhat worthy looking teams with glossy records to fill all their high profile bowl games. Don’t you.
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with all that success, their recruiting should be better but this year it aint bad…much better than Pitt in regards to quality
whisky is hindered by its geography. not many good football players come out of whisky or illinois
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I’ll take Pickett over that quarterback for Wisconsin. I’m glad he decommitted from Pitt .He deserves to live in Wisconsin during the winter.
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I’m with you Fred. I’ll bet if you asked Mark Richt which QB he would choose this year, Kenny Pickett or their returning starter, his answer might surprise you.
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If the equipment guy was responsible for Pitt’s cleat selection for away games. He should have been fired a long long time ago.
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Narduzzi has a boss at Pitt doesn’t he? I’m sure Lyke and he had a meeting about the Ox firing. Considering that the firing today has a greater impact on Lyke than Narduzzi since she’s really out there trying to cultivate good will among Pitt fans and alumni. Like I previously posted Narduzzi will live or die on his decisions recruiting, personal, development and winnings. But I’m not about to micromanage this program from the outside before the new employees(coaches and recruits) have even had a chance to perform as of yet.
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Can anyone give specifics hat led to Ox firing. The only thing I heard implied is Narduzzi asked Ox to clean up a mess after a party at his house. Is that correct or more to it?
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That’s about 5% of the story.
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Ziese came to Pitt as a 6-3 200 pound WR. Now 6-3 240 pound LBer. Folston arrived 6-4 210. Now 6-4 255. Weaver 6-5 230 now 6-5 260. Pickett 6-3 195 low 3 star recruit now 6-3 230 with immense promise. All programs need time to allow the recruits as pups to mature, develop, learn technique. gain game day experience ect.. Pitt now has the players who are now physically able to play at a high level. That is what it takes to have a good to very good program at every School. Pitt has 18 seniors who want to win and are mature men now. .That is big for any program. Narduzzi has mature seasoned coaches who have been around the block here. They know what it takes to develop recruits and programs. Been a while since Pitt had a head coach recruit 4 classes in the program.
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http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/Pitt/2018/08/02/jared-wayne-commits-pitt-football-pittsburgh-recruiting-2019/stories/201808020210
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#Lockthegates
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Just finished listening to Chris Peake’s podcast. I really like Chris and his writing but I think Reed’s podcast’s are a little better.
Well today’s the day, time for some PITT football. Anyone listen to Narduzzle’s BS on the Fan 6:30 this morning? too early for me.
Hopefully the conversation switches back over to the now and we can leave last year and the 5 win season in the rear view mirror. PITT is back to again… being 0-0 so far this season. I think it’s time we judge this year’s PITT football team on what they do moving forward. ike
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Daniel Carter the running from Florida committed
to Oregon. So much for those crystal balls to Pitt.
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I remember everyone saying that must mean he is coming to Pitt. We forget our coach is a guy no one likes.
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No he didn’t.
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Mostly concerned with wins and losses. We really did not need UCF this year or next year. One tough OOC game per year is plenty. Three is crazy, especially with two on the road. Future ooc continues to be a big problem when combined with the recruiting.
VA Tech, Miami with ND, Clemson and FL ST thrown in every so often should be enough, with a WV.
If we only had ND and Wake on the schedule this year, it would be plenty difficult.
When you add PSU, UCF, and ND you are bound to get more injuries as well.
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Justin Morgan is no longer with the team per Narduzzi. He’s the only one who left the program.
The last O-line coach, Peterson, was a freaking joke.
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Do you have high hopes for the current OL coach? The one who got demoted and stripped of his OL title at his previous job.
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I didn’t hire Borboley, but Peterson had to go.
Fresh blood was needed even though I hate that he was a hire because he is buddies with Watson.
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Morgan is a shame indeed but when a kid weighs in at over 330 lbs in high school, there may be a motivational problem??
Good ole Latrobe back in the spotlight tonight for the Steelers night practice down at the high school stadium.
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Another swing and a miss, 6’6″ 355.
Running backs used to come to Pitt because they knew they would be running behind a solid line.
Those days appear to be over.
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You.mean like Salahudden?
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We shall see
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Daniel carter did not commit anywhere. It appears to be fake news, but let’s say TBD for now.
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I was passing along what i read elsewhere. Hopefully it is fake news and he ends up at Pitt.
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So far Rivals has Carter still “undecided” and he’s is Pitt’s #1 target this class. Had him up to Pitt for an early official visit and the recruiting staff took multiple trips to his home and pushed hard for him.
This is a big loss for us if indeed he goes elsewhere..
What Wisconsin does is year after year recruit the OL as its #1 priority and the teach them how to run block better than anyone else in the country. Then they recruit stud RBs who gain tons of yards per year behind their stud OL. Here are their leading rushers:
’17 – 1,977 & 13 TDs
’16 – 1,375 & 15 TDs
’15 – 875 & 7 TDs
’14 – 2,587 & 29 TDs
’13 – 1,609 & 12 TDs
I find it hilarious that Pitt fans who cannot give Chryst any credit for his great W/L record at Wisconsin find evey excuse why PN lost 7 games last season. Again, the HC plays who is in front of him each week. Their job is to win as many as possible.
Chryst is 34-7 with three bowl wins including the Orange and Cotton bowls. Narduzzi is 21 and 17 with losses in two minor bowls and no bowl the third year.
Sorry but every college football fan in American is going to look at that and think those Pitt fans are crazy.
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I find it funny how Chryst had a knack for perplexing losses when coaching at Pitt. Then his staff put on a display of gross incompetence in the final five minutes in the bowl game versus Houston.
But, hey, the interim coach that day is a western PA-er, so all is good.
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Wisconsin plays no P5 teams for their ooc games in 2017, 2018 and 2019. Plus they play Illinois, Indiana, Maryland and Minnesota.
What will you all say when Pitt beats the pedos and the pedos beat wisky – record-wise, Pitt is 8-5, the pedos 10-3 and wisky is 10-3?
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People like to compare PITT with Wisconsin as if apples to apples but it’s not even close. The Badges AD has been very keen on keeping the football program on a steady plane and Wisky hasn’t had the misfortune to have had an AD bound and determined to destroy the football program. It’s another reason I give Narduzzi more rope than others are willing to give.
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Exactly. Wisconsin has had a system in place since 1990 and decided to let Alvarez build a program and keep the system in place after his retirement.
Pitt could have had that with Gottfried, but decided on something else much more damaging. Heck, Alvarez was a candidate for the Pitt job in 1989 but never got a sniff by the then-Pitt bozos in charge.
Wannstedt could have set Pitt up long term, but again, Pitt thought otherwise and round and round mediocrity continues to reign.
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^^ An obvious determined effort to destroy the football program due to jealousy and narcissism.
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Top 30 CFB Ass’t Coach hires for 2018. No Pitt listed.
https://athlonsports.com/college-football/college-footballs-top-30-coordinator-hires-2018?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=pick6nl20180713&spMailingID=19894260&spUserID=MzgwODU4NzA0NjI2S0&spJobID=1300703440&spReportId=MTMwMDcwMzQ0MAS2
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Wonder which 5 names are on the paper in Heathers pocket. Who would have thunk the Duzz will probably be gone before Franklin? We do live in strange times.
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Since it is Pitt, probably five coordinators and none of whom would have any balls as the head coach on Saturdays.
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Turns out Justin Morgan was dismissed.
Either a case of Narduzzi not putting up with any nonsense, which many of you want in a Pitt head coach, or Morgan didn’t live up to the Mission Statement and the university said he had to go.
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The Pitt football program will be comprised of scholar athletes who maintain grades, attend class, graduate and whose character is stellar. Although success on the field is important, Winning is not everything. It’s more important that these players receive a good education and experience what competitive sports can provide from teamwork, leadership, physical health and achievement.
We are a military school.
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Or Morgan was literally asked to clean out his locker because it was filled with Snicker’s Bar wrappers and he thought he was being asked to leave the team by his terribly hot tempered coach, who nobody lykes. And I mean nobody…
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Or Justin Morgan wasn’t good enough to play at that level and was suggested to move down to lesser competition.
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Recruiting reality… Rivals has Pitt listed at #30– largely based on the NUMBER of recruits. However… if you look at their rankings based on AVERAGE RATING of the recruits, Pitt drops to #52– behind such powerhouses as: Vanderbilt, Houston, Maryland, BC, Indiana, Purdue, Iowa St….
Only 30-40 players play any MEANINGFUL snaps for a team. Teams getting 20 2 star and 3 star players annually won’t consistently beat teams getting 6 4 star and 10 3 star players, despite getting 4 more players. You win by adding QUALITY players, not QUANTITY of players.
But then again, I’m just a downer.
** Note for those of you who feel the need to label me (not you, ike. We’re good.) as negative. My frustration hasn’t stopped me from buying 4 season tickets every one of the last 17 years (and attending virtually every one of them.) Blindly ignoring reality doesn’t make you a “better” fan. You may enjoy the games more than I do, but wanting things to be better doesn’t mean I “hate” Pitt.**
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Got to look at avg stars. You get it. I’m a pessimist. I like it. I see the real in life and with Pitt it’s not too good. I see goblins and trolls when many see fairies and unicorns. So go on yinzers and support your coach. I will call him out for what he is. The Toledo coach is available. Make him an offer.
Tex
What narduzzi is is a poor recruiter, poor judgement of coach talent, poor at developing his own recruits, good at losing bowl games, good at alienating fans, good at being abrasive, good at stealing $3.5 million
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Based on her hires so far, there is reason to believe that Heather could rise to the occasion and hire a good football coach if it comes to that. Hopefully, it won’t be necessary for a while, but she is probably putting together a pretty good list right now, since most of the other hires are behind her.
Still can’t understand what happened to ladies BB coach Suzie McConnell-Serio. She came in with tremendous credentials and seemed to be such a great hire at the time. I don’t understand how she flamed out so badly.
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Was SM-S a career assistant before landing the Pitt job?
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Nate, I don’t she was ever an asst coach?
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Those who have been around Susie know she can be, how to say this, difficult. All the
McConnels are intense, she more than the others.
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Throw a think in there I forgot it. proof reading deficient.
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Anon (whichever one you are) Damn right student athletes-2.0 GPA student athletes to be more specific !
Jay91, my diagnosis is: you are ok..being a long suffering PITT fan has varying symptoms and can affect each mustard and blue soul differently. Nothing is wrong here…like Hank Williams used to sing on Monday Night FB ” Are you ready for some FB ???????!!!!!!!!!(suffering in our case)
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Pickett was quoted as saying he was embarrassed last year with that 5-7 record. He also said that won’t happen again…..I guarantee it. Some swag for the QB. Hope the OL coach can work some magic here. Pitt has numbers and things are not as dire as many suggest. Shockey. Tipton. FFrench and Lopes can be better than thought with an actual QB. Grad transfers at OT and TE look the part physically..
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Heather’s track record is to hire a top ACC assistant at an elite program. It is highly unlikely that Pitt would hire an established coach based on everything we’ve seen her first 18 months. It would be status quo with the last couple of hires … Paul Chryst and Pat Narduzzi. I’m guessing she’d target a Clemson assistant. Maybe take a swing at a Bud Foster at VT. Outside of that, FSU and Miami have relatively new staffs new to the ACC. Maybe she looks at Jimbo’s A&M staff, if he took any longtime assistants with him.
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Right, tossing. But with a 3.5 million check to write they should get someone pretty good.
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Jay, that was a great comment and not blowing smoke as you tell us all how you feel. Now my response is and what I really don’t understand is there are just not that many 4* players out there to begin with. Forget about a 5* player they are not coming to PITT regardless if their pappy works for them or not. My thought again, Narduzzi or any other coach Lyke should hire if he goes will not rake in 4* players right and left who are not local players until the signing deadline. These players are waiting on an offer that didn’t come and choose PITT as a second or worse option. imo This isn’t a matter of clicking their heels, snapping heir fingers, effort or Narduzzi being a jagoff. This is how it is for PITT at this very moment. again imo
As some of you know the family has been going through some problems. I tell this story because it reminds me of some of you (Tx for one) my wife tells me all the time, “lets get in the car and go down there and kick so and so’s ass. I say to her STOP IT! Let’s be realistic here”. I’m not spending a night in jail and Patty cakes Narduzzi is not going anywhere for two years unless he makes another ridiculous in-house decision.
Now you want the Holy Toledo coach? Please be careful as I tell my wife the same thing. If you want to be taken serious say something brilliant or put a smiley face at the end of your comment so we know you’re just kidding.. 🙂 ike
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My wife wants Chris Pratt but she’s stuck with Sheldon from the Big Bang. I want a Coach that can recruit 4 stars but I’m stuck with Narduzzi. I know how my wife feels.
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You guys out to head over to Pittsburgh Sports Now for media coverage of Pitt football. Somehow they have access????
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Tossing, I can’t see us hiring a coach in his 60’s (at least I hope not), which is Foster’s age during out next search. Maybe that next search won’t be for a long time, I suspect we’ll find out an awful lot this season and next; then again if this season is bad enough it may be hot seat time next year, though I doubt it. That said, I’ll stop at that, because anything more than a brief comment about that subject is too much premature bitching right now, so I’m going to enjoy the moment of being on the cusp of a new season for now.
Looking forward to the reports around the corner about actual football practice…
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https://mobile.twitter.com/cyclonefanatic/status/1025431859566718979/video/1
MC was asked the first day of practice about the OSU job. If the Burgh media asked Narduzzi this today, some on this board would have blasted the Pittsburgh media saying the media is against the Pitt program. Things like this happens at other places
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Chryst’s biggest recruiting advantage is the fans in the stands at every home game they play. It allows him to attract better players at Whisky than he could ever attract at Pitt, and that is in my view undeniable.
I was a season ticket holder at Pitt stadium in the Marino years and the simple fact, even though some don’t want to accept it, is that Pitt wasn’t sold out even when the OC stadium had a team with star players winning big time football games.
Pitt will be doomed to have yellow seats for as long as the worst college or NFL football stadium in the country (Heinz field) is where the games are played. The stadium is a disgrace and the Rooney’s should be ashamed. But, Pitt is generally, a commuter school in a pro city with plenty of sports competition for the entertainment dollar.
Chryst is not a better recruiter, he has a better game day environment to sell, and that has become the “end all” for this generation of football recruits. I’m not saying HCPN is a wonderful and loving person, as I don’t know him from a “cake of soap” and likely many are correct in their view of him as an arrogant, unfriendly, and condescending donkey. But if Pitt wins he will be considered less so, naturally.
However, that being said, until February its not fair to evaluate recruiting. If you notice most of Pitt’s 4* players are signed at the end because that is when Pitt can take advantage of 4*’s who were recruited over or who need a place to land after not getting an offer from the school that they were holding out for. I hate it as much as all of you POV’ers but lets accept reality. For example, Sulahudein (Sp?) did not sign in July, and there is a reason for that.
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Pickett guarantee’s a better 2018 after declaring 2017 an embarrassing performance. Hopefully he doesn’t spend too much time reading the POV posts for fear of sending him into a depression before the season even starts.
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ike.
You say there aren’t many 4-star players out there, yet 246 4 star players have committed at this point, and many remained unsigned. That sounds like quite a few to me.
In fact, 51 teams have signed at least 1 4-star player for 2019.. FIFTY-ONE TEAMS! Can you know a team that hasn’t? That’s right! Our beloved Panthers have not signed even ONE 4-star player.
Look.. some of you say, “We can’t get 4-star players because: yellow seats, urban setting, off campus stadium, game day experience….. blah, blah, blah.” AND YOU PEOPLE CALL YOURSELVES THE “OPTIMISTS”! It’s absolutely mind-numbing. People who consistently say, “We can’t compete because..” are the exact opposite of optimists. They’ve resigned themselves to mediocrity.
Guys like Tex who say, “I’m tired of the excuses, let’s find solutions. I think we can be better than we are.”, are the actual optimists. That’s it! Maybe me, Tex, Upitt (and some others) are the real unicorn and rainbows crowd. We actually believe Pitt can be better than it is. Clealry we’re kidding ourselves. Obviously, the “everything is fine-we’re doing the best we can” crowd are the realists (pessimists).
How’s that for flipping the perspective?
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I do look like a Goblin but if my love for Pitt can transform me into a unicorn, bring that magic on
I think we all know Pitt can do better. Some may be defeated after over 35 years of mediocrity and think we’re cursed and have a doomed fate…SOP. I was one for a while but those with true grit will pick themselves off the ground. They will challenge our leaders to do better.
I think we are being heard. Money is now there for the program…the ACC check plus future network revenues do help. We have a new AD that holds coaches accountable for results on the field. I know the yellow seats hurt with recruiting but maybe tarping is a short term solution which gives Pitt time to raise funds for a smaller new multi-purpose venue…on campus.
I dont know why Pitt hasnt released the feasibility study by Populous for a new venue. It was presented last Fall but the only construction project mentioned is Victory Heights…a $30-$50M (guestimate) facility on the OC lot that would house athletic offices, and seating for the volleyball/wrestling and gymnastics programs. Old Fitz would be razed and converted into a parking garage.
I do know Pitt is interested in building a true rec and wellness center. I would think that would be on the Trees site. I personally think this should be given priority first since it impacts 100% of students and can be used by the community.
The culture is slowly changing. Newly elected BoT members were mainly comprised of Pitt grads although Gallaghers leadership team still has none and has 2 Nitters. The ACC wants Pitt to step up and do better since they are very brand conscious. And those in the league and in the administration know that the streaming environment is the future. Therefore, you need to have schools that have large fanbases.
4 things that need to be done now before its too late:
1. develop a winning culture and devote serious attention to the success of sports across all programs but particularly football and basketball
present the feasibility study to the public…the damn project was feasible but I’m pretty sure Pitt didnt want to begin a ‘distractive’ campaign to raise $250M for it. But Heinz wont last forever.
build that recreation and wellness center for the students and community…you’ll attract better quality students and will help connect them to their university (increase future donations)
start marketing Pitt to new and young fans. Pitt needs to build a larger fanbase. Not your Same Olde Pitt. This is your new Pitt
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That was an astute outside the box comment. Thank you for that. I do think you are wrong though – not about you guys being the optimists.
The POVers who think of themselves as optimists also are optimists. They just think that the way to achieve success for Pitt football is through incremental successes based on an easier OOC schedule and astute recruiting.
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..sorry for the typos– I’m doing this and working. I got a lot more done over the last few weeks not commenting. Maybe I should just get back to work.
H2P!!
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AJ Woods is a 4 star . So is Binville from South Carolina . You want reality . That’s. Reality.
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Not according to Rivals or 24/7.
I guess we’re using the filopek rating system on the POV now?
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We use Rivals here only….just to stay consistent. (Reed’s Rivals Rule)
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1618mt – I was just setting expectations if Pitt had a search. Lykke’s MO has been ace assistants … which both Narduzzi and Chryst were. We’d be skipping along the same path we have been.
I’m not wishing or hoping for anything but Bud Foster would probably be looked at. He checks a lot of boxes and he’s a pretty young 59. Apparently, he never wanted the VT job, however, so he’s also highly unlikely.
I’m willing to bet lunch at Uncle Sam’s that someone from Pitt knocks on his door though.
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I have been tied up lately and have not had much time to post. Thoughts for the day:
I want to have tickets/seats right next to Jay91 for this season and beyond. He gets it.
Anyone heading to LAYTROBE for Steelers practice tonight: Head over to Hotel Loyal for some good Pizza.
Our defense is going to surprise some people this year.
Nobody schedules OOC games like what we have this year. In fairness UCF stunk when Cornhole scheduled them. This “play who is in front of you” mentality gets you to the Little Caesar’s/Birmingham/TIAA Cref/Hooters/Carrick 3rd Graders Bowl. Sorry, Reed.
I cant wait to hear the full and accurate version of the Ox “retirement”, but this incident makes Narduzzi look very small.
Looking forward to seeing Ike, Big B, Lastrow, Reed, Annie, Dan72, MajorMajors, Pitt in the Ville, PittPT, (and anyone who I forgot) at the Pitt PSU game. Juices already flowing for that one. You making the trip Mark (UPitt)???
Anyone sugarcoating the poor recruiting needs to have their head examined. Unless you hope to be 6-6 forever. If the goal is to win the Coastal, this kind of recruiting wont cut it.
The idea of closing practices, when you are attempting to create excitement around your program, is silly.
If we can figure out a way to keep Kenny Pickett upright and breathing, he may alone be capable of an upset or two. We have not had that in a long while. For as well as Peterman played, he really did not have that dynamic.
Kidney Transplant not yet scheduled. But beginning to look like I’ll make it to mid season at least. Thrilled that things look good for Pitt/PSU at a minimum.
Wlat
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The above was supposed to be numbered and separate paragraphs. Not sure what Word Press does…
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Jay, I don’t expect you to show me where all these 4* are committed to but I’m willing to bet you most who are committed went to the big big time programs. When it’s all said and done PITT will have one or two 4* players just like all the programs exactly like they are. Remember patience is a virtue and good things will come to those who are willing to wait. and please for crying out loud, don’t give me this 30 years in the dessert BS because it doesn’t have anything to do with PITT today. Gallagher, Lyke and Narduzzi have nothing to do with PITT in the past. You want to cry wolf before the season starts….. go ahead.. ike
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Here’s the information. Although, these people don’t know a damn thing! (Just teasing you, ike..) In fact, one reader actually annointed two of our recruits with 4 star status.
https://n.rivals.com/team_rankings/2019/all-teams/football
Also, I never gave you any of this:(maybe someone else did, but not me)
“30 years in the dessert BS because it doesn’t have anything to do with PITT today. Gallagher, Lyke and Narduzzi have nothing to do with PITT in the past. You want to cry wolf before the season starts…”
And generally, it IS better to cry wolf BEFORE the wolf actually attacks. That IS the point, right?
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Who said Richt would want Pickett over his QB????? I say he doesn’t want either. He wants his 5 Star Stud QB that redshirted. Narduzzi wouldnt get a 5 star if you spotred him 2 of the 5 stars.
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The only way Narduzzi will ever gets 5 stars is if he switches jobs with an Uber driver. And even then the chances are slim…
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I’ll bet that 5 star RSF doesn’t start the season against LSU.
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You know Eric I would give one of my kidneys but I only have one and a little left of the other. Although we may be a match from living in Latrobe together all these year smelling that yeast cooking down at Rolling Rock Brewery. Take care friend. ike
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Thanks, Iek!!!
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its actually been more like 42 years in the desert and that wandering does matter since we still arent home yet
do you think 5 wins seasons will bring us home
or an avg star rating of 2.8 when the teams we compete against in the Division are 3.3-3.4 stars (Va Tech and Miami)
or a stadium that is off campus…5 miles away from home
Gallagher, Lyke and Narduzzi need to understand the past
enough of being patient…I want to go home.
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First two schools i looked at, BC has two 4 stars. Wake has two 4 stars. Jay, thanks for the info. Your right there are a lot of 4 star players in the country.
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Maybe Wake’s players are like Flowers and Pugh?? Two 4* players Narduzzi recruited and then hit the road. I guess that’s Narduzzi’s fault as well?
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Fearless predictions:
1) for better or worse the Duzz has this year and next
2) I’m not sure he will do much better record wise than last year
3) They will not hire a defensive assistant
4) Clemson will be paying top assistant close to 3 million in 2 years
5) Whoever they hire, that person will have a come to Jesus meeting in the interview about the OOC schedule .
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To put our wandering into perspective, Pitt has wandered longer than the Israelite’s.
Pitt sports needs to be re-born. Pitt’s Promised Land should be a new on campus venue. I have faith in the Pitt Spirit to guide us all home.
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4-8
Sticking to my prediction.
The team is already against him regarding OX. They don’t respect this guy and why should they.
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My prediction is going to be a little better than yours Upitt. It helps greatly that we play on the Coastal side of things. A lot of weak football teams in our division. We might have two good teams this year, possibly only one good team.
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You’re dreaming UPITT. I know you revel in stirring the pot a bit, but you can’t seriously think that will be their final record…can you?
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I only saw 4 wins at Golf Outing Special K. Honest buddy. How many do you see?
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I see 6 for sure and am leaning to 7.
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So in the heat of a play a lineman, while blocking, is going to think of Ox, his hate for Narduzzi and give up, while letting the opponent take his manhood?
This program should just drop football if that is the case.
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no they are going to think coach is a jerk for bringing in transfers to play ahead of me
or they will think he is a jerk for making promises he cant keep
My dislike for Narduzzi keeps me going
i think many players are tired of his talk after 3 years…if you’ve played sports you understand
but it also can apply to many other things in life obviously
you just eventually seek other solutions or tune out
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College athletes don’t get sick of the same talk from their coach because they want stability with that coach in their lone, short college career. That is why I hope Aaron Donald doesn’t give a penny to Pitt for a long time after it gave him THREE coaches in four years.
What a joke. Good job, Nordy.
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Not even to endow scholarships for needy students? Or just not to the football program?
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No, but problems fester and 18-21 year olds are influenced easily. It wil have an effect.
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6-6 with another bowl loss.
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I’ve set myself up to take a real beating this coming season even though I haven’t given my prediction for this coming season yet but I hope some of you realize that you all have as well. If injuries don’t crash this season I’m leaning 6 regular season wins but not official yet.
I don’t care about 4* recruits. Generally proven to be over-rated and stink’os. Give me Pickett, Weaver, Jerry O, Donald, Bryant, Conner etc etc…….
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these 4 and 5 stars turned out well
shady
baldwin
ray graham
bisnowaty
boyd
d johnson
bookster
need more stars ike
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whitehead to
but i also understand some 5.5 players like reevis and larod stephens are out there (those guys were local but dinged for being either too slow or too small)
but are you confident that narduzzi can find these guys, develop them and give them opportunities to reach their potential???
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ike..
I forgot you don’t like the reply function so I just wanted to point out that I did respond above..
Also (to everyone), didn’t we agree to use Rivals as the “official” recruiting service of the POV for argument purposes?
Enjoy your August everyone. Maybe I’ll check back in after the PSU game and see how everybody’s feeling then. My thoughts for that day? Hope for the best!… Expect the worst!
And can I just address comments like, “I hope the team isn’t reading the POV because they’ll lose confidence.” or some other ridiculousness? If our players spend time reading the POV, let alone having it effect their performance we’ve got big problems. Those comments are just asinine. Read any of the message boards for Alabama, LSU, Florida State, etc.. They are FAR more critical of players than anyone on the POV. And yet, somehow those teams win games.
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It was recruits, not players Mr always correct
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Hope the rest of your summer is great Jay hope to see you in Red 5A parking lot at the tailgates or something like that.
Total rogue comment nothing to do with ongoing discussions. I get a kick out of comments saying (not even so much on the POV but other messages boards) say PITT’s record will be this or that or unless this or that but it’s left open ended in case they are wrong. Be convicted like Mark, I give our Mexican cigar smoking, whisky drinking Upitt credit for blatantly saying exactly how he feels. Although I do think he is very over the top and really can’t help himself. Get ready to blast me Mark if PITT only wins 4 games and you should be ready for a full out assault if they win 7 games.. Let the games begin… ike
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Our luck Ike it will be 6. Haha.
Just landed. Everyone have a great weekend.
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Which part of his comment is a rogue comment?
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Narduzzie got it from press today about low predictions for Pitt this year. He feels the heat! Glad someone else remembers Pitt not always with the right cleats in more than one game over the last couple years. Do not know who that is on but remember once in Wanny’s last year at half he said to announcer “he” told them to correct cleat problem of first half. No team can be good without a good QB lets hope Kenny brings some magic Danucc never had last year.H2P
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More than once over the past several years I would say, ‘What the hell is wrong with their cleats?” I agree wholeheartedly PITT60.
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Videos up over at pittsburghpanthers.com
In the one video, Pickett threw a deep pass that was caught by the WR for a TD. The WR (white shirt which is the offense) wore number 12. Number 12 is Paris Ford.. Phillipe Motley broke up another deep ball. Cam ONeil caught a pass in drills. Short video. Also some interviews.
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No. 2, Ffrench, caught it, not Ford. Shocker Brice’s Garner got burnt on the play.
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Thanks for the correction. I need some bifocals…
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Ford did play some offense today.
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Iek..your DE thread has taken on a life of its own… huge number of hits… almost Game-day-ish !!!!
Eric great to hear from you.. bet your sweet bippy JeanieB n me will see you at the PSU Predator game !
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Ike – check out this video of one of our new DE recruits Ban Brima running the 40 in sub-4.5 fashion –
https://mobile.twitter.com/BamBrima/status/1025165959370342401/video/1
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Trust the process ladies and gentlemen; trust the process.
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Hey K, do we even have a choice? No one is wrong here. You can bitch or go with it. Either way, we are all along for the ride so I make the best of it.
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I hope you are right special k.
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Hey B, it’s sure as hell fire not because of anything I wrote. It’s the POV PITT fans itching to talk PITT football. I’m right there with all of yinz…. The Kenny Pickett interview is out of this world from day one interview. It knocked one of my socks off! ike
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Pitt-Cocks fan… check in Richard… long time no hear ! Looks like the POVerts are getting revved up… ‘‘tis the season …. miss you buddy. Hope all is well.
Haven’t heard from our Houston Greek buddy in “4ever”… what game are we hooking up this year Jim ?
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OL Justin Morgan dismissed from the team..
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thanks Reed. Now I’ll be starting my day with a Captain Morgan instead of my usual coffee. what the heck is going on at Pitt. Cant afford to lose any linemen.
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Morgan wasn’t doing what was asked of him like the other 83 kids were. Pitt cannot have someone who isn’t with the program so he is gone. He was a third teamer with no apparent future so it opens up a scholarship. Use it on a JuCo defensive end.
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Was he even on the depth chart ? Pass the Morgan anyway…Tex.
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Here’s the quote from Kenny Pickett, pretty impressive
“Last year, honestly, it was embarrassing,” Pickett said. “I was embarrassed. Some people won’t say that, but I love to win. We win at Pittsburgh. So, 5-7 won’t happen again, I can guarantee that.”
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Wasn’t justin morgan, yesterday’s news.
And he was a low 3 star by Rivals (5.5) with offer from 2 BigJoke Doormats, Buttgers and Illinois.
So on the positive side it opens up another scholarship.
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Looking at his rivals page he wasn’t even rated until Pitt signed him I would say Pitt took a ‘flyer’ on this kid based on his extraordinary size of 6’7″ 335 lbs. But he played in the NYC league which is not very good. Basketball yes….football no. He should have become a Power Forward, unless he was uncoordinated, which was probably the case.
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General Pickett will be leading Pitt into the Promised Land….in a Southern Conference. I for one, think that is hysterical.
He’s got a name that won’t be hard to remember for all the reb’s down here 🙂
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I have almost too much time on my hands these days but it would never cross my mind to go on another teams blog or message board. I know some like to do that but not for me. I do not give a care what other teams fans are saying.
Pickett a 3* talks and walks like a 6* Hope he plays like a 5* this year…
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See all the anti-Pitt trolls on the Trib article concerning Pickett. That bleeds onto every Pitt blog.
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Question here. Who was the QB that everyone had pinned down for a few years to come to PITT same year Pickett committed instead. I can’t remember his name and was wondering where he ended up and how he is doing?
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Emel, I don’t stay on here all day and night… So, are we turning our nose up at recruits who actually do have multiple P5 offers and defending our recent recuits who have one or none? Wow. That is true state of recruiting today.
Nate; I believe Morgan was projected for the two-deep this season. But the truth is our OL is going to be untalented with no depth anyway…so an OL going into his 3rd year will be a loss for us.
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Hey Reed,,,,nice to see you too ! Ok if you say so. Hope your back surgery goes good….big guy !
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He was overweight and on the third team. Regardless, he wasn’t abiding by the rules like the other 83 players along with the walk-ons.
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LOL, check this out,,,,on Rivals…..General Pickett was dropped from the no. 19 rated QB in the Nation to no. 48 AFTER he committed to Pitt.
What an utter joke and so political these ratings are. Hopefully i can post this link.
https://247sports.com/Season/2017-Football/CompositeRecruitRankings/?PositionGroup=QB
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whoops that is Scout/247….i have to check if he was also dropped lower on Rivals after committing to Pitt
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Sorry but a 48 second video from day 1 of camp is pretty weak if you want to build any media hype.
The Steelers get thousands to go to Latrobe for their camp. Pitt Camp closed to everyone including the media. Seems like a huge marketing opportunity missed. When you have all those yellow seats don’t you think you would want more exposure for your product, not less? Of course no room for fans on the Southside practice facility, but no media is just plain dumb, when you need to sell tickets.
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The media is anti-Pitt….so there is that to contend with too. Perhaps they don’t like Nard Dog, cause he stood up to their hero….Franklinstein. Also kept them out of the playoff that year we beat them.
Pedo State SUX !!! (getting in practice for 5 weeks from now)
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Pedo State and their joke of a schedule, should NEVER be considered for the 4 team playoff.
Actually if things were moral in this country……they wouldn’t even have a football program.
Disgusting criminal degenerates of Creepy Valley
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Correct me if I am wrong… Ox’s job was to bring all of the cleats, and the coaches check the field and decide which ones to wear. Narduzzi must think he is going to spring a Division winning team on fans and the press, so he is keeping it under wraps for the big reveal. Thus, the closed practices! 🙂
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Emel, from what I have heard and you stumbled on it. Narduzzi knows the media in this town doesn’t really consider PITT anything but second rate or even worse and treats them as. Part of the reason the media has been cut out of the picture by him.
gc my friend. No argument with you there as I feel the media should get much more access it would be much better for everyone, mostly for PITT football.. That said I read at least 20 minutes of interviews after yesterday’s practice. There is stuff out there but they make it hard for us to track it all down. . . . .ike
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Perhaps that explains, not letting the media have any access ike. If you’re going to be treated 2nd rate or worse, why give them any access. Perhaps these clown local pedo state writers would send all info they gleaned, from Pitt’s practices….straight to Creepy Valley.
And even if they don’t…… I like denying these anti-Pitt slobs access.
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for you Reed,
Allderdice Sports@DiceSports
Congrats to Jackson Blaufeld he was just offered from the Naval Academy. He has worked extremely hard and we are all so proud of him. Great for Allderdice HS and our basketball program. Go Dragons!
5:37 PM – Aug 3, 2018
wwb
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On the Radio side….Pitt needs to extradite itself from The Fan….ASAP. That is an anti-Pitt parade most of the time. If you’re looking for reasons why Pitt is having a tough time locally with the few D1 recruits WPA produces……look no further than the 24/7 negative local media shills. And believe me, they love turning kids off to going to Pitt.
So is indeed smart to recruit outside their geographic influence.
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@Jay yesterday at 3:30pm – i would put me in the same crowd (even thought that would make me have to agree with upitt…lol my friend) and an early adopter of accountability and getting things straightened out. I have never been happy with the administration, the AD or the coaching staff. I wanted Tressel for AD. You want to go big time, you have to hire big time. You need an AD that demands excellence from the executive team. Once that is done, you can demand it from your coaches.
As an AD you ask the coach what it will take to win the coastal and then the ACC. It is the coaches job to give you that list. Then, as the AD, you make that happen and hold the coach accountable. This is simple management and even simpler governance.
Our AD whiffed thankfully on the hurley hire and Capel fell into her lap while on vacation. Pitt leadership gave her the money to get a coach that can compete. Have you noticed that Pitt baskets has been losing some momentum on the recruiting trail? There is a reason. To get the top50 players, you need to play the game. That is why Pitt didn’t land Konate back in the day and the reason Tshiebwe won’t come here. Pitt needs to make a decision on this. Do you play the game or not??? I say play the game. It is so much easier to do so with limited or no repercussion….unless you are as dumb as louisville.
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I saw a discussion above about “5 star QB’s”. Didn’t we just have one last year (along with a 5 star TE)? Not knocking on those gentlemen personally,but I’ll roll the dice with Kenny Pickett over an unproven “5 star” any day of the week. Some of you focus on stars like little girls focus on prom dresses. It’s one thing to say we need to recruit better, but Kenny Pickett is our QB and I’m thankful for that (I think almost all Pitt fans are, save a few whiny old men). H2P.
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Huff – Tressel was kicked out of college football for 5 years for covering up infractions … Not only did Pitt not knock on the door … no one is. He was never realistic, especially for a school as conservative as Pitt … but, literally, no other school is considering him either so I don’t understand why Pitt should or would. Someone on the blather just said that Pitt should have brought in Wanny for AD. Yes, lets bring in a guy who lead Pitt to the top of the police reports rankings … Just what colleges are looking for nowadays. Pitt ended up just fine at AD and Lykke looks more and more like just the right person to get Pitt turned around. If she leaves, who cares? She at least will have a stable athletic department to hand off to her predecessor.
Pitt has 18 offensive linemen on the team … Losing Morgan is a non-story and will allow a more deserving walk-on to earn a scholly. I repeat … Pitt has 18 offensive linemen in camp right now. Right now, 4 of the starters are redshirt seniors … Pitt is fine at offensive line despite what the story on here is.
Jay91 has pretty level headed arguments for his pessimism without going over the top. I think he projects that perspective with a lot of class which helps with swallowing the bitter pill of reality. I still to choose to chase that bitter pill with a glass half-full, however.
Ox sounds like he was a fun person to be around … that does not mean he was a good employee. I’ve been in the workforce for 20 years and I’ve seen plenty of popular people leave unceremoniously … Most times it was deserved.
Emel – So happy to see you posting again …
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@Tossing – your point is well taken, but the issue is geography for Tressel. Tressel is in Youngstown as President. That is geographically spot on for where he grew up and where his family is from. No other P5 school offers the geographic location like Pitt or Ohio State. He could commute if he wanted. The point wasto bring in someone with credibility and a winning attitude. The job has to be right for him. Pitt checked those boxes. C’mon friend, he is too old to go to California and uproot his family. There was no uprooting in coming to Pitt. he has great family values.
Lying about tattoos is not a big thing. Look, how do you think these kids get all these tattoos? They are expensive, right. I can’t remember how much it cost me for my Povert tattoo on my right buttock back in the day. Just kidding. Who pays for these things?
Look at his results at OSU and YSU. He can fund raise and his successes would have resonated with the donors. Pitt would have been relevant immediately, especially in Ohio. He understands big time football better than everyone that Pitt has now. You know, the supposed money-making sports. He would have united our sport playing alums which would have been awesome!
I get your point that on the outside it may look like nobody is pounding down the doors to get him. The main point you missed is that it works both ways and for him, he wants to stay close to his roots and there just aren’t that many P5 openings near youngstown where he can be driven back and forth. He would have been a great 5 year 2020 vision guy in my opinion.
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Lykke by all accounts looks like she’s being pretty successful. Someone of Tressel’s stature would be better after the athletic department is already rebuilt. He doesn’t strike me as someone who could rebuild an athletic department … which Pitt needed.
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The current AD is a draw right now in my mind. She has fired a lot of coaches which gives her “time” from the administration side. With every new hire, she gets 3-4 years for results which is fair for a coach, right? It is an old AD trick to do this. They manipulate the administration and it looks like alot is getting accomplished. The law of averages suggests she will hit with a few coaches and miss with others. The big question is whether the hits will be with revenue producers or break even sports. She clearly has bought herself more time to produce with making all these hires. A typical move by AD’s to ensure future paychecks.
Tressel wasn’t a long term answer. He was a short term stabilizing presence that would have translated into donations, credibility and culture change. I am convinced he would have pushed for an on campus stadium and would have executed on that pillar of improvement. Yes, he also would have needed a strong team to run the day to day operations. A terrific gladhander and fundraiser. That is why he is a President at a university and also why he would have been a superb candidate for what we needed, again, in my opinion.
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