In case you had doubts.
So, yeah, that happened.
Reactions.
Bob Smizik got commentary from Chris Dokish:
He got offers from the likes of Clemson, Mississippi State, Virginia, and Louisville, but if he were three inches taller that offer list would be much more impressive
He has everything else that it takes to be an excellent quarterback and in Pitt’s system, his height won’t be a factor.
This is a perfect example of why Pitt needs a head coach who uses some form of high-octane spread offense instead of a pro-set. If Pitt has to get 6’4″ quarterbacks that project to the pros, they will have to go against the elite programs.
But if their offense allows for smaller guys, then they can get a gem. That’s how West Virginia got Pat White. He was a great player that pretty much only fit into their system as a QB. All the big programs wanted him a wide receiver.
Which tracks the comments in his ESPN.com profile.
The system Pitt runs is also why Voytik chose Pitt.
His final three schools were Pitt, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt and he chose the Panthers after he visited all three over the past month and he said the opportunity to play in Graham’s offense was what put the Panthers ahead of the other two.
“It’s like our high school’s offense; it really is,” he told Chris Peak of the recruiting web-site Pantherlair.com. “They ran it at Tulsa, and I feel like I fit in that really well. I think I can work in a pro-style, but the offense that they run, they throw it and put up big numbers and win games. I’m excited about that.”
Can’t help but notice. He talked about playing and winning. Nothing about going to the NFL. The pitch as well as the system has changed.
Voytik liked a lot of things including other family being near.
“Everything just seemed to fit right there,” Voytik said. “My extended family is an hour away and I have a cousin that is going to school there as well.” “The coaches were very aggressive in their recruitment of me and I think I fit their offense and they want me to be the face of their offense and I couldn’t turn that down.”
Family, fits and faces.
Gonzalez has yet to set foot on a playing field during an actual game. It’s one thing to be skeptical, and it’s another to just be a whining pessimist. We’ve had an average record the past few years; it’s not like we’ve had losing season after losing season. Calm down and allow the season to run it’s course before you completely write it off.
I guess I’ve been a whining pessimist for over 20 years now. I was a bit too critical in my post.Yet I truly believe the frustration is setting in as I watch these same type of scenarios every 5 or so years when a new coach is brought in. I have tried over the past 4 or 5 months to envision a team that will win the Big East every two or three years (which should be the norm and not a fluke.) I despise the backwoods West Virginians, yet they do it on a constant basis. I watch Louisville, Connecticut, etc… have spans where they are up and down. Pitt shouldn’t be in this category. There’s not one team in the Big East who has half the history as the Panthers and yet we always seem to be in the middle of the pack every year when we should be first or second year in and out. Could you imagine if Virginia Tech, Miami, or Boston College were still in the Big East? I bet they would take the crown every year. So why did we become a second rate conference to the critics and to most fans when we live in such a viable area? We have the eastern part of the country yet the Big Ten still dominates our market because of one team (PSU?) Pitt may have to take a back seat to PSU and Ohio state in some ways as they are state colleges, but we should be able to compete with the other programs in the Big Ten and other top conferences and yet we don’t. I’ve rambled enough. I just hope my pessimism is wrong and I eat my words at the end of this year and the years to follow…..
Great point about the initial comments from Voytik. It’s refreshing to hear.
After years of 4 and 5 star recruits and no Big East Championships, I’m looking far less at any star ranking and much more at system fitness. The players Graham is compiling seem to truly fit what he is trying to do.
beanboy, help me with my research: where did Pitt end up in the BE Conference the last couple of years, in 5th place? Perhaps 6th place? My memory hasn’t been that good lately.
Prozac is needed half the time we all watch the last 5 minutes of a Pitt football game.
Big Guy- Finishing 3rd in a Big East when we should finish first or second is my point. I didn’t say we were Syracuse but we should be in the mix for a Big East championship every year. (and I know we have been lately and we end up losing 2 or 3 of our final Big East games to drop us to 3rd) What’s the difference if you finish 2nd or 5th in the Big East?????? Wow, you get the Meineke Car Care Bowl instead of the “who the hell remembers bowl”. You want to finish first and get your BCS game. Plain and simple……
Lastly, I was at Cedar Point on Thursday and the heat index was 115. I didn’t complain once but I dropped a couple pounds, it was a bonus…
This is the event : “The Elite 11 quarterback competition is a five-day event at Pepperdine University. Twenty-four of the nation’s top signal callers will learn from coaches, run drills and compete for the title of Elite 11 Quarterback.”
Notice the quality of QB that has attended this “Elite 11” program over the course of the years … TOP NOTCH … link to usatoday.com
I think that it is QUITE RIGHT for Panther fans to be exciting about this commit from Voytik!
Chad Voytik is a passing QB who can flat out run.
Which one would you rather have? This is not to say that Gonzalez can’t be the guy. If Dodge can get him slinging the ball around the right way he could be special and Voytik could be riding the bnech. Should be fun camp next year.
Sometimes you can’t measure everything in arm strength, or height, or just physical attributes.
Gonzo aint goint to pass Tino this year or next……..Why? Tino completes a higher percentage of passes. Barring injury or failure Voytik is Graham’s QB after Tino and not Gonzo.
You’ll see two more years of Sunseri (Jr in 2011 and Sr in 2012), then two years of Myers – who will NOT transfer – because this coaching staff actually knows what it’s doing (Meyers will be a Jr. in 2013 and Sr. in 2014) and THEN Voytik will be primed and ready to take over in his Junior year which will be 2015. And in 2016, when we play the Nits, our boy Voytik will be a 5th year senior – polished, poised and chasing the heisman. Bet on it.
I’m not sure Myers fits that mold when compared to Sunseri, Gonzalez and now Voytik.
prozac for after the loss to WVU/Cin/UConn the last few years
that or suicide hot-line
I doubt Graham would start a true freshman and if Sunseri does well next year he’ll most probably retain the starting job… but after that I hope he has a true open competition for the position. Voytik could easily grab that especially if Gonzalez and Myers don’t markedly improve parts of their game.
