There isn’t a lot for Pitt football today. Pitt’s had a bye. The weekly Big East teleconference and Dave Wannstedt press conference is later this morning, so the news is sparse.
A good notebook article observing that this game is not quite of the importance it was expected to have at the beginning of the season.
Coach Wannstedt was actually happy about the timing of the bye, which wasn’t too shocking considering the team had played 8 straight games and needed the break. That allowed many of the players to get closer to full health, and recover from the bumps, bruises, strains and sprains. In fact the only questionable player is defensive tackle Thomas Smith.
I have to wonder if Coach Wannstedt said this with a straight face or with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek.
Louisville has had a much more productive offense at home than on the road. The Cardinals are averaging 64 points per game at home but only 29 points per game on the road.
Wannstedt said because the Cardinals offense appears to be virtually unstoppable, the pressure to come up with a winning game plan is not going to be on defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads.
“They average 64 points a game at home,” Wannstedt said. “That means we have to score 65 so it is [offensive coordinator] Matt Cavanaugh‘s problem.”
If you take that seriously, then that means Pitt will be throwing the ball — despite going against their nature. It actually makes some sense since Louisville is only ahead of Rutgers and Cinci in pass defense.
Related to that, Derek Kinder gets a puff piece lauding how far he’s come on the field this season.
With 228 yards on 28 catches and two touchdowns, Kinder doesn’t exactly have the numbers of a strong No. 2 receiver, but such is exactly what he’s become for Pitt.
Kinder, who was recruited as a running back, caught eight passes for 81 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown, in Pitt’s win against Syracuse on Oct. 22. Against Rutgers on Sept. 30, he hauled in 10 receptions, a career-high, for 78 yards and a touchdown.
More important, since he took over the starting flanker position the third game into the season, Pitt has gone 4-2 and now stands at 4-4 overall, 3-1 in the Big East headed into its showdown Thursday night in Louisville.
Over the past three games, opponents have failed to hold Pitt to less than 30 points and the Panthers are undefeated in those contests. The rapid development of Kinder, according to coach Dave Wannstedt, has proven a major factor in Pitt’s sudden offensive firepower.
“He’s a guy who has gotten better every week,” Wannstedt said of Kinder. “He’s kind of a self-made type of receiver. He was a running back in high school. Nobody works as hard. He never makes a mental mistake. Every long run we have, he’s down the field blocking. He’s on the punt team and making tackles on the kickoff coverage team. The guy is, probably, one of the unsung positive stories that people don’t talk about enough.”
Kinder deserves major props for the way he has taken the #2 receiver position. There has been no debate or argument about his performance earning the promotion.
