masthead.jpg

switchconcepts.com, U3dpdGNo-a25, DIRECT rubiconproject.com, 14766, RESELLER pubmatic.com, 30666, RESELLER, 5d62403b186f2ace appnexus.com, 1117, RESELLER thetradedesk.com, switchconcepts, RESELLER taboola.com, switchconceptopenrtb, RESELLER bidswitch.com, switchconcepts, RESELLER contextweb.com, 560031, RESELLER amazon-adsystem.com, 3160, RESELLER crimtan.com, switch, RESELLER quantcast.com, switchconcepts , RESELLER rhythmone.com, 1934627955, RESELLER ssphwy.com, switchconcepts, RESELLER emxdgt.com, 59, RESELLER appnexus.com, 1356, RESELLER sovrn.com, 96786, RESELLER, fafdf38b16bf6b2b indexexchange.com, 180008, RESELLER nativeads.com, 52853, RESELLER theagency.com, 1058, RESELLER google.com, pub-3515913239267445, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0
August 28, 2006

What To Do

Filed under: Football,Practice — Chas @ 8:01 am

Buried at the bottom is some disappointing news.

One freshman who would have been in the lineup Saturday is receiver T.J. Porter, but he walked off the practice field Friday and his status with the team is uncertain. Porter, who is from Pahokee, Fla., was a heralded receiver and one of the team’s fastest players, but he struggled making the adjustment to college football.

Porter had left the team once before, but he returned a day later.

Earlier this week, however, there were some signs that Porter’s heart was not in it as he began to sit out of practices and miss drills because he said he wasn’t feeling well. The final straw came Friday when he walked off the field and went back to the locker room in frustration after Revis lined up opposite him in press man coverage and wouldn’t let him get off the line of scrimmage.

That’s a shame if he quits. There’s no question he’s got some growing up to do. From a talent standpoint, he appeared to be the top freshman receiver. It isn’t clear what the problem was — whether it was having to work so hard, homesickness, immaturity or what. It’s no longer simply being overwhelmed.

Given his talent and how he could still potentially help the team, do they just let him go? Do they work with him, maybe have him redshirt this season while he tries to get a grip on everything with a little less pressure and another season to mature?





The team got a nod in the Sunday New York Times:

“Dave Wannstedt’s second year as coach at Pittsburgh could be an interesting one, but the Panthers would need a lot to go right to contend for the crown.

Comment by steve 08.28.06 @ 8:23 am

I lean towards doing what you can to keep him on the team. Unless, his problems have, and continue to have, a negative impact on team cohesion. It’s easy to speculate here, but it could be that his teammates are so busy with other stuff (practices, school, etc…) that they are concerned more about themselves that a freshman.

Comment by Reed Kohberger 08.28.06 @ 9:48 am

“Head Coach Dave Wannstedt said at his press conference today that Freshmen WR Tamarcus Porter will be back on the practice field this afternoon. The freshman has been going through some difficult issues & is learning to adjust to , not only the college game, but also college life. Coach Wannstedt re-iterated that this is normal & happens to many college freshmen across the country. Wannstedt also said that Porter will dress for Saturday’s game against the University of Virginia, but was unsure if the talented freshmen would see any live action.”

This was from today’s press conference

Comment by Kenny 08.28.06 @ 2:53 pm

You know, he might have the most raw talent as any of our WRs right now, but if I was DW I’d be keeping the heat on HS seniors Toney Clemons and Williams from Erie, PA.

This, to me, is good news and I hope it works out – we need a play maker at WR. Wonder if we’ll see Bynham move over to WR at some point – or Dickerson slide back over if Brooks and Howling-Stevens get hot.

Comment by Reed Kohberger 08.28.06 @ 5:55 pm

[…] He also addressed the T.J. Porter situation that was reported earlier this morning. On the status of T.J. Porter: […]


Powered by WordPress © PittBlather.com

Site Meter