Monday-Morning-QBGreat 44-37 win in overtime!

Am prepping for surgery and hospital stay so I’ll  leave it up to you guys for the Good, Bad and Ugly.

I get cut on tomorrow morning then will have three of four days in-patient so I won’t be writing any articles.

If you want to do one send it to me and if I’m  able I’ll  post it.

We sit at 3-3 and have our next game at ND on Saturday

Michaelangelo holds a degree in Travel Writing from the University of Pittsburgh. He was a former staff writer for InPittsburgh Newsweekly, and currently resides near Atlanta, Georgia. He has been a Pitt fan since 1997 after he witnessed Pitt upset #22 Miami on Thursday night at Pitt Stadium.

381 thoughts on “Early MMQB; Win over Syracuse”

  1. Best wishes, Reed. Enjoy the femaie nurses.

    DirecTV totally screwed up yesterday and I got nothing after the weather delay. Does anyone know if and when and what channels may have replays this week?

    H2P

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    1. Espn3.com should have the replays up.

      Also, on YouTube, there is a 20 minute condensed version of the game.

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  3. Best of health Reed!

    Ugh is all I can say. Apparently we have an OL that is above average at the run game, and absolutely horrid at the passing game. I want to say that Pickett is worse than Sunseri but for heaven’s sake I have never seen a QB have less time in the “pocket” (there never seems to actually BE a pocket!) than this season with Pitt. Sure, Picket is antsy, is not setting his feet better, etc. But for the love of God the kid is just running for his life….ON EVERY PLAY.

    If anyone kept stats on passing plays were a defender was left totally unblocked…well, it seems like 80% of the plays yesterday. Pitt would be worse in P5 right now for sure.

    Don’t get me wrong…very, very happy for the win!!

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    1. I mentioned that Picket wasn’t getting any protection after sitting through the UCF game. On many of our offensive plays it was plain to see a defender was going to hit him totally unchallenged, even if he got rid of the ball. The defender would have a straight shot, over and over again. The offensive alignment is (you fill in the blank) —- no pass protection. Goodness gracious, if we had Marino back there he’d be in the hospital by now. What I don’t understand is this: If I can see this from the rear seat of a 45,000 seat stadium, why can’t the coaches. And if the coaches can see it, why the hell don’t they do something about it?

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  5. Best wishes Reed and don’t rush back on our part. Take care of yourself

    Good: Kessman (obviously), Hall and Ollison, OL run blocking, defense in 2nd & 4th quarters

    Bad: OL pass blocking and defense in 1st and 3rd quarter

    Ugly: Pickett’s development as a QB …. probably mostly on the coaches

    wwb

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    1. We must not forget Pickett coming out of high school was not a high sought after QB. He was not recruited heavily by major schools and his progress in college is directly on the mark of the coaches that did not offer him a scholarship. As usual Pitt was desperate and did.
      Pitt needs to set up a program to entice 4 and 5* QB’s who were recruited at schools with several top ranked QB’s and are disgruntled because they believed those schools would give them a true shot at starting.

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  6. Good luck Reed!

    Looking at the Box Score, always has surprises. Hamlin with 8 solo and 14 total tackles lead the team. Wirginis was next with 8 total. Amazing that we won when Syracuse was 10-18 on third down and we were a miserable 3-12. We did make our one fourth down conversion. They lost one of their 3 fumbles we lost both of ours. Ints made the difference, they got one. We got two with Watt stopping a drive and Coleman sealing the victory. Both kicking games were perfect, with Kessman setting a record.

    A very memorable game for a lot of reasons, first being a loss would have been devastating to the season. The most big plays we have seen since two years ago and overcoming so many obstacles and a brute of a QB, although it wasn’t his best passing effort, he really hurt us with his legs.

    Let’s hope we can sustain this type of effort a few more times this year. Backs up against the wall etc.

    Thankfully the refs kept their flags in their pants, making for a more enjoyable game. Although the bobbled catch was ridiculous with the ref staring right at it, then not looking at Narduzzi for the time out.

    Too bad the ND game isn’t at home, we could use another full house.

    Congrats to the real fans that showed up yesterday, they got to see a classic.

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    1. A play that stood out to me yesterday was a “stop” that Hamlin made. The Orange tailback broke thru the line and the only thing between him and a long TD run was Hamlin.

      Well Hamlin looked like “Stonewall Hamlin” on that play. He stopped the runner completely and just held him up – the runner couldn’t move Hamlin one inch even though the runner had all the momentum.

      Very impressive individual effort by Hamlin.

      Go Pitt.

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        1. Agreed – although it sure looked like Hamlin just happened to be there by accident. It was a big stop.
          I think Q Wirginis had a good game, forcing a fumble and making some good stops.

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  7. I do not agree with the negative assessment of Pickett. He has no time to throw. Peterman would have the same results behind this line. He is definitely not the problem. His receivers are decent but not stars and no tight ends.

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    1. Pickett has not yet developed a very important trait of a successful QB. That is, he has not developed the ability to step up in the pocket and deliver the football. He does not have good pocket presence.

      With that said, I’m happy with the win yesterday.

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    2. Thank you GC. As you know I’ve been preaching this weekly.
      Love Pickett. In a year we will learn ok back and recognize his greatness.

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  11. Best of luck Reed may the pains be few. In the tempest yesterday. DD has part of it nailed. Run game great. Pass protect sucked for Pitt. That has to change for Pickett to do anything but run for his life. Kessman outstanding ,Kristodolu— Luckey. Pitt pass defense still suffers but has improved in some areas. They got into Cuse backfield and made int’s and caused disruption but still problems on man coverage. Good run D. If Syracuse coaches had stayed with more passing there would have been no OT to be intercepted in. Cuse 1st drive went right down the field with I believe 2 run plays. Still will be pleasantly surprised if we see better than a 3/9 to 4/8 season in spite of some outstanding individual and unit play.

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  12. Concerning the long pass that was not ruled incomplete as it should have ….

    the official that was only 10 yards away and had a clear view needs to be fired or reprimanded, and here’s why ….. if you get a chance to look at the replay, you will see that instead of calling it incomplete, he instead is holding his hand up to the chain crew and telling them to stay put. In other words, he is expecting the play to be reviewed. When this did not happen, he should have blown the whistle.

    Look at the replay and you will see what I mean. wwb

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  13. I agree Pickett does not step up in the pocket.

    That said, I saw no such thing as a pocket yesterday to step into!

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  14. Reed, my best wishes also. Minor inconvenience, permanent improvement!!

    I think one thing coaches got right was more dbs on the field. Those packages seemed to work. Only took 3 yrs. lol.

    Still have no idea what they were thinking with clock management, a 45 yd fg is no gimme.
    Still say Pickett’s hurt, taking away his best attribute. Tight end kept in to block, Aston blocking, plus 5 linemen, not too many wr on field. Did use bunch formation a couple times. All in all, this is a pretty poor group of wideouts minus Mack.

    The Duzz was in his , and his coaches comfort zone. BiG football. Pound the ball on O. Poor qb play from opponent ( still wonder what was up with Dungey. Even with no pressure he stunk!) That’s the type of play he saw while at MSU, even though it was a spread.

    Bottom line, it was nice to see a win. On way to vacation, I’ll pass along our best to Heather.

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      1. Erie,

        A few posts ago I eluded to this point exactly. In other words, teams that want to play ground and pound with Pitt typically end up getting surprised. This is exactly why Pitt ND is always a close game cuz the team with more guts wins Period.

        I think ND will stuff our run and we will be toast, but if they can’t stuff our run the game will come down to a field goal.

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  15. Joe Montana could not succeed with this line. Go back and watch the Giants game from mid eighties. No one, and I mean no one, can throw accurately under extreme pressure.

    Kenny is assaulted on every pass down. It is hard to believe because with the run game the pass blocking should be easier.

    His knee is hurt and the hurts too.

    God bless and good luck Reed!

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    1. Not to be overly critical but on the long pass he overthrew, he had plenty of time, to even step into the throw. Hey he at least overthrew that pass, as opposed to underthrowing it.

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      1. On a fumbled snap. I played qb in high school. I know it means nothing really compared to d1 football, but your back is turned and you have no idea what is going on.
        My guess is he knew the general idea of where the receiver might be a threw it as far as he could as fast as he could. He likely never even saw the receiver before he let it go.

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        1. Hey you might be right kman, I’ll take another look at it. But he clearly has accuracy issues. Which would explain his offer sheet.

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  16. Great Game and a Great win over our ‘rivals’. This was important since we didn’t want the Orangeboobs to win 2 in a row and start some 10 year dominant period of winning over us.

    I’m still enjoying the win….to start any…..No Joy in Mudville.

    Pltt is only 1 game out of 1st place in the Coastal….to bad Thug U didn’t lose yesterday.

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  17. Reed your tough recovery will be cakewalk because of your mental and physical toughness. Good luck. Be positive and think of nice quiet palm trees blowing in the wind with Narduzzi cooling you down waving a palm branch haha. Good luck buddy and third shift nurses always hottest maybe that was my dreams. Well on Pitt it was a win and we go to ND play tough and as usual upset them out there. I plan on going to root for our team. H2P

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  18. Q is on target for over a 1000 yards rushing. 596 yards thru 6 game with a 6.5 ypc avg. Considering we have very little passing threat this is astonishing !!!

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      1. Well, we could be a little overmatched next week. They have a 5 star D-Line and we have a hodgepodge line of guys who never played before as 5th yr seniors, MAC transfer and a walk-on.

        Notre Dame is now a leading contender for the playoff. We are struggling to make a no-name 4rth tier bowl game in East Bumfook.

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  19. You’ll be fine Commander, one of my friends had some Stents put in last year and they have that down pretty good. God Speed !

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  21. Very Good… Win

    Good… Ollison, Kessman, Defense… with a FEW exceptions.

    Bad… Offensive Line… Most of the time, they really do STINK! Don’t think so? Wait until they play a Rush Defense ranked better than #98!

    Ugly… None. They WON!!

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  22. My beef continue about ACC refs. They need to get educated about the rules of football and review-able plays. They continue to make bad calls or not make calls. The reviews should be there whenever there are questionable situations. Fans today look at the replays and see the bad decisions. The kids playing need confidence that the refs are fair.

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  23. Godspeed Reed!

    Very pleased this morning with the win.

    In the end we remain a very average at best football team and as long as I remember to go into the season with that reality then it will be easier to overlook the poor performances against “real” teams and appreciate the wins we are able to achieve.

    Such is the life of aPitt fan.

    H2P!

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  24. I repeat from yesterdays post, the “throwback” uniforms worn yesterday should be made permanent home game uniforms — best color combination in NCAA football. At least Pitt players will look like champions in sapphire blue and mustard gold uniforms with the Pitt script on their helmets. H2P! 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

    2. How long have Pitt fans waited for this? They make simple decisions hard. When they break out the white pants with no stripe…….brutal

      Should have been throwbacks every game this year.

      Liked by 1 person

    3. MM- I agree with you. However…Pitt has a contract with a shoe/apparel company. I believe it is Nike. The key word is “contract.” The logo and uniforms were designed by them and subsequently approved for all of Pitt’s athletics. This was done years ago. As such, they are under obligation to wear what Nike has contractually provided for them. Remember the combat uniforms from a few years back? Any changes, such as Pitt permanently wearing the throwbacks full-time, would have to be re-negotiated (and IMO should have been.) This contract is coming to an end. All indications are that Pitt will be moving forward with the retro colors and script on a more permanent basis across all of their sports. It may be as soon as next year, but I am not certain. I don’t remember where I read it, but ADHL made comment prior to this last weekend- retro/homecoming weekend- alluding to what I just said above about the prior negotiated contract/new contract soon/retro unis being a bigger part moving forward. She did not go into specifics. No doubt this is to build up for the big announcement. I think someone else on the POV mentioned about the look for the new PITT MEDIA STUDIO being a prelude to Pitt moving back to the more traditional colors w/script that we all know and love. Until then, we will have to endure seeing the current contracted uniform combinations.

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  25. Nice win. Also for the woman’s volleyball and men’s soccer this weekend. Very disappointed with our newest rating on US News and WORLD REPORT. WE ARE DOWN TO #70!!!!!
    Rutgers is up to #56 and Syracuse is #53. PITT now accepts 60% of applicants! WE DON’T NEED NUMBERS WE NEED QUALITY STUDENTS.

    Let’s get more selective as we used to be and adapt the NYU model.

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  26. The Great: Fran’s Tailgate. Had a great time. Our place kicker – Heinz record 55 yarder. A game saving int in overtime for the win!

    The Good: Ollison. Staff actually made some defensive adjustments. Wirginis’ strip. A Win!!!

    The Bad: Offensive scheme. You have a horse like Olli – need to ride him all day long. This team is better then average at the power run – Aston is a blocking scheme beast. Punting – no hang time, would have been ugly except for the 1 inside the 10 late game.

    The Ugly: #78. He was a welcoming red carpet for the Orange rush all day long. Sticking with the pass offense too long in the 2cd and 3rd quarters. KP’s mid to lang range pass accuracy – not debating the reason but the fact is he was horrible. ACC refs. Raycom production on TV – watched it in the Club at Heinz – what a mess.

    H2P!

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  27. there really isnt much difference between #50 and #80 but Pitt has slipped. some of this is driven by a change in methodology. Pitt has historically been ranked in the mid-50’s.

    in the acc, Pitt is tied with Florida St. State has made a huge jump over the past 20-30 years. NC St and Va Tech are in the 70’s. Louisville is outside the top 100 but not as bad as WVCC

    the avg ACC ranking is around 30. Duke, Virginia, Wake, Notre Dame, NC and Ga Tech are really good academic schools. BC and Syracuse are small and private and rank highly.

    not sure how Pitt can really improve to get into the top half of the ACC. these figures dont jump around each year.

    however, one ranking that can dramatically change each year is the Directors Cup which measures the overall competitiveness or success of a schools sports programs. Only BC and Ga Tech rank lower than Pitt. Avg ACC ranking again is around 30 while Pitt is outside the top 100. Much further away from the mean.

    Pitt is the only ACC school in the bottom 20% in both academics and athletics relative to other conference members.

    Pitt is a member of a conference that has very smart students and very good athletes. These schools excel in BOTH athletics and academics

    Pitt is smart with decent athletes
    Pitt would be tops in a conference like the MAC or AAC (CFU’s conference).

    But the leadership at Pitt has historically thought you cant be good in both school and sports, and the ACC proves them wrong.

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    1. a public school has a definite disadvantage when compared to private schools academically. Most of the ACC is private. wwb

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      1. yes thats true but then again Pitt is as close to private as you can get with only 8% of its funding coming from the Commonwealth

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          1. old by laws
            there shouldnt be any political appointees on this board since Harrisburg screws Pitt every year with funding

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  28. Hey Reed,
    Don’t die.

    You’re undoubtedly running the best Pitt sports blog available to the fan base. And whereas I’ve often been a critic of yours —we’ve had arguments dating back to the inception of Chas Rich’s Pitt Blather (2004)— I am equally impressed with the quality of the product you roll out on a nearer-than-not daily basis.

    Thanks for you unswerving dedication to maintaining the site here @POV.

    Best wishes for a speedy recovery, my friend,
    —Neil

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  29. Just finished watching the game again on demand. PITT wins again…. and a couple things:

    WR #17 was close to jumping the snap count all day and I believe he did on the 44 yard pass he bobbled out of bounds and that was not a catch. Narduzzi definitely tried to call a timeout and the ref on that side gave his the evil eye and step off the field. I do not understand how and why PITT continues to get crapped on be the ACC refs?

    PITT has played against 3 really good QB’s, two of which have been mentioned as Heisman Trophy candidates. (not looking up the numbers but i think I’m close)

    McSorely, held around 50% completion rate and 150 yards

    Milton. He had a good game by the measure of most QB’s but I believe he was held under his average in yardage?

    Dungey who most likely play in the NFL next year if he ever leaves Syracuse, 18-38 2 interceptions for 195 yards.

    Throw in the GT QB’s and I think the PITT pass defense is having a decnt season

    All in all, not to shabby and points to a weak offense or more precise, a weak passing game by PITT.

    It was so great to see the familiar guys and gals at Fran’s tailgate. Seriously to many faces to name all of you. First sighting of TomCat, Big Dan72 great meeting you both. POVer’s who haven’t stopped by yet, head to Red 5-A first chance. Also missed some of you and sorry you couldn’t be there. BTW, I think the Tom’s tied the Jeff’s in attendance. 3-3

    Reed, please keep us/me updated on your surgery outcome and recovery. and Good Luck!

    Big win for PITT and I won’t rub it in too much, the team still has a way to go… ike

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  32. Oh and my buddy Pitt-cocks and his brother who I hung out with at the pre-game tailgate, the club and the walk back to the post-game tailgate.

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  33. Opened the PG this morning and found the game coverage on page 5 of the Sports section. Might as well not have a local paper.

    Went to the game yesterday with no expectations beyond reconnecting with old friends. Stuck it out to the end and was rewarded with an exciting win.

    No idea what to expect from this team going forward but things don’t look as dire as they did last week.

    Best to you Reed.

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    1. Back in the dinosaur age when I went to Pitt, the results of Pitt football were always on the front page of the sports section with a big pic. And the newspapers wonder why they can’t sell copies. Daah! They are so out of touch they don’t even know what sells in their own market.

      Liked by 1 person

  35. From Feldman

    This is interesting: 4 of the nation’s top 5 passers (Tua; OU’s Kyler Murray; Toledo’s Mitchell Guadagni and OhioState’s Dwayne Haskins) are all first-year starters. UGA soph Jake Fromm, the No. 4 ranked passer is the only returning starter among the leaders.

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    1. Here’s another one:

      Iowa State quarterback Brock Purdy: In addition to being an All-Name team selection, Brock played purdy well in his first real action off the bench, a 48-42 win over Oklahoma State. Purdy, a freshman, tallied 402 yards of offense and five touchdowns.

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  36. BTW — James Madison and the fightin’ DiNuccis got upset yesterday by Elon.

    Elon was a 37 point underdog….

    Go Pitt.

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  37. Again Reed!
    Love you buddy and am fervenently praying for you!!!
    Also, very very happy for our players yesterday who could of easily folded but stayed the course for a well deserved win!
    #H2P

    Liked by 1 person

  38. Judt waking up from my victory coma…
    Joking…been up since 5 eating tailgate leftovers. Haha.
    Thanks to all that traveled to the game…made for a great tailgate.
    Even had a ‘storming of Red Lot 5A’ after the win for the post game tailgate.
    Ike, as soon as you walked away George Aston as his dad stopped by.
    I’m more excited to go to Notre Dame now…planning on hooking up with Jake (George’s uncle and a fun guy)
    Ike, please tell Angie I totally enjoyed her food…finished them off earlier today.

    Liked by 1 person

  39. Josh Conklin and his Wofford Terriers won again 21-10 over Chattanooga… Josh learned to coach D under the Duzz.

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    1. Conklin replaced Mike Ayers. 20+years at Wofford. Either Conklin a good coach or he”s playing with Ayers players. Wofford is a consistently good FCS football team. From what I know Wofford still plays a modified triple option.

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  40. Best wishes Reed for a succesful procedure and a speedy recovery. Watched the game replay last night.

    Good- Kessman, running game and a score on defense
    Bad-Some of the play calling.
    Running game is doing great and trying to pass on 1st down. Left us with too many 2nd and long situations .
    Ugly- can’t really come up with anything. Maybe the NC game still. Could be 3-0 in coastal if we beat NC
    H2P!!!!

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  41. Forgot to mention how nice it was to see Altoona Josh again who brought his family. Great looking group.
    Emel, you mentioned on the previous thread about how this is an experiment to see how much we can endure at the ketchup bottle. When the game went to overtime one of the group that sits in front of us says: “Haven’t we suffered enough?”. LOL.

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    1. lol….yea Pitt use to be involved in a lot of Social Experiments. They wouldn’t do one on their own fan base………would they ? ha

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  42. Best of the rest

    Elon: You’re darn right we’re kicking off the best of the rest with with a FCS program. Elon beat No. 2 James Madison 27-24 on Saturday as a four-touchdown underdog (and a 40-point underdog at one point in some books). It won’t register on many radars, but that qualifies it as one of the biggest upsets in the history of college football from a Vegas perspective.

    Hard to believe but The Nooch threw for 316 yards. 24 of 41.

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  43. And Herman is working his particular brand of Magic in Corvallis.

    Oregon State: #Pac12AfterDark takes many forms, but the Beavers going backwards to achieve the rare third-and-54 in a 56-37 loss to Washington State is among their best manifestations. Take a look at this series below. Yes, the down-and-distance is absurd, but Oregon State(1-5) actually converts the first down (or nearly converts) twice before the plays are brought back by penalties. That’s just impressive

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  44. Illinois: The Illini beat Butgers 38-17. That’s Illinois’ first Big Ten win since November 2016. That’s a streak of 13 games and some 700 days. Thank goodness for the Scarlet Knights, eh?

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  45. No question Pitt needs to drastically improve its passing game very quickly if it has any chance at 6 wins. Right now I can’t see how we get there with non passing offense. A great win yesterday but I’d be willing to bet big on ND next week based simply on Pitt’s inability to establish any pass game.

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  46. Maybe I just do not see it but still can not see more than one more win with this team which gets back to my simple system of using composite of my favorite 3 pre season rankings and add up the # above Pitt and the number below Pitt. That leaves Virginia as the only remaining lone win. Always thought ACC refs were bad but after yesterday at game I can say the replay officials can be added to that category also. When the fans also have instant replay on the big screen the bad officiating sticks out like a sore thumb. Kudos to fans at game .It sounded like 40 ,000 there and without the sound system playing.

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  48. Let’s see, let’s see, what are the remaining winnable games for PITT? Here’s my list……….. Notre Dame, Duke, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest and Miami. Will PITT win all those games? Highly doubt that and would bet they don’t but I see a good possibility of 3 or 4 more wins in there. PITT played a good game yesterday against a good team..

    Thinking Pickett missed Mack yesterday.. Hoping PITT beats ND next week as they are one of my most despised teams in the country….. right behind the cult and sinful school in central Pa.

    Avonte Maddox starting for the super bowl champions today. eh gotta go

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  49. Connor just showed Steeler Nation what an asset he is. Accounted for something like 180 yards of offense today!

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    1. until next weeks loss against the Domers

      Doesnt change the fact that Pitt’s line is generally bad save run blocking
      Kenny is not very good and Coach said he’s the next Dan Marino
      And Narduzzi almost had a Wanny moment with playing for the tie

      Doesnt change what I think about Narduzzi…he’s not a very good recruiter or Head coach
      So Pitt wins 5 games instead of 4

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      1. TX – who would you rank as the better team?

        2016 Clemson ranked #2 (eventual NC’s)
        2017 Miami ranked #2
        2018 ND ranked #5

        Pitt was/is the heavy underdog in all three games.

        H2P!

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        1. Clemson with no doubt
          Miami was unmasked as a pretender
          I think of Notre Dame as a pretender but the game is on their turf and they rank 40th in rushing defense
          They will take away Pitt’s strength
          Line is around 21 and I think Vegas got it right.
          Domers 38, Pitt 17

          Liked by 1 person

  53. Pitt will need to put on their big boy pants next weekend. Pitt will open about a 22 point dog. Rushing yards will not come easily next weekend. Syr is easy to run against, they are ranked at/near bottom off ACC against the run.

    ND appears to have size and speed this year. Their DL is legit. Pickett will have to make some big throws next weekend to have a shot at a win.

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  54. Pitt is competitive next week. No real pressure as everyone expects a ND win but Narduzzi has his team inspired and they develop some useful misdirection gadget plays to stay in the game.

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    1. Pickett and Mack recover from minor injuries and both have breakout games, allowing the run game to gel.

      The irish get “punked” by the Narduzzi upset machine.

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  56. Just watched a replay of the game for the first time….

    The GOOD – getting a much needed W. Kessman and the kicking game. Ollison and the rushing attack. Defense holding some drives to 3 vs 7 points.

    The BAD – still giving up 37 points in a home conference game. Not sustainable. The o-line play on passing downs. 3rd down efficiency is really poor. The downfield passing attack is tough to watch and doesn’t look like it is improving at all.

    The UGLY – while the win feels great, the coaches have absolutely no faith in Pickett. 4th and 3 on the 48 and you rely on Wildcat? Playing for a freaking 45-yd field goal to go to overtime instead of trying to win the game left me asking a lot of questions.

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  57. GOOD – the win of course.
    – QO with 194 yards rushing + 1 TD.
    – DH with 107 yards rushing + 2 TD’s.
    – The irish are ranked #5.
    – Wildcat formation & production.
    – Kessman kicks.
    – Pickett’s handoffs.
    – INT’s by Watts and Coleman.
    – QW and DH defensive efforts.

    BAD – weather delay.
    – ACC refs.
    – Pickett’s passing.
    – P.Ford and McKee missing.

    UGLY – Pickett’s INT to end the half in scoring position.
    – Pickett’s fumble.
    – 3 for 12 on third down conversions.

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  58. Things that make one wonder:

    —So on the Orange’s first play, Briggs is lined up 10 yards off their slot receiver. You don’t have to know anything about x’s and o’s to know that with a quick drop Pitt can’t cover that guy. Sure enough, completion for 9 yards.
    Orange second play – same formation for them and same defensive alignment for Pitt. Result – another simple completion to the slot guy for 7 yards…
    That’s the bad news – we gave them two free plays to get the drive going. The good news is that after that drive, I don’t remember us lining up 10 yards off the slot guy again. And I know we’re worried about the slot guy running past Briggs, but what gives with an approach that was perfect to build the Orange’s early confidence?

    And where are our quick pass plays off two step drops?

    Go Pitt.

    Liked by 1 person

  59. E E
    The fumble blind hit before he even got feet set.
    Plus it was a helmet to helmet hit and possibly a face mask.
    Hope you played well

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    1. Kman – correct on the blind side hit and helmet to helmet crash causing the fumble. It was ugly – my wording makes KP look bad and that was not my intent.

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  60. Reed, sending prayers for you to have a successful surgery. Rest well commander. We will be here anxiously waiting for your return.

    I missed the game because I was visiting wineries in the Finger lakes. It was a totally enjoyable afternoon. I did see that we were winning at the half- after that I began checking the score on a regular basis. Did not realize there was a weather delay. Couldn’t figure out why they were still playing at 4:00. Finally got back to our hotel room and I listened to the end of the 4th quarter and OT. Could not find it on TV- and we were not far from Syracuse – at the home of former Orangeman Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis! I figured some station would be running it, but no. Hope to find it to watch since I did not DVR it because then I would have jinxed the team. The New York sports reporters talked about how Syracuse came within seconds of beating Clemson last week, only to then lose to a lowly Pitt team….

    H2P. Glad so many POVers helped the team bring home a W. Man, those uniforms looked sweet!! See you all at the Duke game.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Cayuga or Seneca Lake? The Cayuga Wine Trail was my favorite. I hope you were able to see Ithaca and the Cornell campus. 8 years spent in Buffalo…my undeserved purgatory. The wine trail was a quarterly pilgrimage for me. Actually, I liked my stay in Buffalo. Some of the best eats anywhere.

      Like

      1. We went to Six Mile Creek Winery in Ithaca, then over to Seneca Lake and Wagner’s Winery. Had a great time and came home with 2 cases of vino. We did not get to the Cornell Campus. Two years ago we hiked the gorge trail at Allan H. Treman Park. Beautiful.

        Like

    2. agree with TX Panther about Cornell… also some pretty good eateries in Ithaca. Anne, if you’re still there, take a ride about a half hour north of Ithaca on the west side pf the lake to Taughannock Falls — gorgeous scene from the overlook

      wwb

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Went past it but did not stop. We were on a time restraint schedule and had to get back to Elmira for a banquet at 3 pm.

        Like

  61. Take care Reed and get some rest tonight. We prayed for you at church today. Remember not to jump up too fast when Pitt scores next Saturday.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. @ChrisDokish
      23m23 minutes ago
      More
      Pitt no longer joins Rutgers as the only P5 teams ranked No. 100 or lower in both total offense and total defense. Now Pitt is No. 106 in total offense and No. 95 in total defense.

      Makes me feel so much better….

      Toasting to you now Reed for guiding surgical hands and a speedy recovery.

      Like

    2. Notre Dame is the perfect opponent for anyone recovering from surgery. I would be more worried about jumping because of a bad play call or obvious homer call by a ref than any movement caused by a Pitt score.

      Liked by 1 person

  62. Reed… I sent you a private note but hang in there. Many prayers for you.

    Thank you Fran for the tailgate! Met many famous POV celebs including my idol Ike and Erie’s beautiful wife Rachel.

    AWARNING – I spent 2.5 hours on the parking lot which used to be the Parkeay East out of town. SQ Hill is closed and it is one lane. We literally did not move 3 car lengths for an hour. For you POV Pittsburgh residents “how the F do you drive in this city”!

    Love Pickett still. No pass proctection. I ask you all “give him a chance!” He’ll be a superstar.

    Great feel after a win! It shouldn’t feel this good. Duzz saved his job for another year. H2P

    Like

  64. Pitt and OK both give up 421 yards per game. Pitt gives up 5 more points per game. But obviously the Sooners take their football more seriously.

    Like

  65. Reed
    ,Billy Joel has you covered he sang”only the good die young” You will live to be a 1000. LOL Good luck.

    Like

  66. I have an opening in my foursome on Wednesday morning – need a 4th – supposed to be sunny and 75 degrees in Lancaster, PA.

    Let me know if you can join me for a fun round of golf.

    Dan72 is still stuck in traffic near Squirrel Hill and cannot make it.

    I watched the replay of the nd vs vt game last night. The 1st half was dominated by vt even though the score did not indicate that. Pitt can take down the domers, not sure it will happen, but I’ll be rooting for the Panthers on Saturday (after golf of course).

    H2P!

    Like

  67. Reed – prayers your way. Good luck and we got your back.

    I spent a lot of time at the game watching the O Line and Kenny’s footwork to try and figure out whether Kenny is the problem or the line just stinks at pass blocking. I’ll need to watch the replay but I still think it’s a little of both – but more the poor pass blocking is the majority. Really disappointed that Bookser, at least yesterday and against UCF, just gets owned by his man almost every time. He has no feet and can only go straight ahead. The rest of the guys weren’t much better but he stood out to me yesterday. Hard for a freshman to learn the position when you are running for your life 2 seconds after the snap.

    I asked my wife what her favorite part of the game was and she said Kessman’s celebrations after his two field goals. I said – wait, what about 300 yards rushing?? She said nope, ” I bet his mom is very happy”….

    Like

  68. Exciting game and glad the good guys won. I thought our defense play improved, although if you give up 37 points, you’ll lose more often than you’ll win. Also, was I the only person who thought that if we were playing a Carolina school, the ACC refs would have made at least one pass interference call against our D? Not saying our coverage wasn’t good, because it was, but anytime there is a borderline call against some of the old guard ACC schools, I feel as if we never get the call in our favor.

    I think Dungy took a pretty serious pop from QW on that play where he fumbled and that might have caused him to be a little off.

    I really think Bookser is better suited playing guard.

    Like

  69. Not to say we are good, because we are average at best, but we are a dropped easy pick six from being 3-0 in the ACC.

    Like

  70. htp123..don’t ya just love the way a wife watches football !!! They bring a sense of civility and light-heartedness to the game and being PITT fans-we boys need their perspective.

    Like

  71. Good:
    OL run blocking. It has been since Conner was in the backfield that a Pitt OL dominated a defense running the ball like they did this past Saturday. Borbley can coach run blocking. Two 100 yard rushers. Running the ball successfully time after time when the D knows it is coming. You don’t see it often.

    The D played well with the exception of losing containment on Dungy.

    Bad and Ugly:
    Pitt will get crushed by ND if they can’t pass. They will stop the run and just rush the crap out of Pickett until he proves he can throw down field. The short passes will not work either if the entire defense is within five yards of the line of scrimmage.

    Where are the QB run plays? Most college teams with a mobile QB have designed run plays. Let Pickett use his legs.

    Like

  72. I once calculated that I spent 2 1/2 years of my life on the parkway east. The fact that Pitt never got a beltway, like other major cities remains a tragedy. The Parkway was built in the 50’s. So glad I’m retired and only have to deal with it occasionally.

    Agree about Bookser, too bad we don’t have a young tackle and could move Bookser back to guard. I think Herndon is getting beat often as well. Next year will be a disaster again if Narduzzi doesn’t find a transfer or two.

    Still very happy that so many guys made plays in this game, where were they last week, when it seemed no one could make a play when needed? Hopefully it builds some confidence. You have to hope that this wasn’t the peak performance for the year.

    If they really turned a corner on the running game and can play ball control it will keep them in a lot of games. Like POD said, if the opponent shuts down the running game, like UNC, we are in trouble.

    If anyone forgot, I hate ND.

    HTP

    Like

    1. The super tight 2 lanes through a tunnel was sub-moronic with zero foresight from the engineers. Had to have been WVU engineers….

      Like

  73. Re: Kessman. The guy has one of the best legs in football! Period. And cool, did you watch him when Syracuse called the two TO’s to ice him. He just casually walked around, appeared totally relax. It was like he was thinking, “it’s all cool, everything is fine, I’ve got this, no problemo.” Damn that was awesome. Confidence earned and confidence deserved.

    Like

  74. While I was overjoyed that a Pittsburgh city-leaguer made the game winning play, it is also bittersweet. I believe Coleman (Brashear) and Tyrique Jarrett (Allderdice) were the only city leaguers on the Pitt roster this decade.

    Rod Rutherford, Kevan Barlow and Cutris Martin are significant Pitt players from the not so far past (and don’t forget WVU’s Major Harris and Rasheed Marshall) but sadly city league players in D1 football are way too few and far between. In Cleveland, some of the best FB teams in the state were St Edwards, St Ignatius, and Glenville ….and if you look at the state rankings in PA, you will see Catholic or magnet schools from Philly well represented.

    I know Cleveland and Philly are much larger than Pgh but it is sad the lack of talent / development coming from the area. I honestly can’t remember when Carrick, Oliver, Westinghouse, etc had a D! prospect (maybe they did but can’t remember) …. and has Perry produced anyone since Rutherford or Peabody since Barlow? Maybe, maybe but I certainly can’t remember.

    wwb

    Like

    2. It seems to go along with the lesser number of elite players in the WPIAL. I also think that some of the city kids transfer to Penn Hills and Woodland Hills for Football and of course Central Catholic.

      The downward trend overall in WPA has made recruiting much more difficult, having to go nationally, or at least in the ACC footprint.

      It used to be about 50/50, but continues to trend downward.

      The other thing that is obvious is that City schools are no longer producing the basketball players they once did.

      Like

    3. wwb,
      Please don’t forget the Carrick 5th grade art class who UPitt mentions as the ones who paint the 50 yard
      logo on Heinz Field…………..

      Like

  75. Reed,

    I hope you have a speedy recovery.

    As for the win against the orange!

    Good

    Ollision, Hall (out of the wildcat only) otherwise Hall still gets stuffed as he hesitates to often before hitting the whole.

    Kuddos to the coaching staff for realizing that Hall is pretty effective out of the wildcat because it allows him to hit the whole without hesitating and takes advantage of his straight line speed.

    Bad

    Kenny Picketts knee looks to me to something he is playing thru. He just doesn’t look the same back there but then again there is no pocket at all.

    Ugly.

    O line’s pass protection. D line’s inability to putt pressure on the QB.

    Where are the tight ends?

    Like

    1. Altoona — agree on KP’s knee affecting his mobility – which is further hindering Watson on the play calling.

      Disagree a bit on Hall — I don’t see too much hesitation, he runs hard. If there’s no hole there, he still gets at least a couple yards….

      Go Pitt.

      Like

  76. Hope for speedy recovery for Reed.

    ND defense will load the box. Short very quick passes needed. ND secondary is suspect. I worry about our bad second half play.

    Hope is ND looking at us as an easy win.

    Like

  77. Agree with previous comment about good old boy refs. I thought for a while Sat. we were playing NC or WF the way officiating was going. I think they just do not like us but maybe ( more likely) the ACC Officiating needs an upgrade. Had 2 aquaintances that used to do Eastern Independents and Big East officiating . They both said home field rules apply in some schools. Joepa was famous for his ” any question on a call goes our way” and the implication was it was an offer you could not refuse. Instead of yelling at game time Duzz needs to put on his Godfather hat at the next ACC meeting and BEFORE each home game.

    Like

  78. Some of those city schools have closed and others have consolidated. Peabody shut down in 2011. Westinghouse has an enrollment of about 700. Shady Side Academy is about as far away, from Pittsburgh kids living in the city, as the moon. It’s a private school, with a hefty tuition, located in Fox Chapel.

    Like

  81. With the stout ND DL, Pitt better have a huge package of third and long plays including plays for deep in their own end. I’m guessing they will be throwing to the RBs a lot, and may even have a quick kick up their sleeve. We may also see some high risk first down passing by Pitt to change things up in obvious running situations, and some play action if Pitt has some success running the ball. Aston may make some catches this week.

    Like

    1. VT had success moving the ball in the 1st half vs ND. Throwing over the middle and mid-range out patterns seemed to work with their 2nd string QB. Accuracy will be key. That should free up the loaded box, but the play calling has to keep mixing it up and not get predictable.

      I bet we’ll see some sets where QO and Aston are bookend TE’s because they are better blockers than any of the TE’s except Medure. When QO is in at tailback, Medure should be the TE.

      On D, add QW to the line as a rushing end – he seems to get the most pressure on the QB of any defensive player. I’m actually looking forward to this game – I think the irish are overrated.

      Liked by 1 person

        1. Have you watched them play? They barely beat Ball State and Vandy.

          In the 1st half vs VT, the Hokies outplayed the irish with a 2nd string QB who made two big mistakes / the score showed nd ahead at the half, but I thought VT dominated.

          Just one man’s opinion.

          Like

  82. Maybe someone already mentioned this. But. Ffrench signalling for a fair catch when he is standing on the goal line seems really stupid to me. A few times, he risked catching it on the one yard line. Am I missing something or is this playing with fire? He did it several times during the game.

    H2P

    Like

    2. Thought so too until I looked it up…apparent rule change this year says if you fair catch inside the 25 yd line, you get the ball on the 25. Safety first.

      Like

  83. For kickoffs, you can fair catch anywhere on the field now (even outside of the end zone) and it’s the same as touchback — ball gets spotted on the 25. NCAA is doing everything it can to eliminate kickoffs (the play where the most concussions occur).

    Like

  87. Ike, i know you and Reed talk frequently…. in talking to Reed-is someone going to let you know when the procedure has been performed and he is back in his room at Hopkins….

    Like

  89. Sorry, ike. There is (almost) universal agreement among POVers that Kelly sucks. The man’s ego is through the roof. His play calling has nearly cost him his job, but he is getting the players now, and they are so good that even Kelly may not screw things up. That said, ND hasn’t met a team yet that is peaking at the right time. Not saying Pitt is, but I can’t imagine ND goes the distance undefeated.

    Like

  90. sad that reed actually in his last week pod cast said “wirginis stinks” well Wirginis came up huge Saturday causing a turnover chain fumble for a td and hit Dungey just as he released his pass to end the game. Kudos Mr. Wirginis and Reed time to man up you were wrong so terribly Wrong and STOP TELLING CALLING KIDS THEY S T I N K

    Like

  91. No B, no such plans ahead of time. Reed went silent to concentrate and prepare. Like many and having gone through many major surgeries, I expect the Commander to be out of commission for a few days. I may try and call tomorrow? Maybe someone would pick up… ??

    I can’t imagine what was going through the heads of some of you not knowing that new fair catch rule. It must have been frightening seeing Ffrenchy waving his arm above his head at the two yard line? 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. On the fair catch, they must have at least been thinking – “well, hope they don’t review that”, or “at least we got that call”
      Funny it took to this game to notice, I am sure it happened in the Albany game….AFTER the first one went to the house #82!!!

      Like

  92. Notre Dame is legit.
    In years past they have been paper tigers, but they are really good this year. My position is they will be the best team we face all year.
    They have athletes all over the field.

    Like

    1. Better than PSU? I don’t like the Nitters, but straight up vs the Irish I would take Penn State.

      Like

  94. ND has been vastly overrated for much of this millennium. The exception was in 2015 when they lost at Clemson and Stanford in the final minute. Thus far, this year’s version looks very legit.

    As of today, ND, PSU and UCF are all in Top 10. wwb

    Like

    1. I know we don’t play them (this year), but WVU also in top 10.

      I would have really have liked to see what they could have done to NC State on the road, but it didn’t happen … the cancellation of that game is probably helping both teams at the moment in terms of the polls.

      Like

  96. Reed, Hope you are back from surgery now and are doing well. Both my wife and I have had stuff done at Hopkins. They are great both at figuring stuff out and then doing what needs done. Staff at all levels are great people too.
    Speaking strictly as a fan it was a great weekend for football. All my wife’s and my teams won: Pitt, Michigan, Steelers and Browns. All the games were great. The Pitt and Cleveland games were just outrageous fun, unbelievable! H2P Dirty Rich

    Like

    1. EE — that play where Hamlin stood up the Orange tailback in the open field was very impressive. The kid was moving fast and then he stopped like he hit a brick wall.

      Go Pitt.

      Like

      1. He is a star in the making and there are many Pitt fans who are bad mouthing this young man from Pittsburgh, PA.

        Like

  98. having worked in healthcare for the last 15 years, I can tell you that Johns-Hopkins is the Alabama of hospitals. wwb

    Like

  100. Actually the Golf Shores in south Bama is on my bucket list and said to be beautiful but I also know all about Hopkins. My first orthopedic dr. Dr Rathgeb moved to Baltimore and became the assistant medical director at Baltimore Medical Center before moving onto John Hopkins Orthopedic Dept.

    Like

    1. That whole area down there is beautiful from Gulf Shores, thru Pensacola, thru Destin (my personal fav) over to Panama City. Beaches are nicer than Hawaiian beaches.

      Like

  101. Seriously, good that Reed is in good hands. And he’ll have the best drugs — sweet dreams to you Commander.

    That first night is the worst…

    Go Reed!

    Like

  104. and btw, Kessman was not the ACC special teamer of the week amazingly. They gave it to a FSU guy who returned a punt for a TD

    Like

  105. The Good : We won and looked good doing it (the retro’s). Q & Catch 22

    The Bad : We almost lost to the Orangemen (which usually equates to a wrecked season)

    The Ugly : Our Junior High Passing Attack

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Did Revis, Donald and Sal Sunseri make every play they were involved with? I don’t remember Hugh Green missing many, but even the greatest college football defender whiffed occasionally.

      Liked by 1 person

  111. This is the most talented Norte Dame team I’ve see in years. They are bigger and more athletic than Pitt at every position. Do not think we can hang for a half with them.

    Like

  113. Reed,

    Thinking of you, Commander. You are in good hands: Top US Medical Schools: #1 Harvard, #2 Johns Hopkins, a VERY respectable #14 PItt. BTW Pitt’s Pharmacy School is ranked #10 in the nation.Was #9.

    We can transplant a liver and come up with the first polio vaccine; Why can’t we field a team that can pass block and rush the passer?

    Like

  114. Again as far as Hamlin being some kind of ACC Defensive Back of the Week… says something about the times when you get ACCOLADES while getting flagged for a MAJOR Penalty and being SOLELY responsible for the first TD of the Game.

    And I have serious doubts about the NOW “14” Tackles given the considerable number of Plays Hamlin is NOT even in on Defense.

    Not buying it.

    Like

  115. Bottom Line… my call on Hamlin remains the same. He is OPPORTUNISTIC.

    By this I mean that he makes the plays “in front” of him. However, when CHALLENGED… more often than not… he comes up on the LOSING END.

    Like

  118. Excellent film study article by Alan Saunders on Pittsburgh Sports Now.

    He shows the defensive changes Pitt made – on the third play of the game – after having Briggs play 10 yards off the slot guy and give up easy completions on the first two plays…

    And check out the clips of blocks by Aaron Mathews and George Aston on long Pitt TD plays… Good stuff.

    Go Pitt.

    Liked by 1 person

  119. Hey Major Majors, seems to me there could have actually been good coaching and adjustments going last Saturday? ah oh, there I go loving Narduzzi again………. or is it what happened?

    Like

  120. Did anyone else think that on the Dungey fumble, that he was stood up for a long period of time and that Pitt was fortunate that the whistle didn’t sound, indicating forward progress had been stopped? It was a qb involved. I watched the whole game in 20 minutes and that one stood out to me.

    Like

    1. I thought the same thing on that play…

      Shows how fine the line can be between winning and losing.

      Go Pitt.

      Like

  121. Thanks guys … I feel like I have a red hot poker in my lower back and it’s going to be this way for a while so we’ll see how this goes and hurts like hell though

    Like

    1. Not all healing processes are equal, try researching what can speed up healing, like high levels of quality vitamin C. Best wishes for a speedy recovery Reed!

      Like

    2. So GLAD to hear from you, my good friend!!!!! Youve already come thru all the pre-op stuff and the surgery!!!! That’s progress (even though I’m sure right now it doesn’t feel much like it!). Stay the course set before you Commander as we continue to lift you up in prayer,

      Liked by 1 person

  123. With respect to the Dungey fumble, I know some Syracuse fans who are blaming this loss solely on that call … to be fair, he was definitely held up for awhile, but I think it’s borderline whether his forward progress had been stopped. He was kinda still moving sideways and perhaps could have spun out of the tackle to get a another yard or so. He should have gone down immediately as soon as he got rocked by Wriginis.

    That’s probably a borderline call in our favor that we don’t get against Duke or UVA.

    Like

    1. Lucky Dungy is a big tough guy. Refs giving him a chance to brake free cost him this time.

      Seen the same thing with Big Ben, who doesn’t get the roughing calls that Brady or Manning got.

      Like

  126. Here is a good story for those of you that complain about Narduzzi’s hesitancy to divulge info about the health/status of his players — at least he hasn’t pulled this stunt (yet): https://sports.yahoo.com/hawaii-went-hilarious-lengths-keep-quiet-status-qb-cole-mcdonald-184024249.html

    Apparently Hawaii put the injured starting QB’s #13 jersey (with that injured player’s nameplate and everything) on a different person during pregame warmups so that the opponent thought he would play.

    Like

  127. Hang in there Reed, keep pressing that demoral button. You got a few tough days ahead but they will be over soon.

    Like

  128. My prediction that Ben DiNucci would be a very good SPREAD Offense Quarterback looks to be coming true.

    Quarterback Rating 156.31… All important YPA… 7.9… Just 3 INTs.

    Pickett numbers no longer comparable.

    Like

  131. Now it is quite interesting though, that McVittie is rated the Number 1 JUCO QB.

    That would have to mean, he would be better than Town, who wasn’t even the starter on his JUCO team.

    Like

  132. Hang in their Reed. I think the firs 24 hours after any surgery is the test of endurance and while I hate the narcotics I don’t think I let go of the magic button after my trips to the OR. Your short comment is more lucid than mine would have been.

    Like

  133. If Pitt is getting waxed and goose egged at halftime…does Nardo make a switch.

    Pitt’s Passing Offense sits at #118 this week. Below such juggernauts as Buttgers, Kansas and even Minute Rice.

    Like

  136. Dinucc should have gone to Penn as he first intended and then ended up with an Ivy League career and education pedigree. . Macvittie should not have got antsy so fast. Remember he only had one year at QB in HS. Who knows?

    Like

  138. Whatever happend to Adam ‘Baby Ben’ Bertke ? Who coined that and was suggesting how good he was going to be. LOL

    Like

  139. Reed, concentrate on getting better. The POV is on auto pilot as of now and as long as it takes. You don’t need to be editing and posting articles.

    Meanwhile, the weather in South Bend for Saturday looks dry and perfect for football and the fans. 53 degrees and no rain. Well, that’ if you can trust a weather report?

    Been doing some checking on ND and they look around the same as they usually do. Really good. It’s just they crap the bed once or twice a year. They always have the horses but the wheels can fall off every now and then.. I give PITT a slight chance in this game. PITT will have to play a perfect game. ike

    Like

  141. Best wishes Reed for a speedy recovery!

    The Good:
    The win.
    The running game. The run blocking. Millan in particular had some nice blocks.
    Nice execution of several screen passes to manage the pressure from Syracuse’s DEs.
    At times, Pitt’s secondary coverage and DL pressure. At times…
    Dontavious Butlers (WR) blocking on a couple of plays.
    Deano Baber’s play calling at times was questionable. Good for us.
    No panic when we were down at a couple of different points in the game.
    The strip sack and TD. A friend and Syracuse grad thought that his progress was stopped… I watched the play several times and it was just a good play by Wirginis.
    Syracuse being Same Old Syracuse after the sideline catch that was out of bounds. The next play the center snapped the ball over the QBs head leading to a 10 or 12 yard loss and a field goal. Good for us.
    Pitt’s tackling was good at times (and bad at times).

    The Bad:
    The fumble on the sweep that lead to Syracuse second TD.
    The INT just before half.
    Pass protection at times. Syracuse has two good athletes at DE. We should have been better prepared…
    Play calling at times (though, at times Watson did a good job)
    The refs.
    QB containment when we blitzed.

    The Ugly:
    Syracuse first TD drive. No resistance from the Pitt D. It looked like we were in for a long day at that point.
    The play call and throw on Syracuse first play from scrimmage in overtime. Good for us, but what was Babers thinking? And why did the Syracuse QB throw that ball (though it was a good throw and our safety was not in the best position)? Call three QB runs and Syracuse has a TD. Again, good for us.

    This team has a long way to go to be good. But, a win is a win.

    Like

  142. It will be hard to keep it close with ND when they challenge the run game with nine guys in the box all day unless Pickett & company figure out how to kick start the passing game this week. Getting Mack back would be helpful, in that regard.
    A win is a win though so, I’ll take it even though being so one dimensional is a battle plan that gets defeated easily when it’s the only tool in the offensive toolbox. The ND game could be ugly, due to that fact.

    Getting back to basking in the glow of a come from behind win in overtime, get’s me wondering where some of our old timer Pitt cheerleaders are after this Syracuse win? I remember when Dr.Tom said that he was taking a VaCa from the blog during fall camp until the season started but he’s been AWOL for a while now & the season is half over. I’m thinking he’s given up on the Pitt POV, since if he doesn’t chime in after this kind of win, I wonder if he ever will again. Anybody know what’s up with him?

    Like

  143. If you folks remember I put pesos on the Syracuse game on the Orangemen knowing I could affect the outcome in our favor…it worked….Can someone help me start a GoFundMe page for the ND game..it will take a little more than my previous wager to beat that Catholic school in the middle of a cow pasture.

    Like

  144. I watched ND on Saturday. Big, physical and smart. I think their QB may be the weak spot but you never know in college. Their fans will be pumped but maybe our kids can get a little lead and hold on for the first half.

    Like

    1. They have 2 great QB’s there…not to mention the kid from Richland (who they’re redshirting no doubt).

      Like

  145. It could be a repeat of the PSU game come this Saturday. Lack of running and no passing Pitt may need 35 from the bookies and that probably won’t be enough.

    Like

  146. Miracles of modern medicine… they’re kicking me out of Hopkins tomorrow morning instead of staying 3 days like they promised they are kicking me out in one day so it’s going to be pretty interesting

    Like

    3. I heard that they want people out as fast as possible because the best place to get a wicked infection is in the hospital. The most antibiotic resistant germs & viruses are in hospitals.

      Ice & take your pain meds without skipping any. The pain has to be kept down so it’s can’t get a foothold.

      Like

  147. Reed – Sounds like things went well if they’re giving you the boot so soon. May you heal quickly and may your pain be controlled and tolerable…

    Hang tough.

    Go Reed.

    Like

  150. Reed, ike is right, you should just lay low and read all the accolades you are getting. I think we would all panic if you took any extended time off since you are the heart and soul of POV “nation” (isn’t that the word everyone uses these days?), but the POV can get by for a few days while you recover. Just try to stay positive as you deal with the pain during recovery. With the ticker coming out fine, you are in even better shape than expected just a week or two ago. So hang tough!

    Like

  152. As long as Narduzzi doesn’t win this Saturday, Reed will be fine. LOL! I’m just kidding Longfellow … 🙂

    Like

  153. Emel… RIGHT on Voytik. Wrong on Bertke.

    However, If Chryst could teach Voytik to throw a pass, he could have done it with Bertke.

    Guess we’ll never know.

    Like

    1. not sure he ever taught Voytik how to throw, he was a playmaker who threw better on the run. When Voytik went to Arkansas St, he did not last as a starter for more than a couple games … whereas Mark Myers, MacVittie, DiNucci and even Bertke has put up impressive numbers post Pitt

      wwb

      Like

      1. well yea////all those u mentioned went to D2 or D3. I could care less what Chad did when he left Pitt. He played very well for us in 2014. Had a 140.3 QB rating. Led the ACC in conf games for QB rating, with Jameis Winston in the mix.

        Comparing what others did in D2 or D3 is kind of a joke. Come on wwb, you’re better than that.

        Like

  154. A few years ago I had a little over half a kidney removed on a Monday and they wanted to release me on Wednesday. I was a little unsure of that idea but they told me. Get out!! (Shadyside) Better off at home!

    Like

  155. Point being made about DiNucci is that he is very good operating a SPREAD Offense. This is what I said leading up to the decision to hire Watson.

    D-1, D-2, D-3… whatever. DiNucci’s ability to RUN and throw on the run are perfect for the Spread at any Level.

    Now it seems he’s ALSO being Well-Coached… which obviously isn’t the case at Pitt when it comes to Quarterbacking.

    Like

  156. For those who have attended a game at ND, I’d be curious about your thoughts on the game atmosphere there.

    I only went once – a loss during the Wanny years. I really like the simplicity there – the focus is first on the football game and then on the ND Band. No blaring music, no antics, just a well-staged football game.

    I felt like I had gone back in time, and I liked it (but I’m old…).

    Another thought, I hope Duzz plays everybody on Saturday. We’re going to get beat handily, so use that 4-game rule to get lots of freshmen in the game. Everyone would like to be able to say they played at ND…

    And a good chance to get KP off the field to reduce his chances of getting further injured. Same with Mack – I’d hold him out…

    So, might sound crazy, I’d gladly sacrifice this game for a healthier team for the remaining games (where we have better chances for wins).

    Go Pitt.

    Like

    1. I went to the 2012 Pitt-ND game (that we should have won, holding a 2 TD lead in the 4th quarter against the top 5 ranked Irish, we definitely outplayed them). I was also big fan of the simplicity of the place. The biggest thing that I noticed was the lack of scoreboard … it took some getting used to, especially when we (as usual) weren’t getting the calls and wanted to see the replay of just how bad the refs were, but I kinda liked the no frills set up. Of course the place has changed in 6 years — artificial turf, scoreboards, etc.

      Like

    2. i was there before the renovations – expanded, put in seat backs and got artificial turf
      when you still had a good view of TD Jesus
      focus is solely on football
      you know you are in a shrine
      old stadium with tons of character
      I felt like a character in the movie Rudy
      tailgaiting is limited around stadium
      most fans walk or get bused in
      twice visited as an undergrad; lost both times
      fans were not obnoxious (they dont view us as a rival)
      said a prayer the night before at the Grotto
      stood next to Holtz when his team was getting a blessing from Father…Lou is real short; I think Mark May could actually heave him over the pole vault without problem

      Like

      1. Another thing I remember at ND — there was no security check at all as you entered the stadium.

        Visited the grotto too. They have a nice tradition where the team walks thru campus to the stadium and fans line the pathways…

        Not surprising that Central Catholic has become a prep school for ND…

        Go Pitt.

        Like

    1. If they had done this prank a little earlier, Towne would have been there himself. If I am not mistaken, this is the school Towne came from immediately prior, but Towne had already transferred to PITT.

      Like

  161. Mr Yuk could be making a return, dependent on scoring margin. We got fortunate I think, with Dungy having a subpar game for him. 47% passing. a 3.3 ypa, is probably his worst game since he was a freshman, if not ever.
    Pickett actually had a better game QB rating than Dungy.

    Like

  162. FWIW, before the game last I week I heard on 93.7 The fan from Andrew Fillaponi who is the afternoon host and a Syracuse alum …. and he said that Dungy was not considered a high draft pick because of his inaccuracy. He had all the other traits … size, smarts, and a pretty decent arm but was often often off the mark.
    wwb

    Like

    1. I just quickly looked over his game logs for 4 years…… that was 1 of the 4 worst games he’s ever played.
      2 of the others were against Top 10 Miami last year and #17 FSU in 2015. Was among his 4 worst in both completion % at 47% and game QB rating. Just threw for 63% against Clemson last week.

      Like

          1. Yep, one never really knows from week to week, what is in store. Most of us had pegged Pitt to lose in a rout. Same as the GT game. GT just absolutely ran over L-ville this week like 66 to 20 or something and had some incredible rushing numbers. Against us they looked horrid.

            Like

  163. I went to ND for 3 consecutive Pitt games, 2008, 2010 & 2012.

    It was before the most recent renovation. My Aunt was a 30+ year season ticket holder and ND alum and gave up her tickets, in part because of the change in atmosphere- scoreboards, loud music, etc.

    As for the fans, they are the BEST fans in college football toward visiting fans.. I would rather go there than PSU, WVU, VT, etc.

    And while I agree they consider themselves “above” us and not necessarily “rivals”, I can tell you their fan base is very aware of how tough Pitt plays them and take nothing for granted.

    Like

  164. Agree with Jay on the ND fanbase. Went to 3 games there. Last one was a win in 2004. Tyrone Willingham’s last year I believe.
    I told Scooter I wanted to be the last person walking out of the stadium that game and I was…at the postgame tailgate on a totally dark parking lot one of the ND players was walking through the lot wearing a kilt no less and thanked us for coming to ND and that Pitt was the better team that day.
    Will never forget that day.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Great story lastrow ! I too, like to let the crowd file out of the stadium and enjoy the moment and then stroll out relaxed. Everybody in a rush….going nowhere. Except to sit in a traffic jam. Never could understand that.

      Like

  165. Been to a Pitt-ND Game at South Bend.

    First thing that strikes you, how SMALL Notre Dame seems Campus-wise. If you didn’t know better, you would think you were at an ELITE Private School that did not have a football team.

    As far as atmosphere, it’s the MIDWEST. People are nice, even to Fans of Opposing Teams.

    And following the Game, ND Fans do the UNEXPECTED. They head to Mass at the nearby Cathedral on Campus. It’s a Game Day Ritual.

    Like

    1. Funniest thing I ever saw when I visited ND in 2001 was a Pitt fan holding up 2 cans of Iron City Beer in perfect synch. W touchdown Jesus so that the pic looked like Jesus was holding up the cans of Iron!!! Not for college days alone….

      Like

  172. When it comes to fans I have found nice people that you can sit and talk with in most of our opponents. Especially though I see the difference in the ND fans from 50 to 60 yrs ago when the subway alum ruled vs today when you are usually talking pleasantly to a true alum. Temple fans had some nasty at times WV fans were often too drunk to talk and PS fans see your colors ,either make smart comment or laugh and arrogantly move on. In addition I have had very nice conversations with fans from Iowa, Michigan, Ohio State among others over the years.

    Like

  173. Kurt and I were there the year Tyler Palko dropped the F bomb on TV. Great crowd, and we were greeted in the parking lot, at the gate, and at the refreshment stand with “Welcome to Notre Dame”. Those people could not have been nicer. No one said anything to us as we were leaving the stadium. I would say the going to a game at ND should be on any true college football fan’s bucket list. I would go back in a heartbeat!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I went in 2001. After 9/11. One of the greatest experiences of my life. If you go, go to Mass w the team pre game. It is breathtaking. Go to the bookstore. The ND Glee Club is the finest in the country.

      Like

  174. Was there at Southbend to see the OT loss that we should have won in I think 2012 (actually predicted to the ND fan next to me that he would miss the FG, ugh). A fun game to watch though. Felt proud while exiting and bumping into a lot of fans.

    Great people, somewhat of a reserved atmosphere compared to say a rah rah Clemson, and just a nice campus. The bench seating allows a lot of fans into a small space.

    H2P!

    Like

  175. Annie.

    Agree on the “Welcome to Notre Dame”.. You’ll hear it all day. Great fans and stadium staff.

    But sadly, ND isn’t the same since they changed the stadium, post 2012.

    If you’ve never been there, go. But, if you’ve been there before, keep your memories and try some new places… just not Morganhole! LOL

    Like

  176. Reed, keep improving every day! I got that from a narduzzi quote. LOL, brother, my thoughts and prayers remain with you and your docs.

    I also thought Aston had a few real nice blocks and his biggest asset is blocking.

    Like

  177. When Hall ran the ball for the go ahead touchdown in overtime a Pitt fan in the end zone almost lost her tube top.which definitely would make the highlight reel.

    Like

  179. Dan, your Touchdown Jesus story reminded me that I saw two guys post game that ran out of propane…they are so drunk one was trying to heat a hamburger on a metal spatula with a lighter. I have a picture if him somewhere in my vault. Haha.

    Like

  180. I attended the 1978 Pitt-Notre Dame game in South Bend. Pitt lost 26-17. Joe Montana led ND back for the win. Great high level football game even though we lost. Old stadium, not very high stadium walls as seen from the outside back then. Incredible atmosphere. Wonderful bookstore, especially for ND spiritwear. Some facts to consider from the ND Blue and Gold reporter’s story on this Saturday’s game: Only 4 teams have beaten ND in each decade since the 1950’s– USC, Michigan State, Purdue. and Pitt; 9 of the last 11 games with Pitt have been decided by one score; Pitt seems to play to the level of its competition, at least in recent years (Clemson, Penn State, Miami); overall record between the teams is 48-21-1 in favor of Notre Dame. In the 1930’s ND dropped Pitt for a while since those Sutherland teams were too much to handle. ND came back with relish when Sutherland was gone and Pitt de-emphasized football for a while (no scholarships for one thing, for a while). Could be a good game this Saturday, especially if we can play ball control. If we can stay close into the fourth quarter, the Panthers can pull it off. Wishful thinking? Maybe.

    Like

    1. I lost $330 on that game …. biggest lost I ever incurred by far for a game. I was watching the game with a few friends at the local Italian club who were congratulating me early in the 4th quarter for making a great bet.

      To make matters worse, I decided to visit my parents right after that …. I think psychologically I needed to be with family.. And sure enough, as we began dinner, my dad says ..”did you happen to see that Pitt game? Can’t believe they lost”

      wwb

      Like

  181. One thing Pitt can learn from ND, NEVER QUIT, NEVER BACK OFF even if you are behind in the 4th Q and they should know that’s the way ND will play. This may be a bit of a barometer for the VT game. H2P

    Like

  182. Best wishes for a speedy recovery Reed. Was sitting in those end zone bench seats at that game in 78. Yes Montana threw all day on the Pitt corner backs. Small airport with a small building that had a bar. I sat next to Bob Prince while in the bar. On a side note, nice article on Borberly on DJ sports. He is commenting the OL is improving week to week and making good strides. Still coaching them for little things like angles and footwork and seemed to think they will better as the season progresses. Bookser playing tackle this year was a work in process but he has been playing well for his limited experience there.

    Like

  183. Great win in front of a Homecoming crowd. This is the type of game that Pitt seems to find a way to lose, so winning one was great.

    The Good:

    Obviously the win.
    Running game was impressive – even moreso because we could do anything through the air and Syracuse knew we had to run….still couldn’t stop it.
    Kessman was amazing. Saved our bacon.
    Defense finally created some turnovers which were key to the win.

    The Bad:

    37 points is still way too much.
    Absolutely no balance on offense. Passing game is non-existent.
    Do we even have a TE?

    The Ugly:

    ND is not Syracuse. The Irish play very good run defense, so we’re going to need some reasonable balance to keep this close.
    Oline is absolutely horrible in pass protection. Yes, Pickett has happy feet, but he has good reason. Not sure what can be done to improve the protection, but we will never get a passing game going if our Oline continues to play like this.

    Like

  185. If you are going to the game be sure to see (before the game): Football team going to church-beside the rotunda… The ND trumpets playing the the rotunda…concert by the ND band on one of their buiding’s steps (near the rotunda) we saw it a few years back when the band accompanied the group Chicago..fun to follow the ND Guard and band march through the campus to the stadium…simply the best CFB has to offer.

    Like

  186. Article is on a paid site on DK sports. As a subscriber I wanted to post some info on what was currently happening with him and the OL. Article was positive on the improvement as to game over game.

    Like

  188. Borbely, in his first year with the Panthers (3-3), brought with him a different style of coaching than what the team had previously, and he bluntly said that in spring, the offensive line was “not good” for what he expected of them.

    “The biggest thing is that they understand blocking is about space and angles, and they’re starting to understand that. It was kind of a foreign concept when I got here,” Borbely said. “Our style of practice, I told them, at the beginning of October we should start to hit our stride, in terms of understanding and playing fast, no hesitation.”

    The level of detail Borbely expects from his linemen requires a fair bit of physical and mental preparation. His teaching goes far beyond simply blocking the correct guy from the other team, and his players have had to learn to be pressed on details on the field and in the meeting room.

    “I do not give them a written test like a lot of coaches do. … We do a video test. It’s like, ‘OK, here’s the formation, we’re going to run “19 strike”, thought process of the left tackle, what have you got?’” Borbely said.

    “I have them verbalize to me, not just ‘I block the end.’ It’s, ‘I take a wedge-step, double punch, my aim point’s the outside number, I want to stretch him then inside arm bar.’ We test them in that fashion Thursday and Fridays — I’ve done that for a long time — and I think it’s really starting to pay dividends for them.”

    Reaching the mental point Borbely is after is no short process, even for the most veteran of Panthers linemen.

    Like

    1. no question the OL is better this year … but that’s not hard to do. Regardless, it is a step forward, just keep on improving hopefully. wwb

      Like

    2. Chet — thanks for that info. Very interesting. Sounds pretty darn sophisticated for OL coaching.

      (But I understand that Borbs was just someone’s buddy, picked up off the OL coaches’ scrap heap, so it must be a bunch of malarkey… )

      Did I get that right, ike??

      Go Pitt!

      Like

  189. For working with a Grad LT from the Mac, two guards who have little experience and a RT who never played that position the OL has done well. Hopefully the backups are also learning the nuances of OL play as well.

    Like

  191. I would be curious on Borbley’s thoughts for next year’s OL……….I mean we will really need to dip in the transfer market and get 2 quality grad transfers.

    Like

  194. Pitt will finally hire a coach with Head Coaching experience. And just our luck it will be …….
    …..ta da……Randy Edsal.

    Like

  200. Reed — we need an update on how you’re feeling.

    Hoping you’re encouraged but the next couple days could be tough…

    Best Wishes.

    Like

  201. If the Ol coach doesn’t think they can handle the DL then Watson is limited in what he can do. But the article suggests the OL is coming along and maybe enough to allow for Pickett to pass and be more aggressive. But clearly Narduzzi either didn’t see the OL was simply not good enough or he over estimated how good the O was. But Peterson is gone and it does appear Narduzzi kept him on to long. MSU has four returning starters back on the OL and they stink. So you never know.

    Like

  203. Fla. State has a bunch of 4 stars on their OL and they also stink. It’s really a very difficult position to recruit for. Consider that one of our best recent OLmen was a converted TE.

    Like

  204. Tyler Sear is saying ‘bye bye’ as well. According to PSN, Sear walked…..during Tuesday’s practice.

    Like

    1. Bad news galore today…

      Maybe we see some of freshman Mimes at TE now – (not sure of spelling).

      Or maybe EE’s guy Medure will see some serious time.

      TE Carriage is a true 6’7”. If he can run at all he could be a target for short, quick passes…

      Go Pitt.

      Like

      1. Bad news usually comes in 3’s. So what else is gonna drop.

        Yep it’s Mimes….as in an internet mime.
        I would imagine the Will Gragg just got some more PT.

        Like

  207. On the wild cat formation they moved a tackle in to play TE. For how little they throw to the TE(or anyone else for that matter) maybe they would be better off with moving another interior line man in to play TE.

    Like

  208. So Sear, a lumbering TE doesn’t like to block? Good luck to him, he’ll need it. Another story behind the story. Can’t wait for the overreacting Narduzzi basher’s to swoop down on this one.

    It’s Reynolds time. Loved QW the young man has been snake bitten and well, young……

    Like

  210. Here’s a thought guys, maybe Sear didn’t care much for this weeks game plan? oops, hope Kelly wasn’t listening.

    Like

  211. Wirginis is a big loss – but gives the young guys a chance to show what they got…

    If he had to go down, glad Wirginis went out after a game where he made a difference…

    Go Pitt.

    Like

  212. Wow, interesting news day…

    Good string above by Chet. The OL has been poor in pass protection, but overall, relative to last year and considering the personnel, they’be been a fairly pleasant surprise, if for no other reason than their performance in the run game (and that’s hard to do when you don’t have a passing game). I found some of Borb’s comments interesting as well.

    Still have to wonder if we have the right OC though, just don’t have a good feeling about the play calling.

    Wirginis: That’s a tough loss, and I think Ike said it best with his ‘snake bitten’ reference, but hats off to him, he played well overall this year, the best of our LB group, and glad to hear it sounds like he turned things around off the field as well (hopefully). Kudos to Quintin.

    Sear: Even though this is not a loss from a football perspective based on what I saw from him athletically and even from a blocking standpoint, his leaving kinda makes a statement. His odd decision to leave mid year like sticks out and reflects poorly on the Tight End usage (or lack thereof) and specifically questions the play calling. Maybe I’m reading into things, but that’s at a first glance. Maybe there’s more to it.

    Like

  213. I like someone’s idea, can’t remember who posted it.. but something along the lines of using 2 big rbs as the tight ends.

    Could be interesting. Not hard to forward pass to one when in shotgun. Plus they seem to catch the ball well.

    Then put Houdini or Davis back there with George blocking.

    Like

    1. 28 – that suggestion was from me – put Aston and QO as bookend TE’s and line up Hall in the backfield. Numerous options now – shuffle passes inside, jet sweeps, passes over the middle. And when QO is the tailback, put Truck at QO’s spot.

      Like

  214. Can’t wait for the under reacting Pitt FAN to swoop in.

    It’s about all of this. How many college football programs have kids walking out mid season? How many have kids tweeting about wishing they went elsewhere?

    You’re sitting in front of a burning building telling everyone to stay calm nothing to see here! My best Leslie Nielsen voice…

    You’re as predictable as any negative fan you loathe.

    Like

  218. Speaking of off the wall spring ball predictions, I indicated in Spring ball if not further back that Q Wirginis was very athletic and would not last long physically, as his athleticism when watching him play seems to make him reckless on the field and therefore, prone to injury. I wish him well as again, he is athletic and gave it all on the field.

    That said, we will now get our younger LB’s some extra time. I can see Pitt going back to their standard defense in an effort to protect the new linebacker subbing in for Wirginis. Either Pine or Reynolds, right? Any freshman that need work or does he go with the often recommended Phil Campbell, Paris Ford, Al Tucker, or even Cam Bright? Those players add speed and speed is the answer for teams like ND and most others.

    I liked Sear for next year and believe he was pushed into playing time early and wasn’t ready physically or mentally. Yes he missed a block that caused a sack or hurry last week, but that is not uncommon for elite pass rushers to beat tight ends one on one. Pitt messed up by letting Reeves go. Ultimately, it comes down to a boring offense that just isn’t attractive to player’s with great skill. Watson is calling last years pro style Alabama’s plays with no Alabama like talent on the squad. It will be interesting when the rest of the story comes out. I hope it is not a different issue other than an argument with the head coach.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Narduzzi would rather play guys with experience even if they are old and slow. That will be his downfall. He thinks these inexperienced guys will make mistakes. Yes – they will. But they will learn and become better players. Talent wins in the end. But coaches can get in the way.

      Like

  219. Pitt had a series in the UCF game, where they moved the ball sharply down field using the Triple Option….before the misguided long pass attempt that was picked.

    Perhaps they should use that offensive formation more, as teams don’t see it often, nor do they
    practice against it.
    And our passing sucks and generally results in a negative play or a wasted play. Sans the 5 yard
    pass that a WR like Ffrenchy or Lopes on the rare occasion breaks into a long gainer.

    Like

  220. ^^ To Darren above, one problem with your theory and it’s I do not loathe anyone on the POV. You want to read loathing? Read the anti Narduzzi comments.

    My thinking is Sear made a big mistake and a big miscalculation. I also think I got my comment right because I actually received a text from non other but YOU blaming Narduzzi for something? The Wirginis injury you mention? I guess Pat is to blame for keeping in a 6′ 5″ 275 lbs lumbering tight end to block on a team that struggles to pass and running wins games?

    Yes I’m predictable and pride myself in it. What many people do not understand or comprehend, I don’t blame people for things they are not responsible for. In other words, I’m not the complaining type. nuff said. ike sr

    Like

    1. I follow college football Closely….

      Other programs don’t have recruiting coordinators, equipment managers, and players all fleeing for the hills.

      It’s as bright as the sun if you’d take those prescription strength sunglasses off 😬

      Like

      1. LOL, players? . .. like in plural? Name them please. You’re welcome to your opinion but lets not exaggerate. I do want to get this straight though, so you’re saying that a true sophomore starting tight end who contributed to a PITT win last week and helped the team to the tune of 300 yards rushing and then yelling at his head coach and walking away because he didn’t catch a pass is Narduzzi’s fault?

        Like

  221. Concerning our OL. The reason they have appeared to be better on run blocking is mainly because our coach’s realize they are poor so instead of having 5 linemen block as normal teams do we have to use our TEs as blocking linemen to make up for their inadequate play.
    Hence, there is negative consequences that result which we are now seeing from our TEs that are leaving and/or are unhappy. They are receivers who are being forced to be blocking linemen and that’s not what they signed up for. So, how good really is this OL???? We will find out this Saturday. Also, can someone please explain how we went from being a 4 point underdog to a good Cuse team to a 25 point underdog in one week?

    Like

    1. If you’ve watched any of the games, the tight ends haven’t helped out room blocking much. Our runs around the ends are always failures for starters

      Like

  222. Jim Medure is listed as Aston;s backup at FB but practiced at TE this summer. A walk-on, he also was awarded a schollie in fall camp

    Ironically, he is from the same high school as Sear …. Neshannock

    wwb

    Like

  223. Really bad news about Wirginis. I expect ND will have a much easier time without him in there.

    The Sear news is troubling and speaks to a larger problem with this team and staff.

    Liked by 1 person

  224. Yeah real troubling? HCPN needs to buy an extra large playpen or crib to put these crybabies in that are starters who still feel compelled to complain.

    Like

  225. Re Backo P-G, HCPN announced on his radio show that Reynolds and Pine will be manning the MLB position v ND

    IMO … Sear can certainly be mad about TE usage and choose the leave. However, leaving mid-week in mid-season doesn’t speak well of his character. Plus, he will have as much eligibility remaining if he exits in December as he does right now.
    wwb

    Like

  226. The Pitt RC quit in the middle of the recruiting year and went to VT.

    Ox happened. Since then things have not gone Narduzzi’s way

    The coin flip problem

    Worst home loss in 50 years. In the 4th year, still giving up way to many points on defense.

    Narduzzi was trying to figure out if UCF was as good as UNC.

    Narduzzi said Pitt was going to be playing in the ACC title game

    Narduzzi blamed players

    Syr threw a 45 yard pass, they had time for 11 guys to run up 45 yards to snap the ball. All before Narduzzi could call a timeout. Inexcusable. Pitt threw a 15 yard pass to Lopes and then Pitt went slow at the line of of scrimmage and Babers called a TO.

    Clark
    Reeves
    Sear
    Koontz.

    Cannot blame these guys on a previous coach. Good coaches look at all aspects of a player when recruiting them.

    This years recruiting class now stands at 44. It will drop lower. This is from a peak at 26.

    Like

  227. … and now for something completely different as the Monty Python show use to say..

    GOOD NEWS! Can you handle it……………..

    Davis Beville to enroll early at PITT in January.

    Like

  228. Have a listen to this winner in Reed’s absence….. (picked up from youtube) I believe from PSN originally.

    Like

  230. How can you build up your roster of players when you loose half the number you recruit during the year,
    The loss of Wirginis will hurt not only in his play but also in his ball savy on the field. Wait till Aston leaves next year our run game goes with him. When everything is screwed up, the guy at the top is where the buck stops!

    Like

  232. Injuries happen. At least Wirginis went out on a high note with a terrific game versus Syracuse. Now we get to see what Reynolds and Pine can bring to the table as younger, athletic players.

    Not too worried about Sear. Put one of the jumbo tight ends in there to block since. The attrition at the position has been baffling.

    Like

  233. Can’t see the logo that well…looks like Pitt script inside a golden triangle?
    Appears to be language around the triangle? Can anyone see what it says?

    Like

  234. Just as I was trying to be happy about a win more bad news.

    There is real problems with this staff and it is clear.

    See Bjs comments above.

    Ox
    All TEs leaving
    Paris Ford?
    Recruiting is a dumpster fire
    Etc etc and on and on.

    In other news I bet Tim Salemn sleep the night in his office.

    Like

  235. Interesting that Saleem Blackwell who started last year has been passed by Reynolds and Pine.

    Next man up, we will learn about this depth we are supposed to have.

    Tough break for Wirginis. Hopefully the injury is not too serious and he will get his shot at the Pros.

    Like

    1. Blackwell was thrown in there after Wirginis;s suspension last year. Nobody had experience there and probably because he was the most athletic, he got the task. Reynolds also got PT last year at MLB.

      This past spring and summer, Wiriginis, Reynolds and Pine practiced there … and in mid August, Pine was moved to DE and a frosh (forgot his name) were at the position. The last tme Blackwell played at MLB was last Npvember.
      wwb

      Like

      1. No idea how he would fare with a lot of playing time, but Reynolds has always looked good as a MLB, and he has a decent amount of experience.

        Like

  237. Must suck to recruit and coach spoiled brats.

    Sear leaving because they aren’t throwing to the tight ends. It isn’t in the offense this year. His prerogative to leave and seek a more TE friendly offense. Don’t let the door hit you in the butt. He is a selfish quitter! Quitting on his team and friends.

    Fords lack of playing time. Obviously he is either too stupid or practices like crap. Don’t cry about it, make yourself better.

    Equipment manager resigns. Who gives a rats rear end? Good luck finding another cushy job that you had for decades.

    Wirginis got his stuff together this year. Hope he recovers fast and gets a shot at the next level. He earned it. Luckily, it is a position with depth.

    Like

    2. Depth? Well, thanks for the optimism but our LBs, or anyone else on the 95th ranked total Defense pretty much suck.

      Like

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