So the Media Day for the ACC Operation Basketball went off yesterday. Other than the awkwardness with academics and investigations at UNC and Syracuse, it was a typical media day. Coaches and players answered the same questions. The conference commissioner filibustered as long as he could to minimize the time allotted to the media to ask questions.
And, of course, the preseason conference poll was released. The ACC has its voting done by all the local media covering the teams (I’m sure my ballot just got lost in the mail).
As expected, Pitt was picked for 6th in the ACC.
2014-15 ACC PRESEASON MEDIA POLL
| No. | Team (first place votes) | Total votes |
| 1. | Duke (41) | 935 |
| 2. | North Carolina (12) | 870 |
| 3. | Louisville (3) | 847 |
| 4. | Virginia (7) | 824 |
| 5. | Syracuse (2) | 706 |
| 6. | PITT | 592 |
| 7. | Notre Dame | 515 |
| 8. | Florida State | 506 |
| 9. | North Carolina State | 478 |
| 10. | Miami | 442 |
| 11. | Clemson | 330 |
| 12. | Wake Forest | 221 |
| 13. | Georgia Tech | 195 |
| 14. | Boston College | 184 |
| 15. | Virginia Tech | 155 |
No real shock with the first five. The first four are pre-season top-25 teams. Syracuse is on the cusp or in the rankings depending on where you look. Pitt is further on the fringe. Usually in “others receiving votes” or “others considered.”
I think Pitt is capable of finishing up to 4th in the conference — or as low as 8th. I question Syracuse, especially with their depth at point guard.
NC State certainly has the talent, but Mike Gottfried is still the coach there. I’m betting Miami will be ahead of them.
VT should be the worst team in the ACC, but I am guessing Buzz Williams will keep them from the cellar. I would be tempted to swap their spot with Georgia Tech.
The ACC does break nicely into 4 groups almost along the voting lines. From there it is a matter of preference and bias as to the order in each.
Syracuse and Clemson seemed to have produced the biggest confusion as to their potential. If you look at the vote totals, you can see that they are more than 100 points from both the team picked above and below them.
There’s the top-4 of Duke, UNC, Louisville and UVa. Then the upper-middle of Cuse, Pitt, ND and FSU. A step below is Miami, NC St and Clemson. Then the bottom-4 of Wake, GT, BC and VT.
Cam Wright is on track with his rehab from a broken right foot, but no return date has been targeted. Still don’t expect him back until after the Maui Invitational.
ESPN’s Andy Katz reports that while Wright is out, Coach Jamie Dixon is leaning towards starting Chris James in his place (mistakenly calls it the point guard spot, but that is an obvious error). Sheldon Jeter still doesn’t have a defined role at the 3 or 4 spot. I expect him to play both anyways, so I’m not too worried about that.
Hopefully this means Jones has stepped up his game. If he can get to the hoop, again, saw flashes lat year, would fill a big need.
I find it interesting that the Big East was much tougher from top to bottom and there was much more competition at the top. Old Big East teams are going to have to work hard to dislodge the two Tobacco road teams. Even the Big East bottom feeders were better.
Always hated to play Buzz Williams teams, pretty sure he will have a competitive VA Tech pretty soon.
Really like to beat Virginia this year.
Whatever happened to BC they were at the top when they left the Big East, no wonder they black-balled UConn. Think they made a terrible mistake there, lucky for us they did. UConn would add a lot to the ACC, Lots more TV’s would tune in. More competition at the top.
Is it better to have ND half in, than UConn and Cinci? I guess for football. But they would give better overall balance. Would like the exposure in Ohio, better for us in recruiting.
Knowing JD’s priorities, he may be worried about whether Jeter can defend at the 3, and his PT at that position may be depned on that. Nonetheless, I can see both he and Srtis both playing the 3 and the 4.
I’m quite sure that the ND-FSU will be he highest rated ACC game this year by far
DD
I hope we don’t see as much of Dixon’s bore-ball and we win games like last year’s Syracuse at home.
Dixon’s got a non-conference schedule that’s good and challenging.
Optimism prevails.
Speaking of football, Smizik is the latest writer/blogger to submit a diagnosis of what is wrong with Pitt football.
Must signify that we have just about turned the page, on another Pitt football season.
Cause I know another Pizza Bowl type Bowl is just about the only positive (?) outcome left.
Again Pitt isn’t serious about the business of college football.
For they wouldn’t have torn down their campus stadium with no plans to replace it, on a campus with limited practical space.
And they wouldn’t have hired a coach with no prior head coaching experience, that nobody hired in all the interviews in had done previously. Now we know why.
His hiring was just the easiest thing to do.
What were they the last 2 seasons.
2013 they 4 wins 8 losses (including a loss to 3-9 doormat Kansas)
2012 7-6 (got hammered by Syracuse in Pinstripe Bowl)
They were just fortunate to land Clint Trickett who has already thrown for almost 2800 yards and has 17 TD passes and only 5 picks.
And on top of that, Tricket didn’t have to sit out a year after transferring.
However Oliver Luck finagled that.
Of course with the bonehead calls by PC during the game maybe not.
We can’t stand around this time and let him hang on to his job.
Get him the f ck out of here!
We have a lot of offense to replace. As the team usually looked ‘lost’ anytime Lamar as off the court.
And then who is going to provide the inside post presence that even though Zanna wasn’t particularly good at playing in the post, he could crash the boards and get putbacks.
As with Lamar, when Zanna was off the court, Pitt struggled mightily. As the games when they both played injured we struggled at home to beat the worst team in the ACC (Va tech(9-22, 2-16)) and then lost at home to Florida State. And barely beat another bad team in Boston College(8-24, 4-14).
So I’m not quite sure without watching this team in the non-con, where that lost offensive production is going to come from and where that inside presence is going to come from. And who is going to cycle the ball thru the offense, as Lamar did all of that last year.
sounds like smizik might be friends or…. something.. with cornhole.
Somebody at Pitt hired him twice and keeps him employed. I think you need to direct the blame a little higher up the food chain. Pitt football hasn’t been relevant for 30 years so you can’t just simply say Pederson is the reason.
But SpiritOfSection22 has always seen possibilities in Jones, perhaps as the next Wanamaker/Patterson — a player who emerges over the years. Just last April Sprit posted:
“Don’t be fooled by what you saw from Jones this year. He might be a big surprise when healthy.”
By the way, anybody know if Spirit is OK — I miss his comments. I hope he’ll be back come basketball season.
At the 3… Artis is shaky at D and I haven’t seen Jeter play, but his lack of mention tells me he struggles too.
The bench will shrink come mid-late January regardless. Should be interesting to see who survives.
Missing Paterson and Zanna???
Hey, I’m all for it. Hope I’m suprised and some of these kids come into their own.
Dixon says they should be much quicker, and seemed to be a little more excited about this team than I remember him being.
Handing out praise pretty well on his show.
Says Joe Uchebo is doing extremely well. Will still have a noticable limp, but will suprise a lot of people this year.
I didn’t know Durand Durand hurt his ankle again. Same one? They didn’t mention if it was the same one, or I missed it.
A little disappointed with Indiana. Thought it would be a huge game.
Coaches ranked them #10 in the Big Ten, nowhere to be found in anyones top 50.
Thought they were coming back to their glory years???
No continuity on defense or offense just confusion. After the first year 4 players bolted.
The next year Dixon gave away 6 to 8 games by not playing Adams 30 minutes from game 1 to the final game and playing Woodall over 10 minutes each game.
Select the best 8 as much as possible have them play the same position, like the top coaches do so they can play and not have to think because they are going in and out of the game and playing 1 to 3 positions.
Examples Blair and Young’s team and McGhee and Brown the following year. The second year not much talent but each player knew and played his role.
From the 2 spot you really need a guy who can shoot 3’s. Especially if your PG isn’t very good at it.
Which he hasn’t been.
So if JR’s 3 pointer hasn’t improved, then Jones better be able to hit some 3’s or defenses will sag down low making it much harder to score in the paint.
Think we are projected # 6 in ACC, only because the other teams projected lower than us are so bad.
As always would prefer an uptempo team on offense, with Newkirk on the floor as much as possible to push the ball.
And a more aggressive, trapping defense to create turnovers which would hopefully lead to easier transition baskets.
I am sick how this football season has gone. No progress at all. If anything they have regressed in year 3 of the Chryst era.
I never had the venom towards Steve Pederson as most on here have. Probably because I was too young to enjoy the glory years of 76-81. Pitt football and basketball actually got a lot better for me after Pederson was hired in 96.
That said, I am completely convinced he has to go. I think his firing alone would energize an already small/declining fan base. Anger is turning into apathy, and that is scary. I think his firing needs to happen by the end of the calendar year.
A new AD will then have time to come in, get his feet wet and even give Chryst his one more meaningless year if he chooses. That will give him time to figure out a course of action to fix the program and after Chryst inevitably fails, you fire him and bring in your guy.
Sounds good? Yes! Will any of this happen? Nope!
I did not make my planed trip up for Iowa. As every time I came up to the Burg for non-con games and even a game against pathetic Uconn, we lost.
And after the Akron fiasco, we did not come up for homecoming. First time we’ve missed back to back homecomings.
Am planning to make the trip to Chapel Hill. But we’re not going if we get blown out vs. Duke.
If Pitt isn’t going to make the decision that needs to be made on Cornhole, I’m just going to vote with my dollars.
I’ve sent my last dollars to Pitt until he is gone.
I’ve seen a couple people here post that through a source or the whole script unveiling that Gallagher will indeed let Steve go.
Do you buy this? I personally don’t. I have seen no evidence that this guy gives a shit about fielding a program we can be proud of.
I hope I am wrong. Pederson simply has to go. Pitt can no longer alienate any of it’s fan base, and showing Steve the door would be a start to uniting us. Me personally, I’m a sucker. I’ll re-up my season tix. Enjoy the time with my dad and brother as much and lately more than the game itself.
Goddamn FSU gonna pull another one out of their ass.
Not much of a return for the prodigal son Cleveland.
Playing to dwindling crowds that exit games before the 4th quarter even begins in a totally mismanaged game atmosphere that totally is repellent.
That’s a good word for that atmosphere at Heinz….
REPELLENT !!!
I’d be totally surprised (or even shocked) if they bought out Cornhole’s contract. As it would be the opposite of being ‘on the cheap’. Which Pitt is known for over the years regarding it’s football program.
And why they can’t attract any known coaches with a track record of winning. Well since 1982 that is.
The bone thrown to us late Friday, was just that a bone.
Guess we’re supposed to be satisfied now with losing and going to Pizza Bowls, cause we got the Script back.
Nope….. that’s not going to work.
I just don’t see Gallagher as a guy ready to embrace football and all the good it can do for a school. I hope I’m wrong. Some people think he is ready to do big things, starting with showing Pederson the door. I don’t see it. I believe Nordenberg was part of the team that selected him, Nordy loves him some Steve and doubt he would have gave his vote to guy that would oust him…
Plus Nordy and Pitt have been selling the story that Cornhole was somehow instrumental in getting us into the ACC. Well if they think that picking up the phone when it rang was instrumental, I guess they might be right. But we all know (and media confirmed) it was BC’s refusal of a Uconn ACC invite witch led to Pitt’s invite. Not anything Cornhole did.
But regardless, Nordy and Pitt are still going with the story that Cornhole was instrumental in that process.
And knowing how corps work, that story was put out there as a reason why Cornhole’s contract was extended.
Doubt they would terminate the contract since that would contradict their previous story of Cornhole’s involvement in the ACC invite.
Unless Gallagher is his own man totally I don’t see, Cornhole being terminated. At the most he would be allowed to resign, maybe due to some concocted story. If enough pressure is applied.
which (of course)
think wbb posted this a few weeks back. But just in case you missed it.
“We always keep our television partners close to us,” he(DeFilippo) said. “You don’t get extra money for basketball. It’s 85% football money. TV – ESPN – is the one who told us what to do. This was football; it had nothing to do with basketball.”
Thanks for your take on Jamie Dixon’s radio show. I noticed some of the same things.
Dixon was emphasizing that the team was passing better this year. Bill Hillgrove saw the last scrimmage and said that they were faster.
Both sprained ankles (Randall and Durand Johnson) are not healing quickly.
With Randall out, Jeter is again practicing at the “4”, not the “3” and Young will play more at the “5”.
He fires Wanny without a replacement, Hires a no-name with anger issues, hires a mercenary turncoat, then according to some is overruled when Chryst is hired (he wanted Cristobal) even worse. Or he hired Chryst who hired House, both are looking way over their heads.
Our football team is floundering, WVU is back from their momentary difficulties and PSU is back after the worst football scandal ever.
Will Gallagher step up to the plate and take charge? Thanks to Nordy it is going to cost a bundle.
Has an AD ever been loudly booed at a football stadium, while retiring a beloved player’s jersey? Where are the big boosters? Have they all given up?
Not making a prediction, and with Jamie at the helm it is unlikely, but I have not forgotten Gibbs senior year.
Not that he’s ever been a “downer”. Always been an excitable guy and pretty positive.
I just really hadn’t heard that from him that much before.
Even from most coaches. Usually they are pretty guarded and play things down.
He seemed pretty excited.
I hear everyone pooh-pooh about us not having any big time donors,
then I see Dokish’s article about us having a
3 billion dollar endowment.
Not questioning him, but I did some google research, and he is correct.
Pitt has one of the biggest endowments in the ACC and one of the top 20 or so in the country.
No, not Texas or Michigan, but we’re not ranked 61st, 77th or 85th either, where our sports teams always seem to be. All of them
except basketball.
Maybe someone will tell us that money can’t be used for “such and such”.
C’mon, 3 billion???? You can’t find a couple bones to have a top 20 paid coaching staff and recruiting staff
to make your university even stronger, better public perception and even make some money in the future???
I don’t get the whole thing, call me stupid.
We’re a great university, proud that my degree is from there, we’re world class, but
frankly, we’re not Yale or Harvard either.
Ok, we’re a top 5 research university.
You don’t have a bone to throw to the football program.
Add on the 20 million from the ACC for sports alone.
Someone will have an answer to all of this, and I will respect it.
However, I’ll come right back at you, that there are 40 or 50 universities that have great schools, and good football.
They seem to do it. Why can’t we??
I’m stupid, I don’t get it.
Not talking about any stadium or anything either.
Tired of the “we don’t have this”, “we can’t do this”.
Tired of comparing Pitt, to Pitt.
I’m comparing Pitt to other universities that are great educational places too.
We think we’re better than so and so academically, as we should, we went to Pitt, cheer for Pitt or live in Pittsburgh.
Guess what though? People at all the other universities think they have great academic institutions too. They think, “well at least we have a better education than so and so”.
They do the same thing.
So, all things being equal, we actually are ahead with our 3 Billion dollar endowment and not far behind with the 20 million from the ACC.
I don’t get it.
Someone will have an excuse I’m sure, just like the athletic department has for all these years.
Excuses, excuses excuses is all we ever get.
There seems to be some kind of double-standard going on at Pitt. Football program dismisses players left and right for wrongdoing, yet Randall is out there playing (or was playing) like nothing happened in Jersey during the offseason. WTF is going on?
Here’s what I think is making Dixon so cheerful:
1. Uchebo filled his whole at center.
2. Young is faster, taller and more athletic.
3. Slim and Luther turned out to be great finds.
4. He thinks that this year’s team can beat anyone.
Had a very high pre-season ranking (#3) coming off a pretty good season, losing a heartbreaker to Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl.
And promptly shit the bed, right out of the gate against BYU at home and never recovered.
But as in many instances in both football and basketball, that game legitimized BYU and launched them on their way to a National Championship. Pitt was the ONLY ranked team they played that year.
Love to know when we are going to get some payback for legitimizing all these football and basketball teams.
If you listen to the Jamie Dixon show he reports asking other coaches whether their players that made the USA Olympic team were highly recruited. His point: They were not.
Maybe, but the top half is awesome this year — 4 teams in the top 10!
Last year, Patterson and Zanna, both 5th year seniors, really stepped up and carried the team to a good season.
Who will step up this year? D. Johnson and C. Wright both have injury issues. Wright is missing some key skills, like shooting. Young and Newkirk have the most upside/talent, but they’re both young and far from sure things.
Young played well. Looked like the best player on the court, by a lot. He is in great shape, moved well with quickness. He played both the 4 and the 5.
Robinson also looks different. He is much leaner. He appears to be quicker and stronger.
Chris Jones hit a couple threes and moved the ball pretty well.
Uchebo is moving much better, no noticeable limp. Still can’t jump over a phone book. His role is going to be to rebound and set picks.
Durand played well in limited minutes..
Slim and Luther both got good minutes and played well. Slim grew an inch since summer league. He is a legit 6’7″, maybe 6’8″. I hope they redshirt him. Jamie may have hit the lottery with him. In a couple years he’ll be a heck of a player.
Haughton never got in the game.
Then again, nuke had 2nd most minutes, 27, and did 8 and 4….not clearly better. Note nuke 1 turnover, Jr with 3!
In the end we will need both anyway, lets hope both settle into a bit more scoring.
Looks like we shot poorly but Luther, slim and Jeter 2-12…rest of the team not bad.
“I thought Ryan did some good things today, he got five rebounds in ten minutes. He did some good things. Didn’t finish any shots, and he is a good shooter for us and has played well in practice but did things that you want to see. Thought he was pretty sound defensively.
But on the perimeter he had to guard a shooter and he’s not quite ready for that yet. We saw that in practice and we saw it today. But he’ll get better and he picks up things pretty quick, after one time through really. But we have some work to do and we know it.”
You can read Dixon’s postgame remarks here:
“[It was an] over-time thing. It was kind of like a pipe busting due to pressure,” he said. “It wasn’t due to the weight, but losing weight would have helped.”
According to the article, Young says that he *prefers* playing center to power forward.
