If you haven’t heard, Pitt scrimmaged on Saturday.

And in all seriousness, you may not have heard because the only news of it that has been released are four pictures and a short video reel. Still, I put our crack team of football analysts on it, and here is what they came up with:

  • Two guys high-fived. One looks like a kicker. The other like a longsnapper. We can infer that a field goal was made. Perhaps an extra point.

Scrimmage 1

  • Dayon Hayes appears to have scooped the football. More on this later.
  • DL John Morgan was happy about something.
  • Vince Davis may or may not have broken a shoestring tackle attempt by AJ Woods. I would like to believe that he did.

  • Davis Beville can both walk and clap at the same time
  • Both Masks and Towels were provided to the offensive linemen
  • Referees were in attendance (and Alex Kessman’s kickoff mechanics appear to be in midseason form)
  • The Duzz will no longer have to cover his mouth with the playsheet to avoid having his lips read. The jury is out on whether the AV guy trailing behind him will also serve as the “getback” coach.
  • The ball was snapped on at least one occasion. More importantly, someone other Jimmy Morrissey or Owen Drexel was snapping the ball.
  • Number 22 on Defense (white jersey) plays with better leverage than number 22 on offense (blue jersey). In all fairness I don’t know if it really was number 22 on offense, but no matter who it was, he didn’t have good leverage.
  • Vince Davis (who actually is number 22 on offense – #22 blue) got grabbed by the helmet and thrown to the ground by John Morgan like a rag doll. (#6 white)
  • #74 Blue – probably Grad Transfer Keldrick Wilson (I had earlier assumed it was true Fr Michael Statham who wears the same number) apparently got the second level once, and while he didn’t exactly blow his man up, he got in front of him just enough to spring the ballcarrier for an extra yard or two.
  • Also – On the same play, you have to like the look of Daniel Carter busting it up the inside.
  • And then Safety Judson Tallandier makes a nice spin move to get away from Wilson and get in on the tackle. Note how Carter instinctively covers that ball with two hands as he senses contact. Still, you’d have liked to see OL Wilson go hard and try to pancake the lighter Tallendier instead of pulling up and trying to patty-cake him, but hey, I’m no offensive line coach.
  • Rashad Weaver was sweating
  • Davis Beville threw a pass while an unidentified offensive lineman simultaneously held his man and took hands to the face while protecting him. I declare the penalties to be offsetting.
  • Fr WR Aydin Henningham (#81 blue) caught the ball (ostensibly it was the pass thrown by Beville in the preceding frame) and took it to the house.
  • Henningham beat Judson Tallendier (#26 white) on the play. You win some, you lose some Judson. I’ve seen Hamlin make the same mistake in games…although that was before he stepped it up last season.
  • Daniel Carter seems like he might be tough to bring down. Below is a sequence where a trucks a Devin Danielson (#95 in white) – with some help from Owen Drexel (#60 in blue) and then drags two more defenders for a good two yards. As my high school football coach would have said, “Carter they should have paid you for that ride!!!” Now what I don’t know is did Carter need to get a extra yard on top of what he already got for a first down??? Other than Drexel there did not appear to be many blockers on the scene…Also just what was AJ Davis’ (#21 blue…foreground) role in that play supposed to be? Because he didn’t touch anybody.
  • rFr linebacker Wendell Davis was fired up about something. I think he may have been the guy that brought Carter down in the previous play. Most likely short of the line to gain.
  • Dayon Hayes has got some hops, and the turnover dunk is still a Thing.

Oh yea…here is the full video if you want to watch.

Hail to Pitt

Michaelangelo Monteleone

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.

74 thoughts on “There was a Scrimmage”

  3. I think #74 in the video is the grad transfer, Wilson. Both are wearing #74 believe it or not and Statham most certainly will redshirt. Judson, in fairness, was just moved to safety a few days ago, so maybe he was burned due to a breakdown in assignment.

    Morgan needs to not tackle by the helmet. That’ll draw flags from those wonderful ACC refs.

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  4. Pretty creative, MM. Making a feast out of the crumbs served…

    Couldn’t they show us a couple of plays? Like make up two decoy plays that they will never ever use, just so we can see our guys in action? 🤔

    Go Pitt.

    Liked by 2 people

  6. BTW, Freshman Dayon Hayes looks pretty massive in that photo. He’s listed as 6-3 and 250…

    Go Pitt.

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  7. Maestro Spade is at it again with the Maltese Panther. He inspired me to investigate that 22 on defense is Brandon Hill DB.

    Upon further investigation from the evidence provided, one can deduce that Pitt should win anywhere from 5 to 8 games this year

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thx and agree. We got literally 3 plays worth in that little video but I have to say I enjoyed the hell out of breaking down the film…bring on the season

      Liked by 1 person

  9. Nice to see people hitting each other. I guess the lack of marketing coming out of camp won’t hurt if there are no fans in the stands. Still amazes how poorly they sell the program.Other than the few fanatics like us who even knows Pitt plays football?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Some camp access would be a good start. As much as I lampoon Narduzzi, I actually think he’s a pretty solid program builder and I like what he’s doing…except for the secrecy. I can’t stand it.

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    2. The best marketing Pitt FB can do right now is to win games. These guys need to be 100% committed to each other, staying healthy and making plays to win FB games.

      I’d lyke to see them “step on a few throats” along the way with blowouts to the bottom (5 or 6) teams on their schedule, but winning will do just fine.

      The keys to success have been discussed over and over (OL, RB, good QB play and smart coaching). It’s time to play the games.

      Liked by 2 people

  10. Another good article. Love your comments on each frame. Did you run it through your new PFF analytical tool?

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    1. Literally none of the players shown had game experience. So much for PFF analysis…

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    2. I stand corrected. Tallandier logged 16 special teams snaps on the punt return unit. He graded out at 67.4. So basically that means he did an adequate job at whatever his assignment may have been.

      Vince Davis and David Green have number… more on that when I have more time.

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      1. So the PFF analytic package doesn’t come with free review of film? Just kidding.

        I actually see a use for it in the Way to Early articles to show more of what Pitt would expect against that seasons opponents.

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        1. Hah. Yes just submit all the Pitt propaganda films …

          That’s a good idea. Although at this point it would not be “way too early” with just three weeks to go

          It

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  11. The stars are aligned for a great season – syracuse is down, louisville is overrated?, NC ST is down, BC is down and revenge is in the air?, miami has a new QB who was a low rated 3 star out of HS and entered the portal as a 4 star?, ND is a hated sudo-rival, FL St is down and dysfunctional as a team, GT is rebuilding with grad transfers, VT is becoming our hated ACC rival and clemson is the NC hurdle (4 trips in 4 years with 2 championships).

    In our minds, we can spin things anyway we want to for entertainment purposes. I once hit my 7 iron 200 yards – once, and it was a dry, burnt fairway on a hilly course.

    H2P!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Man I love this summary. The Passion! If anything I would say Louisville is underrated but other than that you’re spot on.

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      1. Lol –

        Both probably true, but who can remember.

        Let’s go kick some ACC tail.

        Would love for the tar holes to show up at the ACC championship with their weak schedule and Howell gets sacked 9 times by a relentless Pitt D in an OT slugfest that ends in a Panther W. (A shout out to Emel).

        Both teams might need to be undefeated to have that happen.

        An undefeated Pitt would be ranked 4th behind undefeated Bama and one loss OKlahoma and Georgia.

        Of course the two undefeated teams would face each other.

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      1. If I knew back then what I know now about women, I’d have multiple venereal diseases today. Covid wouldn’t touch me.

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    3. You crack me up Tex. At the very least you remain consistent in your skepticism. Here’s hoping it skipped a generation with your son. 🙂

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  13. Robert Morris is probably the fallback game for Sept 12th in case they can’t get anyone else. It might be a good game to start the season with since they don’t need to put any butts in the seats. however, there is still some value to getting a better opponent to increase the chances of a TV game.

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    1. Robert Morris is now in the Big South for football (similar to Pitt 😊). The Big South cancelled their fall season, but is allowing each school to play 4 OOC games.

      According to Bobby Mo’s web site, they have chosen not to pursue this option…

      Go Pitt.

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    1. actually I think a full scale scrimmage beginning with 1st team units against each other to be held on Thurs 9/10 may be better than.

      But please not Navy. the last thing Pitt needs is the defense to be chopped-block to death one week before the ACC opener.

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    2. Cincy would be another ranked opponent, so I’m betting it won’t be Cincy. Neither one will want to face the other this early in the season.

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  15. It would be nice if the team PITT plays 9/12 is substantial enough to be televised. Maybe if PITT holds a scrimmage on 9/10 on a Thursday night the ACCN may televise it? or maybe PITTs opener should be played 9/10 no matter who they play? I want to watch PITT football.

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  16. On the other hand, Navy may be the safest team to play?

    It’s going to be really interesting to see if PITT allows fans in the stadium and who and how they decide to let in? They will be walking a fine line of pissing long time PITT season ticket holders off.

    Narduzzi finally has a good excuse not to let reporters into practice. Yet he could sure supply more updates as PITT fans and college football fans across the nation are starved for some football relief. I’m so ready for sports I actually watch a few innings of the not so battling buccos.

    2020, guessing there will plenty of songs about this year sometime down the road. “In the year 2020, life wasn’t so for so many”. Oh well, I tried. 🙂

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    1. I hope its not Navy, and don’t think it will be. Wants the value of preparing to play a Navy type offense when no one else you play has a similar offense

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      1. Annie on a personal note, you know your cousin lost one of his two pups? Hit by a car on College Ave. He was devastated.

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  18. Going back to the OL discussion, I looked some stuff up…

    One reason we have better Dlinemen is that we have brought in way more Dlinemen than Olinemen. I didn’t consider our OL transfers, so you could add them in, but here’s the bottom line:

    In the five recruiting classes from 2016 thru 2020, we have signed 15 offensive linemen and 25 defensive linemen. (I don’t have Morrissey included in these numbers. )

    In OLine recruiting, quantity matters – it’s really tough to judge these guys, I would think.

    Here’s what really hurts us. These were our Oline recruits in 2016 — Morgan, Williams, and Ford. That class should be 5th year seniors, but they are gone and didn’t contribute…

    Maybe more later…

    Go Pitt.

    Liked by 2 people

  20. As usual, my link doesn’t make it to the comments.

    Pro Football Focus (using Mike’s new tool) has released their 2020 preseason All ACC (plus ND) team. One surprise for me & some disappointments.

    Can someone post link, please

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  21. So, just heard the Steeler’s James Washington say that after losing “5 or 6” pounds, he feels a lot quicker and can jump better this year…

    Hummmm… Wonder if that would work for a couple Olineman – scaled up appropriately…😊

    Go Pitt.

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    1. I’m shocked that Warren is still at left tackle. Yikes. Hoping for a quantum leap but remaining skeptical…

      Weird about Kradel not being mentioned… Could be nothing, sometimes the names don’t come to you…

      Go Pitt.

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    1. here’s some truths for you:

      Brett McMurphy@Brett_McMurphy
      NC State has temporarily paused all athletics-related activities due to an identified cluster within its programs

      The Daily Tar Heel@dailytarheel
      BREAKING: The University has updated its COVID-19 dashboard to show a 31.3 percent positivity rate last week. This is more than double the previous week’s positivity rate

      Like

      1. Shows me a totally irresponsible youth and bad parenting. I’d like to see this generation unselfishly serve two Iraq wars and Afghanistan.

        Gen X Tex
        Google the name for 287 south in Midlothian

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        1. Note to readers don’t let this comment descend Into politics or your feel wings toward millennials gen z.

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          1. It’s not politics Michael. Only the truth. 20 and 30 year olds are spreading the virus. It’s not people my age or older. We are the ones dying however. The football season rests on a generation of kids who feel entitled and don’t know the meaning of sacrifice. When the going gets tough for them, they fold. I expect this season to fold quickly like the house of cards it is.

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  26. So, as I posted above, in the 2916 thru 2020 classes, we signed 15 OLinemen and 25 Dlinemen. Keep in mind that there are 5 Oline positions and only 4 DLine positions, though the DLinemen typically rotate and the Oline doesn’t.

    Here’s who we brought in:
    2016 — Morgan, Williams, Ford.
    Oh for three. But Hargrove did move over from the Dline and has been decent.

    2017 — Drake, Warren, Houy Van Lynn, Drexel. Better, maybe 2-ish for 5?

    2018 —. Zubivic, Brown, and Kradel. One for three, with hope for Zubovic.

    2019 — Dick and Goncalves. Plus Collier moved from TE to Oline. Too early to tell — but yet another small class.

    2020 — Taylor and Statham. Way too early — but again no numbers and no margin for error…

    The few number of Oline recruits is just puzzling, but explains the situation we’re in. Did Pitt take few guys because the guys they wanted went elsewhere, or do we just want to keep loading up on defensive players? It’s a puzzlement.

    Go Pitt.

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    1. ^^ It also explains why PITT annually brings in a grad transfer O-Lineman? I do like the small but sturdy 2019 class.

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    2. I’d probably guess it’s a little bit of both. Didn’t want to take a warm body and used all the numbers on defense. The problem is that you need to have lights-out evaluation and coaching to get away with that strategy. During the Peterson tenure Pitt has neither. I’d be willing to bet (or at least hope) that Borbs has halfway competent evaluation skills but as previously stated … his coaching skills are yet to prove themselves

      Liked by 1 person

  27. Here’s some good news — in the incoming 2021 class, we currently have commitments from 5 Olinemen and 2 defensive linemen…

    Go Pitt.

    Liked by 1 person

  30. So many people called Comcast and threaten to cancel if they don’t add on the ACCN and very few actually did or do…….. me included.

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  31. Wow, so MM, my music parody of the year 2020 got censored? My first comment getting shut down. I feel like such a grown-up. It really wasn’t all that offensive, IMO.

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    1. I think it just didn’t go through. Nothing is being held for moderation and it’s not in Spam. Sorry!

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