From the comments, many of you have checked out on the season. Some have stated or threatened to check out even further than that. Oddly, despite how maddening, frustrating and agonizing the last couple weeks have been I haven’t checked out on this year.
Oh, my expectations/hopes are extremely shallow at this point. And it is probably more about individual stories, performances and that feeling of being unable to turn away from a wreck. Still, I’m feeling connected.
I’ve checked out before. I know the feeling. 2007, definitely checked out early (notwithstanding that final game of the season). Same with 2010. More detached. Les angsty. Much more focus on basketball.
Having said that, I needed a little time after the Duke game.
In that respect, having a bye week was a welcome respite. A chance to recharge and hopefully focus on the games. Now, there’s only a few days before meeting with UNC. Surely, it is time to focus on the actual game.
What’s that? Nope.
Boyd said several Pitt players, including himself and fellow Clairton graduates Kevin Weatherspoon, Terrish Webb and Titus Howard, have enough determination to help the team win now and in the future.
“James (Conner) has that in him. Ray (Vinopal) has it. Todd (Thomas) has it. K.K. (Mosley-Smith). T.J. (Clemmings) has it,” Boyd said.
Their numbers are limited, he said.
“I just feel like not everybody on both sides (of the ball) has it, though. Just a select few,” he said. “I just feel like everybody has to get on board with everybody, has to feed off each other. Because if we had more guys that are willing to go all out, then we won’t be able to be touched.”
There is not much I disagree with in this. The frustration mirrors much of the fans’ frustration. The passion and desire Boyd has to win is palpable in his words. It feels good to see at least one Pitt player vocalize the frustration and not toe a company line about fixing mistakes and playing better.
That said, there are two problems. One, it isn’t all, “desire and will.” That isn’t going to mask deficiencies in depth and talent — hello, secondary. That is the athlete’s conceit, especially for an exceptionally talented athlete like Boyd.
The other issue is listing some of the players who do have “it.” Singling them out as guys with the desire or simply because they are his boys from Clairton is a high compliment to them. The problem comes from everyone outside the program interpreting what it means for the rest of the players on the roster not named.
Is he saying the rest of the roster isn’t? Logically, no. He just listed some as examples of the ones that do get it. But everyone wants to figure out which players he is really calling out. Who are those scoundrels without the desire and will to leave it all out on the field?
It becomes a guessing game. It allows outside perceptions and biases to become a version of reality if constructed well enough. A chance for every rumor and bit of message board scrap of conflict or disagreement among players and coaches to become a building block of the problems. Of which players he is referring.
Is he feuding with QB Chad Voytik? Does he think Voytik doesn’t care enough about winning now or has other things he wants to do? Is he calling out almost the entire O-line? Or the D-line? The rest of the receivers?
I don’t know. I’m not going to pretend to know.
Who wants to talk about the upcoming game?
To get back to the quotes, I think it was totally appropriate for the best player on the team to call out others. Funny how no one questioned him personally. When you are an athlete and you give it all and get criticized, you fight back. Nobody did that which tells me they are all disappointed in their play…or they know they just aren’t talented enough.
@Pap – Chryst needs to be extended. Before you go ape on me, look across the practice facility. The Steelers are consistent and keep the coaches for a long period without panicking and it has worked out pretty good. They don’t always have great years, but they keep their coaches as best as they can for continuity. I do think they must get rid of their AD now. The new guy can come in and observe next year and if he doesn’t like the results, he can get his own guy. Please, new AD, don’t say we are getting someone who will take us to the next level unless that will happen. Personally, I think Chryst can be that coach.
Pitt has turned the corner during the bye.
Armed Forces Bowl here we come.
@ Atlanta – I like your optimism. Pitt definitely has something to play for in these next three games. Only NC, right now, can say that. So, this will probably be the toughest win to get, IMO. I know that Miami has better talent than NC, Cuse and Pitt, but they often lack heart and sometimes don’t show up (I guess we can say the same about Pitt – lol).
I’m sticking with my earlier prediction that Pitt wins 41 – 38.
SOP – Stupid, Optimistic, Pitt(fan)
I still can’t believe Blewitt let us down. That guy is $$ and deserved to be the hero not the goat, centered ball or not, he should make that kick 9 out of 10 times based on his skill set.
Still, even if you’re 0-9, you got to put it all out there as Boyd tells it. Is this the week that Pitt pits it all together? I hope so since I’m tired of being depressed on the weekend.
One game at a time. Beat the tar out of the Heels. Hail to Pitt!
link to cfbdatawarehouse.com
Pitt 10-9 now all time vs Duke, 6-4 in Durham (the 1956 game was in Norfolk)
link to cfbdatawarehouse.com
Pitt 5-3-1 all time vs NC State, 0-2-1 at Raleigh
link to cfbdatawarehouse.com
Pitt 2-2 vs East Carolina, 0-1 in Greenville
link to cfbdatawarehouse.com
Pitt has never played Wake Forest
We need to get in their face on the outside and bump.
We also need to take some risks and blitz like hell every now and then to show different looks. Read the SI article about Graham and Arizona State. He took a different, and correct route to winning. You can sit back and try to play Big Ten defense which these laggards learned at Wisconsin or, you can look at the opponent and say, well, we don’t have the speed or athleticism we got nothing to lose and play aggressive as hell.
I expect UNC to win something like 58-35, just because they get a few more stops than we do, which is not the fault of the defense as much as it is the offense. Stick the damn ball in the end zone and don’t punt or kick FG’s.
Throw the ball often to Tyler Boyd. He either needs a monster game or someone like the head coach and several of his teammates need to tell him to shut the hell up. He’s a good player but if you can’t handle your business in the locker room you certainly don’t need to be talking with a weasel reporter with a mic in your face. This program is not at a level where ANYONE needs to be calling out others publicly. Take care of business and to hell with the media.
@ Pittman – I agree with all your comments and points EXCEPT the score. I think we out score them with our slow, methodical offense. Our time killing O will be our best D.
Can someone make sure that DC House reads Pittman and my D suggestions? Schtevie, are you there???
Offer him the head job here – NOW.
The Big Ten does not have an offensive model we need to be following and yet we have a staff insistent on it.
The games we have lost have largely been on the offense – record number of fumbles vs. Ga Tech, lack of anything vs. Akron and Iowa. I suppose you can say kicking game breakdowns vs. Duke but Duke’s defense is a serious joke. UNC’s defense might be worse. This will be a high scoring affair and the offense needs to step up another gear – no turnovers, TD’s in the red zone and consume time.
PittMan, unfortunately or defense plays just well enough to lose, they never make that big play or stop when you need it. Actually, they did once against Duke, and we missed the field goal. Other than that, they could not stop Iowa, hold GT to a field goal, put up any resistance to Akron, and almost gave the game back to Syracuse. If VT’s QB and receivers did not stink, the defense would have failed again.
We must be watching different teams.
(yea based on no improvement in the team, actually regressing since starting 3-0 and losing 5 of the last 6 games. That is something Pitt would do though. Maybe we go back and extend Paul Hackett too.)
What like Cornhole got extended ?
Pleaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaase
offensive line needs to play almost a perfect game as far as not collecting penalties.
as 1 penalty puts you into a long down/distance and blows up the running game.
also as we’ve seen this superwide wideass O-linemen can surely push forward, but they are not good at going sideways or backwards, as in pass protection.
Wisconsin other than the one year with Russell Wilson, where he could scramble around and create plays, never had much of a passing game.
And that was why they lost any of the recent Rose Bowl games they played in, 4 straight Bowls and lost 8 of the last 13 they’ve been in.
Plus the fact, slow footed big 10 teams don’t fare too well outside the Big Joke.
For the best QB he EVER had at Wisky (wilson) wasn’t a pocket passer.
And he is shorter than Voytik. Which also meant he had to escape the pocket to have a better field of vision.
Voytik also sees the field much better, ‘outside the pocket’.
Don’t know why you need 6’6″ and 6’7″ in O-linemen.
Actually shorter guys can get underneath taller lineman and get more leverage. Which seems to happen a lot of Pitt short yardage plays, where Connor gets stuffed.
With tall linemen, you’re just limiting your QB’s range of vision.
In 2006, 24 players committed with the majority 2 and 3 stars. One 4 star.
In 2007, they had 34 players commit. 6, 4 stars. 12 3 stars. 15, 2 stars. One no star.
In 2008, 2, 4 stars; 15, 3 stars; 8, 2 stars.
Mullins was a stud recruiter from day one apparently. They may have been ranked 19th, but most likely because of the numbers of recruits, not quality. Telling the entire story is always helpful when stating a point.
I think everyone here is frustrated and want Pitt to be such a success, we tend to think things are terrible when they aren’t. We are conditioned I guess.
The main reason for extending Chryst two years is this since 2010 :
Wannstedt
Bennett
Haywood
Graham
Patterson
Chryst
Next Middle of the road guy, 2015.
Pitt has lost at least two recruiting classes and we cannot afford to lose another. Chryst is a lame duck in recruiting next year if he is not extended 2 years. An interim AD should do that to give us a fighting chance. An interim AD can also tell him to get rid of House. Then everyone can be happy.
Problem is, we don’t have the athletes that are good enough.
We had a lead, I think 2 TD’s and Russell Wilson showed us what was coming in the future that day, bringing the Wolfpack back to win, I think 38-31 without looking it up.
Sticks in my mind cause I was there.
Comment by Emel 11.12.14 @ 6:25 pm”
EMEL – correct, I was there as well. I confused that with the win over the Wolfpack in the Tangerine Bowl during the Walt Harris era. A convincing win and at that time, the future looked bright for Pitt football. Sigh.
