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June 19, 2009

Doing an interview with a coach that centers around recruiting losses is not easy. Per NCAA regs, the coach can’t actually comment on recruits. He can speak vaguely, but that doesn’t do much when people are looking for answers.

So, the effort by Coach Wannstedt to talk a little about the football program as fans try to understand all the misses by the program for local players that seemed like locks for Pitt probably did not accomplish much. For all intents and purposes it was a Rorschach test for where you stand on Wannstedt and the program at this point.

Those in the concerned to panic mode over the recruiting probably found themselves pissed and frustrated because he did not give much clarity in how things will be better. He just tossed out numbers that hold little context.

Wannstedt said he’s confident the Panthers will have a great recruiting class by February. This week, the Panthers will hold two more prospect camps and he expects the total number of players to come through to be about 650, which is far more than they have had in the past.

“If you think about, we had about 50 or 60 kids at our prospect camps,” Wannstedt said.

“So we’re making a lot of progress in that area. And at this point, we are way ahead in recruiting than we have been — at this point the last few years there were probably 40 kids I was comfortable offering a scholarship to — right now, I’d say we are at about 75.

“We are further ahead with quality names at every position and more players come through here than at any point since I have been here. We’re banging heads with the top programs for kids and there will be some wins and losses. We believe we have the best program in the country, but it may not be for everyone.

“But we’re going to get our share of guys, and they are going to be great players who are going to be excited about winning and being a part of Pitt football.”

Those that are being patient to having blind faith in Wannstedt will read the same bit with optimism and the expectations that things will work themselves out by February.

As for recruiting, Wannstedt withstood the backlash of losing seven WPIAL prospects to either Penn State or Michigan, most notably after offensive linemen Miles Dieffenbach of Fox Chapel and Tom Ricketts Jr. of North Allegheny picked Penn State on consecutive days earlier this month. Their losses were prominent because Dieffenbach’s father, George, is a long-time Pitt tennis coach and Ricketts’ father played for the Panthers in the 1980s.

While NCAA rules prevent Wannstedt from speaking publicly about prospects, he was adamant that the Panthers will remain major players for the top recruits in Western Pennsylvania and beyond. Pitt has received three verbal commitments from the Class of 2010 and could add more after it hosts an individual skills camp this weekend on the South Side. He also is planning to host an additional Blue Chip Day in August.

“Nothing has changed,” Wannstedt said, repeating it for emphasis. “I will just say the last three years, at this time of the year, I’ve felt good about 40 players. Today, I’m at 75. We are further ahead with this year’s recruiting class with quality names at every position than we’ve been since I’ve been here. … We’re going to end up with not a good class, a great class.”

I maintain a fierce ambivalence about it all. It’s hard not to be at least a little edgy about recruiting to this point. The misses are a bit glaring and jarring.

At the same time, it is still a long way until February. Recruitments reopen. Decisions change. There seems little to be gained by getting too worked up over things in June.

And as I have said, I believe part of this is tied directly to Pitt’s underachievement the first 3 years of Wannstedt. A mostly good last year hardly balances the scales. There has to be more improvement even without McCoy, Kinder, McKillop and Davis to show the top recruits that progress and promise is happening.





Chas, I think I’ll follow your “fierce ambivalence” course regarding this year’s recruiting misses. For one reason, and a strong one, is that recruiting really is a subject that gets proven or disproved 2-3 years down the road. How many times over the last three years have we seen kids who wouldn’t have gotten a second thought in the recruiting process become mainstays of our program? Lots, and some of our best players suiting up for the 2009 season are no more than three star recruits (practically the whole of the defense this year).

Put on top of that the vagaries of these recruiting sites “star” system of rating kids who haven’t even entered their senior years in HS and it’s just too much to get worked up about.

It’s pretty obvious to me that DW and staff are concentrating more nationally (or maybe better put – regionally) and less on the WPIAL area… just look at the RBs who we are getting so excited to see on the field this year – Lewis, Graham and Douglas (who BTW ESPN rates higher than the other two) and you’ll see they are from NJ, NJ and FL respectively.

The two OLs were misses on PITT’s part no doubt, however I find it rather funny that the most vocal critics in this are pointing to the fact of the PITT ties these kids have rather than their skill levels. Should DW sign two other OLs with comparable skills I won’t give a rat’s ass about the two who chose not to play at PITT. Either way I don’t give much of any rodent’s ass at this point.

Comment by Reed 06.19.09 @ 5:01 am

#3 on “10 Things I Wish My Father Had Told Me”

You cannot win without a good quarterback
As a long-suffering Redskins fan, this has been a painful lesson to learn. My father died thinking his beloved home team was a linebacker away from a championship. He was wrong. Defense does not win championships. Mannings do.

(Walker Lamond is the author of the blog and upcoming book “Rules for My Unborn Son” from St. Martin’s Press.)

Comment by steve 06.19.09 @ 6:52 am

1 thing that w Bill will tell you:

You can do reall well with an average QB, and pretty good OL and defense.

JoePa’s first 4 undefeated seasons (of 5) was done with an average QB. Bama’s last year BCS team had a QB not much better than Stull, as was LSU’s QB the year before when they won it all. Oklahoma won a championship with an average QB back in 2000, and a couple years later its QB won a Heisman (over Fitz.)

I know, I know .. a good QB, especially if he is a real good athlete, can make up for many deficiencies; however, quality teams and programs are known year in and year out for their quality lines on each side of the ball.

The issue is that since the departure of Joe Moore, Pitt has lost too many area quality OLs to other schools .. and unfortunately, this tren continues.

Comment by w bill 06.19.09 @ 8:50 am

Part 2 — steve, as a long suffring Redskin fan, you may realize that the last Super Bowl you won had Mark Ripien as a QB,and the one before that was with Doug Williams.

What made these teams super was their offensive lines (the Hogs) led by former Pitt stars, Mark May and Russ Grimm.

Pitt’s last real success (late 70s / early 80s)fielded teams that included the likes of Sweeney, Covert, Fralic, Brzoza as well as Grimm and May … all except for May are from Western PA.

Comment by w bill 06.19.09 @ 9:04 am

w bill – point well made about the importance of the overall talent level, particularly the lines,and I generally agree, but…every quarterback that you mentioned (with the possible exception of last year’s Alabama QB) was far more physically talented than Stull. Add in to that the fact that Wannstedt wants the team to run a particular type of offense in which Stull cannot consistently make all of the required throws (in particular, medium to deep routes over the middle), and the shortcomings at the position become even more glaring.

Comment by Pantherman13 06.19.09 @ 12:43 pm

w bill, I could not agree more. Championships are won by linemen on both sides of the ball. Big Ben could not have played a worse game in his first SB, but the team won in spite of him. The OL allowed the team to grind out the win, and the defene did it’s job. I am one of those rare few that prefers a dominating defense paired with an efficient offense that runs the football with authority. This is the Steeler formula and I think it is the best formula to win a championship. Teams that put up big points almost never seem to win championships.

Comment by HbgFrank 06.19.09 @ 12:45 pm

I believe Stull’s numbers were just as good as the Bama QBs.

Note that I’m not implying that QB play isn’t important but I honestly believe that, if you have a good defense, OL is more important than QB.

Look at the numbers Palko put up in his senior year, and the defense stunk — didn’t even make a bowl. Last year was complete opposite — good defense, decent OL (except bowl game) and average QB, and still won 9 games.

Comment by w bill 06.19.09 @ 1:46 pm

HbgFrank – the problem with the Big Ben analogy (other than it being the NFL as opposed to modern college football) is that it was only one game. If Ben plays that poorly in any of the previous playoff games, the Steelers are not even in a position to play in the Super Bowl. So yes, a dominant OL and defense can steal you some games when your QB does not play well, but generally, you need good QB play as well.

The Sun Bowl provided a perfect example of this. The defense played well, but the offense had no balance. In large part, this was because OSU’s defense had no fear that Pitt’s QB would complete anything over the middle of the field (at least as long as Stull was in the game). After the first drive, every Pitt passing play was either down the sidelines or for very short yardage (even the announcers started making fun of the sideline routes).

I’m not advocating a run and gun approach, but the longer this coaching staff accepts(more by its actions than its words) that mediocre QB play is sufficient, the longer we, as fans, will wait for a truly breakthrough season.

Comment by Pantherman13 06.19.09 @ 1:49 pm

The offense did have balance in the Sun Bowl — they could neither run or pass, thanks in large part to the fact that Pinkston was hurt prior to the game and Malecki was hurt in the 2nd period.

Remember — the player of the game was a defensive lineman for OSU. Blaming the QB is always the easy thing to do, and Stull certainly was bad, but he was by no means the sole reason for being shut out.

Comment by w bill 06.19.09 @ 3:47 pm

For those who want to use Big Ben as an example – don’t forget that this year’s Super Bowl was won in spite of a below average OL due to the heroics of our quarterback. How about Eli Manning’s effort in the fourth quarter to upset the Pats? Its universally accepted that the most important single position on either side of the ball is the QB.

Granted, if the OL is awful the entire offense will be as well, but the point that steve and pantherman is making is that until Pitt gets acceptable play from the QB position BCS victories will be hard to get. In high-level sports, glaring weaknesses are usually exploited.

Comment by Chuck Morris 06.19.09 @ 4:46 pm

I agree that Steeler O-line was not real good, especially around the goal line, but they usually gave Ben enough time to pass especially considering how long Ben takes in many of his reads. And also note that the Stillers didn’t do anything thus far in the offseason to upgrade the line so they may be not as bad as advertised … again, Ben takes much more times than most to get rid of the ball.

Of course, while Ben is a master of finding a receiver and completing the pass while on the run (and has been since his arrival here), I don’t remember one instance last year when Stull made an improvisational play … he may have done so against Rutgers, his best game before getting hurt, but can’t remember any specific play.

Comment by w bill 06.19.09 @ 5:03 pm

Please remember Walt’s teams. QB’s and WR’s were exceptional, other positions just OK.

Pitt’s Big East record in Walt Harris’s final four seasons at Pitt: 18-9.

Wanny is 14-14.

‘nuf said.

Comment by steve 06.19.09 @ 5:47 pm

Steve,

I agree, Wanny is an enigma but I have to say his hire for a DC last year was a very good move and the new OC will be a much needed upgrade over Cav. All Wanny has to do is be a great closer in the recruiting process and a leaving the strategy to the OC and DC.

I think they will be OK this year, even with Bill Stull as QB.

Comment by Dallas Panther 06.19.09 @ 8:34 pm

IMO we can win this season if our QB – whoever it is – will have the guts and/or the permission to throw over the middle. I would very much like to know if the lack of doing this in 2008 was the playcalling by our ex-OC, or if it was Stull’s fear of INTs. Either way it limited our field of play and allowed the LBs and DBs to funnel their resources to the hashmarks outward.

I’ve a feeling it was a combination of both actually. Cav (and DW) were so adverse to turnovers that I think Cav called too many out patterns and Stull felt scared to even test the waters with the TEs and crossing patterns during his checkdowns – except once in a long while.

I understand the theory that in doing this – playing the sidelines, supposedly would clear the interior for McCoy once he should break into the second level, but discount the benefit of skewing our whole passing game only to support the run. It’s like we thought we were playing to a strength, when in reality we were crippling ourselves.

I did notice that the times Pat Bostick was in he’d throw across the middle more than Stull, and yes – sometimes they resulted in an INT. But if we (Cignetti) pushes from the start of camp that his QB will have to use all of the field, either QB will feel more comfortable in doing it.

When you have TEs like Byham and DD (who had some great long plays downfield) and WRs like Baldwin and Turner – it’s killing our offense to allow the defense to make the sideline an extra defender.

Comment by Reed 06.20.09 @ 5:43 am

Reed-I agree with everything you just posted. My impression last year was that the coaches would allow Stull to throw over the middle early, but once he made a mistake would pull the reins in. My assumption was that this was driven more by the coaching staff, since the plays seemed to be designed to have the first several options be towards the sidelines or very short over the middle. I did find it interesting, however, that the middle of the field (and the TE’s in particular) were utilized more when Bostick was in the game.

I have to admit, I keep hoping that Bostick somehow pulls ahead of Stull this summer. I just think that he is a little better physically than Stull, and frankly is more cerebral, for whatever that is worth. I think Stull works hard, and might be a really good guy, but he is the most physically limited of the QB’s, IMHO.

Comment by Pantherman13 06.22.09 @ 9:09 am

[…] to be fair, Coach Wannstedt did say commits were a-comin’. We just didn’t know they would flood in one […]


[…] sorry. It’s just that the lack of any commits for the O-line and some glaring misses has made this a source of anxiety. But Pitt got a good one. Pitt’s recruiting momentum did […]


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