The game is on ESPNU at 7pm.

Work schedule is out of whack at the moment. Heading in for the night, which means DVR delay and shunning all media to avoid anything on the game. While there is no official word, Travon Woodall pronounced himself all ready to play tonight’s game. Woodall, however, doesn’t get the final say.

Pitt coach Jamie Dixon knew when Woodall went down that he was going to have to play the rest of the game without him. UPMC’s approach to treating concussions or possible concussions is cautious. Players must be without symptoms for 24 hours to run and for 48 hours before contact.

A year ago, Dante Taylor missed two games with concussion-like symptoms, and Talib Zanna was not allowed back in a game against Cincinnati after getting hit in the head.

“If the doctors feel he can’t play, even though he thinks he can play, he can’t play,” Dixon said. “We’re at the forefront of concussions and how to deal with them. We err on the side of caution. There’s no question that’s where we’re at and rightfully so.”

Woodall did not experience any symptoms Sunday or Monday. He went through some conditioning and other drills at practice Monday and will practice today with contact if there are no symptoms. He said he expects to play Wednesday night against Villanova when the Panthers travel to Philadelphia.

There has been no word one way or another. Hopefully he is not having any problems. Just as important — regardless of whether he plays or not — I just want him to be honest with the doctors. His longterm health is more important.

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Frankly, I’m glad he’s committed just for this photo.

Photo copyright Pillars of Peace

The Dalai Lama visited Kailua High School to recognize the school for its programs on compassion, conflict resolution, and nonviolence. Naturally a kid who causes havoc as DT on the football team got to be on stage with him. My day is made.

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Pitt added its 5th O-line commit to the 2013 class with Jaryd Jones-Smith choosing Pitt today over Virginia, Michigan and others. For those who get bent out of shape over announcement ceremonies, Jones-Smith kept it simple. He thanked his mom and his coach and put on a Pitt hat (there was no hat game).

There’s a lot to like in the recruits for the O-line in this class, but except (maybe) for Dorian Johnson, none of them will be helping the O-line next year. The scary reality is that the O-line will be a big question mark and continue to be an injury (or suspension) or two from disaster. There’s reason fans — and probably the coaches as well — had such a sense of urgency over getting offensive line recruits.

Adam Bisnowaty will help next year, but Chris Jacobson and Ryan Turnley are gone. We don’t know what the situation is with Arthur Doakes following his suspension for the BBVA Bowl. Same with Juantez Hollins. How fast and well T.J. Clemmings adjusts to being an offensive lineman is still a question.

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Over the weekend Pitt added another recruit. Not saying it was strictly about making sure Tyler Boyd sticks with Pitt, but it doesn’t hurt.

Clairton senior Terrish Webb became the third player from the Class of 2013 to verbally commit to Pitt to play football, joining teammates Tyler Boyd and Titus Howard. Boyd committed on national television during the first quarter of the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio, while Howard verballed prior to the season.

Webb came with Boyd down to Pitt this weekend. Took in the Marquette-Pitt game and still verballed. He initially gave a verbal to Kent State but Pitt made a late offer that had the wide receiver reconsidering.

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I have started, stopped, deleted paragraphs, and just walked away from the post several times in the time between the end of the game and now. I have found things to distract me. Excuses to do other things. This game just really upset me.

I would guess because it seems more of the same from this season. The inconsistency. The inability to complete the game. The blown opportunities after opportunities. For all the complaints about the recent Pitt squads that didn’t go as far as we wanted in the NCAA Tournament, there was consistency for most of the regular season. A comfort at least in knowing what to expect. In effort, intensity, energy, desire and performance. You knew how much they cared each game.

None of that seems to be there with this group. From game-to-game; half-to-half; one minute to the next. The unevenness. The inconsistency. No one seems to know what they will do. And it was all on display in this game.

From the opening minutes, it was clear this was going to be a battle. Pitt was struggling with their shots. Marquette didn’t look much better. The only difference was that the Golden Eagles hit some early 3s and Pitt missed free throws to give Marquette the early lead. Then on a scrum for a ping-ponging basketball, Tray Woodall took a hit to his chin or head. On the floor and in pain, he was eventually taken back to the locker room. When he returned, it was to the bench with an icepack to his face. Word soon came down that he was out with a concussion.

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So, has Pitt started to find its footing after getting smacked in the mouth by Cinci and Rutgers? Was Georgetown more along the lines of what can be expected, or was it simply that the Hoyas were the perfect match-up for Pitt? There is an awareness that they have to show that was the norm.

…Dixon has been emphasizing to his players why they were so successful against Georgetown. He said that is the key to building a winning streak.

“We want them to recognize why,” Dixon said. “We watch film to show them what they didn’t do well, but we wanted to watch film of why they did things well, show the things we have to continue to do and improve on. There are not many wins like that on the road. We have to see how we respond to it on Saturday. Marquette won two close games that speaks to how good they are.”

Marquette (11-3) brings a 2-0 Big East record into the game after home victories against Connecticut and Georgetown. The Golden Eagles beat Connecticut in overtime and Georgetown by one point.

Pitt also has the looming issue of a back-loaded schedule in the conference. So they can’t afford the luxury of having off-games against teams in the middle and bottom of the conference. Cinci and Rutgers used up the quota.

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I’ll keep this short. No really. Last year in the search for the next Pitt football coach it appeared to come down to Mario Cristobal or Paul Chryst. I was leaning more towards Cristobal because of how far he had brought FIU in just a few years plus his recruiting ties to Miami and actual head coach experience.

The big negative against him were the suggestions that he really wanted to stay in the Miami area. That at the least he was just using the interest as a way to improve his money from FIU. The fact that he would likely bolt at the first chance if the Miami job (his alma mater) came open.  It seemed to me that too many were using that as primarily in light of the nature and brevity of the Fraud Graham tenure. Especially in relation to Cristobal’s wife.

Well, fast forward a year and FIU inexplicably fired Cristobal after one down season (that included a lot of injuries). And the FIU firing makes less sense when you realize they replaced Cristobal with Ron Turner. About the only thing that explains the stupidity, is that FIU AD Pete Garcia is the same guy who thought hiring Isiah Thomas to be a college basketball coach was a good idea.

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Actually, “nicely” is understating it. The schedule the ACC put out there for Pitt is outstanding.

2013 ACC Home Opponents
Florida State
Miami
North Carolina
Virginia

2013 ACC Away Opponents
Duke
Georgia Tech
Syracuse
Virginia Tech

Couple that with home non-con games that include New Mexico and Notre Dame, and Pitt has a schedule that includes two top-10 teams from this season. Not to mention Miami and even UNC. I have no idea what to expect from Virginia.

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I’ll understand if you thought it was a no-brainer that Devin Street would return for his senior year. I know I leaned that way. That doesn’t necessarily mean, he would (*cough* Greg Lee *cough*). Street made it official yesterday.

Wide receiver Devin Street considered a jump to the NFL but decided it was best to return to Pitt for his redshirt senior season. He announced Thursday on his Twitter account that he will return to school.

“My heart is at Pitt and with my teammates,” he wrote. “I want to grow as a person and player. Therefore I‘ll be staying my senior year.”

It’s not something Pitt fans should take for granted. The offense would have been in big trouble next year if Street wasn’t coming back. As less-than-good the O-line was this past season, try to imagine it if Chris Jacobson hadn’t been given a sixth year. That’s the sort of situation the passing game could have found itself.

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I see there are articles and discussions on the topic of legacies with this senior class, and one player in particular. Some were probably ready to turn the page by halftime of the BBVA Bowl. Others will want to vent or defend for the next two years.

The one thing of which I feel certain, is that this particular class will be most linked with (blamed on) former coach Dave Wannstedt. I’m hoping it is the last of them. It should be. While there is one more more true Wannstedt classes to graduate, the 2008 and 2009 signing clases that make up this group seem to exemplify the promise and disappointment of the Wannstedt era.

This is really the last group to really feel that the ties to Wannstedt are still there. That draw reference to him.

“We wanted to start with a guy like coach Wannstedt, we believed in coach Wannstedt,” Sunseri said.

“For us to finish with a guy like coach Chryst, we feel like he’s the Dave Wannstedt kind of guy. Coach Chryst obviously is his own person and he brings different attributes to the table, but he’s one of those guys that loves this university, loves the players.”

When the comparisons are to Fraud Graham and Haywood, that can be considered in a positive light.

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When Pitt formally announced the early signings of Soto, Orndoff, Chapman and Jarrett to the football program, there was a curious fifth.

In addition to the freshmen enrollees, Chryst announced that redshirt freshman Dontez Ford, a native of McKees Rocks, Pa., and graduate of Sto-Rox High, has transferred to Pitt from Syracuse. Ford will work at wide receiver this spring.

Ford had made it known he was transferring before Doug Marrone took the Buffalo Bills job, so the two are unrelated.

Now, in the Big East transfers between conference schools is prohibited. So, what gives?

ACC rules.

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Over the years I’ve made no secret of my love of good beer. Along with bourbon, Scotch, and assorted other spirits. This past summer, after years of whining about wanting to do it, I finally started doing some homebrewing. I’m enjoying it, and now engaging in the predictable lament of not having enough time to do it as often as I would like. Brewing has a fair amount of gap. Time to idly daydream while waiting for the next step. There’s plenty of time to fantasize about doing it fulltime. Trying to make a living at it. Even the crappiest homebrewer has those daydreams.

One of the readers — usd121 — is actually living that dream. He is the head brewer at Voodoo Brewery in Meadville, PA.

Curt is debuting his first beer on Thursday. It is an IPA named HTP.

For those that can’t figure out the acronym, that’s Hail To Pitt.

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It’s the final month before National Signing Day. Aside from reviewing the past season and speculating about spring practice, most football talk turns to the final push for recruiting.

Yesterday Pitt added another member to the class. A defensive end.

When it became apparent that George Washington defensive lineman Justin Moody was one of the top prospects in Pennsylvania, coach Ron Cohen rented a van last summer for a road trip.

After several in- and out-of-state stops, Moody forged a relationship with the Pitt coaches, received a scholarship offer and eventually made a verbal commitment to the Panthers on Tuesday.

“It worked,” Cohen said of the trip that included Moody and five teammates. “When he visited Pitt, he got excited.”

Moody, 6-foot-3, 270 pounds, played defensive end and tackle for George Washington, which finished 8-3 in Class AAAA District 12 (Philadelphia) last season.

He had been a Pitt lean for a while (Insider subs), but he finally chose Pitt over Temple, Purdue, Rutgers and Cuse.

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Obviously I did not see that coming. I’m pretty sure no one did. Not like that.

The Panthers came up with a victory they desperately needed Tuesday night when the knocked off No. 19 Georgetown, 73-45, at the Verizon Center. The win came on the heels of two losses to Cincinnati and Rutgers to open Big East play.

Pitt (13-3, 1-2) beat Georgetown for the 12th time in the past 18 meetings. The Panthers won seven of their final nine games against the Hoyas at the Verizon Center. This was the final scheduled game in the series because Pitt is moving to the ACC next season.

The 28-point margin of victory was the second-largest for Pitt in a Big East game. The largest was a 30-point victory at DePaul in 2011.

“We were clicking today,” Pitt senior Tray Woodall said. “We came out and fought hard.”

It was the most-lopsided home loss for Georgetown since a 40-point loss to St. John’s in the 1971-72 season.

“It’s embarrassing,” Georgetown coach John Thompson III said. “It was very disappointing. I know this isn’t who we are, but tonight was very disappointing.”

It was Pitt’s most complete game this year. They played hard in both halfs. They played defense. They took care of the ball. They worked it around on offense.

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Odds are that will be the next time Pitt plays there. The ACC Basketball Tournament sometime in the next 5-10 years.

Outside of a meeting in the Big East Tourney, this is the final meeting for Pitt-Georgetown for a while. There won’t be violence like in the 80s.

James Robinson is excited to go home.

Last year, Pitt stunned Georgetown in the midst of a mini-surge that seemed like Pitt might save the season. This time, both teams are looking for their first Big East win. Pitt’s situation is probably a bit more dire with two losses to start. At the same time, Georgetown probably doesn’t think it can afford to lose a second straight game. Especially at home.

It’s hard to feel optimistic about the game right now. It just seems there is a lot wrong with this team that is not simply fixed by playing better in just one aspect. Not trying to be depressing about it. Just hard to be overly optimistic after the past two games.

The game is on ESPNU at 9pm or later depending on when the Clemson-Duke game ends