Everyone knew it was coming, so to the surprise of no one, Bill Stull was “officially” named the starting QB. The real question is about the back-ups and who gets a redshirt.

On the second and third QBs:

“We don’t have an order, that’s going to be the challenge. We can’t work five quarterbacks but we have got to plan for that. We’ll work through it; the scrimmage today will help us in how we stack the quarterbacks around Billy. We’ll definitely redshirt one, possibly two.”

Kevan Smith has already used his redshirt, so it’s not him. Greg Cross is technically a possibility, but that would waste the whole wildcat package with LeSean McCoy so that would be highly, highly unlikely. That leaves freshman Tino Sunseri and Pat Bostick. Obviously Sunseri is going to be redshirted.

Bostick is still up in the air. I figure the plan is to hope Stull stays healthy, and unofficially have Bostick as the redshirt guy unless Stull were to get hurt and forced to miss at least one game. If Stull gets banged up and has to come out for a series or even a quarter, the coaches would take a chance with Smith and Cross to get the job done.

Again, it’s the conventional wisdom and completely logical. I see nothing that would suggest Coach Wannstedt and OC Cavanaugh are going against it.

There was one injury by the end of training camp that effects the starters.

[Starting Weak-side LB Shane] Murray came out on crutches at Wednesday’s scrimmage — which concluded Pitt’s training camp — and Panthers coach Dave Wannstedt said the redshirt junior is “day-to-day” with a strained right knee.

“We’re going to keep him off it through the weekend and see where he’s at the first of the week,” Wannstedt said of Murray. “Hopefully, the first of the week he’s feeling better and we can get him back with the team. It’s all a matter of whether he gets back to feeling that he can practice.”

If Murray isn’t ready for the season opener against Bowling Green on Aug. 30 at Heinz Field, the Panthers might have to choose between Ransom and Roberts as a replacement. Both, like Murray, are converted safeties.

Long-term, Tristan Roberts is likely going to be a starter at the WILL, but he is only a redshirt freshman and still learning. Ransom is a fifth-year senior with experience all over the field (mainly special teams), and a very smart, tough player. A former walk-on who has moved up the depth chart by doing everything right.

“He’s a very good tackler. He’s aggressive. That was proven by the things he did on special teams,” linebackers coach Joe Tumpkin said. “We’re just looking at the best situation to help our team become better, and we felt that moving him over to the linebacker spot gives us some added depth and makes us a lot better because of the depth. Him being older, him being mature and him having been in game situations is going to help him naturally see things quicker than the other guys.”

Ransom got the attention of defensive coordinator Phil Bennett while playing safety this past spring to provide depth, and his aggressive style and solid tackling technique prompted his move back to defense.

“At the end of spring, I looked at my production chart and he was like one in four: every fourth play he made a play,” Bennett said. “He runs a 4.5, he’s 215 pounds and if you watch him, he’s like a little buzz-saw out there. Wherever the ball is, he’s there. I think it made Tristan better. We’re starting to develop something we didn’t know we had.”

It’s always cool to see former walk-ons become key members of a team. Not just get rewarded with a scholarship, but earning spots on the two-deep because he’s maxing out his effort and potential.

Then there’s the offensive line. I think it’s getting past the point of just sending messages to Joe Thomas. There have just been too many mentions by Coach Wannstedt throughout the camp.

One is that Wannstedt hesitated to name junior Joe Thomas the starter at right tackle, leaving the door open for freshman Lucas Nix. Thomas likely will get the nod, but it’s far from over.

“We’ve got some real healthy competition going on in that offensive line,” Wannstedt said. “Pretty soon here, in the next couple days, by the first of the week, we’re going to have to name a starting group. But Lucas is going to play. Whether he’s a starter or not will be determined. But he’s going to play.”

Nix is a blue-chipper and no question, he was probably going to crack the 2-deep this year regardless of Coach Wannstedt’s most fervent wishes to redshirt. It is frustrating, though, that he already is in contention to start. Thomas has simply not shown much improvement since his freshman year. It makes me wonder whether he really showed flashes then, or it was it another reflection of how much worse the line was a couple years ago.