On Thursday, September 1 for a way too long a chunk of the morning I IM’d with 2 members of Blue Gray Sky regarding the ND-Pitt game. That’s right they needed to go to double coverage to discuss the game.
As you can imagine, it became a beast of a discussion. Here Part 1 of the mostly raw text discussion. There was some minor editing and condensing, but this is about as raw (and as long) as it gets. I’ll be posting the rest throughout the day.
A couple important links to reference — the box scores from the games in 2003 and 2004 (Not to mention my recaps of 2003 and 2004).
Jay: Good morning
Chas: Hello again. Is Pat on yet?
Yahoo! Messenger: Pat has joined the conference.
Jay: There he is. Okay, hopefully this won’t be tooo long. First off, just a general question to you Chas
Chas: Fire away
Jay: Are the Pitt fans as excited for this game as ND fans are? We haven’t seen this level of anticipation for a season opener in a long, long time.
Chas: This game has been on everyone’s mind for weeks. The excitement is palpable.
Jay: It’s crazy on this end. A LOT of people are roadtripping to the game. I think the Irish contingent there is going to be pretty big.
Chas: Never a shock.
Jay: onto to the game. I have a question about Jennings, but if you want to ask anything go right ahead.
Chas: Let’s start with Rashad Jennings who was supposed to be part of the class of 2004 but had to do a year of prep school for academics. Pitt got him over Virginia Tech.
Jay: why is he starting if he’s only a freshman? Is he simply better than everyone else? Maybe that’s an obvious question, but maybe it goes to depth at RB? Are there any upperclassmen who got passed over? Any guys you feel should have gotten a shot over Jennings?
Chas: He fits the mold of the style of running back Wanny and Cavanaugh like. Big strong, in between the tackles, etc. RB depth was a question last year. Tim Murphy, the starting fullback spent time at tailback, and is one of my favorites. He does, however, have issues with staying healthy. Having both in the backfield actually gives Pitt some options and chances to confuse.
Pat: One reason that many freshman running backs don’t see the field is due to poor pass blocking. Have there been mention of Rasard’s ability as it relates to that particular skill?
Chas: I’ve heard nothing about his blocking skills one way or another. He’s older than the typical freshman and has the added feature of having NFL bloodlines — both his brothers were minor players.
Jay: Does Jennings remind you of any other backs, college, NFL or otherwise?
Chas: I think Jennings will eventually see the bulk of the work if he performs as expected. In the first game or two, though, unless he busts it huge, expect to see him get half with Brandon Mason and Murphy getting the rest.
Jay: that’s an interesting point — and not reported. ND fans seem to think that Jennings will be the feature back, i.e., 30+ carries in this game.
Chas: No, in fact an article in the P-G today quotes Cavanaugh about the RBs
Now, about Darius Walker… Saw first hand last year how good he could be, and not to drag up a painful issue, [but] if not for giving Grant half the carries on Senior day last year, I thought he was going to break J.Jones’ record for a single game against Pitt.
Jay: Good point. He should have. One of the prime pieces of ammunition in the firing of Tyrone Willingham — at least from a fans’ standpoint — was how he handled the running backs last year. It was clear very early on that Darius Walker was head and shoulders above Grant. Yet, as the season went on, Grant & Walker continued to split carries.
Chas: Are there any backs behind Walker? Both teams seem to have the talent, but depth would be the biggest concern at so many of the skill positions.
Jay: Sometimes painfully so. Yep. One guy to keep an eye on for Pitt fans is #16, Rashon Powers-Neal. He was a FB last year, and played the typical WCO fullback – blocked, rarely carried, caught a couple of passes. This year he got a lot of reps at tailback alongside Walker. He’s sort of switched positions under Weis, but he’s a lot bigger than Darius. He might get some carries or operate out of a 2-back set, split backfield and such.
Chas: A lot like Pitt with Murphy, then as a guy who can do it at tailback? Reads very familiar.
Jay: It’s one of the most interesting things we’re looking forward to. To see how RPN is used. He’s got good hands. After Walker & RPN it drops off to some heralded, but unproven guys. Travis Thomas fumbled a lot last year and was benched, but seems to be out of the doghouse and Weis has said he’s impressed. After that the only other guy to keep an eye on is a freshman, Asaph Schwapp, built like a bowling ball. FB. He made the 2-deep which is impressive.
Chas: How deep — barring injury — do you really think ND’ll go on the depth chart?
Jay: At RB, we’re fairly deep.
Pat: I’d expect 4-5 guys to carry the ball at least once
Jay: In fact, I’d say RB & WR are probably the deepest spots on the team. And TE.
Chas: How do you not make sure Walker sees the bulk of the carries?
Jay: Good question.
Pat: Not really, as some might only get a carry or two.
Jay: We Shall See.
Chas: Well, TE we both are stacked there and have Mackey watch list candidates.
Jay: Is the TE a weapon in the Wanny attack? Should we be looking for a play-action pass to the TE on the goal line?
Chas: Well, it sure as hell was with Cavanaugh in Baltimore.
Jay: Heap, yeah. Run down your TE depth chart real quick if you could.
Chas: Gill, Buches, Strong and Pelusi. Gill, well, you guys saw him rumble last year…
Jay: Painful memories
Pat: Both Gill and Buches scored against the Irish last year. I’m sure they are on the mind of ND coaches.
Chas: Buches is a solid blocker and decent hands. Not very fast though.
Pat: Strong is a converted WR correct? Do you expect him to be involved in the passing game?
Chas: Strong is the best athlete and with great speed. His issue, and he’s even admitted it, is blocking. Vital for a TE, but he is the most intriguing of the bunch.
Pat: So when he gets in the game, the chances of a pass are pretty high?
Jay: Heh.
Chas: Yeah, he’s a guy that would be expected to catch the ball either over the middle or on a screen. Strong came here over Auburn because he was promised a shot at QB — quickly realizing that the Harris offense was too much.
Jay: Quarterback — really! Wow.
Chas: Kind of a mobile Byron Leftwich type. He dropped his weight and is now around 240, he’s 6’5″.
Pat: So do you expect him to play often or is he a solid 3rd on the depth chart?
Chas: I do not know right now. I think he will get in there but I am not sure.
Jay: Yet, obviously, the strength of the receiving corps for pitt is not the TE. Let’s talk Greg Lee.
Chas: Lee is going to be facing double coverage (at least).
Jay: Is he good enough to beat it? He might be, against our green secondary. Just looking at his stats. 5th in the country last year in receiving. Pretty amazing
Chas: The way he improved from the start of last year to the end of the season was astounding. Not only did he start to use that talent, but he got a mean, tough streak going. Fighting for the ball and at times ripping it from a defender. I expect Lee to face a lot of bumping off the line, but he is good enough to beat it.
Pat: How is his shoulder? He did miss a fair amount of practice this fall.
Chas: The shoulder — again an article today — is apparently fine. Last fall he missed some camp time with a leg injury. He, like so many WRs, seemed willing to nurse the injury to take some extra time.
Jay: Let’s hope Minter has a plan. Any chance that the injury report is a little gamesmanship, or do you think he’s truly 100%?
Chas: Yeah, I think he’s fine. He participated in the final scrimmage without issue.
Jay: Gotcha.
