It seems for a team tabbed for the preseason top spot, they are reasonably loose before the media horde.

Reporters were swarming Jamie Dixon on Wednesday when Pitt senior center Aaron Gray held out an invisible microphone and posed a question to his coach.

“How does it feel to be talking to this many reporters?” Gray said.

Dixon looked at his 7-foot star and deadpanned, “I tried to get rid of one of them, but he came back.”

Considering how Coach Dixon has struggled generally to show a personality in media settings and the volume of media friendly and quotable coaches in the Big East, this is progress and says something about improving skills for Coach Dixon in being comfortable in his skin and his position.

This is the third time Pitt has earned Big East preseason No. 1 status. The other two times, in 1987-88 and 2002-03, the Panthers either won or tied for the regular-season title.

So Pitt has that going for it.

Not that Pitt players and coach don’t know it also makes Pitt a target for everyone’s best game and that preseason rankings are not that important.

“We have to accept the challenge and stay strong,” senior guard Antonio Graves added. “We’ll be faced with ups and downs. With this team, the key will be how we stay strong in the storm. With all the pressure and attention, how we handle adversity will be the key to this season.”

Pitt coach Jamie Dixon took the news in stride. He recognizes that being picked No. 1 is a tribute to his and his staff’s ability to coach and recruit, but he also knows the recognition means nothing if the Panthers don’t play to their lofty expectations.

“I think it’s a good thing for our program,” Dixon said. “I think it says a lot about where we’ve come from. I always said when this conference was getting changed around and everyone was wondering what was going to happen, I said we want to play against the best. If we’re picked at the top in the preseason in this conference, I think that says a lot.”

The one thing that can derail any season, though, are injuries. It seems there are some little injuries in the preseason worth keeping an eye on.

Pitt has been bitten by the injury bug this preseason. Freshman guard Gilbert Brown was diagnosed with mononucleosis 10 days ago and has yet to take part in a practice. Sophomore point guard Levance Fields is hampered by a groin injury and senior guard Antonio Graves (back) and sophomore forward Sam Young (knee) have minor injuries.

Graves said the practices have been extremely competitive.

“Guys are still competing and fighting for positions,” he said. “Practice is very competitive, very physical. We’ve had a couple of injuries. It’s been a battle. It will make us a better team.”

Brown, a consensus top-50 recruit, is to be reexamined today. He just started doing some light running on the treadmill earlier in the week and could be out for a while.

“It’ll change some things if he’s not ready to go,” Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said.

Gilbert Brown was about the only freshman expected to bust through the rotation this season. The issue will be his conditioning coming back from mono. Knee problems for Sam Young are nerve inducing. He needs to healthy knees for his explosiveness.

Well, Pitt’s QB  of the future is having a fine season.

Certainly, Bostick has been instrumental in Township reaching a point where it can take aim on a second straight section title. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound senior has earned First Team All-State honors and a Division I scholarship to the University of Pittsburgh, and is closing in on several of the passing records set by the QB he most admires, former Wilson star and current Michigan standout Chad Henne.

“I think he’s the best quarterback to ever play in this state,” said Bostick, who visited Henne in Michigan during the offseason prior to his commitment to Pitt.

“He’s more athletic than I am; I’m a little more gritty,” Bostick said of the QB he’s most often compared to. “He throws the tightest ball I’ve ever seen. It never wobbles. I’m a little more ‘just-get-it-done’ kind of guy. I’m a grinder, a nickel-and-dime kind of guy.”

Boy, I wish those kind of quotes about Henne had been made before the Michigan-PSU game.

Lots of stuff to go through over the next day or two. From the NY Times:

With the Villanova and Connecticut rosters having been decimated by defections to the N.B.A., it is the Panthers and the Hoyas who look like the class of the conference. Both are returning many of the players from 2005-6 teams that were not quite good enough to steal the spotlight.

“This conference has two great teams this year, and they are Pitt and Georgetown,” Louisville Coach Rick Pitino said.

In the league’s coaches’ poll, Pitt received the top ranking with 10 first-place votes; Georgetown was close behind with four first-place votes and 212 points. Syracuse and Marquette each received one first-place vote.

A big reason Pittsburgh is expected to go far this season is the 7-foot senior center Aaron Gray, who was named preseason player of the year. Gray, who played in only 15 games as a freshman, has developed into a dominating inside presence who is skilled offensively and defensively. Gray probably would have been a first-round N.B.A. draft pick had he elected to leave Pittsburgh after last season, but he said he did not want to miss the chance to accomplish something special.

“I sat down with every teammate individually, and I told them if I come back, these are my goals,” Gray said. “I wanted to make sure they were on the same page with me. I told them, coming sixth in the Big East isn’t good enough. Getting to the Big East championship game isn’t good enough. Losing in the second round of the N.C.A.A. tournament isn’t good enough. I wanted to know that everyone was willing to work hard to surpass those numbers. So far, everyone has shown me that they are.”

Then there’s this list of top sleepers expected to emerge this season.

3. Ronald Ramon, Jr., Pittsburgh, 6-1, 180
Carl Krauser, Pitt’s longtime leader, is gone. That means we are going to find out just how underrated Ramon has been. Unlike Krauser, Ramon does a good job setting up his teammates and uses good shot selection. In his first year as a starter last season, he led the team with a 2-to-1 assist to turnover ratio, shot 51 percent from 3-point range in league games and scored in double figures in seven of the last 10 games. Now placed in a more assertive role, Ramon’s high basketball I.Q. and versatile skills will be showcased more.

And stay healthy.

If I even believed this rumor/story for a minute I would become the biggest Paul Rhoads honk out there, just to help him on his way.

A guy whose name will be mentioned for upcoming job openings: Pitt defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads. He’s an astute coaching mind who’s ready for the next challenge. He almost got the Pitt gig that went to Dave Wannstedt. And Rhoads came close to getting the East Carolina job that went to John Thompson a few years ago.

I don’t want him mentioned. I want him hired. Hire Paul Rhoads away from Pitt. Please.

Hmm. Maybe that’s why he forgot to make any adjustments or preparations for the defense leading up to the Rutgers game. He’s so ready for the next challenge that he is neglecting his present duties because they bore him. Yeah. That’s the ticket.