Chris Dokish who writes for Pittsburgh Sports Report has his own blog now. Definitely looks good. This post, especially, is an interesting take on who Pitt should consider hiring as a new assistant coach for the basketball team. As a counter-thought, even though he is likely to join Sendek at Arizona State, I would have to mention Larry Harris as meriting strong consideration.

You may have missed it, but Pitt is hard at work lining up its 1-AA patsy home game for 2007.

Pitt is close to a deal that would bring Grambling State to Heinz Field for a game against the Panthers in 2007.

Only if their band is coming as well. I’d say it’s part of the problem with only 7 other conference foes, but so many other schools are just looking for the home patsy and going with the 1-AA route that it is something more.

That brings me to this article on football scheduling in college.

Welcome to the always opportunistic and ethically opaque world of nonconference college football scheduling. A world in which the sanctity of a contract means little — less if the contract does not contain a “liquidated damage” (i.e., buyout) clause. In which an incoming coach or athletic director (or major television network) can erase an existing game off the “future schedules” page with relative impunity. You’ve heard of the Outback Bowl? Welcome to the Backout Bowl.

Why is it that the only thing “binding” in college atletics seems to be a kid’s letter of intent? Coaching and AD contracts, nonconference scheduling, TV deals. All negotiable and easily changed.

Like records, nonconference football contracts were made to be broken. In the 1990s, Nevada and Oregon entered into an agreement to play three games. The Wolf Pack would visit Eugene in 2000 and ’03. The Ducks would play in Reno in ’04. Nevada honored both visits to Autzen Stadium, losing both times.

Then, in the spring of ’04, Wolf Pack associate assistant athletic director Rory Hickok received a disturbing phone call. “It was Oregon,” Hickok recalls. “They told us that they had an opportunity to play a home-and-home with Oklahoma but that they could only do it on our date [Sept. 18, 2004]. They asked not to cancel the game, but to postpone it.”

As one Oregon athletic official says now, “I suspect Nevada wasn’t overly thrilled.”

Nevada had neglected to include a fiscal penalty clause in the contract. The Wolf Pack had little leverage in compelling Oregon to honor the deal. The Ducks held the cards, and Nevada knew it. The NCAA was not about to step in and force Oregon to play the game, nor was the Pac-10 or the Western Athletic Conference.

“We provide for a fair amount of institutional autonomy,” says NCAA spokesperson Erik Christianson. “We don’t get involved in contractual issues between our member institutions.”

Of course, if a student-athlete signs a letter of intent to play at Oregon or Nevada and then reneges on that agreement, the NCAA does get involved.

Back to Nevada. If you are Hickok, what can you do? You know that ABC engineered the Oklahoma-Oregon matchup as a nationally televised game. You do not want to alienate ABC’s sister network, ESPN (“We’re very much interested in whatever exposure we can get,” says Hickok), and you do not want to alienate the mighty Ducks, either.

If you are Hickok, you swallow your pride. You allow ABC/ESPN and Oregon to find you a replacement opponent. You play Buffalo, a program that would win two games that season. You wonder how many of your fans headed to Lake Tahoe that day instead of to Mackay Stadium because of the switch. How much revenue you lost.

“Tentatively,” says Hickok, “we are scheduled to play Oregon here in 2010.”

Currently, that is a (cough, cough) gentleman’s agreement between the two schools. Nothing is in writing. And if Oregon can see fit to renege on a contract, how strong is that handshake agreement for the 2010 game?

“We don’t even have that game penciled in yet,” says an Oregon official.

I’m unaware of Pitt pulling stunts like this (witness the trips to Toledo and Ohio the last couple of years), but let’s not kid ourselves. Pitt would do the same thing with the opportunity. Read the whole article.

The problem has just gotten more accute with the addition of the 12th game. Schools are not looking for good games. They are looking for good money. Whether it is setting up the patsy home game even with a 1-AA team rather than risk playing a good 1-A opponent. Or bailing on a game for the increased TV opportunity.

Even the patsies are doing it. Buffalo bailed on an older deal with WVU this season to take a bigger payout to go play Auburn. This happened in February, leaving the Hoopies scrambling to find anyone. They got 1-AA Eastern Washington.

That’s the other reason so many schools are going the 1-AA route. The price for a patsy 1-A opponent is higher than ever with the increased demand. Buffalo was offered so much more money to play Auburn that even after they payed the penalty to WVU for skipping out, they were still making more off the deal.

Capsulized reviews of the activity at all the Big East spring football practices from ESPN.com.

Sophomore Tommie Campbell proved to be one of the spring surprises after switching from safety to weakside linebacker. Campbell might be the fastest player on the team, but the question is whether he can hold up physically. He weighs 202 pounds and has a slight upper body, although defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads likes the way Campbell explodes into blockers. … Senior linebacker H.B. Blades created a buzz at Heinz Field during the team’s Blue-Gold Game when he crushed tailback LaRod Stephens on a pass over the middle. … Conor Lee, battling David Abdul for the kicker spot, drilled a 49-yard field goal in the spring game. That battle will not be decided until the summer. … The coaching staff feels good about backup quarterback Bill Stull, who completed 11 of 16 passes for 183 yards and two touchdowns at the Blue-Gold Game. … The running game still has a “long ways to go,” according to coach Dave Wannstedt, although fullback Conredge Collins busted a 39-yard run in the scrimmage and Stephens had an excellent spring.

Noting that the Hoopies had their spring game televised on ESPNU. Meaning, perhaps 5 people not in the stadium saw the scrimmage. UConn had around 9000 show up for their spring game — hey when the basketball ends that suddenly, they needed to do something. Cinci has a new weight room, but the same players. It’s still wide open at starting QB for South Florida — that’s not a good thing for USF since that means Pat Julmiste isn’t being beaten out for the job. Syracuse has a walk-on WR who is 5′ 4″ — that’s shorter than Joe DelSardo. Rutgers has raised expectations on campus and one of the best names for a player — redshirt freshman QB Jabu Lovelace.

Jamie Dixon has to hire a new assistant.

Joe Lombardi, an assistant coach at Pitt the past three seasons, will be named the new head coach at IUP today.

A news conference is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.

Lombardi, 46, replaces Gary Edwards, who was not retained after this past season. Lombardi has many connections to the school and the town of Indiana. He was an assistant coach there from 1984-87 and his wife, Janet, was born and raised there.

This is the first head coaching job for Lombardi, who previously worked as an assistant at La Salle, St. Bonaventure and St. Francis, Pa., before coming to Pitt.

Even though Lombardi only spent three years at Pitt, he made an impact in recruiting circles.

Lombardi was the lead recruiter for Sam Young, one of the top freshmen in the Big East last season, and Gilbert Brown, a top-rated shooting guard who will play for the Panthers next season.

Associate Head Coach Barry Rohrssen gets lots of credit for his recruiting work, but Joe Lombardi has done an excellent job in recruiting. He was also instrumental in getting Trevor Ferguson to commit to Pitt last spring. (Okay, the kid didn’t stay once he saw the competition but that’s pretty good consider Ferguson never visited prior to making a written commitment.)
Lombardi was also the lead recruiter on Hamady N’diaye, the Center prospect who plans to make his commitment next week.

I don’t know if it’s a lack of understanding, not looking into/verifying things, stupidity or laziness; but I get very annoyed by simple errors in factual backgrounds.

Another piece on Darrell Strong looking to have a break-out year at Tight End.

Strong arrived at Pitt two years ago amid plenty of hype and high expectations. Yet, he has made more position changes than touchdown catches.

As a senior at Plantation High School in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Strong threw 17 TD passes. Former Pitt coach Walt Harris recruited Strong as a quarterback, then switched him to receiver midway through his freshman year.

Intrigued by Strong’s powerful build (6-foot-5, 260 pounds) and sure hands, coach Dave Wannstedt moved him to tight end last year. Strong certainly looked the part, but it was not a smooth transition.

Once again, Strong came out of high school wanting to play QB. He was being recruited by most schools as a Tight End. The reason he came to Pitt was because he was promised an opportunity to play QB. He was not recruited as a QB. In fact, before training camp even ended, Strong was moved to Tight End — in 2004. He got moved to WR later that year because he was such an athlete that they wanted him on the field to catch the ball and WR worked since blocking wasn’t really an issue. It was always expected that he would be moved back to TE as he learned to block.

Of course, that’s minor stuff. This story really got my attention and my annoyance level up.

The Pittsburgh experience is one Jennings says he doesn’t regret. But he knew by the time the Panthers closed their season at West Virginia last November that he was ready to leave.

There were philosophical differences between Jennings and the Pitt coaching staff. They wanted him to be a fullback, not surprising considering he weighs 250 pounds. It’s cut bulk, though; his body fat is around 10 percent. He expects to play at between 235 and 245 pounds next season.

Jennings is convinced he is the sort of back who can pound up the gut for tough yardage yet still get to the outside and break off long runs.

There was never any talk of moving Jennings to FB. Not with Conredge Collins at that position. As we all recall, his transfer was about family reasons — and there is a conspicuous absence of any mention of his father.

I don’t know where that other stuff came from.

Manhattan is taking its time, but seems to want to go with someone’s assistant.

UConn assistant Tom Moore is continuing to talk with Manhattan about the head coaching job left vacant by Bobby Gonzalez, recently named coach at Seton Hall. Sources said Moore is one of the front-runners along with Pitt assistant Barry Rohrssen and DePaul assistant Gary DeCesare.

This approach has worked for them, plus it is definitely a good way to keep salary costs down.

Well, at least one national sports writer took in the Blue-Gold game and liked what he saw from the defense (Insider Subs.).

QB Tyler Palko looked pretty sharp. He’s always been a good scrambler, but he also showed a lot of zip on a few deep outs. The Panthers, who only had one other scholarship QB playing in the game, had to be pleased that highly-regarded quarterback prospect Pat Bostick from Lancaster, Pa., attended the game with his father.

Led by H.B. Blades and Clint Sessions, a pair of thick, heavy-hitting linebackers who are probably 5-foot-10 (not 6-0) each, the Panthers might have the shortest front seven in college football. But with the emergence of converted safety Tommie Campbell, a legit 4.3 guy playing OLB, they might have the best linebacking crew in the Big East. All three guys can fly.

Pitt doesn’t have the kind of linemen you would expect from a tradition-rich school in such a fertile spot for producing road-grader types.

WR Oderick Turner, son of former Giant Odessa Turner, made two great catches and should be a big factor in the passing game as the Panthers search for playmakers.

Blue-chipper Dorin Dickerson was at the game and might strong-arm his way into the backfield as a tailback at some point in ’06. Right now, Pitt is counting on LaRod Stephens-Howling, a fast 5-6, 175-pounder to share the load with incoming freshman Kevin Collier.

Dickerson, a thick 6-2, 215-pounder with a huge reputation, is slated to start out at wide receiver, but don’t be shocked if he gets some carries, too. For a school that produced Tony Dorsett and Curtis Martin, it’s been a long time since the Panthers had a star tailback. Kevan Barlow was good, but I’ll say Martin back in the early ’90s was the last big-time back they had.

Seems to really like the speed despite the lack of size on the D-line (of course he’s a Miami grad, so that makes some sense).

He also plugs Lidia’s as one of the best places to get a good Italian meal (that ESPN.com expense account must be generous).

As for the tape delayed showing of the Blue-Gold Scrimmage, FSN has expanded the time allocated from an hour to 90 minutes. It airs this Saturday from 12:30 pm to 2, and then again on Friday April 28, 1-2:30 pm.

For those of us outside the Fox Sports Pittsburgh market (or lacking the sports package that includes it on Satellite), if you have Fox College Sports Atlantic, the game is supposed to air on Monday, April 24 around 8:30 pm. It is still listed as an hour long program so it might air starting at 8 or go longer. Check local listings.

Still no word on where or when Tyler Smith will sign his letter of intent to play basketball. According to a beat writer on the Memphis scene, it looks like John Calipari and the Tigers are looking elsewhere.

Q: Will the Tigers sign anyone late who can help next season?

A: Probably not. At one point, Tyler Smith was an option, but now it appears he’s headed elsewhere, perhaps Pittsburgh. As always, there could be a walk-on, and Calipari acknowledged Saturday via cell phone while recruiting at an AAU Tournament in Fayetteville, Ark., that he is considering taking a transfer (Oklahoma State freshman Roderick Flemings is a possibility, though at this point only a possibility).

That leaves Pitt, Iowa and Kentucky as the schools vying for Smith.

The longer Smith takes, though, the more likely that his choices will be narrowed for him. Coaches and teams don’t want to be stuck waiting too long on one kid that they lose out on others. Coach Dixon and Pitt could be moving in that direction.

University of Pittsburgh Head Basketball Coach Jamie Dixon is looking to fill his final 2006 scholarship. He, along with his staff, is currently hosting one of the top 2006 centers in the nation: 6-foot-11 inch Hamady N’diaye from Stoneridge Preparatory School in Tarzana, CA. The PantherDigest.com spoke with his coach today.

“Hamady flew into Pittsburgh on Sunday and he is set to return on Tuesday,” stated Stoneridge Preparatory School Head Basketball Coach Mike Mahoney. “He has visited Rutgers and Miami (FL). Pittsburgh will be his last visit before his final decision.”

Pitt, Rutgers or Miami are his top choices. And his decision is coming very soon. Like most HS Center prospects, he is raw but with lots of potential because of his size alone.

Coach Mahoney was quick to point out that N’diaye was equally impressive off the court. “It’s worth noting that Hamady is a great kid. He’s a high character type kid from a well educated family. He’s a solid student that won’t give you any problems off the basketball court.”

“I have five kids players heading to division one schools. We’re going to hold a huge press conference next week. Hamady will announce his decision at that time.”

If that time table holds true, Smith could be out. Pitt might prefer not to be risk being empty-handed with an unused scholarship.

N’Diaye is considered the 18th best Center prospect in the country according to Scout.com. Rivals.com lists him as the 9th best Center and 55th best prospect overall. Of course N’diaye apparently hasn’t been formally offered a scholarship by Pitt at this point.

An interesting push from the Pitt athletic department on behalf of H.B. Blades.

It seems like just yesterday a young Horatio Benedict Blades made his way to Pitt as a highly regarded prospect out of Plantation, Fla. Too good to redshirt, he found himself in a starting role by the end of the season. The next year he earned first team All-Big East. He did it again as a junior.

Now, nearly three years after he signed his letter of intent to attend Pitt, Blades finds himself as the team’s elder statesman – both in terms of experience and performance.
…
The 2006 opener against Virginia may still be six months away, but that hasn’t stopped the advance praise from pouring in about Blades.

In March he was named to the “watch lists” for two of college football’s most prestigious awards, including the Rotary Lombardi Award and the Lott Trophy. The Lombardi Award honors the country’s top down lineman or defensive player who lines up within five yards of the football. The Lott Trophy, named after Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott, honors college football’s top defensive player and strongly takes into account personal character, academics and community involvement.

After leading the Big East and ranking 13th nationally with an average of 11 tackles per game, he figures to be named to practically every preseason All-America team. Just this week he was named to Playboy’s squad.

There are plenty more watch lists for him to be added. Not to mention pushing him for other preseason All-American teams.

It isn’t a disagreeable approach. In fact, it is part of the way the college football propaganda game is played. Get stories out there on the star players. Generate interest if possible.

Expect similar pieces for Darrelle Revis and perhaps others.

Late start. Funny thing. Turns out the wife and I forgot to do our city tax forms. Whoops.

Now I haven’t even looked at them, because I don’t think they are worth looking too closely at but here are the stats from the scrimmage (PDF). For the most part, Coach Dave Wannstedt is putting a positive spin on the Blue-Gold Game.

“Overall I was pleased with today,” Pitt head coach Dave Wannstedt said. “We have a long way to go but I liked the way some things looked today. Being at Heinz Field was good, the atmosphere was good. We were able to get in about 100 plays and we came out healthy which is very important.”
…
“The offense overall looked good,” said Wannstedt. “There was good protection, no turnovers and no fumbles. I was encouraged by the way they looked today. Getting those little things right gives you the chance to win.”
…
“As a whole, the defense looked good,” Wannstedt said. “A few guys really showed up to play today. Developing the defensive line is one of our challenges and I was encouraged today.”

Let’s start with the offense, because either the O-line is even more of an adventure than ever, or the D-line with its new-found speed will actually be a factor. The running game went nowhere.

The running game was almost invisible, even on a day the offense ran 115 plays, or far more than it will get in any game next fall. The No. 1 running back, LaRod Stephens-Howling, was limited to 18 yards on 10 carries and no runner gained more than 46 yards.

The offensive line is a work in progress, as was evidenced by the unproductive running game and the defense’s 12 sacks, half of them by senior defensive lineman Charles Sallet. And Sallet, even with his six sacks, said he could have played better — “I should have had three or four more,” he said.

“He made a lot of plays up front,” Wannstedt said.
…
“We’ve got a ways to go running the ball,” Wannstedt said.

Even without a running game to support his quarterbacks, Wannstedt said he liked how the offense moved the ball.

“I’ve been involved in springs where, the last week, you’re going backward — you go out for the spring game and the quarterback throws three interceptions, the running backs fumble and the offense doesn’t score a touchdown,” Wannstedt said. “Then you start making excuses. But we played well enough today and did enough good things.”

If the help doesn’t come on the O-line, Stephens-Howling, Collins, Kevin Collier could be complete studs in the backfield and no one will ever know.

“The run game struggled but I hope that’s because our defensive line is playing better,” coach Dave Wannstedt said. “We have a ways to go running the ball. We definitely have to get a lot better at that.”

Collins led all rushers with 46 yards on four carries. Starting tailback LaRod Stephens-Howling rushed for 18 yards on 10 carries and scored twice.

39 of Collins’ yards came on the first carry when the D-line wasn’t set.

And just to add to the concerns, the O-line has no depth.

The defense racked up 12 sacks Saturday in Pitt’s Blue-Gold game, which in part was due to the patchwork nature of the second-string offensive line.

“We don’t have any depth there,” coach Dave Wannstedt said.

Backup center Chris Vangas is out with a knee injury. Left tackle Kevin Hughes sat out a good chunk of spring practice because of pneumonia and bronchitis. Mike DeLuca missed the past week with an injury.

Sophomores John Brown and Chase Clowser have limited experience. Guard Derrell Jones was switch from defense to offense early in the spring.

“Our backup line is inexperienced, and they’re not ready to play right now,” Wannstedt said.

Starting right guard John Simonitis is nursing a sore hamstring and got limited playing time. He was spelled by Dom Williams.

The strength and conditioning coach will have put in extra work with the players on the O-line this summer.

The passing game looked pretty good with Stull and Palko combining for 355 yards, 2 TDs and 0 INT. Consider, though, that CB Darrelle Revis was only on the field for 2 plays before being given the rest of the scrimmage off.

Oderick Turner was the redshirt freshman to step up in the scrimmage, making some very good catches, including a 60 yard TD catch. Unfortunately he also twisted his ankle on the play and was done for the day. Still, it doesn’t appear serious. For now, it looks like he moved ahead of Cedric McGee.

On the side of the defense, there was a common theme in all of the stories about mentioning the way they were decimated by West Virginia.

The other topic, was the oft-cited, need… the need for speed.

Rewind to the Panthers’ 2005 season-concluding, 45-13 loss at West Virginia last Nov. 24. Trailing, 21-13, after 30 minutes, Wannstedt was asked by a sideline reporter what his defense needed to do to slow down the Mountaineers’ assault.

“We need to run faster,” Wannstedt quipped.

The defensive staff, alas, was unable to glean more speed between the second and third quarters.

Five months later, there’s reason to believe the Panthers may be better prepared to offer a more competitive challenge when confronted by offenses adept at getting to the end zone in a hurry.

“We’ll be faster, yes,” Wannstedt confirmed. “With Tommie Campbell and Clint Session, it’s not even close. Those two guys are fast, big-time fast.”
…
“Tommie Campbell made a tackle today on (Marcel) Pestano on a reverse, he was sucked all the way inside and turned around and ran him down on the sideline,” Wannstedt raved. “Those are the type of things I was talking about that you don’t have to coach. You want to get guys that make plays where it’s just God-given ability.”

Campbell’s speed on the field was one of the most noticeable and notable aspects of the Blue-Gold game. That and Clint Session looking very good.

A state sprint champion in high school, Campbell, who is 6 feet 2, 200 pounds, moved from defensive back to linebacker this spring and has made an excellent transition. He is probably the fastest player on the Panthers, which is rare for a linebacker.

His speed enables him to make plays from sideline to sideline that many linebackers aren’t fast enough to accomplish.

“Think about it — he was fast for a safety,” Pitt linebacker H.B. Blades said.

“Now he is extremely fast for a linebacker. He is going to allow us to do things that maybe we haven’t been able to do in the past. That speed is something you can’t manufacture. If he keeps working hard he can be a factor for us.”

Another key ingredient to the Panthers newfound speed is senior linebacker Clint Session, who has struggled with injury and inconsistency the past two seasons. Session has always been one of the best athletes on the team, but this spring he finally has put it all together.

Session is this year’s Ed Conway Award winner for defense as the most improved player of the spring and had another good day yesterday.

C.J. Davis took home the award on offense and Kennard Cox on special teams.

For the overall view of spring drills, there seems to be “satisfaction” with how the team is progressing, rather than last year’s high levels of optimism.

“We’re moving forward,” Palko said. “The way you evaluate your team is how you react when adversity hits. We had some adversity last year, and we came out this spring with a different attitude.

“We made some progress in these 15 days (of practice). Now, it’s up to the players, because we don’t have the coaches coaching us in the summer. We’ll see what the maturity level of this football team is when we start preseason camp.”

The article also has a decent summary of impressions on various aspects of the team from spring drills worth looking over.

Coach Wannstedt wants the players to be positive.

Pitt ended spring football practice with a different attitude and renewed enthusiasm for the upcoming season, and second-year coach Dave Wannstedt said that was justified after the Panthers’ performance in the annual Blue-Gold game yesterday at Heinz Field.

“I think the guys can walk off the field and feel good about themselves today,” Wannstedt said. “They can say, ‘Hey, I made a few plays.’ So the players can feel like they have taken a step forward with their performance this spring.

“We feel good about where we’re at today, but we know we’re not where we want to be. We have a long way to go to get there, but this is just the first step.”

Still a lot of work and plenty of questions. Not to mention the seemingly interminable length of time before the opener against UVA.

Maggie Dixon was laid to rest at West Point Cemetary.

Dixon only spent a half year of her life at West Point, and still the guardians of American power and might decided she should rest right next to Glenn Davis and Red Blaik, the Heisman winner and the legend who taught Vince Lombardi how to coach.

It was 12:25 p.m. when all family members and generals and cadets had cleared from the cemetery, when the trucks rolled up to the coffin and a grim circle of men started breaking the tribute down. The chairs and tarps were folded up, the canopy was removed. The wreaths and roses were placed to the side, and the casket was lowered into the earth, taking away a Catholic girl in the Good Friday rain.

“What Maggie Dixon accomplished here in six and a half months,” said Patrick Finnegan, Brigadier General and West Point Dean, “some people won’t accomplish in a lifetime.”

They’ll never look at women the same way here; that’s what Maggie’s brother, Jamie, said as he stood near the empty silver and black hearse from the William F. Hogan Funeral Home. Jamie is the big-time men’s coach at the University of Pittsburgh. He knows people who didn’t even realize women attended West Point.

They realize it now. They saw the clips of Dixon leading her Army team to the Patriot League championship, leading the academy on its first trip to the NCAA Tournament. They saw the clips of Army football players in fatigues storming the court as if they were taking a hill behind enemy lines, and throwing Dixon onto their shoulders for the kind of ride Bob Knight and Mike Krzyzewski never got at West Point.

“I took Maggie to a basketball camp when she was 12,” Jamie said, “and told her it was half boys, half girls. But she ended up being the only girl there. I asked her if she wanted to go home, and she didn’t want to hear it. She became the star of that camp.”

Read the whole article. It’s a great piece. Just too much to excerpt.

It is likely, though, that her name will not be forgotten.

“She’s done more in a month than some people do in a lifetime,” said Jamie Dixon said. “We’re hearing from so many people who want to do things. We got a call from people who want to have a women’s tournament in her name in Madison Square Garden.”

The women’s wing of the United States Basketball Writers Association is expected to announce in a few weeks the naming of an annual award in Dixon’s name. The Women’s Basketball Coaches Association is considering a similar honor.

Just got back an hour or so ago from the folks. Not a bad drive back from Lebanon. The PA Turnpike was not very busy and very few cops out there. Didn’t spend much time on the computer this weekend. Seemed much more important to spend it with the family.

Hope everyone had a great weekend.

More in a bit.

Couldn’t pull off a trip to Pittsburgh. Ended up some 200+ miles further east at my parent’s house in Lebanon. Next year — maybe. So I’ll be keeping this light and quick (not that there is a lot of news).

The scrimmage won’t be the traditional game. In case you have forgotten.

Today’s scrimmage will be the final time for the vets to impress the coaches before the arrival of Pitt’s heralded freshman class.

“Hopefully, we’ll make some plays,” Wannstedt said. “If it’s (Darrelle) Revis intercepting a ball, Clint Session making a tackle behind the line, or Oderick Turner making a big catch — I don’t care who makes the plays. But, somebody has to make some plays.”

The scrimmage should last from 2 to 2 1/2 hours. It will start with some kicking and individual position workouts, then the offense and defense will go head-to-head.

“We’re not breaking the team up or going first team vs. second team, just to make it look pretty for the fans,” Wannstedt said. “We’re not going to keep score. We’re going to line up good versus good and let ’em go.”

The scrimmages start around 1.

Although the Blue-Gold game won’t be an actual game, there are still plenty of things to watch.

There is an intense competition at all four of the defensive line positions, and several players have had an outstanding spring. One such player is Doug Fulmer, a redshirt freshman defensive end who has forged his way into contention for a starting job.

He is quick off the ball, tall, has great football instincts. The coaches are excited about his future. He is still a little light — he weighs about 220 pounds — but he has a good frame to add weight to, and coaches believe he has the potential to become a dominant player.

Session, who has had his best month of football since he arrived, is ultra-athletic and has always been a fan favorite because of his flair for the big hit. But he has been plagued by inconsistency and often missed almost as many tackles as he has made. This spring, however, he has played consistently at a very high level.

True freshman cornerback Jovanni Chapel enrolled in January so he could get a head start on learning the defense. He is a physical corner, who seems to have grasped most of his assignments and will clearly be in the mix to replace Josh Lay.

The offense has struggled this spring, but that has a lot to do with the fact that the defensive line has gotten the better of the offensive line most days.

I can’t help but worry about the size on the line.

The good news, Pitt basketball will be able to take part in an “exempt” tournament every year. The bad news, so will everybody else.

The NCAA Management Council has approved a proposal allowing men’s and women’s college basketball teams to compete in one exempt tournament per season, and another that would move up the start of the season.

Among the modifications announced Wednesday are the elimination of a rule prohibiting teams from competing in regular-season tournaments such as the Maui Invitational more than twice in a four-year period. The council also wants to exempt conference tournaments, which now count one game against the NCAA’s regular-season game limit.

Those proposals will be considered by the NCAA’s board of directors April 27. If approved, the new rules would take effect next fall.

Teams would have the option to play 27 regular-season games, plus a preseason tournament such as the NIT Season Tip-Off or Maui Invitational. Teams not involved in tournaments could play up to 29 regular-season games.

The regular season also could start as much as one week earlier on the second Friday of November.

I’m not sure, but I think one of the reasons Pitt wasn’t even mentioned for a tournament last season was that they weren’t eligible. Now, the only thing holding them back is not getting an invite. Now, they can take part in a tournament every year. Of course the pool is also substantially bigger as all 334 teams can take part in a tournament annually.

Or they could schedule 2 more creampuff home games in the non-con to make more money. Not that I think schools would do such a thing. Why just look at the aggressive moves from most schools once the 12th game was added for college football. Okay, bad example.

Tommie Campbell gets the puff piece treatment appears to be the guy the beat writers got to talk to after practice. A full story on his transition from Safety to Weakside Linebacker. All parties seem to think it’s going well.

“He made more plays in one week at linebacker than he made the entire season at safety last year,” coach Dave Wannstedt said. “I just think he’s comfortable there. He doesn’t have to think as much, and he can get to the football.”

Some of his teammates say Campbell is the fastest player on the team, although that title will be decided only when he and roommate LaRod Stephens-Howling finally have their much-anticipated foot race.

Yet, there is no denying Campbell could be among the speediest linebackers in the Big East this fall. Defensive coordinator Paul Rhodes is eager to get Campbell on the field.

“There’s not one thing you can coach about speed, other than get it in the right place and headed in the right direction,” Rhoads said.

Wannstedt said Campbell “hasn’t put on the weight that we’d like. But with his speed and quickness, he can make some things happen on the perimeter.”

Campbell has a wiry frame, and played at 185 pounds last season. This spring, he’s bulked up to about 202.

“Of course, I’m going to try to put on some more weight,” Campbell said. “But I can handle the physical aspect of it. I’m fast enough to cover receivers, and I’m strong enough to blitz.”

Still, Campbell is a lightweight compared to the team’s other linebackers. Middle linebacker H.B. Blades checks in at 6-feet, 240 pounds. Strongside linebacker Clint Session is 6-1, 235. Backup Adam Gunn was the smallest of the bunch last year at 6-1, 215.

“If you’re explosive, giving up 20 pounds doesn’t necessarily mean that much — and Tommie’s that explosive,” Rhoads said. “Sometimes, he’s now-you-see-him-now-you-don’t, where he … just goes around a block. (He) maybe sometimes makes the wrong choice, but he still gets there because he’s so fast.

“Tommie’s not scared of contact. He’s not afraid to put his face in there. He’s a much more productive player near the football than away from it.”

So, Campbell is undersized compared to the rest of the linebackers. And the rest of the Pitt linebackers are considered to be undersized compared to the average. Anyone else seeing some red flags?

I like the stressing of speed, but I’m starting to really have questions as to whether the players will be able to take the full season and stay healthy. It’s not like there is a lot of depth. That is something speed can’t make up.

Coach Wannstedt also praised Doug Fulmer in his transition from linebacker to defensive end.

Joe DelSardo seems to be holding down the #2 WR spot from the kids at this point.

Another starting position up for grabs on offense is the spot alongside last year’s leading wideout Derek Kinder. Wannstedt believed that Joe DelSardo, who Kinder replaced as a starter last season, had an inside track. Redshirt sophomore Marcel Pestano and redshirt freshman Oderick Turner and Cedric McGee also are vying for playing time at receiver.

“There’s ways that we can use Joe to help us win games every week,” Wannstedt said. “Joe’s going to be an integral part of it. Kinder has been steady, but we’re still looking for that one guy to step up and take it to the next level. We’ve experimented around with pretty much everybody that we have, but we’ve still got work to do there.”

Rough interpretation: DelSardo has been more consistent and reliable than the others. It’s his job until Dorin Dickerson sets foot on the practice field in August. Not to mention Elijah Fields.

Speaking of them, they were part of a contingent that observed practice.

A large group of Pitt’s incoming freshmen attended practice as well, including practice regulars Elijah Fields, Dorin Dickerson, Tamarcus Porter (from Pahokee, Fla.), Jason Pinkston and Justin Hargrove. This has been a trend this spring — incoming players attending and observing practice — which Wannstedt believes is a good thing.

The practice also marked the return of Safety Mike Phillips to full-contact drills. He wasn’t supposed to be doing that until training camp.

And if you’ve been concerned about team leadership — an ongoing “theme” of the spring drills — I know you will be surprised to read that Pitt has it.

As spring drills near an end, he believes he has found plenty of players willing to lead.

“I really like the way our veteran guys like [Clint] Session, [John] Simonitis, [Tyler] Palko, Sam Bryant — some of those veterans we know we have to count on have stepped up, and that’s been very, very pleasing,” Wannstedt said.

“To see those guys come out and work and work and make the progress that they’ve made, it is exciting. We’ve had a lot of positives.”

It took spring drills to figure out that the seniors would be the leaders?

Other notes:

Steelers assistant head coach/offensive line coach Russ Grimm spoke to the Panthers before yesterday’s workout at the South Side facility.

A couple dozen recruits are expected to attend the Blue-Gold Game. “It will be the ‘Who’s Who’ of Western Pennsylvania recruiting. That’s all I can say,” Wannstedt said, mindful of NCAA regulations about naming recruits.

Also speaking to the team was Al Romano, an All-American nose guard on the Panthers’ 1976 national championship team.