All peaceful on the football front this week. I like to think that it is a purposeful calm. Devote all healing energies to Lucas Nix. Put Tino Sunseri in a zen (or semi-hypnotic) state where he can breathe and re-establish that mind-body connection so he doesn’t forget all the things he is supposed to do — set the feet; get rid of the ball before the count of 3; and never, ever attempt a pass longer than 15 yards. Meanwhile, Greg Gaskins is looking in a mirror repeating the following over and over, “I’m a good offensive lineman. I’m good enough for the Big East. I really can pass block. And goshdarnit, Tino likes seeing me on the line.”
Aaron Donald gets a puff piece as he has emerged as a force on the D-line. Now leading the team in tackles for loss, sacks and QB hurries.
Randolph, like Graham, said Donald still needs to work on his technique and fundamentals but, along with his natural ability, his work ethic and his intensity almost ensure that he is going to be successful against any offensive line.
“Aaron has done about everything I’ve asked him to do,” Randolph said. “We wanted him to work on his fundamentals and as you can see now with his production. His fundamentals have gotten better and it shows up on game day. His work ethic and his mindset and his natural ability — he just makes plays.
“When I look for guys to recruit in the future, I’m looking for guys like Aaron Donald with that first step, that explosiveness and, on top of that, the violence in him is what I really like,” Randolph said.
“He enjoys playing the game and, to me, he is kind of a throwback. He is an old-school guy, but his first step, his attitude and temperament — those things are what make him such an explosive player.”
Donald was humble/media savvy enough to deflect a lot of credit to his teammates on the D-line.
Outside linebackers/special teams coach Randall McCray is in Charleston, Illinois to interview for the Eastern Illinois (1-AA) head coaching job. Good luck to McCray, but my god is that in the middle of nowhere. Also, the possible loss of McCray means the Pitt coaching staff could be down to only two coaches with facial hair (Norvell and Magee). The lowest numbers since Walt Harris was in charge.
A story on how Pitt has used several players in the threeback spot. I still find it confusing since the coach in charge of the position is still called the tight ends coach (Tony Dews). The spot has been occupied at various times during the season by Hubie Graham, Drew Carswell, Anthony Gonzalez and Brendan Carozzoni.
“Ideally, we’d like to have one guy who can do it all so we don’t have to change personnel in between plays because when we have to sub them in and out we can’t go as fast as we like,” he said.
“But until one person emerges who can do that, we will keep mixing them in and, really, we’re excited to have four or five guys of different talents who we can use throughout the game.”
…
“One of the best things schematically we’ve done, is try to figure out what they each can do and what they are good at and try to use them in those roles,” Dews said, “rather than try to fit a square peg in a round hole. As the season has gone on, we’ve gotten even a little better at finding what they do well.
“We have been able to shuffle them based on their own unique ability and sort them out and put them in position to be successful.”
I think maybe Pitt might be better off just sticking with calling it the H-back. A google search of “threeback” yields some interesting results (NSFW), but really not helpful.
Paul Zeise’s chat is relatively fluffy this week. Hard to get much when it is a bye week and Pitt actually won a game.
WVU media guy reflects on seeing a bunch of former Hoopie coaches on the Pitt sideline next week.
The only thing that currently matters in this Pitt rebuilding season is that we beat the Hoopies on Friday. That my friends is our bowl game for this year IMHO.
How many more Backyard Brawls our in our future anyhow!? The Mountaineers could soon go the same way as Penn State did years ago. Lets not squander the opportunity to beat them while we still have the chance to. Especially fun when it’s done at their house. Remember 13-9?? HTP.
But perhaps after PSU receives the death penalty, perhaps they will accept a long term series with Pitt again where they will come to Pitt 2 times for every 1 time we have to play up in Happy Valley.
Again, I am kidding 😉
DaveD
I would love to beat the Hoopies this year. I’m pumped allready. Off Wed-Mon, family, food, drinks and football, bring it!!!
Monster upset for Paul Rhodes and co. Congrats to the Hawkeyes
ISU was only a 26.5 underdog
ISU is now 6-4 and bowl eligible.
ISU won with a redshirt freshman QB starting only his 3rd game.
Good Job Paul. Perhaps SP should have interviewed you!
(smiley might have asked but Rhodes said thanks, but not thanks, can’t remember)
ISU has never had a 10 win season .
ISU has only finished the season ranked, twice.
Last night was the first time EVER they beat a team ranked in the Top 5.
Hope all the Cyclone fans really enjoyed that celebration last night and thanks for sending one
Johnny Majors to PITT. We are eternally grateful!
Seriously, I’m happy for Rhodes winning a big game on national TV for his alma mater
Something pretty awesome…
Rutgers plays at Connecticut
Louisville plays at South Fl
And we know what Pitt has to do.
If Rutgers wins then we need Louisville to win.
The way they played today, the chances of Cinci losing to either UCONN or Syracuse are pretty good.
We are going to lose out in any 3-way tie scenario.
Let’s go Huskies!!!! Lol.
We have no chance if it comes to BCS rankings.
Somehow State Penn wins the B1G championship…
Oregon jumps Alabama to get to the BCS Champonship
Pitt somehow sneaks in to the BCS
Would the Rose Bowl pick Pitt?
I may have had too many beers watching the Michigan game.
Let’s Go Tino.
Tino is going to run all over them this week, ‘dont pass Tino..see Tim Tebow’
Pitt finally played 60mins, against L’Ville..
link to bigeast.org
Once the mini conference is established, if there’s a tie at the top then head-to-head or rankings come into play.
After last year’s performace, or should I say LACK of performance, by the Panthers against the Mountaineers, I feel strongly that TG should give this team one of those “this is a defining moment in your football career” speeches before the game.
If I were him, I’d have everybody assembled a couple hours early just to watch the replay of the 2007 game and bring in somebody like McKillop to give inspiration on how that win felt.
Pregame, in a private meeting, I’d give it to every upperclassmen on the team who played in that game, right between the eyes about their lackluster, pitiful play last year against WVU. I’d reinforce the fact that, that team last year flat out quit, and that, that kind of shameful mental attitude hangs arounds, sticking with you, tainting your entire psyche into the future, creaping out from the dark recesses of you subconcious when you find yourself up against the wall dealing with future tough issues.
This is the redemption game. This game might be the last Backyard Brawl ever played, who knows? In coming years, this game could be viewed like the Penn State vs. Pitt final battle at 3 Rivers, final score 14-0, won by Pitt to be carried around proudly by the Pitt faithful for 15 years before we meet again on the gridiron.
This team and Pitt’s fan base have had a rough go of it this year. It’s been a disappointing season, but one thing I noticed is that this year’s team has never thrown in the towel like thay did against WVU last year.
Those who witnessed that on the Pitt sideline last year must have a nasty rancid taste left in their mouths after that humiliation. Well, this might be the last chance those guys have to swab that stench away once and for all.
In this game you take no prisoners, in this game you put it all out there, in this game you play 60 minutes , in this game once you knock the other guy down you step on his throat and finish it without mercy. In this game you beat West Virginia.
This is the Backyard Brawl. Loosing is not an option. Hail to Pitt!
Not meaning to nitpick, but for the record, the last Pitt/Penn St. game WAS in Three Rivers Stadium but it ended 12-0, not 14-0. I was at the game, and it was wonderful.
I was at Three Rivers too, Tourman. 12-0, behind a great catch/run by freshman Rutherford. Chant that score as much as 13-9. HTP
Pitt wins in the classroom and hopefully it will soon win on the field. It is interesting to note that Stanford had 5 winners…an amazing achievemnet!! HAIL TO PITT!!!!!
on another note — Long Beach St lost to San Diego St in OT last night
So we better not lose, for we might not be playing them for another eon. Anyway I hate losing to any of the Philly schools especially the jerks at Villimanilli.
Long Beach losing means what…..they weren’t that great? We are worse than the loss suggests?
Even if we aren’t a great team, we should still be able to handle LaSalle and then Penn. I mean most of these kids on Pitt were pretty high recruits.
We do have the preseason POY in the BE in Gibbs.
Like I posted before, if we have to, just play without a true center until someone shows they can effectively man the position. The key is having players in, that know how to box out and get position and how to rotate in the man to man.
Truth & Virtue
Hail to Pitt !
In Yahoo’s NCAA football weekly article entitled
‘Winners & Losers’
The whole BigEast conference is listed as a Loser.
So glad we are getting OUT !
Clemson will destroy Rutgers in the Orange Bowl.
It sucks that the Buttgirls get to go to Miami.
The last two lines are conjecture and considering who’s lost the last 48 hours is purely speculative.
Not much enthusiasm for the Brawl?
Are you a PITT fan?
Are you a WVU Fan?
At this point, this is the most exciting game on the year.
Get over yourself.
I’m actually pretty pumped for Pitt football!!!
You can go back, and Chas would nail me if I said anything else different, everyone of my posts in August going back and forth with people, said 7-5 or 8-4 for this season.
Am I a genius, far from it my friends, not even close. I however understood that a new coach always has a few bumps, a new system installed will add to those bumps, and frankly, allthough the cupboard not left bare, I saw a lot of people over-estimating our talent vastly.
With the two top defensive ends gone, a top wide reciever gone, and a top running back gone, I didn’t see what other people were seeing. Most of the prognosticators saw this, mostly having us pre-season ranked 34th-45th???????
For those of you that had us 10-2, 11-1, 12-0….
ya, I bet you are disappointed.
Do I wish we were one of the above posted records, of course, was I hoping for something like that in the wee corner of my brain, of course.
However, reality told me differntly, and here at the end of the season, they’re about where I thought they’d be, so, therefore, I don’t see a “lost” season, and am still pumped up for Pitt football and the game Friday night!!!
Am I on Graham’s payroll, absolutely not. If he’s 5-5 two or three years from now, I’ll be as pissed as everyone else.
Right now, though, I am ready to rock-n-roll in Morgantown!!!!
Hail to Pitt!!!!!!!!
I think in 2-3 years Pitt can be that team.
Pitt-Penn State was bigger back in the day but the Brawl has been THE GAME for Pitt over the last decade.
We win this game and I’m going to be really up for the season finale against Syracuse!
This game Friday night tells us the mindset of this team and will demonstrate what the “cumulative” coaching input has produced for the Panthers. come on Pitt, It’s time to show us what you got after getting kicked in the head a few times during the season. You got the balls to step it up and end the season on a high note or not?
This teams brings home two more victories and I call this season a success considering all of the trials and tribulations that the program has been throught over the last year.
Hail to Pitt, for sure. Beat those Hoopies good, right in front of all of their drunked up, beer sucking hillbilly fans.
