From the latest press ‘sit-down’ Chancellor Gallagher held yesterday afternoon you have to think that his commitment to the football program is rock solid and forward thinking. There isn’t any doubt in my mind that PITT would have kept Chryst on for another year or two had he not left for the Wisconsin job but once that opened Gallagher saw what was shaping up, seized the moment and put his own plans into action.
First came the change in our Athletic Director position with the long awaited firing of Steve Pederson. This mollified almost everyone who had suffered the angst over Chryst leaving the PITT job. It was as if we fans took a collective breath and felt that regardless of who was named the new HC the future of PITT football looked brighter.
The timing of that move couldn’t have been made in a better way. It showed the strong decision making that the former Chancellor was thought to have lacked when it came to the football program. That isn’t 100% true but the fan’s perception was strongly slanted that way.
Once that firing had been made then came the personnel and financial aspect of the changes. Of course the main point has been the hiring of defensive-minded Pat Narduzzi, late of the MSU staff. This appears to be a pretty solid hire and Narduzzi has begun rounding out his coordinators and staff coaching positions. Both his coordinators have been successes at the same jobs at other schools.
Jim Chaney the new OC came from Arkansas and Josh Conklin our DC was at Florida International University. Conklin’s defense was statistically average all around with the exceptions of their total defense and their superb red zone defense – but overall no great shakes. Let’s hope that under the defensive guru Narduzzi’s tuteledge things will improve with Conklin’s move to PITT. MSU’s stats in regular font; PITT’s in italics & FIU’s in Bold):
| Total Defense | 8th 33rd 35th | 315.8 ypg 359.8 363.8 |
| Scoring Defense | 22nd 58th 40th | 21.5 ppg 26.3 24.8 |
| Rushing Defense | 1st 55th 54th | 88.5 ypg 160.8 160.4 |
| Redzone Defense | 95th 73rd 4th | 0.867 0.842 0.692 |
| Passing Yards Allowed | 60th 24th 29th | 227.3 ypg 198.8 160.4 |
| Passing Efficiency Defense | 21st 43rd 46th | 113.14 rating 121.59 122.5 |
What this shows is that the MSU defense was pretty stout under Narduzzi, Pitt’s average at best under House and Conklin’s about the same… statistically that is.. That bodes well for our team’s future because regardless of what the stats say for PITT’s defense it cost us at least three wins, maybe four. I’d like to see MSU & FIU’s defenses broken down into quarters of play because our 3rd and 4th quarters purely sucked last season.
The increase in football bucks has paid dividends, so far, in those two hires. That’s on paper, the key will be how they actually perform on game days. Although Gallagher isn’t speaking in specifics regarding football money he has made it know that “ the pool is competitive in comparison to other schools”. Which other schools is a mystery but most likely it is the other schools in the ACC.
But what is really refreshing is that he went on to tell the reporters that If Narduzzi needs money for further expenditures, he has the license to ask. “That means he has to have more discussions with us,” Gallagher said. “These numbers aren’t carved in stone somewhere and come down as a mandate.” Huh, a Chancellor who recognizes that in the world of college football things remain in a constant state of financial flux. What a difference this is when compared to what we can pretty accurately assumed happened when Paul Chryst was hired, that being a solid chunk of money being budgeted for the totality of his staff coaches – hence the fleeting up of Joe Rudolph and Matt House to coordinator positions they had never held before… and thus the lukewarm results.
Gallagher went on to talk about the unfilled Athletic Director slot and he basically said that a ‘search committee is being formed’ and will contract out to a Head Hunting Service to help narrow the list down.
Juhl’s committee will have representation from faculty, coaches, senior administrators and trustees, among others. Its task will be to whittle down a large pool of candidates to a small number of finalists before Gallagher makes the final decision. Pitt also will employ a search firm to help with the process.
So far so good on that front. Let’s hope that some of those Trustees consulted and chosen to sit on the committee are John Pelusi. Jimbo Covert and Bryant Salter – all great PITT football alumni who know what the history and traditions of the football program are. One thing I do know is that PITT will also look in-house for AD candidates and that is a good thing.
Something else I was particularly pleased to hear Gallagher say was regarding an on-campus stadium; from the Post-Gazette:
While the idea of an on-campus stadium remains divisive in some factions of the alumni base, Gallagher said he was happy with Heinz Field as the long-term venue for home football games. “I’m certainly not looking at an on-site [stadium],” he said. “I’m sure to the dismay of some.”
Can we put that whole issue to rest now and quit jabbering about what could, should and perhaps might happen? It is dead in the water folks and has been since they tore down PITT Stadium. BTW – here is a good Q&A article done back in 1999 that explains the University’s reasoning for the move to Heinz Field.
All in all we are off to a very promising start for a productive and exciting future of PITT athletics in general and the football program in particular. We’ll talk about the inner workings; the players, recruits, and coaches, in other words, real football talk in a few days.
The one thing I took from that Q&A…
‘What would the University do in 25 to 30 years, when the North Side stadium needs to be renovated’… Or even demolished when the Steelers head to Washington or Butler County
It was a relevant question 15 years ago… And it’s still relevant today… It’s a question that was ignored then, and is still basically ignored today.
But enough with the stadium bologna…
This shiny new AD has been great so far… he’s so dreamy.
Exactly. No way the city and county ever let the beloved Stillers play outside of the city/county limits.
Who knows down the road after a period of sustained success, maybe an on campus stadium becomes a reality. Right now it just isn’t.
I get the whole on campus thing, it just is not happening any time soon if ever. Me personally I have no problem with Heinz. I have sat in Heinz and in Pitt Stadium when both places were electric and I have sat in both when they were depressing as hell.
Hope to see the staff wrapped up this week with some more quality hires and then on to recruiting…
Is it September yet?
Another excellent hire. OL coach and recruiting coordinator under Tressel for 8 years. Works for me…
Would like to see a guy added to the staff that has recruiting experience in western Pa.
So far, very happy with all the hires. Can’t remember last time I was this excited about Pitt football…
I assume he has his share of contacts in these areas, especially in Ohio where there are more prospects.
Another hidden detail I found interesting point from Peterson’s bio, too:
“In February 1999, Peterson moved to Miami (Ohio) as offensive line coach. In March of 2001, he was given the added responsibility of running game coordinator. During their Mid-American Conference championship season in 2003, the RedHawks averaged 502 yards and 43 points per game.”
That would have made him OL coach and running game coordinator for Miami-OH during Roethlisberger’s career there. I remember watching that Miami-OH team a few times during Roethlisberger’s last year and they were incredibly good.
No doubt found under FICTION at the Hillman Library… and the name Steve Pederson.
In retrospect, the article actually makes a STRONG CASE for Gallagher to reconsider his position on the building of a NEW Pitt Stadium which I predict either he or his successor will.
Here’s one of my personal favorites…
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“Great facilities are the key to attracting the country’s best recruits, and creating a consistently successful football program that will bring pride to students, alumni and the public. Playing in the best football stadium in the country will lead to higher game attendance at home games, which will bring more revenue to invest back into the entire athletic program.”
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The local crop should be better, but those that want to stay close to home still will. The key will be to bring in 4 and 5 stars from outside the region.
Narduzzi and Co. need to be able to go head to head with the big guys and win a few. We can’t have their third string guys be better than our first.
“Why couldn’t the Convocation Center be built where it was originally planned, replacing the OC lot?
The Convocation Center still could be built on the originally planned site, but given the availability of the new stadium on the North Side, the university no longer considers that the wisest use of its limited space.
gahhh.
Shiiiiiiiiiiit, I didn’t even pick that up, either. That’s awesome.
It’s funny, too, because I remember that 2003 MAC championship game very well (BGSU vs. Miami). I watched it primarily because I wanted the Steelers to take Roethlisberger in that upcoming draft.
How strange that in that same game, I was also watching a coach who has now gotten more excited for the future of Pitt football than I’ve ever been since becoming a fan 20 years ago.
The Chancellor has made it pretty clear on this thought so me thinks we can move on to other football matters. I was a grad student at Pitt in 1976-77 so was part of the student body for both football and basketball games. The basketball and football facilities sucked and parking was a nightmare. Fast forward 40 years and both of my sons have graduated from Pitt in the past few years so I have regularly attended at least one basketball and football game for the past 7-8 years( I live eastern PA so it is not quite as convenient to get to all the games).
I see such an improvement in the use of Heinz Field and the Peterson Center based on where we were in the 70’s. Once Pitt starts winning on a consistent basis it is my hope that we have sell outs at Heinz Field( as we have done in the past and I believe in the early 2000’s we had consistent sellouts). The product dictates the crowd. With the expansion of Heinz Field set to increase to 68,000, where on earth would you put a stadium, plus parking in Oakland. Some will say we do not need a 68,000 seat stadium, but if Pitt starts winning we would need every seat. I plan on being at Heinz this fall for at least 2 games and if Pitt and Notre Dame are both winning I bet there will be full capacity for that game in November.
You put a stadium on campus that seats 40,000 and you miss out on revenue for the other 28,000 that you would have for a game at Heinz field. And I think we are going to see a change in the quality of opponents as the years go on so more people will want to go to football games. H2P!!!
The Dead Horse that never dies.
However, I’ll keep it short.
I am confident that the Chancellor will conduct a feasibility study on the matter for a multi purpose facility (domed or not) that can be used year round by more than just the football program and moreover that can be used by the study body as a new recreation center (The Pete is fine for B-ball but sorely lacks the amenities of the new rec centers being built across the country to improve the quality of campus life).
Although a new stadium isn’t really needed for another 10-15 years when Heinz outlives its life, Pitt does need a rec center to attract and retain top caliber students.
Plus, there is an opportunity cost each year for playing off campus and Gallagher recognizes the financial impact to Pitt’s brand. This number can be quantified by making some reasonable assumptions.
Add a domed OCS would be a boon to not only our football team…… but soccer too. And then we could add a Lacrosse team……… which is very big in the ACC.
As for stadium size….. 40K would be fine because Heinz would still be available for the Super-Crowds……..
Pittsburgh: Former Illinois assistant Tim Salem has been offered and is expected to accept the tight ends job at Pittsburgh.
OCS Obsessives: “So you’re saying there’s a chance”
Encouraging comments from Gallagher.
It appears there is reason for optimism.
Awaken the sleeping giant of Pitt
Football!!