MMQB: Same Old Pitt Returns from the Grave

104 thoughts on “MMQB: Same Old Pitt Returns from the Grave”

1. Last week, I wrote that Miami was a better example of SOP than Pitt was, and I believe this game proved it. How could a team with that dominating of a defense be only 7 and 5 … playing in the Coastal?

   Talent-wise, The U should win the Coastal 3 out of every 4 years. They were the pre-season favorites this year for a reason (and yes, much of that 4-star talent is on the offensive side.)

   When Pitt (or name your Coastal team) plays against Miami, it is much more about them than about us. And I have been saying that for many years on both the Blather and the POV .

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   1. True, but they don’t have a running 35 year history of SOP like us. Our SOP is an un-killable monster, their’s is a fly buzzing around in the locker room. All they need is a fly swatter….

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2. First off, Lastrow, seats are in 134, wanted club but they knocked me to lower bowl. Hope I can see the game and not just back of helmets!
   The Good: Thankful Miami has a totally incompetent offense, or it would have been worse than PSU. Unlike some, I thought Hamlin played a good game. I’d say the overall defense, but Miami was just so bad offensively they made us look much better than we were. Ra Ra played decent, I think. Not sure where to put the punting. Really inconsistent, one great, one not so good, but given the rest of the play this would fall under good, I guess.

   The Bad: Where to start? If Tino played the way KP did he would have gotten roasted. Sure, no time, no chance, but you have to do something. No plays with his legs all game, unlike last year. Burning a redshirt for one play? Maybe 2. Very questionable, did kid get hurt? What was up with that? 10 penalties, 10!!! That’s amazing. Blame refs if you want, most were just stupid, undisciplined moves. And these are 15 seniors!! Failure to stand prosperity. Quickest in and out of rankings since… well, the last time we were ranked.

   The Ugly: Do I pile on or just restate the obvious? I guess getting exposed for lack of speed or quickness is one area. Zero tight end contribution, just playing o linemen there to try to protect. You didn’t have to run a screen, as all dropbacks looked like screens, lol. Coaches knowing what was coming ( with o line, etc.) and not having one decent answer. I think MR is a terrible head coach, but it goes to show what pure talent can overcome. We looked like a bunch of 2*s. Every year Miami plays one game up to their star ranking, just seems like it’s always against us( last year excluded). Lucy actually held the ball this time, we whiffed the kick all on our own! Oh well….

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3. Last year Miami finished 6th in the Rivals recruiting rankings, and the year before 11th. And even with a coaching change, the year before they were 23rd. And since Pitt got in the ACC, the Miami average recruiting rank was 16 ,,,, easily the best in the Coastal over that period.

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4. Pitt’s biggest game since Cincy is this weekend. Its probably even bigger than the BCS appearance in the Fiesta Bowl against Utah. The game is nationally televised and is the only football game on. A huge opportunity to market Pitt to the nation. Huge for branding. I’m hoping Pitt wears the retros. I’m hoping former Pitt greats show up along with some local celebrities. Go all-in.

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   1. Based on the offense against good teams this year, I think it is very likely Pitt does not score a touchdown against Clemson.
      I will watch and root, but I see nothing but disaster on the horizon.

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5. I agree that Pitt can enhance its image with a good showing on Sat vs Clemson. Especially since the entire CFB world is expecting a rout.

   BTW, I agree with what MM wrote that Miami was the more talented team but Pitt played very sloppy … and certainly didn’t have its A game. I was expecting a letdown but not that bad

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6. THE GOOD:

   The gun going off to signify the game was over. Not that anyone didn’t think the game was over long before.

   THE BAD:

   Just about everything….. you can see my heart is not in this exercise.

   THE UGLY:

   PITT reverting back to it’s sloppy play when they needed to tighten up their play.

   THE SILVER LINING:

   PITT still won the ACC Coastal Division.

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7. A win would have ensured a top 20 ranking going into a bowl game and would have given Pitt a chance at a top 15 ranking at year’s end. So the loss was huge.

   But, Pitt has a chance to redeem themselves on a larger stage against the 2nd best team in the country. A win would send them to a New Year’s Bowl against a quality P-5 opponent. Finish the season with 2 wins and Pitt is ranked in the top 15.

   However, a loss would relegate Pitt to an inferior bowl against a mediocre opponent. Pitt will finish most likely unranked. You have to go back to Wanny to find the last ranked Pitt team after the bowls.

   Point spread is 24 I believe. If Pitt can somehow keep Clemson under 25 points, they have a real good chance. It will take a miracle so I will make sure I pray every day this week. 🙂

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8. Breaking: Mack Brown has just been hired as HC at UNC. Before going to Texas, he was successful HC at UNC

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   1. UNC’s version of Johnny Majors II. Looks like we finally beat UNC next year!

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9. Mike, you really hit the nail on the head with this piece. The idea that any sane person could come up with this game plan against Miami is just unbelievable. And the idea that Narduzzi(the buck here) would allow Watson to go into this game with this gameplan is also unbelievable. The only viable offensive gameplan was for Pickett to stay in the shotgun(all game) and utilize all his speed receivers in a 4 wide spread formation.

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   1. Yea he needed all the time he could get. I don’t know quite enough to know specifically what game plan would have worked, and I do know that four WR’s probably isn’t our bread and butter (but maybe that’s why it would have worked) but clearly what we did did not work. I also know that there are some things you can do to slow down a pass rush like Miami’s.

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10. The Good – We remain Coastal Champs and are on to a game that I agree is better than any Bowl Game we could have hoped for.

    The Bad – Just a bad matchup. Miami’s defense is the real deal (as of course is Clemson’s). The team was on a roll but ran out of gas on the road after the emotion of a huge win at Wake. That’s why it’s impress when any team goes undefeated.

    The Ugly – Just the disappointment us fans feel after hoping against hope that this crazy year could turn around in some unbelievable and magical way.

    Winning the Bowl Game becomes paramount to salvaging the Coastal win and creating some positive momentum into 2019.

    HTP!

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11. As for next weeks game against Clemson I have no desire to watch a repeat of “Custer’s last stand at the battle of Little Bighorn” in this ACC Championship game. It’s pretty clear that Watson only knows one offensive game plan to go against any team. And IMO you’ll just be watching a repeat of the Miami game made only worse since Clemson actually has an offense to deal with.

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12. The line was about I suspected at 24. We need great defense play and need an all out offense everything in the book.

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13. South Carolina and Syracuse both did a lot of good things on both sides of the ball against Clemson, Pitt has the same talent as those teams and can easily duplicate what they did—the more Pitt hangs around the more Clemson will get tight. Pitt has nothing to lose in this game and needs to play like it.

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14. They looked horrible, slow and they were physically beaten all game.

    To add insult to injury I saw a quote where Narduzzi states they have been preparing for Clemson for weeks?

    So essentially Pitt was looking past Miami?

    This team and coaching staff was looking past Miami?

    Is this an excuse by Narduzzi ?

    The good Miami’s defense

    The bad the Pitt defense

    The ugly the Pitt offense

    Miami dominated them and the Panthers as you outlined shot them self over and over again.

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15. 910, take another read what Narduzzi said about pre-preparing for Clemson.

    PITT actually stayed fairly healthy this year but a couple important positions were affected. Center and MLB are two of the most important spots imo. On the surface, the Wirginis injury doesn’t look like it hurt PITT all that much as the defense did improve over the course of the season. However, I think when PITT plays teams with much better athletes it could hurt them.<< Miami/Clemson, I still think Q plays in the NFL if he can get and stay healthy.

    Morrissey’s injury hurt the PITT team this past week but even if he did play it may not have made all that big of a difference at the end of the day. I noticed that Dintino didn’t make nearly as many gestures pre-snap as Jimmy did. Anytime you have a disruption on the O-Line it’s going to hurt the team. imo, especially at center.

    I see where Lafayette Pitts was injured yesterday. Sorry to read that but just happy he’s still kicking around the NFL when many thought I was foolish to say he could stick there for awhile.

    Hope PITT gets it together and makes a good game of it this coming Saturday night.Not feeling great about that though. ike

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    1. Ike, Pitt’s running game was pretty ineffective the week prior against Wake Forest with Morrisey at center for the entire game. That’s why I said Pitt would be unable to run the ball against Miami prior to the game. But to come into this game running into a brick wall over and over again was just plain ludicrous. It’s my guess that Pitt has never even practiced much in a pure shot gun formation with 4 wide out and thus was unable to even incorporate that even if it was called for.

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16. The good….nothing
    The bad …..everything
    The ugly….horrible uniforms

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17. I said that I was not feeling good about the Miami game going in, and it’s clear that Pitt was not ready to play Miami, pure and simple. Ten penalties is a sign that there was a lack of focus. Watson’s poor offense was a sign that little time was spent in practice looking for ways to beat this team. It is really disappointing that Narduzzi failed to realize that getting an 8th win against Miami was far more important than a close loss to Clemson. No objective fan really believes that Pitt will beat Clemson on Saturday. The bowl game is always a crap shoot for Pitt, and a win against any P5 team is not a given. This all adds up to most likely a very disappointing finish to the season.

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18. This will be short:

    The good: nice reality check for those who were thinking this team was far better then they really are.

    The bad: the reality that this team has miles to go before they are remotely ready to be considered a top team.

    The ugly: No real reason to believe that our situation will be much different in the future.

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19. —A minor point, but if you check the film Campbell was actually attempting to catch that punt when he got the penalty. He no way expected the Miami guy to be fair catching the ball on the 3. So, unfortunate, but Campbell was actually trying to do the right thing…

    —I don’t think the absence of Morrissey affected the outcome, but I do suspect that a unit as close as the Oline had trouble being mentally ready for this first game without their signal caller. Pitt did seem to lack any determination coming out of the huddle.

    —I expect we do see some screens this week, and I’m sure Coach Duzz will be all over Coach Watson to come up with a game plan to counter heavy pass-rush pressure…

    — We have flaws, and they are many, but I enjoy rooting for these guys. I expect a much better effort this week.

    Go Pitt.

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    1. Why would a Pitt player try to catch the punt at all? That downs the ball at that spot just as if the Miami player fair caught it.

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       1. Couple reasons, first in case the Miami guy ducks away late and lets it bounce into the end zone, second he didn’t know the Miami guy gave fair catch signal(which he should’ve)

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       2. Pitt would want to catch the punt to keep it from rolling into the end zone for a touch back and giving Miami the ball on the 20. Major’s point was that Campbell probably didn’t see the fair catch signal by the Miami returner and went to catch the ball. Often a return man will make a fair catch signal then run away from the ball in hopes it would bounce into the end zone for the touch back. In actuality the dumb play was the Miami receiver even attempting to make a fair catch on the 3 yard line.

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       3. Campbell was expecting the Miami player to signal fair catch and then let the ball go, figuring it would bounce into the end zone. Who fair catches inside the 5?

          Hey Reed, I had this awful thought during the Miami game that you, after not watching the winning streak, decided to watch the Miami game… Which would mean you missed the fun games and then caught another crap game… Ugh! ☹️

          Hope you’re doing well.

          Hail to Pitt.

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          1. Got it, that makes sense.

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    2. Good point on the punt. I forgot that detail. And yes nobody calls for a fair catch on the three but still feel like that one was avoidable

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20. Not much to say, but that outcome wasn’t unexpected. Had Miami had any semblance of QB play this year, they would have been a top 10 team. This Miami team played extremely uninspired after the UVA game. UM earned their second loss of season and went in the tank for a few weeks. They benched Rosier after the Duke game and improved since then.

    The Good
    Reality check;
    No major injuries on Saturday; and
    Still playing in Charlotte next week.
    The Bad
    Lost to a team that can barely complete a forward pass;
    Saturday featured a zero-dimensional offense;
    Couldn’t run the ball against a good front (Georgia Tech was able to run for 230 against UM);
    Penalties;
    The Ugly
    Clemson is way better than UM;
    The national perception of the ACC Coastal;
    Wake Forest went to Duke and won 59-7???
    UNC’s only conference win was Pitt…Mack Brown can bring in talent.

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21. Good – Burning of Carter’s redshirt is a good move since he proved he could compete athletically. We have two more games to play and he has already played in five, although sparingly in a couple. With two more games on the schedule, he will have seen action in 7 games which is well worth the burning of a redshirt.

    Watched the Clempson game this weekend for giggles. Defensive strategy is to stop their run and by doing so, put the pressure on their qb. When he runs, we need to hit him hard. I have thought this from the moment Bryant transferred, which is that not having Kelly Bryant as a backup will hurt Clempson at some point in the future. They have escaped most of the season with their rookie qb. Focus on that qb and hit him every time will be critical to defensive success. We need to load the box with as much speed as we can muster.

    Offensively – This can be similar to osu/mich (although our guys aren’t as talented as osu). OSU rb’s chipped the michigan DL (Winowich and Co) every single time at the beginning of the game and took the Mich DL spirit away. It is emotionally demoralizing for a DL rush end to keep getting chipped on every play. They wore the DL out by doing so. I didn’t say double team them, I typed chip them on the shoulder every time you are heading out in the pattern. Every time. George would be great at this.

    Bad – How can a head coach outwardly say the team was preparing for a couple of weeks for clempson when all he has said for years is that we play one at a time and focus on only one opponent, blah blah blah. Maybe he was practicing a new punt coverage formation that would be successful against clempson but disastrous against Miami. Humor intended.

    You beat speed teams with mis/direction, traps, taking away their desire, etc.

    Ugly – most everything about the effort. We lost before we started. We aren’t good enough to look past an opponent. Every snap, step, play and contact must be purposeful, or you lose.

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    1. All Narduzzi said was that the GAs were looking at films of Clemson and preparing game plans the last few weeks. It had nothing to do with the team and regular staff doing any prep work for Clemson the past week.

       I do think however (and thought it would happen) that Pitt would not be focused this week after 4 weeks of winning games it had to win. You add that to the fact that Miami was obviously focused, and you see what happened.

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       1. And yet…we know that there are only so many hours for GA’s to dissect film. So for every hour they were looking at Clemson, they were not looking at Miami. At this point water under the bridge. Hope they found something in that Clemson film or it will be ugly.

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22. It’s a problem to send 4 WRs out because Pickett can’t handle that big of a check down sequence anyway. He locks on to the prime target almost every attempt.

    I’d send out two (three at most) actual WRs and a TE in case they need downfield blocking after the reception.

    But Watson’s OL folds on passing plays anyway so he needs quick pitch and catch play calls.

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    1. Pickett needs coached up on pre-snap reads as do his receivers. They rarely seem to anticipate an all-out blitz

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    2. Putting 4 wide receiver out and having Pickett in the shot gun would have required Miami to at least send defenders out to cover the 4 wide. You are probably correct that Pickett would not have adequately checked all the options available with the 4 wides. But at least from the shot gun he would have been able to pick up visually the Miami defenders coming at him and possible evade some with his running ability. When Watson had him under center then turning around to hand the ball off he had his back to the Miami front 7 and never saw them coming at him most of the time.

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23. Good: Our D played them tit for tat the first half and part of the third period. We had no serious physical injuries..hopefully, NO Post Traumatic Game Syndrome….want them to compete against Clemson..I was there for the shocker in 2016…anything is possible…

    Bad…The penalties…we are one of the most penalized teams in the country -the announcers kept mentioning that during the broadcast. Weren’t we one of the least penalized teams a year ago. we had to play mistake free game.

    Ugly..I watched the game with JeanieB and Fran’s house with his lovely family….after consuming his food and beer and taking a that beating with my buddy I turned to him and said “We are not meant to watch PITT football together like this son I won’t be coming back.” Fran smiled at me and responded ” I wasn’t planning on inviting you!!!”

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24. Reed, the Miami player was calling for a fair catch and catching the punt at his own 4 yard line. That’s not a smart play by him and I guess Campbell never expected him to actually catch it. Either way Campbell has to see the player standing right next to him, that changed the field position dramatically.

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25. B, up until this year, PITT and Narduzzi during his tenure was one of the least penalized teams in the country. Go figure.

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26. My other thought on the punt error is that our guy might have been blocked into the returner. No way that would be missed though by the refs right in the open.

    I thought some of the refereeing was marginal on the PI’s and certainly on the block in the back, and maybe one more call, but was really bothered by the seeming lack of awareness by KP on the delay of game penalties. I know there are several factors that go into that but KP has to be more aware. Maybe HE was mentally thrown by the Morissey thing more than anyone else.

    Glad to know Reed caught the game…did you watch the prior few wins to get caught up as well?

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27. above comment “son=so” Fran’s old enough to be my Dad!!!

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28. Ike, special teams had improved too until this year…the Ups and Downs of the college game…Steelers due to mistakes- maybe something got into the H2O this week over on the Southside…..

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29. The biggest game of the year was Miami. Yes, the Pitt team made it so by beating Wake. Good for them!
    The Miami game was about getting Pitt solidly into the top 25 before Clemson.
    Pitt is going to get crushed by Clemson. The game is basically irrelevant for the Panthers.
    If they beat Miami they are still probably ranked after the ACC title game and can go to a bowel game ranked with a chance to actually win.
    It is now fighting off a 3 game loosing streak and finishing unranked.
    The Miami game was huge and they laid an egg.

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    1. And yes so they will end up in a bowel game indeed!

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30. Have to disagree. By circumstance, Wake was the biggest game. Would you have wanted Pitt to have to had beaten Miami to win the Coastal. That would have really been a bad situation…

    Unfortunately, we’re just not a top 25 team… But we did beat the teams around our level of talent (okay, except for UNC 😊)…

    Go Pitt.

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31. Michaelangelo — btw, forgot to post this above, but nice job on the MMQB article…

    Go Pitt.

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    1. Thanks MM. My ego never met a compliment it didn’t like

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32. Mike – you nailed what I was thinking. Thanks for a great post.

    A bright spot was Christodoulos punting. He’s come a long way from the the Penn State game.

    I do not expect Pitt to win Saturday; in fact, I will not be the least bit surprised if we get blown out. But I am going to the game anyhow; have had a lot of fun this year with a bunch of yinz and look fwd to doing that at least one more time this season.

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33. I am not in agreement with anyone including HCPN on punter. Way too inconsistent on direction and length and rarely good hang time. “a box of chocolates”, how the heck do you cover THAT with the punt coverage team?

    Narduzzi called him a weapon in one interview recently, yeah maybe, but you never know which way the barrel is pointing when it goes off.

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34. I agree tvax the punter is much too inconsistant with often little hand time. to be called a weapon. And even when he kicks a long one our coverage units are often late getting to the returner.

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35. I’m going to Charlotte for the same reason as JoeL stated…to hang with my POVert friends.

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36. Will there be an official POV tailgate? Mrs.JoeKnew has made it clear I must be positive, even suggesting we change name to PPOV, positive Pitt point of view. Man, that’s not happening,lol.

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    1. Fran said he will be there. I like Mrs. JoeKnew’s attitude. I always say, that’s the difference between a good day and a bad one.

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37. I thought the play calling was terrible.

    How about a screen to a half back for pete sake! A screen to V Carter sounds dynamite to me.

    How about a three step drop and on the third step throw the hot route.

    SOP…….Yikes. If we beat Miami we could have avoided the argument that we won a weak division. Truth is we won a weak division.

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    1. Maybe Narduzzi is saving those plays for Clemson.

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38. Joe knew…we have a site picked out to tailgate at 118 south church street until the alumni pregame starts around 4:30.
    The lot is near a Hooters on the same street…a few blocks from the field.
    Touch base with me if you can stop by.
    You need to register if you plan to attend the alumni event.

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    1. Good intel Fran. Do you have a link for the alumni pregame event registry?

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    2. Fran i added the tailgate location in the body of my bits and pieces post. Let me know if that’s not okay and i will take it down.

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39. So UNC fired their football coach. We should look into hiring their WR Coach — their WRs were phenomenal at pushing off and not getting called for it!

    Go Pitt!

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    1. But we would have to change our unis to match their’s to get away with it.

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       1. Good point…

          Go Pitt.

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40. Great graphic and article MM.

    The Good: We beat Wake.

    The Bad: It may be our last win this year given how much Pitt shows up for bowl games.

    The Ugly: SOP recruiting will ensure this same scenario well into my move to the old folks home…

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41. you can criticize Pitt all you want but (1) three of its OOC opponents are currently in the Top 12, and (2) it’s the ONLY school that has played 10 bowl bound teams

    Meanwhile Northwestern which lost at home to Duke and Akron in the OOC will probably still be ranked after losing to OSU in the B1G title game

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    1. Great insight fwbb. I’m planning something of a recap that will look at exactly who we beat and who we didn’t after the season is over, so more to come on this.

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42. Fran, is the tailgate proximity to Hooters a coincidence or strategic planning ? H2P!

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    1. Pure serendipity my friend.

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43. What do you think Mark…. lol.

    Strong possibility that many many PITT fans will be happy when the PITT Panthers run out of the tunnel for Saturdays game. Can’t guarantee anything after that.

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44. I think Richman suggested the alumni tailgate location to Heather.

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    1. Spot on, ike!

       Go Pitt!

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45. Lastrow, Mrs. JoeKnew and I will be there as well as at the alum event. What’s the starting time? Needed stuff, also, anything going on Friday night? We should be there Friday afternoon. I will be positive, I will be positive, I will be positive ( just in case wife looking over shoulder) or Ike, lol.

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46. Emel-per your suggestion, I’m staying at SouthPark at Phillips Place. The hotel suggested taking light rail to the stadium & I would have to drive to the rail stop. Can you add any more like where to park?

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    1. Most of the Lite Rail stations have parking. Arrowwood Station has a huge lot. The ones closer to the city don’t have much parking, if any at all.

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       1. Ohhow…..there is a Station at Tyvola road (actually it’s on Old Pineville Rd but they call it Tyvola Station.
          It’s closer and easier to find than the Arrowwood one.

          When you come out of Phillips place hang a left onto Fairview Road, you go thru 2 large intersections, first one is Park Rd. At this point Fairview Road changes name to Tyvola Road. You then get to the next large intersection a couple miles down the road to South Blvd. Stay on Tyvola (you’ll actually go under the lite rail tracks), make the next left onto Old Pineville Road(wiki wiki Car Wash on corner). Tyvola Station and the Parking Lot are about a 1/4 mile up on the left. You make the left onto Grover and the lot and
          first driveway on your right. You’ll be underneath the tracks. You can take the elevator or stairway
          up to the Train Platform. Train comes about every 15 minutes. Address of Tyvola Station is 1134 Grover Road, Charlotte NC

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    2. Ohhow…..there is a Station at Tyvola road (actually it’s on Old Pineville Rd but they call it Tyvola Station.
       It’s closer and easier to find than the Arrowwood one.

       When you come out of Phillips place hang a left onto Fairview Road, you go thru 2 large intersections, first one is Park Rd. At this point Fairview Road changes name to Tyvola Road. You then get to the next large intersection a couple miles down the road to South Blvd. Stay on Tyvola (you’ll actually go under the lite rail tracks), make the next left onto Old Pineville Road(wiki wiki Car Wash on corner). Tyvola Station and the Parking Lot are about a 1/4 mile up on the left. You make the left onto Grover and the lot and
       first driveway on your right. You’ll be underneath the tracks. You can take the elevator or stairway
       up to the Train Platform. Train comes about every 15 minutes. Address of Tyvola Station is 1134 Grover Road, Charlotte NC

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47. Joeknew, what’s your email address and I will get you up to speed.
    Friday is up in the air but we have game day pretty well figured out.

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48. Do you just put it on the site?

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49. Or text me at 7243094343.

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50. Actually I had nothing to do with picking the tailgate site…that would be Ikesbrotherfromanothermother.

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51. MIKE,
    Thanks for the thought provoking article. Appreciate it!
    Interestingly I predicted the regular season record as 6-6. What’s funny is while we won one more than I thought we would, when the season is over we very well may have lost one more than I thought we would too! (7-7) :>)

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    1. Yea who would have thought we’d play in 14 games. Definitely a first for Pitt. Who knows if we get blown out on Saturday maybe they give us a winnable bowl game to salvage some pride. As long as it’s not in Birmingham…

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52. MM, great summation of this game…Looked to me like we were just happy to be in sunny Florida and the U defense came to play a football game…

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53. When is the big announcement coming?

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54. Narduzzi to Louisville! 😊

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    1. hahah. Not sure how I would feel about this. I kind of like the guy although I know there are a lot of people that don’t.

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55. So I see where Pitt is the only team to play 10 bowl-eligible teams in their first 12 games. Several other teams played 9…

    Another win or two, even against crap teams, would look awfully good right now.

    (Richman — we need you to talk to Heather about this… 😊)

    Go Pitt.

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    1. Hate to break a good bubble but both PITT & Duke are both currently sitting at playing 9 bowl eligible teams. If Va. Tech beats Marshall (not a given), they both will have played 10.

       So, would you have rather have played 0ne P5, two SEC worthy (other word – crappy) G5 & FCS Albany or play 10 bowl eligible teams?

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       1. Pitt-cocks Fan — thanks for the correction. You are on the ball. I read that “factoid” on another site…

          Go Pitt.

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          1. I saw it on a tweet that PITT was at 10. Saw that a Duke partisan responded & said Duke had played 9 & waiting on Va. Tech. Doubled checked & the Duke fan was right & tweeter was wrong on PITT.

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56. I see where Pitt finally offered Aliquippa’s WR Will Gipson. He’ 6-3 and supposedly runs a 4.5 or better.

    Wonder why it took Pitt so long to offer, though he doesn’t have a lot of offers at this time. Rutgers is after him ( let the jokes begin…).

    Seems like a Quip with his stats would be a good get — and he seems to love Pitt…

    Go Pitt.

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    1. Interesting article about Gipson from last month. Key quote, suggesting why he’s been beneath the radar:

       “Given the success he’s had, it’s hard to imagine Gipson playing any position besides receiver. But before [Aliquippa coach Mike] Warfield arrived, Gipson was seen as being most valuable as a quarterback and occasional receiver in Aliquippa’s run-heavy attack. Last season, Gipson said he caught about 12 passes, and was mostly used as a blocker when he was split outside. Warfield, though, saw a 6-foot-3 specimen with high-level athleticism and speed in Gipson. The choice was easy.”

       http://www.timesonline.com/sports/20181018/helped-by-nfl-vet-moye-aliquippas-will-gipson-flashes-big-play-capability

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57. Tennessee Titans wearing Pitt’s ugly Kent State Away unis tonight. Just as ugly on them.

    Major Majors…. hope you’re kidding w Duzz to Louisville ! then agsin, maybe not.

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    1. dan72 — yeah, kidding of course.

       Though our women’s softball coach left Pitt to coach at Louisville… 🤔

       Go Pitt!

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58. ike’s brother from a different mother will hook you guys up. Have a blast guys!! My heart will be at 118 south Church street Charlotte this weekend. Interesting that Church street is across from a Hooters though.

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    1. I’m pretty sure Hooters is closed until Noon Sunday down here below the Mason-Dixon. Avoids a “conflict of interest” lol

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    2. Yea that Hooters use to be a Graduate and then Hooters took it over.
       Sorry to hear you won’t be coming to Charlotte….brother ike 😦

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       1. Yeah I’m bumming I won’t be there but hey Emel, wait until you see the POV love. I will be there in spirit!!

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59. Narduzzi May be frustrated working for a school that follows the rules.

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60. I’d be happy if Watson went anywhere else to coach after what I witnessed on Saturday. But who would offer him any job after watching at the Pitt Miami tape?

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61. So Pitt has played only 9 bowl teams so far with VT pending. They will play the 10th this Saturday ,,, as well as playing the 4th team that will finish in the Top 12 or 14 (depending on the poll)

    No matter how you dice it — if you want a ranked team from a program like Pitt’s, then you better schedule an OOC like 99% of the other P5 teams

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    1. 7 wins and 5 losses is more than respectable given all considerations. We had the best record of P5 school playing in a non-campus stadium, not even taking into account the killer OoC schedule.

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62. Narduzzi is definitely going to keep Watson for continuity sake. If Kenny struggles two more games I wouldn’t be surprised if Watson makes a call to a kid he recruited to Texas, QB Shane Buechele, to see if he wants to grad transfer to Pitt. Competition must be strong at the QB spot in 2019. Kenny cannot think that the job is his based on starting as a sophomore.

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63. Twenty years ago, Pitt continued their impressive run in Puerto Rico with an upset of #4 Kentucky:

    20 years ago (11/27/98): #Pitt shocks #4 #Kentucky, 68-56. #H2P pic.twitter.com/Sxs239PA0T

    — PGH Sports History (@PGH_Sports_Date) November 27, 2018

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64. Our last five AD’s didn’t know how to schedule for success. We have been the butt of jokes in the AD profession because of it. Just sayin.

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