Practice officially starts tomorrow afternoon. There’s no Midnight Madness for Pitt. There is a fan appreciation day in about 2 weeks — Saturday, October 29 — but no details as yet. While the new media guide is not available, you can download the Pre-Season Prospectus (PDF). It contains coaches and player bios. It also has the stats and all box scores from last season.

The prospectus was apparently produced back in late August. It still includes Trevor Ferguson.

The other thing the prospectus provides is “pre-season storylines.”

Pitt will be challenged to replace three departed starters: All-Big East First Team selection Chevon Troutman, NBA Draft pick Chris Taft and four-year letterwinner Mark McCarroll.

Two starters return in guards Carl Krauser and Antonio Graves.

Pitt welcomes five signees to the program: Tyrell Biggs, Trevor Ferguson, Levance Fields, Doyle Hudson and Sam Young.

Head Coach Jamie Dixon begins his third season at Pittsburgh. His 51-14 career record
is the all-time best start to a Pitt coaching career after two years at the school. His current .785 winning percentage ranks as the top current winning percentage among Big East coaches.

Pitt will once again face a difficult schedule with the addition of five new Big East schools: Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville, Marquette and South Florida and a much improved non-conference slate.

I like that last note. A tacit acknowledgment of what a dog non-con Pitt has had the last few years.

At ESPN.com, Andy Katz looks at the new incarnation of the Big East, including the unbalanced schedule and the monstrous size.

Pitt was very quiet in the early signing period. They did get Gilbert Brown and Mike Cook, a transfer from East Carolina who will be sitting out the season. Pitt has at least 2 more scholarships to give but is taking its time.

Mike Davis was supposed to be part of the previous recruiting class, but has had (to be kind) academic issues. He’s in prep school and if he can show actual seriousness about attending his classes and actually studying, then he could still be a great possibility for Pitt.

According to the latest from the Pittsburgh Sports Report, these are other potential players Pitt is looking at.

Austin Wallace, from La Salle Academy in New York City, recently visited Pittsburgh and will decide shortly between the Panthers and Florida Atlantic, who are now coached by former Notre Dame and North Carolina coach Matt Doherty. The 6’8 1/2″ Wallace needs to add to his 210 pound frame, but he is very young for his class, is an excellent student, and has untapped potential.

Another big man, Ekpe Udoh, of Santa Fe High School in Edmond, Oklahoma, has narrowed his list to Pittsburgh and Michigan. The 6’9″ Udoh was originally scheduled to visit Pittsburgh this week but has postponed it for a few weeks. Udoh is a sleeper who missed the very important summer camps due to a shoulder injury. Many thought he was headed to Michigan, but Pitt has put an all out assault on him over the past few weeks.

Last but certainly not least is Senegal native Hamady N’diaye, formerly of Florida Prep Academy in Port Charlotte, Florida. The 6’10” N’diaye recently left Florida Prep and has yet to surface elsewhere. While very raw, especially offensively, N’diaye is a superb physical specimen with a great wingspan and excellent mobility for a kid his size. His potential alone has helped him garner offers from the likes of UConn, Wake Forest, Memphis, Southern Cal, and Florida State. Pitt expects an official visit from him in the coming weeks.
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The Panthers have numbers and young talent at the wing but continue to recruit at those positions should a sudden change force them to add. Included in this group are former Tennessee signee and top 60 player Tyler Smith, who failed to qualify academically at Tennessee and now plays for Hargrave Military Academy in Virginia. Another Smith, this time Kiwan Smith of Laurinburg Prep in North Carolina via Brooklyn, is a 6’7″ small forward that the Panthers are monitoring. Kiwan Smith is a big time scorer and a top 100 player. A third forward Pitt is watching is England native Ben Eaves, a 6′ 7 1/2″ 210 pounder currently playing for Worchester Academy in Massachusetts. Despite needing to add weight, Eaves is a scrapper with excellent three point skills and superb athleticism. Once a sleeper, Eaves is now hearing from the likes of UConn and Syracuse.

At shooting guard, the Panthers are enamored with 6′ 4″ Adrion Graves of Hughes High School in Cincinnati. Graves, who originally committed to Cincinnati verbally before Bob Huggins was fired, is an extremely confident player on the court and is more of a scorer than a shooter. He will unofficially visit Pittsburgh this weekend.

Looks like Pitt, while still staying tight with the NY/NJ talent is really trying to reach further out to recruit talent. On that front it is not just a positive in that it makes the pool deeper, but it also indicates that Pitt and the coaches have been developing a more national presence that is getting recognition and the kids are listening.