First I shook my head at this.

10. I think these are my non-NFL thoughts of the week:

a. Proud to be a Bobcat alum this morning, after Ohio U. beat Pitt on Friday night. I’m one of the degenerates who drank before the game, drank during the first half, watched the band’s halftime show, then was back in the dorm (or apartment) by early in the third quarter. Maybe Frank Solich will change that. So weird to see Athens in an ESPN game.

b. Poor Dave Wannstedt.

Then I started getting pissed. Pity from Peter King? Even worse, misplaced pity. There shouldn’t be any sympathy for Coach Wannstedt right now. Especially from a guy who covers pro football and knows Wannstedt. There should be questions and doubts, but no pity.

7. Is Pittsburgh that bad or is Ohio that good?
The Wannstedt Watch officially started Friday night when Pittsburgh dropped to 0-2 after an incredible 16-10 overtime loss to Ohio. Losing at home to Notre Dame was one thing, but Ohio?

It was clear watching the game that the Bobcats offense didn’t belong on the same field with the Panthers, but Ohio had defensive back Dion Byrum. Ohio’s only two touchdowns came via Byrum’s two interception returns for scores.

Frank Solich was ushered out the door at Nebraska because his offense was thought to be antiquated. How’s this for stone age? Ohio had one drive of more than six yards but got one of the biggest wins in its history. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh is off to an 0-2 start for the first time in 21 years.

“It’s stunning, it hurts,” linebacker Clint Session said. “We’ve got to get a win.”

Right now Nebraska is favored by 10 to 10.5 points. The over/under is 41.

Unsurprisingly Pitt and especially Coach Wannstedt have come out this weekend taking a beating in the media.

FLORIDA TODAY assistant sports editor Ralph Routon lists the five most disappointing college football teams so far this season:

1. Pittsburgh (0-2).
After making a BCS game last year, and with plenty of returnees, the Panthers had high expectations with new head coach Dave Wannstedt. Losing at home to Notre Dame was one thing. Losing at Ohio was disastrous.

But, hey, at least we are the best of the worst.

Another article wondering about how so many pundits could be wrong about various teams, including of course:

Pittsburgh. Former Panther Tony Dorsett stood up before his school’s opener and said he was sure first-year Coach Dave Wannstedt was the man to turn the program around. Well, maybe Dorsett was right. Last year, Pitt went to the Fiesta Bowl under Walt Harris and this year Pitt opened with losses to Notre Dame and Ohio.

The piling on continues.

Worst coaching job: One week after making a disastrous debut at home against Notre Dame, Pittsburgh coach Dave Wannstedt showed again why he was such a bust in the NFL. Considered dark horses in the dismal Big East behind favorite Louisville, the Panthers will likely go into league play with three losses with a trip to Nebraska scheduled for Saturday.

And Nebraska is happy about this considering their own problems on offense.

However, there’s a bright side to all of this offensive misery. A few of them, actually:

Bright Side I: Pitt’s foundering football team. The 0-2 Panthers are a train wreck. They rank 95th nationally in total offense and 61st in total defense (Nebraska is No. 99 and No. 6, respectively). New Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt looked lost as the Panthers fell in overtime to Ohio last weekend. After playing Pitt on Saturday, NU has a bye week before beginning conference play. Perfect. Bill Callahan and Co. can step back, take a deep breath and assess the situation. And, yes, we have a situation.

And of course, the fellow bloggers are not letting things go unncommented.

And you know what, there is no answer right now. I’m not giving up, but there is nothing to say to defend what has happened. All that can be done is just kind of shrug and hope.

The Pitt game notes for the Nebraska game are available here (PDF).

On the 2-deep depth chart, DelSardo is now second on the depth chart at Flanker behind Derek Kinder. This suggests (I hope) that Pitt will be trying to stretch the field. Kinder is faster and taller than DelSardo. Clearly Pitt is trying to get some of the double teams off of Lee, who has not shown the desire to beat them to this point this season.

Thomas Smith is listed as the DT starter, but Clint Session is still second at SAM behind Derron Thomas.

Game notes for Nebraska do not yet appear available.

Obviously Athens wanted to celebrate their win.

The area is less than an hour from West Virginia, and that Southeastern corner of Ohio seems to have a mixed twang of Kentcky and West Virginia. So this shouldn’t be a surprise.

Athens police Chief Richard Mayer said he blames irresponsible behavior by college students for a number of weekend incidents that required police attention.

Athens police faced extra concerns early Saturday morning as Ohio University students in the Mill Street area celebrated the school’s Friday night football victory by throwing parties and setting a couch on fire in the middle of the street.

“I don’t consider starting fires in the street a celebration,” Mayer said.
…
Rumors claiming that police used tear gas to disperse crowds on either night are false, Mayer said.

[Emphasis added.]

One officer received emergency wrist surgery over the weekend when, “his horse slipped on gravel and pavement and fell on top of him.”

For the record, I was not involved in this incident.

The honeymoon is over for Wannstedt. His postgame press conference Friday night was disrupted by two fans who jeered,

“Go back to Miami, Wannstedt!” The coach paused only briefly and seemed to ignore the two hecklers, who appeared to be wearing blue-and-gold gear.

You know, Athens is in the middle of no where. Slow roads and speed traps all around. It’s as bad as driving to State College. The nearest Interstate is about 40-50 miles east in Marietta. Any Pitt fan who made the drive from even Columbus had to be in a less than positive mood before the game because of the trip. I can only guess at how they’d feel after watching the game.

Maybe I’m just seeing negatives, but I thought Ohio’s offense was really bad and one dimensional. So it’s hard to be giving this much in the way of props to the Pitt defense. I mean, I suppose when you compare it to the offense’s performance it looks pretty damn good. Still, Pitt seemed to be hitting more than tackling at times.

Speaking of the offense, it’s never a good sign when it’s the players trying to defend the offensive game plan.

There have been many reasons given for Pitt’s offensive struggles, but one that Pitt players insist is not the culprit is a game plan that, on the surface, seemed rather conservative.

The Panthers’ passing game has been a staple of their offense in recent years, but the Panthers attempted very few passes down the field Friday night. Part of that is the new offensive philosophy — which is based on ball control and a power running game — but the Panthers still seemed to attempt more long passes in the opener against Notre Dame than they did against the Bobcats.

A big issue was the inconsistent play of quarterback Tyler Palko, who threw three interceptions and had two of them run back for touchdowns, but the Panthers’ concerns ran deeper than that.

Palko seemed rattled at times and didn’t look comfortable in the pocket, but he said he just had a bad night and it had nothing to do with learning a new offense. He also said that the Panthers’ game plan wasn’t too restrictive nor was it the cause of any of his problems. He said that the offense would have worked fine if he had played better.

Now, maybe I’m wrong. Maybe the memory of those interceptions and near interceptions in the Ohio game, coupled with seeing the “Pontiac/ESPN Game Changing Performance” ads that includes the Palko being intercepted and returned for a TD in a similar manner by a UConn corner, and thinking about the same type of INT in last year’s Nebraska game. I’m starting to think that one of Palko’s weaknesses is making that kind of pass. He doesn’t seem to notice the defender, locks in on the receiver and definitely doesn’t seem to put enough zip on the pass.

Palko is much better throwing balls over the middle or deep. Maybe it’s mechanics, but his throws to the sidelines tend to get some air under them. Like he’s aiming the ball too much rather than throwing.

The only excuse you can provide for Palko is that he had no time. The O-line protection was non-existent. That’s going to be a big problem since Nebraska is the #6 defense in the country at the moment.

Well, judging by the comments after each game, most Pitt fans are following the 5 stages of grief to a tee.

1. Denial and Isolation.
   At first, we tend to deny the loss has taken place, and may withdraw from our usual social contacts. This stage may last a few moments, or longer.
2. Anger.
   The grieving person may then be furious at the person who inflicted the hurt (even if she’s dead), or at the world, for letting it happen. He may be angry with himself for letting the event take place, even if, realistically, nothing could have stopped it.
3. Bargaining.
   Now the grieving person may make bargains with God, asking, “If I do this, will you take away the loss?”
4. Depression.
   The person feels numb, although anger and sadness may remain underneath.
5. Acceptance.
   This is when the anger, sadness and mourning have tapered off. The person simply accepts the reality of the loss.

Some have already skipped to Nos. 4 and 5, but “anger” has definitely been the vibe after the Ohio game.