Today’s useless information. Did you know that Pitt hasn’t lost to Notre Dame since Jamie Dixon took over as head coach? Pitt is 5-0 over the past 4 years. It’s the longest winning streak Pitt has had against ND in basketball? Pitt was 3-6 in the previous 4 years against ND.

Well, Coach Dixon’s head coach at TCU, Jim Killingsworth, passed away this weekend. In the story, there’s a little nugget of information.

TCU produced its first winning season in 10 years, played in the NIT in 1983 and won back-to-back SWC crowns in 1986 and 1987.

The 1987 team advanced to the NCAA Tournament, winning its first-round game over Marshall before suffering a controversial second-round loss to Notre Dame.

The game was tied 57-57 when guard Jamie Dixon was called for a blocking foul against David Rivers, who had dribbled the ball out of bounds with five seconds to go. Rivers hit 1 of 2 free throws to lead the Irish to a 58-57 win.

“It was one of the worst calls I’ve ever seen,” Killingsworth said in March. “But that wasn’t the story of this team. The story was how it came together and along the way brought a whole town with it.”

I know I would never forget. At least we can always be sure Coach Dixon will want to beat Notre Dame.

UPDATE: Click here to see Coach Jamie Dixon, circa 1987.

A couple articles on converted linebackers Dorin Dickerson and Shane Murray that tend to overlap and share quotes since they are both about Pitt linebackers and written by the same guy.

Dickerson seems to like the conditioning from Buddy Morris because he sees a lot of track drills mixed in the system.

“And we still have about two more months to go before training camp in August, so I think we’re way ahead of schedule. We’re going to be ready for anything this year. We’ve been running a lot, 325 yards, which are three 100s and a 25 in under a minute. Then, you get like a minute break.

“Buddy got that from a track guy, and it’s helped our endurance,” Dickerson added. “In the weight room, we’ll hit like every aspect of every muscle in our body. So, that’s been unbelievable. I’m leaner, and I think I’m faster, but I weigh about 223 pounds right now. So, I’m doing pretty well.”

Dickerson primarily is battling redshirt junior Adam Gunn for the Panthers’ starting strong-side linebacker spot. The 6-foot-2 Dickerson is faster, more athletic and appears to be in fantastic shape, but Gunn worked mostly with the first team in the spring.

Dickerson talks about the position and playing in terms of speed and using his athleticism — his strengths. Murray seems more comfortable putting it as playing football, and understanding the position.

“That’s a big thing for me,” Murray said. “I try to use my head, my mental ability, and try to think about what’s going to happen on a play before it happens. That’s what really counts in this game.

“I just have to know where to be and when to be there. And I’ll use my hands and feet when I get there. I can’t afford to hook up with a blocker that could be a lot bigger. But that’s the way it is for me.”

…

“And the more I hang around with guys like Scott and Shane, the more I understand what it takes to play linebacker at this level. I’m also learning how to approach things now, and it’s all coming a lot easier to me. I know I can play linebacker at this level, and I can’t wait to get out there and show what I can do this season.”

Can a compare and contrast of styles and approaches be far behind?

The quarterback situation is going to be the biggest storyline going into the 2007 season, and we still don’t know anymore than we did a few months back. We’re either going to see junior Bill Stull, redshirt freshman Kevan Smith, or true freshman Pat Bostick. None of them have real experience at the collegiate level (Stull’s playing time is classified mop-up duty) and yet Derek Kinder isn’t concerned.

“I think all three of the people in competition right now all have the ability to step in and do a good job,” Kinder said. “They all have some leadership skills, and they all have different abilities. They have strong arms and are athletic.”

Kinder speaks highly of Bostick and how he came in the spring to learn the playbook.

“Bostick, he’s picked up the offense rather well thus far,” Kinder said. “So, I’m real impressed with that, but I really believe that all three of them have a shot to be the starter. And I trust that any one of them, whoever does win the starting job, can step in and help us win.”

Still nothing definitive, but if Kinder isn’t panicking (at least publicly) then it’ll keep be a bit calmer on the situation for at least another few weeks.

Ray Kirkley is doing well in the UIF (United Indoor Football), I guess.

Ray Kirkley has run the ball 115 times for the Evansville BlueCats to the tune of 365 yards and 15 touchdowns. He’s also thrown a scoring pass and hauled in a TD reception.

Yes, minor league football primarily in Indiana and Illinois. Living the dream.
Not that there isn’t a chance to move to the big leagues. Why one of the BlueCats cheerleaders moved up to the Indiana Pacemates.

There’s also a team in Omaha that calls itself the “Beef”

I didn’t really need to know any of this. But, once I found it, I had to share.

I mentioned in passing that you can expect to read plenty more about the Pitt players training with Strength and Conditioning Coach Buddy Morris. He is after all the only coach the players can really do much physical interaction. Add in the factors of Morris being something of a larger than life character, a Pittsburgh native and Pitt alum. Well, then you’ve got a guy ready-made to have stories written as he comes back to Pitt for a 3d time.

Joe Starkey pens his ode to Buddy Morris today.

Their fiery general, a small but cartoonishly muscular man named Buddy Morris, hurls insults as the players stagger past.

Morris wears a T-shirt with the sleeves ripped off. Chewed off, for all we know. His Popeye arms are plastered with tattoos.

“Every day, you (expletives) show me why you were 6-6 last year!” he shouts. “No heart, no (fill-in-the-blank), no fight.”

God help the last person to reach the summit.

“You were not designed to play this game!” Morris screams at the lagger. “God did not give you a heart or a set of (questionable word, plural).”

The idea here is to introduce the players to “chaotic situations,” and they are not responding as the general would like. He turns to an assistant and says, “That’s why they get (bad word) in the last two quarters. Chaos sets in, and they break down.”

Okay. I love the underlying themes and message to the training regimens. It’s not about getting bigger, stronger faster. It’s not about improved conditioning. It’s about managing the chaos when they are wearing down.

Last year it was the random runs and “Fridays with the coach” to build team camaraderie and public puking.

Expect more of this and then to hear about it on the broadcasts this season as part of the “color” filler.

Congrats to the three current Pitt baseball players who were selected in this week’s MLB Draft.

Three current Pitt baseball players were selected on day two of the Major League Baseball draft on Friday, including Kyle Landis, Paul Nardozzi and Jordan Herr. Also drafted was Pitt signee David Kaye, a right-handed pitcher from Oakmont, Pa.

Landis was picked by the Cleveland Indians in the 18th round. He led the Panthers in earned run average and earned All-Big East Third Team honors in 2007. Nardozzi is the only Pitt senior who was selected, taken by the Detroit Tigers in the 31st round. He’s a RHP who became Pitt’s all-time leader in strikeouts earlier in the season and completed his four years with the Panthers with 260 strikeouts. Herr is an outfielder picked in the 41st round by the Chicago Cubs. He played in 49 games on the year and batted .263 on the year with a .983 fielding percentage.

Also picked was a Pitt signee, David Kaye, from Riverview High School. Kaye was selected in the 30th round by the Toronto Blue Jays. He led the WPIAL in strikeouts this season with 95.

The road to making the Major Leagues is a long and tough one with a ton of work being put in through the minor league systems. Realistically, we’ll probably never hear of these guys again as MLB players unless they excel on the farm clubs they’ll be playing for. Either way, good luck to these guys with their baseball careers.

Kevin Gorman at the Trib reports that Terrelle Pryor will not be staying very close to home and has decided to eliminate Pitt from his list of potential colleges.

Jeannette two-sport star Terrelle Pryor, considered the nation’s top football prospect by one recruiting service, has narrowed his college choices to 11 schools and eliminated Pitt in the process.

After conferring with Jeannette coach Ray Reitz, Pryor trimmed his list of 70-plus scholarship offers to the following schools, listed alphabetically: Alabama, Florida, Georgia Tech, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia.

The current state of the football team could have factored into his decision as well as the the types of coaches he’s be working with here. He was asked why he decided to not pick Pitt but basically said a bunch of nothing.

“They’re just not in it,” Pryor said. “That’s my picks.”

Anyone else remember when Chevon Troutman, for no reason that made sense other than “what the hell,” would launch a 3-point shot? And the abject shock when it actually went in. I’ve always been grateful that Aaron Gray never tried that at Pitt. He’s apparently willing to take them, though, in the workouts.

”It’s something that I’m willing to do,” said Gray, who was measured at 7 feet, 2 inches in last week’s NBA pre-draft camp in Orlando, which is two inches taller than he was listed at in college.

His height is not the question. There are more pressing questions about the former Emmaus High star that the Sixers and other NBA teams which will be working out Gray over the next 19 days want to know.

Gray is more than willing to show them how much he has improved his overall skills and how much leaner, trimmer and NBA-ready he’s become since his final college basketball game in March.

His 3-point shot was a start. It wasn’t Dirk Nowitzki-type accuracy, but he shot from beyond the arc with a light touch and with confidence.

That’s just an unnerving image of Gray launching a 3. Gray still has workouts with Sacramento, New York, New Jersey, Washington, Toronto, San Antonio and Utah over the next 8 days.

As for the secret of how Gray slimmed down 20 more pounds and dropped his body fat to around 10.1%, well it involved individualized workouts at the Joe Abunassar Impact Training Program in Las Vegas. Abunassar is one of the top trainers to help kids get ready for the draft — and points to NBA players like Kevin Garnett and Tayshaun Prince as pros with which he has worked. It also isn’t cheap. For just taking part in his summer camps it runs $750/week (PDF).

That’s why you don’t see players still in college going there during the off-season. When you are going pro, it’s a direct investment and your agent will be able to put the money up for you.

I’m working my way through the various preview guides that have been released to date: Athlon, Lindy’s, The Sporting News and Phil Steele. The one thing that jumps out at me is that they all have Pitt pegged for about the same spot in the 1-119 rankings.

• Athlon — #55
• Sporting News — #55
• Phil Steele — #56
• Lindy’s — #60

Expectations are not particularly high and there isn’t any sense that the team will go out and steal a win or two — since they have yet to do so. Essentially, the belief is Pitt will win the games they should and lose the games they should.

From the Athlon Pitt preview (p. 125)

But maybe this is precisely what the Panthers need. When expectations have been high, they’ve traditionally failed to meet them. This season there is no pressure. No preseason ranking. No nothing.

This is not good for the football program. It isn’t a big deal that the national pubs all basically shrugged and slotted Pitt in the same spot that expecting a roughly .500 record from a BCS school deserves. It’s that most Pitt fans have similar feelings.

Just a shrug. By the end of last season and through the offseason, the rumble is that 2008 is the year. The problem is that has tamped down interest in 2007 before it even happens. It makes the underlying theme to 2007, “it’s development towards next year.” Yippee.

That follows the retroactive themes to 2005 — “The adjustment from the pros;” and 2006 — “It’s Walt’s fault.”

I’m moving across town, meaning less computer/blogging time until everything is complete (hopefully soon), and it makes the drive to Heinz Field only about 10 minutes longer. I don’t think this was ever considered as part of the new house:

They’re offered by York Heating and Air Conditioning and come in a variety of NCAA teams. Seriously, they’ll put a logo on anything if it squeezes some cash out of people. Better make sure you order your Furman Paladins air conditioner before they run out.

Aaron Gray has a workout with 3 other players today for the 76ers.

Yesterday, Gray was in Miami working out for the Heat.

Gray, a 7-0 prospect and third-team All-American, averaged 13.9 points and 10 rebounds his final two seasons with the Panthers.

Boston College forward Jared Dudley (6-7), Villanova forward Curtis Sumter (6-7) and Syracuse center Darryl Watkins (6-11) also participated in the Heat workout.

Gray and Dudley, the ACC player of the year last season, are projected as high as late first-round picks and would likely be available at No. 20. Sumter and Watkins are considered late second-round prospects who might come into play if the Heat were to acquire an additional pick.

Gray, rated third among American-born centers in the draft, said he would welcome the chance to learn behind O’Neal and Mourning.

”It would be a great opportunity,” Gray said. “To learn from two of the best centers in my time of watching basketball — it would definitely help me going against them every day.”

Miami has the 20th pick, which might be too high to grab Gray. The Heat, though, lacking a 2nd round pick might try to get one from Orlando as compensation if the Magic want to hire Stan Van Gundy.

The Rockets have the 26th pick and might be looking for a big man. This writer is not wild about that idea.

Finally Aaron Gray is also being talked about in terms of potentially ending up in Houston. Gray is a project, for certain. Think Dave Feitl. He has soft hands and can catch in the post, but he gets pushed around and isn’t quick enough to be an impact rebounder or shot blocker.

But apparently Gray did a good job in that semi-private workout after the Orlando camp, earlier in the week.

“Aaron Gray was really good. He ran well, his body looked great, he’s smart and understands the game. He shot the ball really well. He definitely solidified himself here. He could play for you right now.”

Other thing worth noting is that Dominic James was horrible in the same workout — reportedly he couldn’t finish. All signs point to his return to Marquette despite a Krauser-esque desire to remain in the draft even if he was a second round pick.

The impact for Panther Digest, remains to be seen.

I’m kind of surprised about this. When Fox Interactive Media (FIM) bought Scout.com nearly 2 years ago, I thought it meant Fox was gearing up for more competition with ESPN across platforms on college sports. With deep pockets behind them, they seemed more stable. Especially as Rivals.com seemed to be looking for a buyer or their own media support.

Instead, it seems that things have gotten very strained. Scout.com has suffered a series of embarrassing losses of affiliates in the last couple of weeks and months. Ohio State’s affiliate left, as did Florida, and then USC. Today, Oklahoma left. These are some of the biggest of the fanbases and subscriber groups. Gone.

You can likely add Texas to that list real soon. The Texas, OSU, Oklahoma and Stanford sites filed a suit against Scout.com and FIM (PDF) in May seeking class action status over the accounting and financial practices.

So the problems at Scout.com is not about a new corporate attitude that stifled the freedom and creativity of the publishers, editors and writers of the sites. It’s about the  money. It’s always about the money.

Looking over the suit, the team sites that will most likely be interested in joining and/or head for independent status will be the big sites. Sites that have their own magazine (ex, Michigan, Nebraska, Penn St. and Alabama), since there are some heavy allegations of big accounting irregularities with the allocation between magazine and site.

Scout.com has the financial support to fight and perhaps even successfully defend the lawsuit. The problem is that they will still lose some of their biggest network affiliates. Even as they build new affiliates in their place, they will face increased competition.

More changes a-coming.

Since LeSean McCoy and Pat Bostick were the highest profile recruits in the 2007 class and have lots of expectations that both will compete and even win starting jobs as freshmen, the two will probably be joined in the minds of most Pitt fans and the local media during their time at Pitt.

They have yet to take a snap in a college football game, but their presence alone gives Pitt hope for the future. The Panthers see Bostick as a poised pocket passer and McCoy as an every-down back with breakaway burst.

The article has a nice mutual admiration of one for the other, and Kevin Gorman does an excellent job of supplementing the story with blog posts on on each.

From McCoy:

“I’m used to fans acting like that. It was more the players and coaches,” McCoy said. “The coaches were so cool. It wasn’t like they just do that for a recruiting trip. It’s like that all the time. I’ve been to schools all over the country. I don’t think the coaches are as cool as Pitt.

“Coach (Dave) Wannstedt, I can go into his office and talk any time. And the players really were cool. At some places, they were jealous.”

The post also talks about how Aaron Berry continued to sell him on Pitt and how McCoy wants to learn from while competing with LaRod Stephens-Howling.

Then it’s Bostick:

“As much as I thought I needed to do to get in shape to be ready for Buddy’s workout program, I probably had to do 100 times more than that; I had no clue,” Bostick said. “When I first met Buddy, I should have known. I kind of needed that, to tell you the truth. It’s just a reaffirmation of the fact that I’m a freshman and I’ve got a lot of work to do. In no way, shape or form am I ready, but it makes you want to work that much harder to get to that level.”

Not that it has come easily for Bostick.

“Physically has been the hardest thing, just the weight training and conditioning,” Bostick said. “I’ve never seen anything like that, just how rigid and organized Buddy has us working. He has working hard. Buddy is doing a great job. It’s just a lot more physically demanding.

“It’s all for a purpose. It’s kind of like boot camp, being a rookie. He’s just one of those guys that will turn out to be one of the biggest influences and helps to your career. I’m glad we have a guy like that to push us.”

Expect to read plenty more about Buddy Morris’s training. As much as anything else, it’s because the players don’t have any other practices. So it’s film, playbook study and conditioning. The post also draws on the attitude similarities to football between Tyler Palko and Pat Bostick.

It’s under 90 days until the first game.

According to Rivals.com, the Big East as a whole, scored best in basketball recruiting for the class of 2007. In their top-30 signing classes, the Big East had 7 schools ranked. Arguably, the PAC-10 with its 5 teams (USC, Ariz., UCLA, ASU, UW) from a 10 team conference was at least as impressive. Especially since all 5 schools were ranked in the top-20.

Still, they decided to declare it was the Big East that came out ahead.

1. Syracuse (4)
2. Villanova (12)
3. Cincinnati (15)
4. DePaul (16)
5. Georgetown (23)
6. Pittsburgh (26)
7. St. John’s (30)
8. Seton Hall
9. Rutgers
10. Marquette
11. Louisville
12. Providence
13. South Florida
14. West Virginia
15. Notre Dame
16. UConn

In the conference breakdowns, the Big 11 also placed 5 teams (OSU, Purdue, Indiana MSU, Illinois); the SEC (Fla, UK, Ala, LSU) and Big 12 (K-State, Tex, OU, OSU) had 4 teams each, the ACC (Duke, NC St., VT) had 3 teams. Memphis and Gonzaga also made the list.

They didn’t have much to say about Pitt’s class other then DeJuan Blair is expected to be the man inside.

Orlando went well enough for Aaron Gray that he likely will be drafted before the end of the 1st round. What will likely help Gray to be considered the 3d best college Center prospect is the withdrawal of Hibbert and two other Center prospects who bailed on Orlando (ESPN Insider subs.).

Reasons weren’t given but the feeling among teams is that all of the players were advised not to play for fear that it would unnecessarily hurt their status. BC’s Jared Dudley was surprised that Williams wasn’t here Tuesday after he said [Sean] Williams had texted him to say he was coming. So Dudley said he figured that Williams was told not to come by his representation. Hardin is the only player on this list that hasn’t signed with an agent. Cal’s staff claims that [DeVon] Hardin will return to the Bears unless he were assured that he is in the top 20. Currently, he is not projected to go that high. Hardin has been nursing multiple injuries the past two seasons.

Sean Williams was kicked off of the BC basketball team after numerous suspensions and second chances for various infractions. The final was testing positive (again) for marijuana. So Sean Williams representation thinks that not sending him to Orlando to compete after not playing for over half this past season and big red flags about character and work ethic. He’s got potential, but the risks make him a late-second or free agent signing. Oddly enough, the rumors are that the Knicks or the Nets might go with him in the first round and that’s why he didn’t show.

DeVon Hardin has been seriously injury prone at Cal, and now doesn’t show to even get a physical. Yeah, that’s a solid choice for a pick. Nothing to worry there. Maybe some rank them ahead of Gray, but Hardin is likely heading back to Cal unless some team makes him a guarantee in the first round.

Additionally, Ante Tomic out of Croatia is also out of the NBA Draft (Insider subs). That further reduces the big man pool.
Gray made a positive impression.

Thus far, he has shown scouts that he’s been working on his body by coming into the camp in good shape after losing weight and he’s done well in drills that focus on half-court offense (pick and rolls, etc.).

He’s now got to go through the individual workouts. No, he’s not going to be a star, but he will likely be a solid role-player/back-up for a team. He’s going to get drafted late in the first or early-second. When there are only 60 picks in a draft, that isn’t too bad. If he goes to a team that plays half-court and doesn’t try to run, he will be a valuable addition. And if he ever grasps the concept of footwork, he could become a draft steal.
The sad thing, is that some Pitt fans would be more pissed if he did improve and succeed in the NBA. If like so many big men, he still gets better after appearing to plateau at times. If his game continued to improve and he became a starter or god forbid, an all-star. They’d complain that he obviously didn’t work hard enough at Pitt, a choker. That he was a bust or that the coaches failed to get more out of him.

Yes, Gray is a 7-footer. He was closing in on that height coming out of high school. And who exactly did Pitt have to battle for his services? Not Temple (when they were still relevant), Villanova, UConn, Syracuse and other powers in the Philly/East Coast area. Pitt’s main competition to get Gray was Rutgers. His size didn’t matter when his game was completely lacking.
He was a complete project that in his 4 years at Pitt got to 2nd Team All-American in his final year, All-Big East for two straight years, Most Improved in the Big East in 2006, got to the Big East Championship in the past two years and the Sweet 16.

We all wanted more.  Hell, many of us have been wanting more for years.  In some ways, it’s getting a little more frustrating the last couple of years because things seem to be so much closer than ever. Yet, Pitt still hasn’t made it.

It seems that for some, if Pitt hasn’t made it yet, then the individual players shouldn’t be able to succeed.