Here’s a directory of photos of Pitt playing in the old unis, courtesy of Tony in Harrisburg. It also includes a shot of the band doing the script “PITT.” They look great. And the unis just look sharp and distinctive when they aren’t in old fuzzy video with lots of bad hair and fashion mistakes surrounding them. It feels less like nostalgia, and more like the right colors for Pitt. Unlike most of you, I’m not particularly wedded to the script, but the colors are the thing.
The Pitt players loved the unis.
“I hope this doesn’t get me in trouble, but I really wish we could go back to those old uniforms,” Pitt quarterback Tyler Palko said after the Panthers’ 41-0 win against Youngstown State yesterday at Heinz Field. “Those things are sweet. Those get us back to the days of what Pitt really is. I like that. Hopefully, we can change back. Hopefully, we can keep them for the Rutgers game [Friday] because those are good-luck uniforms.
“I like them because they get us back to being down and dirty, like the good old Pitt days.”
Tight end Darrell Strong said, “If I have any say or the players’ word has anything to do with it — I say keep them. We looked like Pitt today, [the uniforms] gave us a little bit of swagger.”
And of course, Coach Wannstedt wants them to stay.
“I don’t know if it’s (up to) our athletic director or our chancellor, but we could be the Buffalo Bills of college football,” Wannstedt said. “The Bills didn’t want to take off their throwback uniforms. That’s what our guys were saying in (the locker room). They want to wear ’em.”
As for the game itself,
The Panthers (1-3) scored five offensive touchdowns — [more] than double their output for the entire season — and had an opportunity for several more if not for some dropped passes and a fumble by Erik Gill on the goal line. They finished with 25 first downs and 528 yards of total offense.
And Palko finally resembled his old self — the one that came into the season being touted as a potential Heisman Trophy contender — and completed 14 of 22 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns. More importantly, he completed passes to six different players, including his favorite target from a year ago — Greg Lee, who caught six passes for 143 yards and a touchdown.
David Abdul had a successful return, aside from missing his first extra point attempt because of nerves.
And of course the defense pitched a shutout.
“You can’t get two wins until you get one, and that’s what I told the team,” Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said. “We still have a lot of work to do, but it’s obvious that there were a lot of plays out there that we left on the field, particularly on offense. A few scoring plays and a couple drops.
“The guys came out and played like they played the last two weeks. I told the defense it’s great to get a shutout. It doesn’t matter who you’re playing or where you’re playing, to keep somebody from scoring any points is not an easy feat. And it should add to the confidence that our defense has had the last couple weeks. So, they’ve played extremely well.”
Arguably, YSU suffered the end of 3 games of major frustration from Pitt players.
Ray Kirkley had 121 yards of total offenses (82 running, 39 on a screen pass) and two touchdowns. He’s stepped up, despite the increased competition, and is now carrying the load with the rash of injuries.
“You have to hand it to Ray for sticking in there and continuing to work hard no matter what,” Wannstedt said. “We tried to replace him this season with other runners and they’re all injured or struggling, and Ray is still there doing his best to help us win.”
LaRod Stephens-Howling tweaked his ankle in the game and was held out the rest of the game as a precaution. The implication being that he could have continued playing if needed.
The one thing that was annoying was hearing Blades get hit with a taunting penalty, though the explanation is plausible.
After breaking up a pass, linebacker H.B. Blades did five push-ups on the field. Blades was penalized 15 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct. Wannstedt was upset, but not fuming, about Blades’ actions.
“That was wrong. It was ridiculous,” Wannstedt said. “They do a thing in practice where if they drop an interception, they do five push-ups. He felt like he missed an interception and some of the guys yelled at him, ‘You owe us five.’ It was not taunting, trust me. If it had been taunting, I would’ve acted on it on the spot.”
Top Pitt recruit Dorin Dickerson was at the game and was back in the locker room afterwards. He continues to affirm his commitment to Pitt (not that Michigan should be feeling like it can brag after another loss).
And, like I said earlier, it was great to see Pitt get Bill Stull and the back-ups into the game as early as they did. You want to see that. See the young kids get experience and the older players that stick with the team and go through the practices, rewarded with some decent playing time.
“I could hear my (three) sisters and my family screaming for me,” Stull said. “It was definitely a lot of fun.”
This, despite an attendance announced at 43,135 — though it is noted that it appeared to be significantly smaller.
As for commentary, Bob Smizik gets full credit for being dead-on.
What, if anything, Pitt’s demolition of badly outmanned Youngstown State means for the remainder of the football season only will be determined by the team’s final seven games. But the Panthers desperately needed this kind of performance. They needed a win against the Division I-AA Penguins, but they specifically needed the kind of lift this 41-0 victory yesterday at Heinz Field is capable of giving them.
Worth the full read.
Mike Prisuta sees a lot of work for Pitt remaining.
