Adam Graessle is on the Ray Guy Award Watch List. The award is presented by the Greater Augusta Sports Council. No shock that he was one of the 40 players on the list. Graessle is an outstanding punter. Brendan Carney of Syracuse was the only other Big East player put on the list.
Starting running back Rashad Jennings has some sort of shoulder injury — the extent is not known.
This is interesting.
Freshman tight end John Pelusi got some playing time against Ohio. However, sophomore Darrell Strong remains Mr. Invisible. “We talked about Darrell getting involved, but it hasn’t happened,” Wannstedt said. “We’ve got plays in (the game plan) with him every week. Pelusi might be our second- or third-best blocker. Steve Buches can do it all, he’s a smart guy. Darrell is more of a receiver.”
I only saw Strong in for one play against ND, and a pass was attempted to him. Given the struggles of the O-line, it can’t be too surprising that Strong is not getting in there. The line needs as much help as possible and a TE that isn’t particularly enthusiastic about blocking is not going to get out there much.
Clint Session wasn’t expected to play on Friday. In fact, he didn’t get on the bus with the team when they left.
“As soon as they left, I just knew in my heart that I needed to be there,” Session said. “I felt like I came to Pitt to help this team win and I was letting the team down. I remember when coach Harris used to talk about being hurt and being injured and really my knee was just a matter of pain and being sore.
“The kind of guy I am, if there is a possibility I can play, I’m playing so I knew what I had to do.”
So he essentially decided to drive to Athens and convince the coaches to let him play. The problem was, the team was staying Parkersburg, WV.
“I went on Mapquest and looked up directions to Athens, Ohio,” he said. “I figured I’d just get there and then find the team. It just so happened there was a manager who I ran into and he told me they were staying at the Holiday Inn. I had no idea which one so I just headed out towards Athens.
“I’m sort of lost on this highway but I saw an exit sign that said Athens and got off and it just so happened when I looked up on this hill, there was a sign for a Holiday Inn and it had ‘Welcome Pittsburgh Panthers’ on a big sign hanging out front, so I figured that was the right place.[“]
I think that was the same approach taken in college to find a couple of the strip joints in McKees Rocks — except without the “Welcome Pitt” sign.
H.B. Blades is happy to have Session by his side again, and his groin seems good enough.
“Blades is better,” coach Dave Wannstedt said. “We expect him to play this weekend.”
The Panthers need Blades to be on top of his game against Nebraska, which tries to confuse defenses with a lot of shifting and motion. Blades said getting linebacker Clint Session and defensive tackle Thomas Smith back up to full speed also is key.
“I’ve been playing beside Clint since high school all-star games, so having him back there is something I’m used to,” Blades said. “Thomas Smith was a major bonus. He makes plays in the backfield and takes pressure off the linebackers.
“All the guys, just the whole rotation system and everything, can start flowing and everything can get back to normal.”
As soon as we determine what normal is.
Freshman offensive lineman C.J. Davis saw his first action of the year in the Ohio game.
Apparently strong consideration had been given to redshirting Davis, but when several players went down during the game, that got tossed out the window. Now, the plan is to start working him into the game more and not waste the year. The O-line is probably going to need all the help it can get with Nebraska.
In their opener against Maine, the Cornhuskers tied school records with 11 sacks and 18 tackles for loss. They tacked on five sacks last week against Wake Forest.
The Blackshirts have three returning starters — tackles Kevin Smith (6-2, 305 pounds) and Titus Adams (6-3, 300) and end Adam Carriker (6-6, 280) — on their defensive line. Three true freshman also have gotten playing time as third-stringers.
“Their two d-tackles are pretty big,” Davis said. “I don’t think they move as much as Notre Dame or Ohio’s fronts did, though. But they’re definitely big, so we’ll have to get low and try to move them.”
Final note, Pitt verbal commit Dorin Dickerson along with top CB recruit Darrin Walls were selected to play in the Army All-American High School Bowl. Seriously, is there any way we can stick Dickerson in some isolation chamber until February?
