in Pitt Football 208 Words

Pitt vs Long Island U. VB Tourney Game Thread 4/13/21

Following are some websites that might help Pitt fans cheer the Women’s Volleyball Team to a 1st round tourney victory tonight. So, if you can stay awake until the start time of 10:30 pm ET and watch it then good for you because I’ll read about it the next day. 

These links can be used for in-game commenting research also.  First off Long Island University (LIU).

Long Island University Athletics - link to home

 

LIU Volleyball Homepage

LIU Volleyball 2020-21 Schedule

LIU Volleyball 2020-21 Stats

LIU Volleyball 2020-21 Roster

As for our Panthers – here is some info to read before, during and after the game. I expect the following readers watch to the end and write a 300 word essay on what you saw – due by 1:00 am tomorrow morning: Tex, Big B and Richard in SC. I would have put Ike first but we know he needs his beauty rest, although he probably stays up later than me anyway.

Pittsburgh Panthers Primary Logo | Sports Logo History

Pitt Volleyball Homepage

Pitt Volleyball 2020-21 Schedule

Pitt Volleyball 2020-21 Stats

Pitt Volleyball 2020-21 Roster

Here is a recent game against Duke if you want to 1) practice watching for the details in the previous article by John in SC or 2) You want to see attractive co-eds being better athletes than we ever were…

95 thoughts on “Pitt vs Long Island U. VB Tourney Game Thread 4/13/21”

  1. ​​ ​​​​​​​​Too good a student to be much of a ball player I suppose…

    April 14, 2021​

    Pitt’s Jimmy Morrissey Named to Hampshire Honor Society

    PITTSBURGH—Jimmy Morrissey, one of the most decorated centers in Pitt history, added another honor today when he was named to the prestigious Hampshire Honor Society by the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame.

    The Hampshire Honor Society is comprised of college football players from all divisions of play who maintained a cumulative 3.2 grade-point average or better as undergraduates.

    This is the latest scholastic accolade for Morrissey (Huntingdon Valley, Pa./La Salle College H.S.), who was a four-time All-ACC Academic Football Team honoree. He additionally was a 2020 semifinalist for the National Football Foundation’s William V. Campbell Trophy, presented to the nation’s top football scholar-athlete.

    Morrissey earned his bachelor’s degree in finance and marketing from Pitt in 2020. He has already begun work toward an MBA in Pitt’s Katz Graduate School of Business.

    On the field, Morrissey was a three-time All-ACC performer at center. Originally a walk-on at Pitt, he made 47 starts on the Panthers’ offensive line and was a team captain as a junior and senior.

    Morrissey was named the 2020 recipient of the Burlsworth Trophy, presented to the most outstanding player in college football who began his career as a walk-on.

    He played in the Reese’s Senior Bowl all-star game and is considered one of the top center prospects in the 2021 NFL Draft.

    The NFF Hampshire Honor Society is celebrating its 15th year. The initiative, designed to spotlight high academic achievement in college football, has honored 12,167 student-athletes since its inception in 2007.

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  2. While I am all for this volleyball coverage – Go Pitt – I wanted to comment on the preseason ESPN FPI which had Pitt rated last in ACC football for 2021

    I welcome all to look at last year’s preseason FPI; you will find …

    PSU ranked 5th — they finished 4-5

    Wisconsin 6th — finished .500

    FSU 23rd and VaTech 25th — Pitt demolished both of them

    And that is just a small sampling of what a joke the FPI is year after year

    Sent from my iPhone

    >

    Liked by 3 people

    2. They will finish closer to last than first. Win range between 5 and 8. I bet Vegas comes in at 6 or 6.5. Vegas is rarely wrong. I’m projecting 7. I’m more often right than wrong. But this won’t be Narduzzis breakout year. 8 wins max assuming they win their bowl in Detroit or Anchorage.

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      1. They did beat Texas. Very good team with plenty of returning starters. They would crush Narduzzis poorly coached team.

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        1. Not so fast my friends.

          Let’s take a look back just one year to 2019 where we find the following…

          PSU ranked 7th. Finished 11-2 and ranked 9.

          Wisconsin ranked 8. Finished 10-4 and ranked 11.

          FSU ranked 51. Finished 6-7 and unranked

          VaTech ranked 48. Finished 8-5 and unranked

          And last but not least…

          Pitt ranked 61. Finished 8-5 and unranked and lost to HIGHER ranked VaTech 28-0!

          Do you think maybe something starting with the letter “v” might have had a little to do with an unusual high number of anomalies during the year 2020?

          Bottom line… the Pre-Season Power Rankings certainly aren’t everything. But they are something.

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  3. Annie/John SC. any chance you could do a short replay of each match. Hi’s, lows ..strategy. Doesn’t have to be English 101 essay.

    I think I am more excited about this run than any football game last few years.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. You will also get excited come soccer playoff time in two weeks and baseball regionals towards middle and end of next month

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    2. John I will defer to you, unless you want me to write something. I will be watching the entire game- and I am off work tomorrow (yay)!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Annie, I hope you do write something. I would be interested in your point of view!

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    3. I will write some comments late tomorrow morning after I watch the entire replay of the match. I have to do something earlier in the morning. I may watch the first set live tonight in which case I will comment then as well. Not going to watch the whole thing live though. Too late for me:)

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      1. I’ll take a stab at it. Guess I can’t imbibe too much during the match. Hope there’s something to celebrate tomorrow.

        Liked by 1 person

  4. Could it be that Pitt has two top 10 teams in men’s soccer and women’s VB this year? And now the girl’s BB team has picked up a solid transfer from YSU, which should help them to make some strides next year. Including wrestling, the minor sports are improving significantly under Heather’s watchful eye. Men’s BB and football aren’t playing on a level playing field as we all know, but are still on an upward trajectory in my book, even basketball. Pitt FB should finish with 9 wins this year, but Capel will need some time. Overall, Pitt athletics is doing quite well under Heather.

    Liked by 4 people

    1. I kind of beg to differ. There are 19 programs. Only five are doing better than mediocre. Most are at the bottom of the second tier in the ACC. Just the facts. No opinion there.

      Coach Jay and coach fisher were Barnes hires. I give heather credit for not getting in the way.

      Coach Narduzzi got extended for six win seasons and is grossly overpaid.

      Capel helped make sure you saw the worst stretch of pitt basketball since 1964-1969.

      And women’s softball is dead last in the ACC. Heather fired a successful coach there. Forced resignation they say.

      She does get credit for Gavin even though it was her first week on the job after santoro walked away.

      Coach bell was a good hire.

      She’s batting .200 with hires.

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      1. I get the sense Coach Jay sort of does his own thing. Also, a soccer hire is often not going to turn a university around as you often point out the necessity of basketball or Football doing well. (Although I think it is you who concedes perhaps PITT could have simply chosen to field and do well in hockey as a niche program — or two — to do well in if not willing to play correctly in the football and basketball arenas).

        Yet, I feel Coach Jay is one of the best fortuitous things to happen to PITT. PITT should be grateful no other ACC programs were hiring when Jay was ready to come back to college soccer. I think Randy Waldrum essentially straight up told on himself that he would not have come to PITT if Coach Jay was not here. While all programs at a University really are independent of each other in who they hire and many have pointed out that any better hires are due to a higher ACC paycheck, I think Coach Jay helped the potential for PITT to attract better hires.

        I think I liked what happened with baseball. I know many will disagree when results are critical, but I think it was good to keep Jordano even if he was not really ever going to boost the trajectory of PITT. When it was finally time for him to leave, it seems like a program changing coach was set in place.

        I personally like Lance White as a hire. I know there will be push back because he was never a head coach before.

        I don’t really know what went on with softball. (The loyalty that led to keeping Jordano probably should have led to Aprile being retained longer. If Aprile recruited poor pitchers, PITT softball would have slid regardless…but this is a what if that does make sense for people to believe that program would be better if she stayed.)

        Are Coach Dan and Coach Jay simply the best because of their connections? Coach Fisher has so much exposure at the national level. If it is proven that he can “never” win a championship from the ACC he may leave. Otherwise, I think he is willing to stay through his extended contract and perhaps beyond (if his family continues to love it here) making PITT a true powerhouse.

        Liked by 2 people

        1. Waldrum is a good hire. Trajectory is right.

          Coach white I don’t know. He needs to prove it. He’s got great character and his style actually matches mine.

          Liked by 1 person

  5. Tex, I understand where you are coming from. But success is more than simply who happened to hire the current coaches. There must programmatic support in all areas, from staffing to scheduling, promotion, facilities, fund raising, etc. We all agree that fund raising is not where it needs to be, but Heather appears to be doing a great job of improving programs and facilities within her limits.

    Those other minor sports will hopefully be addressed in due time, and each should be examined separately to see what is going on. Is there a plan for each one? Is it simply that the specific budgets and facilities are way below the ACC norm for success? Maybe Annie or other minor sport followers could single out and drill down on some of the other minor sports for detailed examination to broaden our knowledge and understanding.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I try to keep things simple. Results matter. Performance based metrics. That’s wins and losses. I look at post season and hardware. That’s the pro mindset. I really don’t care about grades, or community service projects or other extraneous stuff offered in defense.

      I see Pitt having no excuses as to why they are so bad or mediocre across 75 percent of sports in the ACC. And it’s not like heather hasn’t had over four years to work on that.

      Pitt has always been strong in swimming, volleyball and wrestling. Baseball and soccer have stunk historically. I’m glad those sports are on the rise since I played and coached them.

      But the brand is football and to a lesser extent basketball. Football is synonymous with stable mediocrity. Basketball is a dumpster fire emoji.

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  6. Pitt football is getting +2800 to win the ACC. Meaning you place a Benjamin and get 28 back if you win. That just might draw me in. Overrated Tech is getting 1200. That would seem to be what I’d place Pitt at. Miami and the tarholes are the favorites in the Coastal. I think even Virginia is being picked ahead of Pitt. Don’t agree with that one. But clearly Pitt isn’t the favorite in any betting line or expert in media. Unless you’re a delusional Pitt fan drunk on some sugary drink. Pitt fans rarely have their expectations met or exceeded.

    Baseball is the one exception this year. Yet what is Pitt doing to drum up excitement. If they won’t allow fans to attend, at least allow the dogs.

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  7. Sorry to be so far off topic but this is too good to not pass along.

    West Virginia is now offering a cash bonus of $12k for anyone willing to move to Morgantown. Targeting work-from-home folks. How much would it take to get you to relocate to morganhole? More than $12k for me. 😁

    And Go Pitt Volleyball!

    H2P

    Liked by 1 person

    2. I’ve played golf at Lakeview Golf Resort several times. Nice place.

      And New York state is paying illegal aliens $15k or over $2 Billion in total.

      So I ask, what is more crazy ?

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  8. And remember, I’m the guy who picked Virginia to win the Coastal before the so called experts even picked Virginia. And I told y’all that the Virginia game would make or break Pitts season.

    https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/clemson-keeps-making-the-playoff-but-the-rest-of-the-acc-is-a-mess/

    Frankly, the old big east was tougher than Pitts ACC division. But let the excuses roll in like the tide at OBX where heather is vacationing at the moment.

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  9. I’ll disagree strongly that FB and BB programs at Pitt are not on a “level” playing field. Every school who isn’t a perennial Top 25 program says the same complaints about their admin, athletic dept., coaches, etc. – things that are inherent to the school itself.

    Where Pitt separates itself (in the negative) is in donations. But there are D1 schools who have less money coming in than Pitt.

    Here is an interesting paper written in 2020 (outdated but interesting) that addresses alumni giving and athletic success.

    Click to access RA_2020_14.pdf

    If you can understand it then you don’t belong here with us mortals.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Well if it wasn’t written in Shakespearean, I’d understand it.

      But Pitts gifting is really hurt because pitt is so ashamed of sports. It’s like a dirty word or act.

      Pitt makes little effort at using sports to connect fans, particularly alumni, back to the university.

      Please. Look at the UT sports mission statement. I posted a few days ago.

      As Master Yoda once said, ‘ that is why you fail.’

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  10. Heather is now busing erasing AD’s legacy from Pitt.

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    1. Pitt Fan Mentality:

      Good for Donald for taking care of this guy who was messing with him. Poke the bear you’re liable to get mauled.
      What an embarrassment Sheard is to the university. He threw a guy through a door (though the two men were engaged when the other went through, but forget the details, we’d rather dump on our own). Wannstedt has to kick him him off the team now. We cannot have this at the university! I’d rather win with a hard-working walk on than with Jabal at this point.

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  11. Good luck to the women tonight. I expect 3-0

    Don’t see these blue and gold sharks scoring more than ten in any match.

    Pitt is clearly the superior team.

    Utah awaits. I hate Utah from the fiesta bowl that one year. I was there. Had a good time though. VIP tickets. I believe you me I’m no VIP. It’s all about how you charm the ladies. 🤠

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  12. Reed, by not being on a level playing field, I was referring primarily to bag men and academics. To my knowledge, Pitt does not pay FB and BB players under the table, and they don’t fake the grades like UNC and others. So with the ugly state of college athletics cheating in the major sports, I think Pitt is at a recruiting disadvantage.

    Things like facilities, donations and budgets are under Pitt’s control. If they want to tap into their large endowment and spend some of it on sports, they could do so. But I am not advocating that Pitt should get down into the mud with the other swamp rats…

    Liked by 1 person

      1. Why do we have to say there are bagmen every other place that performs better than us without proof, instead of just saying we are mediocre and dealing with the known?

        Academic irregularities occur at Pitt too. To say we compete against that every day in recruiting cannot be proven or un-proven, therefore, an excuse. Sure, there was university of no classes (UNC, love that). And the Syracuse cluster. I do know that Pitt has had an issue of class clustering within the last couple of years. They are trying to correct it and stop it from happening so blatantly.

        Not trying to be a jerk. Just trying to understand the thought process. Other times, I can be a jerk.

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  13. Some one knowledgeable about soccer needs to write an article about Coach Jay and the rise of Pitt’s men’s soccer team. Pitt was “Kevin Stallings bad” in soccer before he came here! Yes, that bad! Just to be clear, Coach Jay decided he wanted to get back into college soccer and decided Pitt would be a great place. Would like to talk to him sometime to find out why he thought that! A good football analogy to Coach Jay coming here would be if Nick Saban would leave Alabama and go coach in the pros for a couple of years. After deciding the pros were not his thing, he would decide to go back to college coaching and come to Pitt.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Correct. I suppose the only pushback to the analogy is that Coach Jay has only won one title if I am not mistaken. Yet, that program at Wake Forest is such a powerhouse that the analogy is on point.

      Liked by 1 person

  14. As a side note, on TV the other night I watched a Robert Morris commercial which was promoting the university. The entire commercial was focused on their sporting and cheer leading teams as exciting campus activities to bring in new students. So they apparently think their rising sports programs are a good front porch for the university to attract students. What a novel idea!

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  15. Why are the volleyball players wearing masks ? The basketball players didn’t. And they guard eachother, body to body, face to face, while the volleyball players don’t.

    Liked by 1 person

  16. There were a lot of Covid issues in volleyball this year. Penn State did not play for over two weeks because of it. LIU, Pitt’s opponent tonight, is at the tournament only because the best team in the NEC, Sacred Heart, could not field a team for the championship match and had to forfeit.

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    1. Yes I know. Pitt men’s basketball didn’t play for almost 2 weeks because of it as well. And had 4 games cancelled completely and 2 others postponed. And of course other schools mirrored Pitt in cancelled games, postponed games and weeks of inactivity.

      And VCU forfeited to Oregon in the 2nd Round of the Dance.

      So no more covid issues in volleyball than basketball.

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        1. Hmmm…..maybe, maybe not. Limiting one’s supply of oxygen to the brain while participating in a sport that causes one to inhale and exhale more….don’t not sound like intelligence.

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          1. er….does not sound like intelligence. lol

            Wonder who is making these decisions, the Coach or the players ? Or you’d think the administrators would have a 1 size(masks or no masks) fits all teams associated with the University.

            Or did the NCAA say….no masks for basketball players, but masks for volleyball players. All rather odd.

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          2. It’s been pretty well documented that masks do not one’s oxygen to the brain, even during high activity levels.

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            1. Well you might not be aware of the latest study.

              “Cloth face coverings limit performance and physical capacity during exercise, a new study has found.

              Masked joggers said they felt claustrophobic during higher-intensity exercise and their oxygen intake was reduced, according to research.

              Heart rate was found to have a lower peak while exercising with a mask and participants could not keep up a jog for as long as when unmasked.

              The results of the small clinical trial were published online in the British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJSM). “

              Liked by 1 person

  17. Efton Reid heading to FSU by all accounts. Capel spent so much time again on a “big fish” and will miss out, again, on one. No way should Justin come back to Pitt and play with no help on the front line.

    What a disaster the Capel era is turning into. He has to be fired after another losing season and is making a lot of money to be delivering such poor results.

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  18. Georgia Tech and Notre Dame win their matches in the NCAA Women’s Volleyball team and advance to the second round. This was as expected.

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  19. Duquesne just recruited a top Point Guard from Hargrove Academy. Pitt still…0. Lost out on terrific center Reid who he spent a ton of time with. Still think there aren’t recruit rumors flying?

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    1. Capel did just offer a 2 star tweener 6’4″ SG from Ohio. Get this. For the 2025 class !

      Portal nearing 1400 players…..Capel is scoreless at Zero. Might be the only program without
      scoring someone in the Portal. Schools with a lot less needs than Pitt.

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  20. Pitt comes out quickly. Up 6-0 requiring LIU to call a timeout to try to stop the momentum.

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  22. Pitt not blocking well. Pitt up only by 11-9 now. Coach Fisher called a timeout to settle the team down.

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  24. Relating to a previous discussion, masks are being worn on the benches but no masks on either team while on the court.

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  25. Pitt down 15-13. Pitt uses its last timeout in the set. Pitt not playing well after fast start. Overconfident?

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  26. Pitt now up 19-16. Pitt starting to look like themselves. LIU uses their second timeout. Pitt needs to keep momentum coming out of the timeout!

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  28. Shocking news as one of the most successful coaches in the state of Pennsylvania has been let go.

    The Pine-Richland School District has fired long-time football coach Eric Kasperowicz and his entire coaching staff. In his eight seasons with the Rams, Kasperowicz compiled a record of 85-18, along with winning four WPIAL Championships and two PIAA Championships.

    Kasperowicz played DB at Pitt.

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  29. I don’t know if PITT was overconfident. If they were, however, this was a good thing to happen for them in the first set. (Who knows if I would say this if they lost the first set?)

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  31. Pitt wins first set 26-24. LIU doing well tooling off Pitt blocks. Coach Fisher sending message to his team. He did not challenge any possible tips that the players wanted. He basically told the team that he was not happy with them!!

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  34. PITT up 18-7 in the second set. The block has improved. They also got a good scoring streak when Zoi Faki was in serving.

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  38. LIU with another challenge. They win this one. The two challenge reviews have been very quick in this one. Coach Fisher has still not issued a challenge yet.

    PITT now up 17-7 having the serve again.

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  39. Well, Coach Fisher did a challenge after all. It was unsuccessful. PITT up 19-9 in the third set after failed challenge.

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  40. Well, in PITT fashion they did enough to make it look like they can go deep while doing enough in that first set to make no one surprised if this is another second round loss year.

    However, regardless of what John in SC or Annie may write, I can certainly tell you they will be much more pleased by the results (and effort) of the first and second set.

    The middle blockers did well in this game.

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  41. Pitt wins Pitt wins !!! 3 sets to Zero.

    Next up is #10 Utah of the very good in volleyball PAC 12 (5 ranked in the Top 20)

    And if we’re fortunate enough to get past the Utes, #3 Minnesota (boo) could be the opponent.

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    1. Pitt picked near the bottom by FSI in the ACC FB standings in 2021.

      Many starters lost on D and almost the entire starting offense is returning.

      Pickett hasn’t won much at Pitt except being credited with a Coastal championship, but the team was 7-7.

      Expectations from fans should be 9+ wins in 2021. The experts will see differently.

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      1. The experts see the loss of Weaver, Jones and Hamlin as being a major problem fot the Pitt defense to overcome. The experts also see a Pitt offense which was much below average in the ACC not being much better. I’m just trying to think of what the experts would be saying about Pitt FB had Pickens decided to enter the draft.

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  46. OT but the Pine Richland firing of Kasperowicz and his entire staff doesn’t smell right…time will tell.

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    1. Unless the school board has a kid or two that testified to hazing on the record it looks bad. If it did happen and involved showers/nudity, which I read in one article, he should be fired.

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      1. I would expect nudity in the showers, at least at my house…..but I get the point. There were ego differences for sure between football coaches and the board. The Board won with the eviction as Pa is an employment at will state. If you want to see if there was any fire behind the smoke, one certainty would be through litigation.

        If no fire, it was a Board job. EK should be fine in my estimation from the early accounts. I think hazing continues to be a problem across higher education and high school sports. A time honored tradition so long as it doesn’t go overboard. I am not advocating nor condoning hazing at all as it is serious for so many. What I would say before rushing to judgment however, is that there are two sides to every story.

        The fact that the entire staff was let go either means it was reported to an asst coach and not escalated, or reported, escalated to head coach, nothing done, and not escalated to the school AD. Or, you just wanted to clean house and start new. I would never accept a position if the full story was not shared with me, so head coaches beware! If you all want a horrific read, read the $1Bn sexual misconduct settlement with USC physician (tindall). Awful!

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  47. Pitt gets a transfer !!

    6-foot-3 Youngstown State graduate transfer Mary Dunn signed her letter of intent with the Panthers on Wednesday.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Maybe she could play for Capel instead of White. He might need her more than White come next season.

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  50. Congrats to the women’s VB squad. Program is near and dear to my family! 2 nephews were college scholarship recipients and my sis does a lot of work with the Pittsburgh Elites and previous Pitt coaches.

    Cincinnati Hires a solid bball coach in Wes Miller. He was on my short list of coaches so let’s see how he performs. Good plan by the AD. Prior to firing the last HC for whatever reason, they had this guy on the short list and got it done within a week.

    Reed, nobody talked about the Hampshire Honor Society award that went to Morrisey. He was Pitt’s lone representative this year, which is a sharp decline over years past where we have had 3,6, and 3 respectively. Of the total of 13, at least 4 were former walk-ons, 3 transfers and a punter. Anyway, congrats to Morrissey as he seems to be one of the few that actually had a lot of playing time. The others were studying!!

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  51. Could be hazing

    https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/ncaafb/pine-richland-head-football-coach-eric-kasperowicz-and-entire-coaching-staff-will-not-return-in-fall/ar-BB1fF5Dt

    Good win by the women. Utah will be a tougher test but I expect Pitt to advance and play the Minnesota in round 3.

    Men’s soccer plays clemson this Saturday in the ACC championship, a rematch of last falls game where pitt lost 2-1. Game is a toss up from my perspective. Is huge for tournament seeding. Pitt needs a relatively easy draw to advance far in the playoffs. They may be a legit top 5 team but they aren’t number one imo. I like Georgetown.

    Pitt baseball is top 25 in all polls and ranked 20 in rpi. The ACC is ranked as the third best conference behind the sec and big 12. They will need to slip no further than 40 to receive a regional invite. There is still a big slate of games to play over the next 5 weeks. ACC championships begin May 25. Not sure why Pitt didn’t bid to host a regional. Could have done it at PNC. Poor vision if you ask me and lack of program commitment. This was the year to go all in.

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