Dorin Dickerson continues saying all the right things in this AP story about his move from WR/RB to Linebacker.
“I told my friends, if I could do it all over again, I’d like to play middle linebacker (in high school) and have like 200 tackles,” Dickerson said. “It’s better than scoring touchdowns, it’s the same thing. As long as we win, that supersedes everything.”
Tackles preferable to touchdowns? Dickerson insists he’s sincere in saying he would rather play defense than offense.
“I had a lot of time to think about it before they even asked me,” Dickerson said. “I said, “You know what, linebacker might not be that bad a position.’ I was kind of excited, actually, that he (Wannstedt) asked me. I said, “You know whatever works for the team, I’ll do it.’ I guess that’s the best position for me to play on this team and I’ll do to the best of my ability.”
Dickerson and the linebackers have stood out so far, though, as Wannstedt said Thursday, the defense is traditionally ahead of the offense in the early stages of preseason camp.
He’s also smart enough to admit he still has a lot to learn.
Over on the offense, T.J. Porter is also having a great start to camp. He’s probably a player of extra interest these days since he had a bit of a struggle adjusting to the team. Leaving briefly and having some flare-ups in practice.
This was what Pitt expected from Porter when he arrived last summer. Not the petulant player who left the team for a day the first weekend of training camp. Or the one who later stormed off the field after a tussle with Darrelle Revis.
Not the one who, in his own words, was “acting up.”
Now, Porter is battling to become the starting split end opposite All-Big East flanker Derek Kinder. Of the six candidates, Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said Porter “might be the most dangerous guy with the ball in his hands.”
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The 6-foot-1, 185-pound sophomore adds a different dimension to a diverse receiving corps, with an explosive burst and the ability to shake defenders out of their shoes. It’s why he will again return kickoffs and is in contention, along with cornerback Aaron Berry, to return punts.
The Pahokee, Fla., native understands that earning a starting job will depend not so much on athletic ability, but his maturity level.
“It’s all about maturing,” Porter said. “Last year, I didn’t realize the importance this had to do with my life and my future. I just realized that this is it. This is something you can’t play around with.
“They can’t sit there and wait on one player to get his act together. It’s about the team. It was either get with the program or get left (behind). I got set back a couple days and was behind the eight-ball from there on.”
It’s always great to see kids start to get it, before blowing their chance.
The potential at WR and TE is so big. Pitt just needs to be able to get it to them. That has a lot to do with both getting Bill Stull ready and having an O-line give Stull enough time. It won’t do any good if they can’t get the ball.
