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April 6, 2011

SPRING PRACTICE #10

Filed under: Uncategorized — Reed @ 5:26 am

Well, the more things change the more they stay the same.  The OL pretty much has yet to find solid footing through 10 spring practices and, stop me if you’ve heard this before, are still search for the best five players to field by September.  It’s the same old song, just a different tenor singing it.  Able to make a silk purse out of a bull’s scrotum (nod to Jackie Sherrill) Todd Graham heaped praise on the DL for getting up to seed in “Operation Impact” and playing disruptive football.

The only OL position that has me a bit skeptical is at the Right Guard position where we will be seeing someone completely new to us out there.  Between Cory King and whoever is second string that will be an untested player.  rsFR Matt Rotherham was out there yesterday.  Left Guard has both Greg Gaskins and Demhasaj competing but both of them have post-HS starting time, even though Demhasaj’s was in JUCO.  At any rate we may see some players float up to 1st string and move between LG and RG thought the remaining spring practices and into summer camp.  The nucleus of Nix, Jacobson and Gibbs is set though. I’m confident Lumpy will stay at Center and get the shotgun snaps down pat, although he’s still having problems with them.

I think we’ll see the same deal play out as we have most years.  The OL will worry us throughout the training camps, play so-so in the first two games then jell and be fine during the season.  I hope.  Let’s just get the five guys we want out there working together as soon as possible.  We don’t want to see a replay of 2010 where after a few games a personnel switch was made that probably should have been done in August.  Graham has the luxury in 2011 that DW didn’t have in 2010 in that Graham’s first two games are against relatively lesser opponents where the tenuous play of the OL won’t kill us.  We knew after the Utah game last year that something was wrong upfront.

A few key points from Graham’s post-practice interview quotes:

Echoing the above on the OL:

“I thought we had a good day but we’re still struggling with this center to quarterback exchange, which is nothing too shocking to us but I think that is hurting us more than anything right now.  The most positive thing about today is our defense really impacted the quarterback and a lot of sacks were made. The only thing is we can’t afford take negative yardage plays on offense.

Here’s something that some PITT fans don’t want to hear (regarding Myers), especially coupled with the fact that Graham has been talking up Gonzalez’s play in the scrimmage last week.

“I also knew Mike Shanahan and Devin Street would be good and right now they are standing out to me as the biggest playmakers in our system. On the other hand, Mark Myers only got 16 plays but he is working hard and I have been pleased with all three of these guys.

I don’t have a crystal ball, but can’t help wondering if one of the two; Myers or Gonzalez, isn’t going to be too happy after spring camp breaks.

Wondering if there is a road map for our new defensive alignments?  “For example, Pitt will use a 3-3, a 3-4, a 3-5 and even a 3-2”.  Damn, I thought I wouldn’t have to use math after high school.  Zeise of the P-G has a good article that spells it out pretty well.  This explains the vertical transitions some of the more traditional positions will have to make; DE, OLB, and Safety:

The best way to look at it is that our panther linebacker has to possess the skills of a linebacker as well as a defensive lineman,” Patterson said. “I’d say he has to have the skills more so of a defensive lineman, though, because he has to be able to rush and impact the quarterback but he also has to have the ability to drop back into zone coverages and make plays in space.

“Our spur has the skills of a defensive back and the skills of a linebacker, so I’d say he is 60 percent defensive back and 40 percent linebacker. He’s got to be a little more athletic and make plays in space, but he also has to have the physical toughness to play linebacker.

“Now our bandit safety is probably the most versatile of all because he has to have the cover skills of a corner, the safety skills and he also has to be able to drop down into the boundary and force things off the edge.”

Patterson said the bandit and spur positions will blitz in some situations.”

Watching Jared Holley play the other day one has to wonder if he isn’t being looked at here; he’s no longer the 5’9” & 170 lb kid who was recruited in 2008.  Holley is getting big and strong without seeming to lose any speed at all.  Of course, the riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma that is Todd Thomas is one player we’ll be watching closely also.  We’ve read so many things about him over the last two years that you just have to hope we don’t have another Dorin Dickerson on the team – superior talent that gets shuffled around and misplaced until his senior year.

But the bottom line with this is whether or not we’ll see new faces in the two back levels of the defense.  Does Greg Williams fit the bill here?  I can’t see him being 60% defensive back at the Spur position, even thought Patterson specifically mentions him in that role.   Graham has spoken about G. Williams moving inside to one of the two MLB spots where he may be better suited.

Cam Saddler is getting back up to speed after sitting out some practices.  Here is a quote in the Trib-Review that, to me, shows what type of young man Saddler is:

Asked who would win a sprint race among himself, Jackson and cornerback K’Waun Williams, Saddler shook his head and said, “Buddy Jackson would win, I am sad to say. I don’t know what they feed those kids from Florida. He can fly. He can really fly.” Saddler doesn’t think he would be too far behind, though. “I just know there aren’t too many people who are faster than me,” he said.

I love that “I am sad to say”.  I just got a kick out of reading that… he is humble, delivers praise, and then is a tiny bit boastful in stating a fact… all in five sentences.  The thing about Saddler is that with all the bouncing around and non-stop chatter he delivers, you rarely hear him brag about himself or speak of himself in the dreaded third person.  IMO the kid’s a breath of fresh air and a real team player.  Now, if his on the field production can match his locker room production we’ll be in good shape.  IMO the staff loves him in this new offense so we may see that happen.

Odds and Ends:

The most prolific writer in PITT SID history has another article on the Spring Camp Insider website.  Bostick looks at our defensive line this season in his latest installment of Inside the Huddle.  We already know the old standbys for the DL; Caragein, Alecxih and the new star of the defense, Brandon Lindsay.  Lindsay will be at the new Panther position – a cross between DE & OLB (think Hugh Green).  But what really stands out to me is this group of young, and mostly untested, underclassmen:

More than any other position on the Panthers’ roster, the defensive line is laden with young talent. This group of younger players features three sophomores (T.J. Clemmings, Aaron Donald, Bryan Murphy, and one true freshman (K.K. Mosley-Smith).

Is anyone else looking forward to Clemmings getting some real playing time? I bet you are.

All spring camp the defensive staff and the HC have been gushing about Bryan Murphy and he’s as tough and quick as they get for a white kid from a suburban school.  If anyone is going to really stand up and surprise us this year it may be him and I’d bet a dollar that after a couple of games the staff will be racking their brains on how to get him on the field full time.

And lest we think Todd Graham has run out of catchy phrases, we have this:  “This deep and talented platoon will be on the front lines of Coach Graham’s “Operation Impact.” (Editor’s note: see text above regarding the DL kicking the OL’s ass yesterday).  Is someone keeping a list of these phrases for quick reference during the season?  I can’t wait to hear how Bill Hillgrove is going to mangle these.  And Bill Fralic taking 30 seconds to pronounce “High Octane’ will just diminish the thrust of what it implies, won’t it?

Steve Peterson is showing of the new Olympic sports fields in this video: AD Media Tour of the new Petersen Sports Complex.  I drove up there early last Saturday morning to take a look and those facilities are very impressive and a great use of space.

Next Practice: Thursday, April 7th.





Again, great stuff Reed, thanks.

Hailing from the same town Holley comes from, I follow him closely (You might even say I’ve boarded Holley’s trolley).

And along the way I’ve even corrected Paul Zeise on this frequently made error: It’s Jarred, not Jared, Holley.

Hail to Pitt and the Red Rovers!

Comment by steve 04.06.11 @ 7:40 am

Anything about Shane Hayle? There was a lot of hype when he sign with PITT, but a lot of silence thereafter.

Comment by Pittastic 04.06.11 @ 8:37 am

Pittastic, it appears that Shane Hale might find new life in this defense. Graham and Patterson have had been talking him up a lot and he’s been practing at the Panther position – 2nd string last scrimmage, but that will change a bit when Lindsey gets back on the field.

Comment by Reed 04.06.11 @ 10:08 am

Now that I have time to report ,to bobcats dismay the qb position is not being just given out it is not close and the center is holding the bag

Comment by paul shannon 04.06.11 @ 10:10 am

Wannstedt recruited well for the defensive line positions. Being that his philosophy was to apply pressure only with the front four in his 4-3 defense meant that he needed a stable of big strong recruits that could impose their will on the O line and the quarterback without relying on blitzes. That worked out pretty well and the stats on QB sacks and hurries backs that up. Now with this team that Graham has inherited you have to feel that with this new aggressive blitz crazy defensive attiude promoted by Graham that this group is like a bunch of junk yard dogs tugging on a short chain just waiting to be unleashed on the unsuspecting trespasser. I think that our defense has the potential to be really special this year if we can solve some of the sloppy coverage tendencies that the secondary routinely displayed last year. I think this is a coachable issue however. If so and they can hold their own for just enough time to permit the front seven defenders to make their moves, then all hell could come down on opposing QB’s routinely this season.

Comment by Dr. Tom 04.06.11 @ 10:12 am

The sloppy coverage tendencies thing came from Wanny’s mantra of not making mistakes or better stated playing perfect which led to playing scared in a sense. Oh forgot to mention that LBs were expected to run with WRs. The sloppy coverages were in direct correlation to Wanny’s D philosophy, which of course never had the athletes to implement it. Oh if we could only play the way we did at THE U. LOL!!!!

As for the QBs have no worry as to who starts because Graham will start the QB who gets it and implements it best. Same for the other positions on the team.

Comment by Kenny 04.06.11 @ 11:02 am

Thanks for the info Reed.

Comment by Pittastic 04.06.11 @ 11:18 am

Kenny you are right, It is clear that Grahams philosophy in all three phases of the game is to attack and pressure as opposed to DWs philosophy of execute perfect and react to the play. This will be quite a mental and physical change for the players.

I wouldnt read too much into any comments about the QB position right now. Its way too early and most of what we hear is just lip service. I would be very surprised if Tino is the opening day starter. I just dont think he has what it takes to perform under the demands of Grahams fast and complex offensive system.

Comment by Coach Ditka 04.06.11 @ 11:38 am

Coah Ditka – I’ll take a wager on that right now. It looks like Graham is completely comfortable with Sunseri and has already pretty much named him QB1 for all intents and purposes.

Comment by Reed 04.06.11 @ 12:31 pm

coach Ditka get ready for the surpise and it depends where you get your lip service.I want to win ,we travel to far ,for too many seasons[30],but the others who insult him and berate him do not do us any favors.Why did we not bring in a juco, there were others beside the calif. kid.I like the great comments,but I ASSURE the best will play.

Comment by paul shannon 04.06.11 @ 12:34 pm

Did anyone actually expect Graham to land a top flight start in front of Sunseri/Myers/Gonzalez QB recruit in 3 or 4 weeks? From the stuff I have been reading it seems like Sunser is QB1 through and through, but has by far the best grasp mentally on the system. I would love to see Myers bomb the ball down field with his arm strength, but if he can’t run the offense effectively it doesn’t matter how far he can throw the ball does it?

Comment by BCPITT 04.06.11 @ 12:56 pm

If Tino does start opening game, he will never make it the whole season as the starter. He could barley run DWs turtle paced stone age offense. This is a whole new ball game and unless Myers and Gonzalez are completely incompetent, at least one of them will be starting at some point and it wont be because of any injury.

My only point is I could care less what the coach says in April, lets wait until August to have a serious debate. That gives Myers and Gonzalez another 4 months of work with their OC and to learn the offense.

Comment by Coach Ditka 04.06.11 @ 1:25 pm

COACH ,calm down sounds like you want him to fail,of the last 9 first year starters 1or2 stats and bowl vic .WAN and Cig were at constant off odds Im not talking Marino just wins .

Comment by paul shannon 04.06.11 @ 1:49 pm

Sunseri demonstrated two truths concerning his QB skills last year. First, he doesn’t throw an accurate deep ball and second, he doesn’t have any qualms about tucking the ball and running for yardage. He’s also not shy about taking a hit at the end of a run. Tino is no Pat White but he got the job done with his feet when he had to. This is a very important consideration in picking who gets that first shot at QB. Now if Graham is evaluating all the quarterbacks fairly at face value, foot speed and willingness to take some punishment has to be part of that equation. You can say what you will about Sunseri’s play last year but one thing he never showed was that he was adverse to contact. Now the ace up Sunseri’s sleeve is the experience factor. Remember how Stull blossumed his senior year after a lack luster season of play the year before. Often times it takes time for these kids to mature into their full potential, especially at such a complicated position like QB. All that I’m saying is that Sunseri is a work in progress. Fans shouldn’t be so quick to throw him under the bus just yet. Don’t misinterpret my post, I’m no big fan of Tino. I just want Pitt to win football games! If coach Graham decides that Tino is the guy who demonstrates that he can best handle the job at the beginning of the season, then we as fans should go with it. No matter who starts the season at QB, I feel that it will be a trial by fire for the first few games for that guy. If that starter fails to develop or worse yet falls flat on his face running this “high octane” offense then I’m fairly sure Graham will jank him for the heir apparent one step further down on the food chain for his crack at the starting QB position. That’s one reason that this talk about QB transfers if so and so doesn’t get the starting QB nod is unfounded IMO. Patience will be required by all involved while Graham gets this show on the road. It is sure to be a potentially bumpy ride to start with, hopefully with great results as the season progresses. It should be a very interesting year to follow Pitt football.

Comment by Dr. Tom 04.06.11 @ 1:53 pm

I love those faux Michigan Blue Hen helmets.

Comment by steve 04.06.11 @ 2:13 pm

First of all, in none of my posts do I give the impression I want him to fail – that is just ridiculous. I am just giving my honest assessment, which at the end of the day doesnt mean anymore than anyone elses opinion.

Yes, Tino ran a few times but not nearly as much as he would be asked to do under Grahams system. He was also not very accurate and threw a very poor deep ball. So what exactly does Tino bring to the table? Thats all Im asking. If you want experience to be the only factor then you might as well hire washed up wanny back.

Just my opinion, but the Stull comparisons dont translate to this situation. This is a completely new offense and system and Stull had four years to sit around and learn before he played.

Comment by Coach Ditka 04.06.11 @ 2:25 pm

KELLY from oregon ,if you do not block we do not throw you the ball,bet Graham follows suit ,Baldwin? I believe coach you are on the same page ,but do you not see the bus tire tracks on him from last season.He will probably get the same boos that Stull got.Gets old fast.Just want the best we have until we have better,it will take 4mosis all I think

Comment by paul shannon 04.06.11 @ 3:09 pm

I agree with some of your analysis coach, the problem is we have no sample of how Myers or Gonzalez are developing under this completely new offense and system other than what we hear from the coach in his videos and press releases. Everything he is putting out is politically correct, but he has been praising Tino left and right and multiple outlets are commenting that Tino is taking all the QB1 snaps with Gonzalez and Myers fighting over snaps at the 2 spot.

I am all for putting the player best suiting to WIN on the field. Given the comments coming out of the staff it seems that they are high on Sunseri as that guy right now….things change and maybe 5 or 6 months down the road the young guns have a better grasp on running and leading the offense.

Comment by BCPITT 04.06.11 @ 3:21 pm

Coach Ditka makes good points as does everybody – and it is very early yet. My belief that Graham is starting to cement Sunseri into the QB1 position is partly based on Graham himself… he’s not giving anyone else a chance to run with the 1st string. I don’t like it or agree with it but Graham is banking heavily on the experience factor IMO.

One way to look at this is that Sunseri is committing the least amount of mistakes running the offense so far. Myers throws a great deep ball for sure – he also chucked one just terrible INT and two very poor passes in the scrimmage I watched. My point is that none of these QBs should be a lock for the QB1 job.

I’m not sure Sunseri is the right fit for this offense by any means – but he may be the best fit of the available QBs on the roster. Again, IMO it all depends on tailoring the offense to fit your available talents instead of bring your available talent up to your offense. None of the three QBs in play posses what Graham really wants in a QB. I truly believe that and have to believe that is his top priority in this recruiting year. But that doesn’t mean this offense can’t be very successful.

We sure could see a change in the QBs’ status by the beginning of September, but if I was a betting man I’d go with Sunseri starting.

Comment by Reed 04.06.11 @ 5:20 pm

I attended the Tues practice and was generally impressed with the enthusiam of the team. It is tough to assess the QB situation due to the snap problems. Tino has no idea where the ball will go except it woun’t be where he wants it. Almost 50% of Lumpy’s snaps were on the ground including two when they were working the 2 min offence causing HC to ask for a clean snap. I would have been more upset. I believe both QBs are about equal on the long throws and Tino is better on the short and intermediate ones. On the 7 on 7s the defence was very active and disruptive but the offence did have some nice completions. Graham is outstanding and will excel so long as he stays healthy. The lines really got after it during the run practice including a slight altercation. Lots of yelling but all constructive.

Comment by letterman 04.06.11 @ 6:13 pm

What happened to Brandon Sacco? People were talking him up last year saying that after he put on some weight he was looking to be a great option at center?

Comment by The O-coordinator 04.06.11 @ 7:25 pm

Reed, Brian Bennett ESPN.com has a video interview with Holley on his blog. He also talks about Pitt’s defense with DC Patterson raving about the talent and depth of the D line.

Comment by wbb 04.06.11 @ 8:01 pm

Letterman, at the scrimmage I saw Lumpy put two snaps on the ground but the rest Sunseri could get and use. It is to note though that the snap should be the least of the QBs problems, but as it is now – and as you said – Sunseri really has to concentrate on the snap because he has no idea where it will go.

As to the long throws I only saw one or two from each Myers and Sunseri in practice as they didn’t go long but once in the part of the scrimmage (Myers) we were allowed to see.

How long were you able to watch the practice – the whole time?

Comment by Reed 04.06.11 @ 8:25 pm

Dr. Tom – good point about Sunseri’s scrambling ability. What I wonder about is how he’ll do with called QB running plays or on the options.

It’s one thing to scramble with a pretty open field in front of you and another when the defense is up in the box or anticipating a running play.

Comment by Reed 04.06.11 @ 8:28 pm

I watched the entire practice. They finished with the 2 min drill.

Comment by letterman 04.06.11 @ 10:50 pm

just wanted to chime in and thank Reed for a great job.

With these new offensive and defensive systems, the first year may be trying to fit some square pegs in round holes. Lindsay may be an exact fit, Sunseri and whoever the new center is- not so much. Remember this is all new to everyone- maybe a skill that is not recognized such as adaptability or quick retention of learning will determine playing time instead of natural ability.

Comment by square44 04.07.11 @ 12:01 am

If Myers goes to some outher team some were i would bet he shines and some day we will say i cant belive we let another great QB get away it will be just like Flacco.

Comment by FRANKCAN 04.07.11 @ 12:46 am

Can anyone help me out with the date of the spring game? As far as Tino is concerned ; all I can envision is him getting clobbered against Miami’s big , fast athletes last year. He’ll be fine against Buffalo & Maine, but Iowa, N.D., & Utah will expose him badly. If we can’t get a shotgun snap off clean in practice, what are we going to do on the road in front of 60,000 hostile fans & trailing by 7 or more points ?

Comment by ROCKY20 04.07.11 @ 9:41 am

The truth is Pitt needs 3 good QB’s. If Tinko Sunseri gets hurt running the ball and under Todd Graham the risks are higher of this happening then Pitt will need a new starting QB and a back-up. So Pitt has to make all 3 QB’s happy some how. Tinko, Gonzales and Mark Myers.

Comment by RandyRandyTime 04.07.11 @ 9:45 am

Saturday April 16th , 2011 is the spring game. Get there around Noon as the game starts at 1:00 pm or 1:30.

Comment by RandyRandyTime 04.07.11 @ 10:00 am

JOE FLACCO’S EYEBROWS GIVE ME NIGHTMARES!

Comment by BCPITT 04.07.11 @ 10:59 am

I am with Coach Ditka on Tino. Watched him in camp prior to 2009 season and from my season seats all last year. I love the WPIAL kids and want them to succeed, but Tino is just too inaccurate and yes, too short. I will defer to Reed who is on the sidelines and doing a great job running this FB blog, but if Tino is our starter, we are not going to a BCS bowl (the goal, yes?). Of some comfort is the fact that if Myers or Gonzales improves and is the better choice by August or after the first real test (Iowa)game, the new HC who didn’t recruit Tino can sit him down without breaking any living room promises to his family. Hope Tino improves (he’s done growing) and as a good Pitt fan I will be ready to eat crow (with fries) if he does. Given the informed opinions listed above, it looks like Tino starts, Myers transfers, and Graham brings in a QB that fits his system for next year.

Comment by Bossdaws 04.07.11 @ 11:10 am

Bossdaws, et al. – Just want to make sure that my position in writing what I did is clear. It appears at this point that Sunseri is in the lead – I have inferred that by Graham’s actions of having him take all the 1st string snaps to this point – in other words Graham himself has shown this. That said, it is my opinion Sunseri will be the QB1 going into the August camp and if he holds serve he’ll be the starter.

What I truly think the wildcard is in all this is how exactly Graham and Norvell envision the QB’s duties.

If it is just to receive the snap in the shotgun and either pass from that or handoff to a RB… then perhaps Myers or Gonzalez could do just as well as Sunseri (although I don’t see Gonzales being a ‘passing’ QB at this point, again… my opinion).

If they want to have the added weapon of a QB who can have plays called specifically for him to run with the ball, or to run the pitch option, then I think it would be Sunseri as he can give that dimension to the offense along with a decent passing attack. From what I saw, and what little it was, didn’t give me the impression that Myers would be the guy for that. Rollout and pass maybe but not calling his number for a carry on any sort of a regular basis.

It is also my opinion that Sunseri could very easily have a different year in 2011 than he did in 2010 based on having that full year of experience under his belt. How does that saying go? Past performances are no guarantee of future results?

As to Myers transferring, let me be real clear that I haven’t heard anything specific at all about him. I have heard that prior to spring camp four players were going to put their plans on hold to see how it shook out after the camp… but Myers wasn’t named as one of them. All else is really is speculation and that’s fine as that is what we fans do.

Comment by Reed 04.07.11 @ 11:45 am

On that QB that fits his system note:

link to pittsburgh.scout.com

link to pittsburgh.scout.com

link to pittsburgh.scout.com

link to pittsburgh.scout.com

Three of Four are considered dual threat QBs with boat-loads of offers including from Pitt. There is also one Pro-Syle QB Voytik, but Rivals has him at 4.59 speed.

Comment by BCPITT 04.07.11 @ 11:46 am

From those of you who have watched Pitt’s spring practices, is this offense similar to Oregon’s “pistol offense” ? I certainly hope so !!

Comment by ROCKY20 04.07.11 @ 12:57 pm

Reed the points you make are fair, but the theme from the others is very clear.On sat. ill see first hand and let you know what is up ,fair unbiased .

Comment by paul shannon 04.07.11 @ 2:59 pm

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