Alright, alright, alright… the time is now for us to put down our thoughts and predictions about our opening game against the Youngstown State University Penguins.  A lot of newcomers have joined this blog since the end of last season so thanks to you guys for coming onboard and please don’t hesitate to join in.

Onto the main stage event.  As I write this it’s 30 hours to game time and maybe 27 hours or so to meet up with old friends and make new ones while we talk about the present, past and future of the football program and in particular this 2015 team.

We all know about the rather dramatic changes the program and the athletic department have gone through since Dec 17^th when Paul Chryst left for Wisconsin and when our new Beloved Leader, Chancellor Mark Gallagher, dropped the ax on the neck of AD Steve Pederson’s tenure at Pitt.

That has discussed over and over and now it’s time to move on to real football.  With that, here is your chance to give the sporting world your Pitt vs. YSU game predictions.  Please add on your thoughts on why you feel your prediction will come true and, if you feel like it, throw in some individual player’s work that you think will help make it happen.

I’m asking for your thoughts so I’ll start off with mine…

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The Pitt Media Dept. has been sending out some press information that most Pitt fans don’t get to see firsthand, so here are some interesting links, info and videos that you might enjoy.

First off, The ACC media guys made public a booklet you may want to keep handy when we are discussing Pitt, our ACC opponents and our chances of a conference championship this season.

It is the 2015 ACC Football Media Guide and is available as linked.  Pitt’s information is on pages 77 – 80 and all the teams are covered very extensively. It is an excellent piece of work from the ACC and covers everything imaginable.

Here are some other important and interesting links sent out by Mike Finn, who is the Associate Commissioner for ACC Football Communications.

Here are the Week One tailored press releases:

Total (Press)Release:  http://theacc.co/FB15release

Full Release:  http://theacc.co/FB15release-pdf

Standings & Schedules, Notes:  http://theacc.co/FB15release-schedules

Game Previews:  http://theacc.co/FB15release-previews

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I will probably get more into this tomorrow — because this is hilarious — but in his own words. Head Coach Pat Narduzzi explains how he took out Syracuse Head Coach Scott Shafer with a Kiwi.

Finally something to help the annual Pitt-Syracuse football game have some meaning.

Pitt begins a bit of a redemption tour this Saturday when Youngstown State comes to Heinz.  This is the first of three games against opponents that embarrassed Pitt during the post-Wannstedt era of mediocrity. First up is the aforementioned YSU squad that defeated Chryst in his first ever game as a head coach. Next up is Akron, whose defeat of Pitt last year is far and away the most confusing loss since Bowling Green in 2008. Last but not least is Iowa, a team with two fourth quarter comebacks in their last two games against Pitt. (more…)

It’s Tuesday and we have to get off our collective asses and figure out where we are going to meet so we can put faces to internet handles/names…. and for you guys to buy me many drinks.

Here is what I see our options are:

Our prospective waitstaff

Tilted Kilt

353 N SHORE DR
PITTSBURGH, PA 15212

 Northshore RiverPros: Women servers almost unclothed (see above); close to Heinz

Cons: Small side area to overflow into – but it is covered in case of rain.

Tilted Kilt Bar

Bettis Bar and Grill

393 N SHORE DR
PITTSBURGH, PA 15212
(412) 224-6287

Pros: Has a big outdoor area that we can all meet in if the main bar is too crowded; short walk to Heinz.

Cons; Gets very crowded

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PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO: Narduzzi YSU Preview

Opening Statement:

“It’s game week finally. It feels like it, I can tell you that. Had to go out and see Rob [Blanc, Pitt’s athletic trainer] yesterday and get some Tums. That’s normal game week for a football coach, get Tums to make yourself feel good. We obviously have a great team coming to Pittsburgh to play us, Youngstown State. We have a lot of history with them, as you guys know. Not only a great football team, but a great coach in Bo Pelini who’s been around and coached great football teams, been to the last eight bowl games with nine-win seasons for a bunch. He’s probably one of the top coaches in the country with a great staff. From the top down, just like us with Chancellor Gallagher. A great football team, with great talent.

“When you look at it, you’re going to have some Division One transfers [at YSU], some pop-ups, some guys on the rosters that we didn’t have on the two-deep, some [Power Five] transfers. You’re going to play a good football team that’s going to be amped up, ready to go without question. You get twelve [game] opportunities. They don’t give those back. We have to be prepared—great on offense, great on defense. We need to be special on special teams to come out with a victory.

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Here is the shortened version of the official Pitt vs Youngstown State University game that will be played at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh on Saturday, September 5th.  The game begins at 1:00 pm.

Here is the full .pdf of the same game notes put out by the Pitt Athletic Media  Department.  There is a ton of info here and it has been helpful to me to have a copy by my side as I watch/listen to the games.

GAME STORYLINES

PITT OPENS ITS 126TH SEASON OF INTERCOLLEGIATE FOOTBALL—AND THE PAT NARDUZZI COACHING ERA—WHEN THE PANTHERS HOST YOUNGSTOWN STATE AT HEINZ FIELD.

NARDUZZI MAKES HIS PITT DEBUT FOLLOWING AN ACCOMPLISHED EIGHT-YEAR TENURE AT MICHIGAN STATE (2007-14) AS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR. UNDER HIS DIRECTION, THE SPARTANS WERE THE ONLY TEAM TO RANK IN THE NATION’S TOP 10 IN TOTAL DEFENSE AND RUSHING DEFENSE EACH SEASON FROM 2011-14.

NARDUZZI HAS DEEP TIES TO YOUNGSTOWN AND YSU. HIS FATHER, THE LATE BILL NARDUZZI, WAS THE PENGUINS’ HEAD COACH FROM 1975-85, LEADING THEM TO TWO NCAA DIVISION II PLAYOFF APPEARANCES, INCLUDING THE 1979 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME.

PAT NARDUZZI WAS A STARTING LINEBACKER FOR HIS FATHER IN 1985, LEADING THE OHIO VALLEY CONFERENCE (OVC) IN TACKLES AS A FRESHMAN AT YSU.

YSU WILL ALSO HAVE A NEW HEAD COACH ON ITS SIDELINE IN BO PELINI, WHO SPENT THE PAST SEVEN SEASONS LEADING NEBRASKA. LIKE NARDUZZI, PELINI IS ALSO A YOUNGSTOWN NATIVE.

NARDUZZI (URSULINE) AND PELINI (CARDINAL MOONEY) STARRED AT RIVAL YOUNGSTOWN HIGH SCHOOLS. IN THEIR LAST MEETING AGAINST EACH OTHER, URSULINE ROUTED MOONEY, 35-0, IN A GAME THAT DECIDED THE 1984 STEEL VALLEY CONFERENCE TITLE.

PITT’S ADDITIONAL YOUNGSTOWN TIES INCLUDE DEFENSIVE LINE COACH TOM SIMS, WHO COACHED AT YSU FROM 2010-14.

GRADUATE ASSISTANT PHIL DECAPITO, A FORMER PENGUINS G.A. FROM 2012-14; AND FRESHMAN TAILBACK DARRIN HALL, WHO STARRED AT NEARBY AUSTINTOWN FITCH HIGH SCHOOL.

THIS WILL BE THE FOURTH ALL-TIME MEETING BETWEEN PITT AND YSU. THE PANTHERS WILL LOOK TO AVENGE A 2012 SEASON-OPENING LOSS (31-17) TO THE PENGUINS.

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Coach Narduzzi is going to post the official Youngstown State game two-deep roster tomorrow.  Here is what I guess, from reading other media reports, who we’ll see listed going into Saturday’s game

OFFENSE

Quarterback – Chad Voytik, Nate Peterman

Running back – James Conner, Chris James

Tight end – JP Holtz, Scott Orndoff, 

Wide receiver – Dontez Ford, Quadree Henderson (Slot Receiver)

Wide Receiver – Elijah Zeise, Zach Challingsworth

Left tackle – Adam Bisnowaty, Aaron Reese

Left guard – Dorian Johnson, John Guy

Center – Alex Officer, Gabe Roberts

Right guard – Alex Bookser, Alex Officer,

Right tackle – Brian O’Neill, ??

I’m a self-professed idiot when it comes to the OL but Rowell hasn’t practiced at all as far as I can tell so he may not go against YSU. His replacement, Alex Officer, sliding over to Center will create a starting role for newly baptized ex-TE OL rsFR Brian O’Neill.  Great! Someone who has never played on the OL in his entire football career starting in this Saturday’s game.

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This is a very long one folks; enjoy it for your weekend reading pleasure.

As we all know that in any Pitt pre-season there is nothing even remotely negative written about the team, players and the coaching staff by the local media, especially with a brand new head coach such as we now have. The only straight opinions you’ll get will be from some local bloggers and maybe a recruiting website that follows the Panthers. Keep that in mind while you read this article please and realize there is certainly some good about this team to go along with the not-so good…  like the ‘good news’ media has been feeding us all preseason.

We all have thoughts about what’s positive with Pitt in 2015; here are my thoughts about what I see and feel. Earlier in the pre-season we mentioned that we would hold off on a season W/L projection until fall camp had ended.  Now is that time and here’s mine.

We are a week until the start of the 2015 season and the real beginning of year one of ‘The Narduzzi Experiment’.  We’ve been getting camp reports, scrimmage stats, leaks about this and news about that and we have all been doing what fans always do at this point. We are wondering just how good or how bad the team in going to be this year.

Every season is a blank slate to start anew, especially with a shiny new Head Coach and his eager staff coaches. Those new additions add another layer of mystery and excitement for us when looking at what will happen over the next 12 weeks.  What it does also is add a new layer of concern, and to some fans, worry because of the unknowns with the staff.

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(Read Chas’ piece posted this morning before this one please)

It has come at last, today is the final day of the 2015 Fall Training Camp.  We’ll have one final press release regarding the practice and then we’ll get some interviews like always.  After that “Cry Havoc and let loose the dogs of speculation”

What have we learned?  I have an in-depth article in draft that will address that question.  But for now here is the latest from Pitt on Wednesday’s work the team put in (after the videos and Kickoff info).

As Chas mentioned in his latest piece, last night was the annual PITT Fan Fest held at Heinz Field.  Here are the players and Pitt families with their kids interacting on a nice Pittsburgh almost-football weather evening.

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Pitt had its final scrimmage of camp Saturday and Rivals.com compiled the stats for that matchup between our Offense and Defense.  This is from a free article on their website and I thank them.  I also would like to remind all Pitt fans that Rivals.com does a superb job of following the team and the program, especially on its subscription service.  So, I give them credit and thanks for this type of detailed info.

No great surprises during the play really, it was a practice scrimmage with the ‘star’ players held out for the most part.  This last week of camp is for winnowing down the players until a two-deep lineup presents itself.  I think Narduzzi will announce that later this week.  Here are the stats from Saturday:

RUSHING

Qadree Ollison – 21 carries, 58 yards
George Aston – 6 carries, 19 yards
Stephen Ezekoye – 4 carries, 7 yards
Rachid Ibrahim – 1 carry, 0 yards
Nate Peterman – 3 carries, 7 yards
Chad Voytik – 2 carries, 6 yards
Darrin Hall – 1 carry, 3 yards

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With two solid weeks until the staff and team break out of camp and start their game week preparation for YSU it’s safe to say that we are seeing some certain things shaping up.

Of course a starting lineup hasn’t been announced yet but from the various local media reports and the Pitt Media Dept’s Pitt LiveWire website we are getting some idea of a few position battles that are getting a bit hotter as the camp progresses.

Jerry DiPaola of the Trib Review has a nice Pitt Locker Room blog article on this subject a couple of days ago and we referenced it a bit in the last article.  Here are some significant battles we should keep our eyes on.  Remember – this is how things look now on defense but with a new staff and a defensive minded HC things could change pretty drastically:

Defensive End: Right now it would be Shakir Soto and Ejuan Price as the starters; transfer Allen Edwards and Rori Blair in the two deep, along with newly minted DE James Folston rotating in. Narduzzi was waxing eloquently the other day about former LB Folston and the speed he’s now bringing to the DE position.  Folston is a rsFR who has a 4.6 40 time which is pretty good for a LB/DE but I think his jump off the snap quickness is his strength and what the defensive staff likes at that end position.

As much as I’d like to think Price will stay healthy and be a big contributor I just can’t. So for me the progress of Blair is paramount.  He gained some weight after last season and is listed going into camp as 6’4″ & 240 lbs but I wonder.  he still appears thin but who knows what kind of heart and desire he has.  Sometimes the intangibles mean a lot more than height, weight or 40 time.  Let’s hope he gets back from suspensions and works his way back into a DE starter.

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It’s been a full week of the ’15 training camp and other than a good look at the behind the scenes and how the logistical side of things are running let’s take a look at what other’s are saying about the past week of camp and who is doing what.

Halfway through the week Peterman was moved up to QB2 and that is for a very solid reason, he is very talented.  Looking at the 1st scrimmage stats for the two principal QBs below we see that Peterman not only held his own but did well on Saturday.  Voytik threw a Pick-6, a pass blocked by DE Blair and new DB Matt Steinbeck took it in. More on him below.  Voytik apparently completed a nice TD pass to Orndoff down the sideline on a deeper throw.  No mention of how the 73 yard TD to Jester Weah from Peterman unfolded. Either way, this is something we need to see more of in the regular season.

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(This is a long article so I’ll break it up into two parts)

Pitt football held its annual Media Day for fall camp yesterday and I drove up to attend.  It was an interesting day and we media types had time for as much access as allowed given the closed portion of the practices.  We had escort with us so that we can break off separately and tour the new parts of the football facility.  Thanks to Ted Feeley of the Media Staff for doing that with me and answering all of my questions.

All in all it was a good and worthwhile day with some info and ideas we have heard about Pat Narduzzi and the program reinforced and some other bits of new info coming to light with questions asked.

Because most fans don’t get a chance to see these practices and the facilities I took a bunch of photos and will take you all on a tour now and then later on in this article.  What I’ll write here are my impressions from what I learned from talking with the staff, some players and some family members.  My approach was to not repeat what the other media guys will write about,  there really isn’t any ‘football news’ to discuss in the 2^nd day of camp, but to allow you guys a bit of an inside view of things Pitt fans don’t usually get to experience.

Front view of new Players’ meeting room

Comfortable as hell seating

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Pitt’s fall training camp starts today with the player’s reporting in from their time off-campus where they were tasked with finding a spot for the next new Pitt Stadium.  Serious on-field stuff won’t begin until tomorrow however when the staff and team can get on the field and start getting familiar with the new crop of players and reacquainted with the physical side of actual football.

Just as a point of info here is how the practice days will be conducted in general. A typical single practice day will go like this:

Coach Narduzzi Briefing: 9:25 a.m.

Practice Viewing/Photography Window: 9:55-10:25 a.m.

Closed practice from 10:25 until 12:15

Interviews: 12:15 p.m. (select players and assistants)

This is what we’ll see when Tuesday’s Media Day rolls around and  I’ll be up there for those sessions (more on that later):

Practice Viewing/Photography Window: 9:55-10:25 a.m.

Coach Narduzzi Press Conference: 1:30 p.m. (second floor team room)

Team Interview and Photo Session: 2:45-4 p.m. 

Some interesting things to note is that in all of the allowed two-a-day practices the evening practice is completely closed to the media.  That makes sense as no real news will be generated between 2:30 or so until they start up again in the evening. So that is the logistics behind the next three weeks of camp.

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