Coach Jamie Dixon isn’t backing away from his belief that Pitt will be very good in the 2007-08 season. Even if the style is different and the pace is faster.

“I’m excited about the five incoming guys who were all highly ranked,” said Dixon at Thursday’s 24th annual Mon Valley Panther Club Chapter Banquet at the Willow Room. “We will be a different team how we play. We’ll be smaller, quicker and more versatile.”

“I’m excited about the schedule,” he went on. “It’s like a game of poker trying to get teams and we won’t know until August. I do know we’re playing 18 conference games instead of 16 so it will be a real challenge. We had the toughest schedule in the country by the numbers last year and we’ll be at the same pace next year.”

Reads like there will be at least one very good home opponent in the non-con to go with the trip out to Washington and to Dayton.