Big feature “day-in-the-life” type story on the defensive linemen in training camp.

Pitt defensive end Greg Romeus is one of the fastest players on the Pitt football team, but as he walks out of the training facility before practice on this day he’s sluggish. His legs appear heavy as he lumbers toward the field.

He looks like he would rather be anywhere else but practice on this day.

Other Pitt players know how Romeus feels. Most of the team’s defensive linemen are slow to get the motor started in their big bodies. It is hard enough for the big guys to maintain their legs for practice every day. But, after more than a week of practice, mornings are the toughest.

“I can’t think of any part of my body that isn’t sore by this point in camp,” defensive end Chris McKillop said. “Mornings are the roughest, especially on days when we have two practices, because it is like you wake up and next thing you know you are out on the field. At least when we just go in the afternoon you have a few hours for your body to get out of that morning funk.”

McKillop could be the poster child for the warrior-like mentality defensive linemen have to have to get the job done. He appears to be held together by ace bandages and tape and seems to squint in pain every time he makes contact with a sled or during blocking drills. Still, he presses forward and makes it through each day.

“…Held together by ace bandages and tape.” That last paragraph could be the poster child for bad cliche-ridden sportswriting. Sorry, that little paragraph in an otherwise solid piece really made me want to scald my eyeballs with hot coffee.

The thing that makes it tough to read is you can almost envision the use of this story as a soft-focus narrative on ESPN looking at any school’s practice during training camp. (Which may have been what he was going for with the piece.) Media saturation, cynicsm exacerbated.

And almost as if they were working together despite being at competing papers, a couple stories looking at individual young members of the D-line. Freshman John Malecki is forcing his way onto the depth chart.

“Malecki has come in, and he’s making plays in the backfield,” senior linebacker H.B. Blades said. “He does a great job getting off blocks. He’s making a lot of good plays for us. I think he’s going to come through for us this season.”
…

Although Malecki still has a lot to learn, he possesses the one trait Gattuso believes is essential in a defensive lineman: football instincts. Malecki impressed Gattuso Monday on a play to the opposite side of the line, coming under a guard before using his hands to change directions and stop a runner at the line of scrimmage.

“I think he’s a football player,” Gattuso said. “Some kids are technicians, and some are great athletes – and we have both of those – but John’s a football player. He’s not the most athletic kid there, and he doesn’t have the best technique, but he’s making more plays than just about everybody.”

And Redshirt Freshman Doug Fulmer is learning the Defensive End position quickly after being converted from a safety.

“There’s some things Doug Fulmer does better than any of the ends,” Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said. “He’s rotating with the first group. In my mind, he’s playing at a starting level.”

Fulmer, a redshirt freshman from Syracuse, N.Y., is learning his new position at warp speed. He approached the switch with an open mind and the intelligence of a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete. Fulmer knows that his best chance of getting on the football field is at defensive end.

“It’s been a fun experience, getting to know a new position,” Fulmer said. “I already knew coming in that I had a chance to play at this position. I had to come in here with the right mind-set.”

Even so, it’s the opposite of everything he knew defensively. Instead of playing 10 yards or more away from the ball, he is stationed on the line of scrimmage. Instead of backpedaling in coverage, he has a hand planted and leans forward to initiate contact with the offense.

“It’s a whole different world,” Partridge said. “The biggest thing is, as a safety, if they take a wrong step, they’ve got time and distance to recover and react and read things.

“At defensive end, there’s no time for that. You have to take perfect steps at the perfect angles, strike your hands in the perfect spot. Of course, they’re moving, not stationary.”

Coach Wannstedt says he’s very happy with how the D-line has developed and envisions using a rotation of eight for the rest of training camp.

Wannstedt said that because there are only a few days of camp left, he plans to expand the rotation to include eight defensive linemen. That is two more than he would like to play. In the past he has used three tackles and three ends.

“We’re going to play eight guys,” Wannstedt said. “I just don’t know if there is anybody that has separated themselves at this point. I think that we will end up playing four tackles and four ends because they are that close. A lot of it will have to do with situations and a lot of it will have to do with opponents and things like that.”

Wannstedt said that sometimes when the competition is close it is a sign that a unit isn’t playing well or lacks talent. He said that’s not the case with this defensive line, and he has been pleased with the progress that group has made.

The rotation at defensive end likely will be Chris McKillop, Charles Sallet, Joe Clermond and Doug Fulmer and the four tackles appear to be Gus Mustakas, Corey Davis, John Malecki and Rashaad Duncan. Vernon Botts is also in the mix at tackle and freshman McKenzie Mathews could push for playing time at end.

Mick Williams is also expected to get into the rotation. Hopefully Coach Wannstedt isn’t just blowing smoke about the close competition not being indicative of progress and how it is playing.