November 4, 2018
TO: Reed Kohberger
From: Dan Davis (Dan 72, danh72)
RE: Flex Offense for dummies

First, let me say that none of the POV are dummies, especially in basketball knowledge, but the title was an easy “get”. Second, in my 16 years of coaching basketball (5 at HS level) I’ve never run the Flex Offense but I sure have coached against it many times.
I saw Capel running a version of this vs Pitt Johnstown last week.
To understand the Flex, one has to understand the 1-4 offense that JD ran at Pitt. It is a patterned offense where the 1 is your point guard and the 2 your off guard, 3 shooting guard 4 small forward and 5 is your center. It lines up just as it sounds with the 1 out in front and the four others in a horizontal line across the foul line (high position). It can also be run with the four players “flat” below the baseline or the low position.

This offense can be run as a continuous motion offense or have set plays off of it. While the players move around in a pattern, for the most part, the center and small forward stay near the paint and the 1 and 2 guard stay back beyond the foul line. Many times on POV, I knew every set play that Jamie ran off this look. Unfortunately….so did the opposition. He truly was the puppeteer.
The Flex Offense was invented in 1967 by Rene Herrerias. It was originally called the “Cha Cha” and was invented to lure Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul Jabaar for you yountsters) 7’3” UCLA center away from the basket.
Duke switched to the Flex many years ago and runs it almost exclusively in the ACC. It is used a lot in the NBA because it gets every player involved. Think of it in terms of creating many 3 man triangles on the floor.
The Flex Offense, much like the 1-4 is a Continuity Motion Offense which means it is patterned. Unlike the 1-4, all players get to play all 5 positions which fits at team like Pitt to a tee, since Pitt has little height (6’7” tallest). It is called the Flex because it is usually initiated by two players standing on the lower two blocks (Those blocks are called Flex lines) of the paint crossing off of each others hips.. It features constant passing, cutting, flex screens, down screens, screen the screener (JDixons fave play).

While it is mostly used against man to man defenses, it can be used against some Zone offenses. A Zone offense is where 5 defenders do NOT move with the players but guard a specific area without vacating. If run properly, the Flex creates mismatches and can be a defenders nightmare.
I hope this helps as we all begin a new Pitt Basketball Era. We are so fortunate to have Jeff as our HC (thank you Heather). His recruiting has been nothing short of miraculous in the short time he’s been here. I predict this Pitt team overachieves and surprises even the most cynical of POV fans (UPitt?). I believe they will actually finish mid pack in the ACC and may even make the NCAA’s.

You will fall in love with Pitt’s new point guard.
As we go along in this new era of Pitt Basketball, I will gladly answer and update you on Capel’s version of the Flex.

Hope this helps.
H2P!
Dan 72 (danh72)

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.

110 thoughts on “BB Flex Offense for Dummies”

  1. Great post Dan. I’m much more of a football fan than a basketball fan but this is really interesting. Need more of this kind of stuff on the POV! So much excitement around Pitt sports right now. It’s a great time to be a Pitt Fan.

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  2. Thanks for the post Dan, anytime you want to educate us is welcome. One question … when you wrote above “While it is mostly used against man to man defenses, it can be used against some Zone offenses.” I’m sure you meant Zone defense. Correct?

    I haven’t gotten a chance to watch the Pitt BB team yet but am looking forward to watch the flex offense in action. Judging by the scores, it appears to be pretty successful so far

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  5. What was the offense that Stallings was known for — wasn’t it the motion offense or something like that? Is what Capel doing really much different?

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    1. Haven’t seen Pitt play yet but I would hope a difference between Stallings’ offense and Capel’s is that we may actually have a chance for some offensive rebounds this year

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    2. Please, Stallings was just an adviser at Pitt. The offense was whatever the players on the floor wanted to do, especially his first year. The second year, with no coaching, the whole thing was a mess.

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  6. Good read Dan. I am hoping you break your self imposed shunning of the Pete and attend a game or two this year. It really is a great venue and I agree Chapel will have a team worthy of it soon.
    There should be good seats available this year.

    I was not thrilled after the Pitt Johnstown game, but last night showed a lot of improvement already. It is unfortunate that Luther left because the biggest weakness is underneath the basket. The guards are fun to watch and it looks like Chapel has Wilson Frame playing within his abilities. Stevenson seems to still be in the doghouse which is unfortunate, I think we could use his muscle.

    I split my tickets with a friend, so I will attend half the games and am excited after last year’s debacle.

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  8. Dan

    Good read, thanks! Keep them coming, I enjoyed reading it.

    Went to the VMI game. The first difference that smacks you in the face between last years team and this years is their speed. Some can be attributed to the three freshman that are playing (what a great class). Some can be attributed to Capel raising the bar on conditioning. Some guys lost considerable weight and some put on must needed muscle. I have to admit I was wrong arguing with folks that said last years team was too slow. Johnson and McCowans could run circles around Carr. I think this is also a reason Stevenson is not playing much. He needs to drop some weight. He should look at Wilson-Frames transformation.

    The other thing that is very noticeable is effort. Especially on the defensive end. I like Capel’s take on effort. The standard is the standard. If you don’t change to meet the standard there will be change.

    I hope they keep rolling. Not sure they will win that much in the ACC, but with another good class they will.

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  9. Very good post Dan, but I’m afraid in my case you would have to write up a Flex Offense for Super Dummies for me to fully understand what Capel is running at Pitt.

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  10. Thanks Big Dan for the hoops lesson. I follow college basketball but no the NBA at all. I really don’t know the x’s and o’s all that well either so I learned something here.

    The two freshman guards are really something special for sure.

    Wanted to add that the following players from last years PITT roster are still on a P-5 squad. Eh, I won’t go there 🙂

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  11. I don’t know anything either, but I did notice our Home uniforms look like psu. Blue and white?? Where’s the yellow, gold, mustard or whatever we are using??

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  13. Dan72,
    Great basketball article! Thank you very much. Especially enjoyed the coach speak earned from many years as a coach. While I share your optimism I think ending up in the mid of the ACC and a possible NCAA bid is a bit above the radar. I will be happy with ending in lower 1/3 of the ACC and a possible NIT bid. We’ll all know not too far down the road from now.

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  14. I’m not sure what to expect with this team. Size and a lack of elite shooting, I’m sure, will haunt this team throughout the season … But, gosh darn, don’t they play hard on both ends of the court and with a purpose. Capel’s influence is already shining through. The team appears to like each other and there’s a “love for the game” spirit that has been missing for quite a while … going back to Dixon’s last few seasons. Effort + Enjoyment + Team will equal a few extra wins that we’ve missed the past couple of seasons.

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    1. what are your projections for this year?
      I see 4-5 ACC wins and 15 overall
      I dont think Pitt will get blown out in any ACC game

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      1. That sounds about right. I think they’ll be competitive. I don’t think they’ll quit like the team did on Stallings, or even Dixon at the end. I don’t see an NCAA, or even an NIT, but I suppose they could sneak into the latter. I think the big men are serviceable and will only get better. Capel will probably continue to ride the hot hand there. JWF still scares me. He got real hot last year at times only to go as equally cold. I don’t have complete trust in him, yet. He’s had a hell of a start to the season though. This game against Troy was close but not close at the same time. It was a good game where Pitt never could get real comfortable but still was able to win comfortably without a real threat. There was a nice bend but don’t break flow to the game. You need that to prove to yourself that you can withstand the runs that are inherent to basketball. I’m curious what the WVU press does to this team. I’m cautiously optimistic that they’ll get some points out of it with the way the team likes to get the ball up the court. At the same time, I’m afraid that there will be a boatload of TO’s. I think Capel will have this team ready to murder Duquesne.

        Liked by 1 person

        1. … I disagree on the blow outs. I think Duke and UNC will absolutely thrash this team. No fault to Pitt, just the talent gap is that wide.

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          1. Yeah. The team never seemed too bothered about Troy being pesky and sticking around. Just kept playing hard. I thought they did a good job keeping that stiff arm up … “you’re not getting closer than this”.

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    2. I thought their shooting looked pretty good so far. The FT’s & 3’s too. Will be interesting though how they shoot when they play a good team like the hoopies.

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  15. Excellent article, Dan. Though at first I thought I had clicked into the wrong blog!

    I was at the YSU game; I usually only go to a couple of men’s BB games per season. And I don’t know the ins and outs of BB at all, but I was impressed with the 3 freshmen guards. Seems like X is going to be one of those players that the other teams dislike – I’ll just say he has a ton of confidence and he doesn’t hide it at all…

    Trey McGowens made some “wow” plays in the YSU game. Great finishes at the hoop. Now it looks like JWF will add some much needed outside shooting.

    Going to be fun to watch this team develop over the next couple of seasons.

    Thanks again, Dan!

    Go Pitt.

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    2. Just mentioned to one of my friends yesterday, that since the Bills signed Matt Barkley and he immediately became the starting QB and had a good game and the Bills won in a rout of the Jets. That Nate Pete would probably be left go. Since he had dropped to 4rth string on the depth chart and NOBODY keeps 4 QB’s.

      He does leave holding some NFL records.

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  17. I watched all 3 games including last night’s win. Capel is using a high 1-4 about 70% of the time but when he goes into the flex, it is game changing. Troy had no idea how to guard it.

    Offensive boards are still a problem for this team and we got outboarded 14-7 last night. However, that’s much better than last year when we’d chuck it up ffom 3 and just run down to the other end. Johnson is a superstar at point and may be the most athletic player since Billy Knight at Pitt. You can’t miss him when he’s on the floor.

    And yes WWB I meant defense.

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    1. Dan – looks like Pitt is trying to spread the floor so the guards can go one-on-one and use their quickness to drive to the hoop. Looked pretty NBA-ish to me in style of play.

      But I don’t know much about BB strategy. Does that sound like what Coach Capel is trying to do?

      Go Pitt!

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    2. Yes X-Man appears to be the best Freshman Point Guard Pitt has had in quite a long time.
      Look at this line from last nite. 15 points, 9 assists & 7 rebounds. And he has numbers like this
      in each game so far as that is about his season avg’s. Plus he’s shooting 83% FT, which is a must
      for a PG.

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    4. Took my German niece to the game Monday and explained to her about the High Post offense that Pitt ranvery well. Saw more of it Monday then the previous games – but it makes sense with Pitt’s lack of size, but the quickness of the bigs allows some compensation in the High Post – Kene really played it well and got several ‘sneaky’ dunks because of the set…

      The flex weave Pitt is running reminds me more of Jimmy Valvano’s weave offense at NC State then of Coach K’s. Regardless, Coach Capel is building an ACC style team, with the opportunistic man to man defense and good use of jump traps, the quick release to a player running down the court after a rebound to take advantage of the quickness of their guards, and getting points off the secondary shooters after the primaries run the court and cause caos with the defense.

      The players have seemed to have bought in to the up tempo unselfish style of play. Size is going to be a killer this year – they played very good D against Troy – but unlike the previous two opponents Troy had some big men with a bit of talent – #23 was very good in the middle and Kene had trouble with him. After Kene got in some foul trouble Brown was able to take advantage of his quickness on offense, but has a long way to go to get comfortable with his defensive responsibilities.

      Peace needs to learn the game. Hands of stone are his biggest weakness, but he also needs ot learn HOW to be physical – he got called for a personal at one point because he was frustrated and used his wide body to push off, however he bent over into the defender rather then just holding his ground and letting the player come to him, hence the foul – the telling part was the expression on his face and his puzzlement after the call. I believe it was W-F who immediately took him aside and was trying to explain to him what he did wrong. Correctable error but shows he is still a long way from a finished player.

      I am starting to see the outline of the possible starting lineup, but it is only an outline. I really like Wilson-Frame coming off the bench as the 6th man – it gives the frosh guards precious starting experience – taking advantage of their enthusiasm and energy in the first 5 minutes – and when W-F comes in it seems to settle them down as his experience has allowed him to get some great looks at the hoop. I like Kene at the #5 – but he is undersized and they will need Brown and Peace to improve to provide the meat in the middle, especially when conference play starts.

      H2P

      Liked by 1 person

  18. Thanks Dan for a great article. This team is playing well currently! They are very well coached. As you pointed out they are small. Once the competition ramps up in ACC play we will have a much tougher time of things. I cringe a bit when you say we may make the NCAA tournament this year though. We will be competitive in most of the ACC games but I think, at best, an NCAA berth is at least a year away. We need some good bigs which Capel realizes and that is his recruiting priority at the moment. We do not want to raise expectations too high. It is better for us to exceed expectations than not meet false expectations.

    Liked by 1 person

  19. Good article dan72. And you’re right, Dixon’s offense became so predictable and only worked when we played at 100% energy level the whole game. His last several teams didn’t play with that energy. Which
    led to mediocre records.

    Jump to now… we’re so small, that also means we should be quicker than some/most teams we face.
    And if you’re quicker, you could/should use that advantage in trying to create more turnovers, which lead
    to more run-out, easier baskets.

    So after a couple more games, I would love to see JC install some sort of pressure defense(possibly a press) to try and take advantage of being a shorter quicker team and create some turnovers before a larger opponent gets into their half-court offense and can pound the ball inside.

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  20. Dan, you had me at three man weave. Just kidding. Really well done article and I will start watching the tube to pick up on the things you point out. I find it to be more difficult to watch for these things on tv as you are at the whim of the cameraman. I prefer to watch strategic things live and from high up.

    Typical 2-1-2 defense is jammed up with a 1-3-1 offense and conversely, attacking a syracuse 1-3-1 defense with a 2-1-2 offense works pretty well with the low post running. Overall, well done.

    This is the mid-week look the other way post Reed, so the POV’ers don’t worry so much about the deacons. Well played. I worry about the RPO this week of the Deacons, but it’s not like we haven’t seen that before!

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  21. About Big Dan’s article. Although it’s not about PITT football, it still made for a great POV article. If any of you guys and gals have something cross your cranium, sit down and write about it. It doesn’t have to be a War and Peace novel. Great job Dan very well done and I appreciated the lesson, really cool.

    Another thought: I was looking over the Panther players who have been seeing more playing time and wondered, what kind of shape PITT will be in next year? Yeah I know that it’s ridiculously early but none the less.

    PITT players with 2 or more years left of eligibility.

    QB: OK pretty easy one to figure out but look who’s also going to be around. George jr, Town, Patti and Beville, who’s is said to be a very good prospect. Not a lot of experience after KP but they have been around the offense now for awhile.

    RB: All I got is Davis and his playing time has decreased dramatically while Ollie and Hall have run like wildebeest’s out on the football field. This could potentially be a position of concern.

    TE: Does this really matter? Ok we have Carrigan and whichever backup offensive lineman PITT decides to plays there.

    WR: Some people do not like this group but I see a few guys that may help. L’Vique may have changed the landscape of this group. Plus we have DB Jenkins playing a lot and with Shocky and Mack, this group could be a solid unit moving forward. Plus Ffrench and Tipton returning for their last year. Looking good here.

    O-Line: ah oh, here we go again. But maybe not so fast. I have always contended that the center on the O-Line is the most important cog on the line, Morrissey will be a three year starter next year and that is a load of experience and maturity. PITT will also have Hargrove, Houy and Van Lynn returning with a good deal of playing time. But where are the upper class-men here?

    D-Line: This may be the best returning unit on the team? Camp, Watts, Weaver, Wheeler, Tywman and one of my favorites Patrick Jones the II. This group looks solid

    LBer’s: Two players in Elias Reynolds and Bright with 2 years left along with Brightwell and McKee. That’s not a bad start but a lot of unproven players behind this group.

    DB’s: Looks to be another strength especially considering that Narduzzi has this group playing way way better of late. Campbell. Mathias, Coleman, Garner, and Pinnock form a nice group for the next couple years. Along with Jackson and Hamlin next year this unit could be strong.

    I’m sure I left a few players out and messed up years of eligibility so chime in and correct me.

    Hope all is well with Upitt who has not been posting much of late. My one point and I hesitate to say this not knowing if Mark is ok or not but this really isn’t only about him. This is strictly my opinion and some won’t like it but here goes. If I have to read constant negativity about PITT football and then on top of that have to read how right someone is, I can take it. Yeah I may fire back a bit but when you’re right your right. So what happens when you’re wrong? If someones wants to remind a poster when he was wrong, that is not being classless at all. You know what they say about paybacks?

    I”ll stop here and remind everyone that I am often times wrong. I say that because I am often times reminded… 🙂 Hope all is well Mark.. . .ike … and no, I’m not proof reading this…

    Liked by 2 people

    1. If the only ones posting are those who are never wrong, there would be no comments. If you believe you have never been wrong, then that is at least one time you are wrong! Food for thought.

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    2. Ike – regarding AJ Davis at RB – could it be that he is being Red Shirted because of the great seasons of QO and Hall?

      If that is the case, next year you would have two RS SO’s in Davis and Sibley, one RS FR in Houdini and the FR 3* small back from FL. Pitt is also on the final list of three 4* RB’s for 2019.

      H2P!

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    3. ike — you had the makings of a nice article there in discussing who we will be watching next season…

      Maybe we can re-visit in the run-up to the bowl game…

      Go Pitt!

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  22. @Emel – this is one of the things I had said while Howland and Dixon were coaching. The team can only be successful playing both ends at 100% effort. The problem with those Pitt teams was that when it came to the tournament, they didn’t have a higher level to play at, and as such, often lost to a team or a player that escalated their game. Our guys just couldn’t do that.

    I haven’t watched the new point guard yet, but Levance (offensively) and Krauser (defensively) were pretty good point guards, but not much other than that in my opinion….and off the top of my head.

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    1. You hit the nail on the head about Pitt didn’t have another gear to go to….come Tourney Time.

      And that was from the lack of not recruiting many/any elite players. And the ones we did, were busts,
      like Sleepy, Birch & Mostella (never saw the court).

      I think we were able to bring both of those guys along slower since Fields backed up Krauser and Krauser backed up Knight their first seasons. X-Man is the starter immediately and logging huge minutes.
      Into the fire baby, immediately. JR played alot but he had Woodall who was a SR and leading scorer
      that year.

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    2. Defense & rebounding only teams get great results in the regular season but get crushed in the NCAA Tournament. Just ask Dixon and Virginia.

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  23. Capel obviously knows that you cannot win in the NCAA tournament without good guard play. Dixon never learned that lesson, or at least to be charitable he forgot it. Maybe he was just incapable of recruiting good guards who could penetrate and beat a defender off the dribble. And when you read those excerpts from Steve Adams’ book about how rigid Dixon was, it is no wonder the players didn’t like to play for him.

    Liked by 2 people

  24. Dan- great job, thanks! Even though it’s early in the year, I’d say this year’s team is already better than last year’s team at the end of the year. The positive improvements I’ve noticed so far this year: (1) defensive athleticism and pressure has added a new element to this team, (2) rebounding, though a weaknesses, looks much more promising this year (it’s easier to rebound when you go after the ball, instead of just turning and running back on defense after chucking up 3’s ala last year), (3) we have a point guard this year, which tends to come in handy, (4) we have offensive sets this year (another novel idea).

    One thing I’ve also noticed about this year, is guys tend to be up and down one game to the next, and this is to be expected with young players. Brown is clearly our best offensive big man, and a much better overall player than Peace at this point, I sure hope he finds his way out of the doghouse. I also, hope Ellison finds his role, he really hurt us last night; I’m really hoping he develops into a three point shooter.

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    1. Once Brown fully commits to playing D he will get the minutes. He has not fully made that step yet and it has shown in the early games.

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  25. Dan72, thanks for the chalk talk…I had totally lost interest in the game as it looked like a bunch of guys randomly running and firing up 3’s or stuffing the ball..In HS we used to run a weave out front with give and go or set picks against a man to man and spread out a zone either with a 2-1-2 or 1-3-1. You have sparked a little interest and a may return to observe the Panthers…That was an excellent educational post….

    Maybe you could come back from time to time for a little post game chalk talk…

    Liked by 4 people

    1. Oh the 4 man weave….I remember playing 8th grade basketball for the Whitehall Jr Hi Scottie’s and getting my ass reamed for always being in the wrong position on the weave. Math was NOT my thing. One interesting thing I remember Big B was doing layup drills and getting swats for misses (w shorts and jock…hurt like hell)…to this day I have never missed a layup!!!

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  26. UPitt is probably out hunting…he loves to be in the field and is quire lethal when it comes to marksmanship…Hail to UPitt and WUPsum…..

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  27. Dan72, I would like to echo BigB’s comments about you stimulating interest in basketball! I would certainly agree with Bernie that I would enjoy your post game thoughts on Pitt hoops. Perhaps you could dissect the previous night’s game and give us an ongoing assessment of this team’s progress, or lack of progress, as the season unfolds. Much appreciated!

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    1. Love to…with the Commanders permission. I posted on the Blather yesterday with 2 others. Glad to post here and always happy to answer questions. I will tell you Capel is a basketball genius and this team is way better than anyone can imagine. Johnson is the real deal at guard. Enjoy him he’ll only be here a couple of years.

      Liked by 1 person

  30. Once again Alan Saunders has an excellent film study article up on PGH Sports Now.

    One thing I hadn’t noticed is that former walk-on Jim Medure was at TE on several of the long runs. He wasn’t pancaking anyone, but he did block his man.

    And of course our man George Aston shines. But it’s neat to watch all the blocking and how well timed they are…

    And Stefano Millin, our transfer from the MAC, sure glad we got him…

    Go Pitt.

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  31. Bernie, I thought I heard “WUP There It Is” on the Stadium PA on Saturday. Did you have anything to do with that?

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  35. WUPs there it is… WUPs there it is…. yep heard it too…and the crowd in section 210 enjoyed the WUPs flag as I waved it to the beat….

    I gave a flag to Coach Powell in the hotel lobby in C-ville along with a short history… George told me Coach Powell shared it with the team…gave “ Kick” Kessman one.and George is delivering one to Ollie with “11/10/2018 longest TD in PITT history” and “ most offensive yardage in PITT history!”

    Might be the end of the WUPs flags… JeanieB is shutting me off….of funding !!!!

    Might be the end of the flags

    Liked by 1 person

  36. I hope we end on a strong positive note and begin to win more of the close recruiting battles… seems we’re always the bridesmaid and never the bride.”

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  43. ^^ EE, from an above comment. I admit to not being sure of the rule of red-shirting. I don’t know if a player (AJ) can just take a red-shirt for no reason after his freshman year? It does stand for reason to be an excellent tactical move though. Maybe someone else could help us out?

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  44. OT- Alright, I just can’t help myself here. Why in the hell didn’t Le’veon Bell just take the money and literally run the football? Does anyone think it’s a product of the apostrophe in his name? He really just should have took the money and run

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  45. iek, normally, you have 5 years to play 4 seasons ….. most take a redshirt in their freshmen year but that is not set in stone, Tyler Palko took a redshirt in his 2nd year, Until this season, if you play one down, you could not take a redshirt but now you can redshirt if you play 4 games or less.

    There are medical exemptions when a player is allowed a 6th year if he was injured for 2 years or was only able to play briefly in a season before being injured. Ejuan Price was given a 6th year. The NCAA judges each case on its own merit. One thing they look at is the player’s academic record. If a player graduated in 4 years or so and is pursuing a masters, they are more likely to give him a an additional year.

    Damar Hamlin is currently a junior. As a frosh, he played a couple of games mid-season but wasn’t fully recovered from his hernia. After next year, if the coaches and Damar agree, they can apply for a medical exemption and try for an additional year. There is no guarantee he will get it

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  46. Dan72 – nice write-up and great change of pace. I’m too focused on FB right now, but you drew me in with this BB article.

    Capel is capable of turning this mess Barnes and Stallings dropped on us into a winner. Patience will be the key along with landing a big guy that is really good.

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      1. Now that I have seen a few games – an NIT bid is not out of the question. There is some talent on that bench – Pitt is going to give more then a few teams nightmares this season.

        Liked by 1 person

  47. Any chance Aston gets a medical redshirt and we can have him for another year? I think he can play at next level, but it’s not as if he’ll be high draft pick, so if he gets the medical RS, maybe we can have him back for one more season. I can dream, at least.

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    2. Don’t forget we have the “Truck” warming up in the bullpen, or is that the Panther-pen… 😊

      Go Pitt!

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  48. Thanks wwb, I wasn’t sure on that rule after year one.

    I did know the new rule of 4 games played this year

    Hamlin, hope he gets an extra year as it seems the NCAA has lighten up the medical exempt rules?

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  49. Thanks Dan, very interesting. Yeah, I’m very happy that Hurley took the job at UConn and that we got Capel, and excited to see how this works out over the next few seasons. I just hope we can keep Capel for a long long time.

    Capel presser: Listen to what the players have to say at the end.

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    2. Curious as to your point. Good luck to him, but personally I could give flying leap about how or what Hurley does unless his team plays Pitt.

      Coach Jeff Capel is the Man at Pitt now. I foresee not just a few more Men’s championship banners hanging in the Pete in the next several years.

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  52. The Panthers opened as a 6 point favorite – the line moved down to 4.5 – tonight it’s up to 7.

    My take is this – WF lacks depth – Pitt actually has depth.

    At the end of the day Saturday, Pitt will have two 1,000 yard RB’s and the ACC Coastal title.

    H2P!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. It’s gonna be all about the ground game. My only worry is that the Pitt O scores too quickly some times – it showed last game – the D was getting winded in the 4th – but I guess that is a good problem to have – never thought scoring 80% of the time on O may be considered a weakness lol.

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  53. Capel has zero recruits right now for 2019. I think he’s holding out for some top players. He start to get them when kids see how Pitt does. Right now Pitt is projected last in the ACC.

    We’ll see where these two teams are in 3 years. I stand by my comment.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I’ll go all out and predict 5 ACC regular season wins this year – if they can go 10-2 in OOC and then win a game in the ACC tourney they could get an NIT bid.

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  54. Rick (Erie Express) and I are heading to the game. Watch out, Jeff Davis. The Yankees are coming. Sherman is coming to burn Dixie to the ground! Let’s Go Pitt!

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  55. Chapel has I think 3 scholarships to give. He is probably being cautious with his offers. Dan, in your opinion can any of the current bigs develop into solid ACC performers?

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  56. Wow, Methinks you guys are getting slightly ahead of yourselves on the BB front. They are much improved, especially defensively. Quick. But I can’t see more than 3 ACC wins. Remember, some were anointing Stallings as an offensive genius and great in game coach. Watch, they have talent, but lots of growing pains. I will watch every game and enjoy the ride, but it will be bumpy.

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  57. Have no idea what happened to that last post. Anyhow, I said we will be much improved, but take a lot of lumps. Doubt if they win more than 3 ACC games. I am in a wait and see on Johnson, not as high on him as Dan. Best test will be against the Nits. Let’s see how our kids match up with some experienced guards prior to the ACC schedule.
    Point guard often out of control and a 2 who can’t shoot, plus no size inside……. like I said, fun to watch but not expecting as much as some

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  60. I think it was Fran who mentioned the Paul Zeise interview on PGH Sports Now. POVers should listen to it. Interesting perspectives from a Panther parent about the pluses of going to the home town school, and about Coach Duzzer…

    I was wondering about Paul Z. as he stood on the field with the other parents for senior day. He seemed uncomfortable. Based on this interview, he was very emotional about his son playing his last game as a Panther at Heinz…

    Go Pitt.

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    1. I sat next to the Zeise’s at the UVA game. Will keep most of what he said between us, but I can tell you that they said their son has had a great experience at Pitt.

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  62. After reading this morning’s PG, I am a bit concerned that the FB Panthers are starting to talk about the Division title and championship game. They haven’t played WF before, so there is no rivalry to get them pumped up, and this has the makings of an ambush. This WF team is certainly capable of beating Pitt and if they are not totally focused a potential upset could be brewing from an underdog at home.

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