I have to say that was an extremely dull and brutal game to watch. Thankfully the weather was fine. Just a little cooler, but with plenty of sunshine. I can’t even imagine how much I would have hated life if it had been a gray day or worse, raining. Or worse, if Pitt had managed to lose this one.

Part of me just wants to be grateful for the win and relieved Pitt is 2-2 in the Big East and 4-5 overall. But…

Common refrain in many variations heard from friends and others in the stands, “Can you imagine how many yards Shady would have if Pitt had a real line?”

This game cast in brutal relief how little progress the O-line has actually made. Syracuse has the 110th rushing defense in the country, and the Pitt O-line continually failed to provide even a minute push when Pitt needed 1 yard gains. Paul Dunn, will always be a Panther, and part of one of Pitt’s greatest teams in the history. As Pitt’s  O-line coach, he needs to go. Injuries are not enough of an excuse. His tenure has to end.
Either Greg Robinson or Dave Wannstedt have to go from the Big East. I think from an aesthetics perspective, it is vital that the two never match wits again in a football game as head coaches. Thankfully, this should be the final nail in the Robinson coffin.

The Orange actually got a spark from the QB change when Robinson’s back was too sore. It is speculated that Robinson tweaked his back sleeping on the  floor of a friend’s while visiting him at Penn State — he had it coming then.

Is there any logical reason — from a performance and best player standpoint — for Greg Romeus to still not be starting at right DE? He keeps making big plays and has been the best pass rusher for Pitt.

I don’t want to read Wannstedt talk about the defense doing an excellent job of stopping the run. Syracuse is 113th in the country running the ball (under 75 yards/game average). The Orange average 16.5 points/game. Pitt “held” them to 17.

The Pitt coaches nearly found a way to lose this game at the end with the defense playing break-while-bending and the offense couldn’t get a single first down thanks to the O-line and horrible play-calling of just sending McCoy right in the middle where even Syracuse could get a stop.

Syracuse, defensively, is one of the worst teams in the country (110th overall). If there was a game to take a few more chances with Bostick to let him do more and bring him along, this was it. Of course, Pitt never managed to get the kind of separation in the game to do that. Uncomfortably close throughout.

Because it’s fairly easy to see that today was probably the last chance we had for a win. We will be heavy underdogs at Rutgers and WVU as well as at home against South Florida. The likely final record looks like 4-8 and a fifth win would be an upset. You’ll see plenty of thoughts on today’s win over Syracuse in the coming days.

Meanwhile, Pitt’s previous and upcoming opponents did interesting things today:

— Michigan State is keeping close with #11 Michigan, only down 4 entering the fourth quarter.

— Cincinnati and USF combined for 45 points in the first quarter and Cinci leads 38-20 in the 3rd quarter.

— Navy is entering a 2nd OT at Notre Dame. (Update: ND loses 46-44, trying to get a two point conversion…though not using plays nearly as bad as Pitt tried to use.)
— Virginia beat #21 Wake Forest, 17-16, and continues to amaze me.

And if you complained after Pitt’s first basketball exhibition, well at least we didn’t lose like #8 Michigan State did.

I’m at the game, but this is where the rest of you can comment. This 63d meeting of Syracuse and Pitt could potentially put the series at a dead tie.

Just clearing browser tab links that I meant to do something with during the past week.

The Wide Receivers haven’t had much to do in the offense for the last month try to keep engaged in the game. Somehow.

Young, converted linebackers are improving but need work. Duh.

Knock on wood, it looks like Pitt will have it’s first 1000 yard rusher since Kevan Barlow in 2001. LeSean McCoy would also be the first freshman RB at Pitt to do so since Curvin Richards in 1988.

Some more concern about Syracuse throwing the ball.

From Zeise’s chat, there’s a lot of curiosity about whether Bill Stull will be back next year and if he’ll be the starter. No answer given. My speculation is that Stull will be back. If you go by the Wannstedt mantra that you don’t lose your job because of injury then Stull will be starter 1A and Bostick 1B. That doesn’t mean Bostick won’t be the starter next year. It just means that Bostick won’t go into spring drills and training camp as the de facto starting QB with the job to lose. It will more likely be an open competition thing.

I just need to get these out of my browser tabs. Things I wanted to get to but haven’t.

Altoona paper looking at recruiting for Pitt, Penn State and St. Francis?

One is on top and wants to stay there, one longs for its own identity and one merely wants to prove it belongs. They are:

The national power: the Pitt Panthers

The one hoping to someday become a national power: the Penn State Nittany Lions; and

The small program that’s just trying to make a dent on the national scene: the St. Francis Red Flash

The three programs are as different as night and day, but they share one thing in common. They all must rely on a recruiting strategy that can lure the kind of players they need to achieve their goal.

…

‘‘It doesn’t seem any different from when we weren’t very good nine years ago,’’ Dixon said of Pitt’s recruiting strategy. ‘‘You’ve got to get the best kids you can get.’’

The big difference is now that the Panthers have enjoyed continued success, they’re in the running for more upper-tier recruits.

‘‘There’s a number of good players out there,’’ Dixon said. ‘‘You’ve got to understand that, I believe, and if you don’t get one, you’ve got to get another one. You’ve got to have backups, [and] you’ve got to have a long list of guys.’’

Aside from winners, that list for Pitt includes players with one other major characteristic. The Panthers have built their success on toughness and seek players who aren’t afraid to mix it up against other brutes in the Big East.

Interesting point. Get the best kids you can. As you keep improving and raising the team’s profile the players you can seriously go after improve. Fits with Dixon’s approach of very carefully building Pitt Basketball, and minimizing risks.
I usually don’t bother any longer with Penn State commentary since it isn’t worth the effort. Doubly so with basketball, but I don’t buy into the whole location kills them for recruiting meme that is always pushed.

It’s not the location, it’s the competition. It’s one thing for Penn State football to recruit in the Eastern part of the state, New Jersey, New York and Maryland for football. A lot less competition locally for players. In basketball, however, it’s a different situation. There’s a lot more programs competing for the Philly and NJ kids. Add in that for basketball, PSU’s Big 11 affiliation works against them. They have to contend with Big East and ACC powers that have the bigger lure and exposure in the region. Finally, as much as football can sell itself by getting a recruit to take a visit on gameday; it isn’t quite the same in basketball. Heck, if Texas A&M, Gonzaga and even Nebraska is making progress can do it, the issue has to do with the program, school and athletic department’s commitment and effort.

Gary Parrish at Sportsline ranks the Big East and puts Pitt 5th behind Louisville, G-town, Marquette and — surprise — Villanova. The ‘Nova pick is something he admits is a bit of a wild card.

The good: Jamie Dixon has a solid core of returning players featuring Levance Fields, Sam Young, Mike Cook and Ronald Ramon. Add freshman DeJuan Blair to the mix, and the Panthers seem set to be just as steady as ever.

The bad: Blair is a supreme talent, but his inexperience showed in the Panthers’ first exhibition. A Division II center scored 23 points against Blair and fellow newcomer Cassin Diggs, and that’s an indication that plugging the hole left by Aaron Gray might not be simple.

The bottom line: Gray is just one of three important players missing, but there’s no reason to think Pitt will slip much. Why? Because the Panthers just don’t slip much.

Common theme. Seems to be why the AP Poll has Pitt starting at #22.

Leftover from Big East Media Day — Coaches bitching about last year’s snubs for the NCAA Tournament and the new 18 game schedule.

Pittsburgh’s Jamie Dixon and Marquette’s Tom Crean wondered if it’s smart to play 18 league games when conferences such as the Southeastern, Big 12 and ACC play only 16.

“When it was presented to us, we were much more apt to see it as us following what other power conferences were going to do,” Crean said.

Pitino said he thinks the concerns will recede this season because the Big East is “the deepest I’ve seen it in some time.” He predicted a large number of NCAA bids come March.

Um. Yes. Three major conferences play “only” 16 games. That means the other 3 — The Big East, Pac-10 and Big 11 — play 18. Not sure  I’m seeing the problem.

But, he added, “If we go through another Syracuse debacle, then changes have to occur. If (the selection committee) leaves one or two out, we probably have the wrong formula.”

He suggested switching to a divisional format or going back to 16 league games as possible solutions.

The Big East couldn’t be healthier in revenue and exposure. League teams will play on national TV more times than ever and more than any other conference this season.

“The TV money and all the other things that come with it overcome Coach Boeheim losing sleep,” Dixon said.

Damn. Coach Dixon letting some cold humor slip through.  Nice.