We all know the standard talk of how early in training camp the defense is ahead of the offense. I know, it’s conventional wisdom and should be expected. I just wish the O-line wasn’t being so completely worked over the way Gorman reports it.

The defense dominated the line of scrimmage, completely blowing up some plays to the point that they stopped before they began. That was frustrating for the offense, especially quarterback Bill Stull, who was consistently under pressure.

LeSean McCoy didn’t fare much better. He was hit in the backfield several times, once by Tommie Duhart (who beat Chris Jacobson) and another time by Mick Williams when left guard C.J. Davis pulled right and forced left tackle Jordan Gibbs to pick his poison in blocking both Williams and end Greg Romeus.

New Defensive Coordinator Phil Bennett was heard from today. He likes the split practice system for getting the new players reps. Bennett also outlined the issues he’s looking to resolve in training camp for a season with big goals.

Who are the third and fourth cornerbacks?

With Irv Brown back, who will be the fourth safety behind Eric Thatcher, Dom DeCicco and Elijah Fields?

Who are the backup strong-side linebackers? (Greg Williams, Brandon Lindsey and Joe Trebitz are playing there).

Developing a backup at middle linebacker, possibly Max Gruder.

With Doug Fulmer out indefinitely, getting Ty Tkach or Tony Tucker ready to play at defensive end.

Where to play Myles Caragein: end or tackle?

Although most of those issues don’t involve the starting lineup, Bennett stressed the importance of having prepared backups.

“When you win championships, you’re going to have some people go down and miss games,” Bennett said. “You’ve got to have quality depth. That’s what we’re trying to get.”

Aaron Smith seems to be taking advantage of his chance to show his ability at WR with T.J. Porter out with turf toe.

The one big problem with the partial transcripts from Coach Dave Wannstedt’s post-practice press conferences is that the context is not really there. We get the base topic, but not how the actual question was phrased and any follow-ups and how serious to take each response in comparison. The risk is in reading too much into it. Especially from one practice to another. We tend to key in on the parts that we want.

For example, I am scared to death regarding Center. Robb Houser has already nailed down the starting spot as a JUCO transfer. The issue becomes, who is second on the depth chart? The Media Guide lists redshirt sophomores Alex Karabin and Jared Martin. Redshirt freshman Wayne Jones — who dropped from 340 to 315 under Buddy Morris’ program — was moved to center from right guard. So this is what I took great interest in reading.

We moved Wayne Jones to center. We have not put the ball on the ground with these young guys.

A couple little sentences. Of course it doesn’t tell me who else is taking snaps, and while the issue of fumbling snaps is important considering what a debacle it was last training camp with John Bachman trying the center position and Pitt looking for someone, anyone to challenge Chris Vangas became something of a joke, it’s still one part.

That’s where it becomes very important to have the reports and blog posts from the beat reporters. Kevin Gorman helps on this one.

“I don’t know how many guys he’s blocked or how many assignments he’s executed correctly but we have not put the ball on the ground with those young guys,” Wannstedt said. “A year ago at this time, I think we were averaging like four fumbles on the ground a day because of young kids and inexperience. That has not happened, and that has been very encouraging.”

As usual, my obsession with what is happening with the offensive line has me keying on those stories first.

The starting line in camp is redshirt freshman Jordan Gibbs at left tackle, senior C.J. Davis at left guard, junior Robb Houser at center, junior John Malecki at right guard and junior Joe Thomas at right tackle.

Redshirt sophomore Jason Pinkston, who might be the most physically gifted lineman on the team, likely will work his way into the lineup at one of the tackle spots. But he is coming off an injury and isn’t in top shape yet.

Pinkston has worked some with the first-team offense in the early part of camp, but Wise said yesterday that if the Panthers were playing a game this weekend the starting tackles would be Thomas and Gibbs.

“It is still Joe because Jason missed the entire spring, and so we have to be intelligent and say it is Joe, and Jordan Gibbs had every snap in the spring,” Wise said. “Now it us up to Jason to have a good preseason, and we need to figure out is he a left or a right tackle. But it is on Jason, he needs to [say] ‘I’m healthy, I’m committed.’ There is no doubt about Jason’s ability, it’s does he want to be great now.”

Beyond the starters and Pinkston, there are some interesting developments for backup spots.

Redshirt freshman guard Chris Jacobson, who was one of the top linemen in the country as a senior in high school, and heralded freshman Lucas Nix are pushing their way up the depth chart at guard, even though senior Dom Williams has been a starter at times in his career. Also, Wayne Jones and Jared Martin are battling for the backup center spot in a competition that likely will go the distance.

While Nix came in as a tackle, he’s playing at guard because that’s where Pitt’s depth is less, according to the story. It also fits with Coach Wannstedt’s philosophy that offensive linemen should be able to play multiple positions on the line to give Pitt the best talent and flexibility on the depth chart.

Of course the first couple days of practice have been with a helmet and t-shirt. So, judging much on the lines beyond technique and footwork is somewhat dubious.

After two days of practicing in helmets only, Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt is looking forward to seeing his players don shoulder pads for the first time in today’s two sessions. Wannstedt said the Panthers can accomplish just about everything but tackling. “Now, the run game becomes real,” Wannstedt said. “Out here, we’re saying, ‘Don’t hit anybody. Don’t hurt anyone.’ We go full-speed now, with pads on. We’ll be able to truly start separating. I don’t think a whole lot will change with the receivers and defensive backs, but it will change drastically with the linemen.”

Back to Gorman’s blog post — and I write from the assumption that all of you go and read the each one in full since there is just too much on too many areas to do it justice; really it’s just chock full o’ nuggets and observations from the practice — was his ending note.

Just an observation after years of covering both Pitt practices and college football recruiting: The Panthers are so deep and strong at almost every position that even talented walk-ons like Cafaro and defensive lineman Chas Alexcih – who might have had a legitimate shot at playing time in past years – are going to have a hard time seeing the field other than special-teams situations.

Another thing I’ve noticed is that players who were highly recruited but didn’t play as true freshman for one reason or another are buried on the depth chart. If nose tackle Craig Bokor had been academically eligible out of Hopewell, he might have a chance to be a three-year starter (like Duncan) but instead is battling for third-string reps. A head injury forced Baldwin’s Justin Hargrove to take a greyshirt, and he’s now behind Romeus, Sheard and Tony Tucker at defensive end.

That should send a message to the starters that no job is safe.

Obviously that is just exciting to read about actually having more depth and talent than ever. Contrawise, it also suggests that there may be some transfers coming out of that same issue. Maybe not until after the season, but there are some players that will likely be frustrated by this.

Heck, I never even got to the early practice report, blog post from Gorman.

Have we mentioned how good Mick Williams looks?The words Tony Wise used to describe the Pitt defensive tackle on one play in Wednesday’s morning practice were within PG-13 ratings but still not fit for print. Williams literally manhandled one side of the offensive line during a team drill — and this was during the non-contact portion of camp.

He so thoroughly dominated the session that Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt rewarded Williams with a ride off the outdoor practice fields in his golf cart, dropping him off at the door.

Other things of note, Aaron Smith looked very good it seems at WR for T.J. Porter. Smith is another player that seems crunched by position changes and the numbers. He tends to be forgotten, but he might get to use this window.

Kevin Harper has a very strong leg, but his accuracy is an issue. Which isn’t very surprising.

When Pitt shakes out the spot at right tackle, the other will likely see time at other spots along the line — likely at left tackle. Jason Pinkston and Joe Thomas are both trying to claim the spot, and both seem to have to get over mental blocks more than physical.

It isn’t Pinkston’s rust that worries the Pitt coaches, but his excess baggage. The 6-4 Pinkston played at 289 pounds last season but is now 310 after missing time following the death of his mother, Martha, of breast cancer on May 15. She was 48.

“It’s so hard to deal with. Every day, you’re going through something,” Pinkston said. “I didn’t want to do anything. I didn’t want to come around, see anyone, talk to anyone. Everyone would call and say, ‘You’ll be all right.’ I’d say, ‘You don’t understand.’ She was there for everything. She hated watching me play but she went (to games to show support) for me. I always catch myself thinking about her. She’s on my mind all the time.”

After being named to The Sporting News’ Big East All-Freshman team in 2006, Thomas lost his starting job first to McGlynn and then John Bachman before regaining it for the season finale. After returning to tackle – where he starred at Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edward High – Thomas knew a change was necessary after struggling this past spring against Pitt’s speedy defensive ends.

“It was big-time just a realization that this team is really young and I’m one of the older guys now. I’ve got to grow up and show a little leadership and get out of the childish age,” said Thomas, who claims to be quicker since slimming down from 315. “Now, I’m using that as big-time motivation in moving out to right tackle. Freshman year, I proved myself. I gained doubters last year. I let people down. I wasn’t playing up to where I should have been and let myself get sloppy.”

See, Pitt does have an offensive lineman that comes in at over 300 pounds.

Thomas’ struggles against the faster DEs is part of why he isn’t playing left tackle anymore. Instead, the job appears to belong to redshirt freshman Jordan Gibbs. Thomas has slimmed down and is saying the right things, but he does have to back it up.

Which lends credence to what Coach Wannstedt said about new OL Coach Tony Wise not feeling bound to older players and no depth chart. Gibbs was solid in the spring practices and regularly went up against DE Greg Romeus.

“I would say that the most important thing was that Jordan had himself 20 days of continuous practice (in spring drills) and didn’t miss one snap, one single drill. He was there the whole time, and he did very, very well against guys that were good players,” Pitt offensive line coach Tony Wise said. “I said, ‘There’s no reason to disrupt this.’ With Jason coming back, even though he’s played, he’s coming back from injury and having no spring practice, I think it’s important that we let Jordan stay there and let Joe and Jason fight it out. If Jason does a great job, boom, we put him over.”

Gibbs in claiming the left tackle starting spot already jumped senior Chase Clower.

I think Pinkston can still grab the left tackle starting spot. It will take, however, showing the coaches that he has his motivation back and either shedding the weight or showing he it isn’t as much of an issue.

The quotes from Pinkston, though, don’t suggest that he is there. Understandably, it sounds like the loss of his mother is not something he can compartmentalize at this point.

It’s late, I’m tired and here’s what we have: the post practice presser, a Q&A from Zeise and Gorman’s blog impressions.

The press conference transcript was on the light side today. Guys coming off of major injuries last year were in the morning practices. The main reason for the freshmen to work in the afternoon was so they could get more information on what not to do. Er, “have a chance to see the film and hear the corrections from the morning practice,” to keep the practice moving faster.

Really not much info from the presser, other than everyone is competing. That and a chance for Coach Wannstedt to complain about no pads allowed yet.

A lot of good stuff in the Paul Zeise Q&A (as Reed K. has his immediate impact) to read. Questions regarding the slimmed down offensive linemen — which was became a widely distributed AP Story — receiver sets, Coach Wannstedt handling the special teams,the impact of Fullback Henry Hynoski moving to 2nd on the depth chart and hopefully the final season of questions regarding Wannstedt’s readjustment to college coaching.

Q: Do you think the Pitt coaches have finally settled in as college coaches and the college game?

ZEISE: Yes — and I think that adjustment period to the college game took a little longer than normal and mostly because Dave Wannstedt had been in the NFL for so long. Perhaps the three biggest signs that the coaching staff — and in particular the head coach and offensive coordinator — have finally adjusted to the college game are (1) the Wildcat offense, an admission that a pure pro-style West Coast offense is a dinosaur in college football, which is why few teams still use it (2) the hiring of Phil Bennett, a college defensive coordinator with experience defending college offenses, as opposed to one of Wannstedt’s NFL cronies and (3) the recruitment of Greg Cross – a multiple-threat quarterback with the skill set to run a variety of spread and option offenses. I think this change from a pure NFL mentality to a college mentality was easy to see at some point during last season and to me it is the biggest reason I expect this team to improve dramatically this year.

Jonathan Baldwin looked good in the afternoon practice according Kevin Gorman.

What I was most impressed with about Baldwin wasn’t his leaping grabs – those who have seen him play football or basketball have come to expect them – but his ability to catch passes with defenders draped on him and balls thrown at his feet.

At best, Baldwin could make the position battle at split end interesting. At worst, he has a chance to develop into a nice complement to veterans Oderick Turner and Cedric McGee.

I’m going to assume he just means for this year in terms of development.

Freshman Cameron Saddler actually struggled with punt returns on day 1. Shariff Harris probably helped himself on the RB depth chart by showing excellent hands in catching the ball as well.

I have to keep this short as I have to run out the door.

Well, that was odd. I get out a post around lunchtime mentioning that if the team has a certain theme this year, it should be one that indicates the desire of the team to go out and win. Not anything that would suggest entitlement. Shortly afterwards, Kevin Gorman blog posts about morning practice, and…

Pitt has chosen “Prove It” as a motto for the season…

I’m good with that. That’s what the team has to do. Prove it deserves darkhorse status to win the Big East. Prove it deserves the hype as a team on the rise. Prove it deserves being ranked 19th in Sports Illustrated’s preseason rankings.

Back to all the goodies in the Gorman post, which I’m sure most of you will go and read in full. Kinder already threw another scare into everyone by slipping and twisting/tweaking his knee a bit in drills.

At about 10 a.m., Kinder slipped on a route over the middle and came up hobbled, limping back and taking a knee.

“I just slipped and twisted my knee slightly,” Kinder said. “I’ll be fine. I was a little nervous at first, but when I got up I was all right. I finished practice, so I was all right.”

Kinder actually caught a pass in stride and ran without any apparent problems, but he realizes that the mental aspect of the injury will be the hardest part to overcome.

Kinder isn’t more talented than a lot of the receivers Pitt has. He does, however, have one of the best work ethics on the team and is a leader. His presence just makes the receiving corps that much stronger.

Kevin Harper, the freshman kicker from Mentor, OH (just down the road from me), is almost certainly going to be redshirted behind Conor Lee. Still he was showing a strong leg.

Being that it was a helmets-only practice, one of the most impressive showings was by freshman kicker Kevin Harper. He blasted a pair of 32-yard field goals so high through the uprights and onto the hovering catwalk, a first from what we’ve seen.

Mick Williams is looking svelte and toned.

Which as a slogan is definitely not as played out as “This is our country.”

The players are excited for this season.

“If not this year, when?” tight end Nate Byham said when asked about the mood of the team. “There’s no more excuses, there is too much talent here, too much talent with experience — we’re hungry, this is our year to blow up. We’re expecting big things, even bigger things than people on the outside expect from us. We know we have a lot of work ahead of us, we also know that we’re hungrier than we’ve ever been, we’re more talented than we’ve ever been and we’re ready to get started on this thing.

“All of us came to Pitt because we knew that we’d be in this situation, that Pitt was ready to explode and we wanted to be a part of it. This is our year.” Offensive guard John Malecki added, “We don’t want to hear about youth, no more ‘we have too many young guys,’ no more of that stuff. This is it, we need to go out and get it done. We’re working so hard, we’re pushing each other, we want to be good and you look around here and look at all this talent, my goodness, I consider it an honor to line up with this much talent every week. It is our time to shine.”

Brief aside. According to the Pitt Media Guide, John Malecki is 6-3 and 280 pounds. Try and picture him saying “my goodness.” Now try not to giggle.

The theme “this is our time” was something that was repeated time and time again yesterday by players and even some coaches. The team is experienced, talented and healthy and, more importantly, it has enough depth to withstand injuries early in the season. As Malecki, Byham and many of their teammates said, there is no reason the Panthers shouldn’t be good this season. Even coach Dave Wannstedt, who is usually cautious when talking about expectations, said he’s as excited as he has ever been heading into a season, but he knows none of the hype will mean a thing when the team begins camp today.

The expectations internally are good. If the players aren’t hungry for success after the last few years, then there’s a real problem. They are right, no more excuses — which would also be a good theme for this season — the players and the coaches have to make things happen this year.

Right, Coach Cavanaugh?

Cavanaugh’s resume hardly suggests a fast-break kind of guy, but that might have been a function of the systems in which he worked. In Baltimore, a don’t-screw-it-up offense won a Super Bowl in 2000 (but only after almost screwing it up by going five consecutive games without a touchdown).

If the line plays reasonably well this season, Cavanaugh should have the opportunity to prove he can, in fact, deliver a prolific offense.

I asked him about the too-conservative rap. He said the talent on hand has always dictated his style of offense.

“Two years ago, when (quarterback) Tyler (Palko) was a senior, I don’t think anyone considered our play-calling conservative,” Cavanaugh said. “We scored the second-most points in Pitt history.”

True, but Pitt only ranked fourth in the Big East in scoring that year in conference games. It racked up its biggest numbers against cupcake non-conference competition.

I hope Cavanaugh is really that way. The issue, though, is even if he is will Coach Wannstedt let him.

…Wannstedt forcefully defended the play-calling, saying, “I said this in my opening press conference: You throw the ball to score points; you run the ball to win.”

Maybe that thinking needs to change to something like this: You score points by any means necessary until somebody tells you to stop.

If that means 35 carries for LeSean “Shady” McCoy, great. If it means staying with a successful passing game — even with a lead — until victory is secured, so be it.

This is the change in football. In both the pros and college. You can’t stop throwing the ball. Even if you have an incredible talent running the ball and an impressive O-line blocking up-front. It’s about making sure that the other team can’t come back. Not just running time off the clock to make it harder.

Pete Carroll got it in college. He was a defensive coach, but he recognized the offense has to go, go, go. He turned his offenses loose. By contrast, Chan Gailey the now ex-GT coach was an offensive coach but never seemed to get it. He never let the offense loose. It was always too tightly controlled, predictable and too often stoppable.

Okay, enough with the downer stuff. Back to the unbridled optimism.

“It’s weird. If I head out to the mall or something, people are coming up to me and asking me about Pitt,” said West Allegheny graduate Dorin Dickerson, who moved from linebacker to tight end during spring practice. “Everywhere we go, it’s been like that. People want to know about Pitt, Pitt, Pitt. That’s all we hear about and it’s a good thing. Now, we have to deliver.”

It’s a position most of Pitt’s players haven’t been in since high school.

“Look at what’s happened here since we beat West Virginia,” Stull said. “You saw the recruiting aspect of it with all the guys who came over here after the win and the guys who decommitted from other places to come here after that. It really sparked something special. But that’s over now and we can control what happens from here.”

The thing to look for come the season will be if the team brings the same effort and intensity in every game. Are they responding each time. Are they ready from the start of the game to the end? That’s going to be part of the challenge for the coaches. Show that they can reach the kids and have the players ready consistently.

The training camp will be about proving who should be starting at spots. Then comes the time to prove it.

”When I have a conversation with someone who’s excited for this upcoming season, my first reaction is, ‘We gotta prove it.”’

Indeed. The Panthers enter this season – Wannstedt’s fourth as Pitt head coach – with very high expectations. Pitt can be found in most college football preseason Top 25 poll. Shady McCoy and Derek Kinder are on the watch list for the Maxwell award (annually presented to the nation’s most-outstanding player) and Scott McKillop is on the preseason list for the Chuck Bednarik Award, which is given each year to the country’s top defensive player.

Those three players give Pitt some of its best big-game talent since Larry Fitzgerald was hauling in TD passes at Heinz Field in 2003. Add in a third-straight nationally ranked recruiting class and this is certainly the most-talented squad of Wannstedt’s tenure with the Panthers.

The more I think about it, the problem I have with “this is our time,” as a theme is that it can be suggestive of some sense of entitlement. That the team is owed a big season after everything the past few years.

I’d like more of a theme to be about “taking it” or “proving things,” or “no more excuses.”

Content loves media day.

I count no fewer than a dozen tabs open in my browser windows from stories out of Pitt’s Media Day. Time to start winnowing things down.

Let’s start with some actual content regarding practices. And everyone’s favorite obsession, the offensive line.

Once again, Pitt’s coaching staff will have split practices to get all the players as much work as possible early on. This plan was instituted after the first year. It is double duty for the coaches, with a morning session for half and an afternoon session for the rest. As a depth chart starts to be more cohesive and scrimmages loom, things revert to more standardized practices with everyone.

Kevin Gorman provides the list of how the squads are broken up.

Group 1 offense – Quarterbacks Bill Stull, Greg Cross, Tino Sunseri; tailbacks LeSean McCoy, Kevin Collier and Chris Burns; fullback Conredge Collins; split ends Cedric McGee and Oderick Turner; flankers Derek Kinder, T.J. Porter and Austin Ransom; tight ends Nate Byham and John Pelusi; left tackles Jordan Gibbs and Chase Clowser; left guards C.J. Davis and Lucas Nix; centers Robb Houser and Jared Martin; right guards John Malecki and Jacobson; and right tackles Joe Thomas and Frank Kochin.

Group 1 defense – Left ends Doug Fulmer and Jabaal Sheard; nose tackles Gus Mustakas and Mick Williams; defensive tackles Rashaad Duncan and Tommie Duhart and right end Greg Romeus; strong-side linebackers Adam Gunn, Greg Williams and Brian Kaiser; middle linebackers Scott McKillop and Steve Dell; weak-side linebackers Shane Murray and Nate Nix; boundary cornerbacks Jovani Chappel and Ronald Hobby; field cornerbacks Aaron Berry and Holley; strong safeties Dom DeCicco and Mike Toerper; and free safeties Eric Thatcher and Andrew Taglianetti.

Group 2 offense – Quarterbacks Pat Bostick, Kevan Smith and Andrew Janocko; tailbacks LaRod Stephens-Howling and Shariff Harris; fullbacks Henry Hynoski and Chris Bova; split ends Aundre Wright, Baldwin and Caleb Wilson; flankers Aaron Smith, Mike Shanahan and Cameron Saddler; tight ends Dorin Dickerson, Mike Cruz and Justin Virbitsky; left tackles Greg Gaskins and Ryan Turnley; left guards Dom Williams and Josh Novotny; centers Alex Karabin and Wayne Jones; right guards John Bachman and John Fieger; and right tackles Jason Pinkston and Dan Matha.

Group 2 defense – Left ends Tony Tucker and Justin Hargrove; nose tackles Myles Caragein and Keith Coleman; defensive tackles Craig Bokor and Chas Alexcih; right ends Tyler Tkach and Scott Corson; strong-side linebackers Brandon Lindsey, Joe Trebitz and Jon Taglianetti; middle linebackers Max Gruder and Shayne Hale; weak-side linebackers Tristan Roberts and Manny Williams; boundary corners Buddy Jackson and Danny Cafaro; field corner Ricky Gary; strong safeties Elijah Fields, Antwuan Reed and Justin Edwards and free safeties Irvan Brown, Scott Shrake and Marco Pecora.

This, of course, is all subject to change on a daily basis.

But those groupings generate some interesting thoughts. For one, a message is being sent to Jason Pinkston that nothing is going to be handed to him.

Another is that Pitt coaches placed players in direct competition for a position in the same groupings, with a few exceptions: Pinkston and Thomas at right tackle, Chappel and Jackson at boundary corner and DeCicco and Fields at strong safety. That Pinkston is competing for the starting job at right tackle (instead of the left side) and working in the afternoon session is either a sign of the coaching staff’s dissatisfaction with his work ethic or that it really likes Gibbs.

Maybe both.

Pinkston was rumored to be involved in an incident over the summer. There was never anything more reported. Not sure if that played into the way Pinkston is being placed in the competition. As an additional message.

The direct competition for several positions is not a surprise. That was a key thing to watch heading into training camp.
The biggest positional battles as just about everyone who follows Pitt football knows will be on the O-line. I mean, outside of Robb Houser at Center, I’m just not sure who will start and where. I’m not the only one as Paul Zeise observes in his intro to this year’s set of daily Q&A’s.

Simple, because the first rule of football is you are only as good as your offensive line and there are so many questions about this offensive line that it makes no sense right now to try and get into the predictions business. The line could be anywhere from great to very mediocre — and not surprisingly when people ask me for my predictions about the team I say the same thing — I could make a case for 5-7 just as easily as 10-2.

That’s why the position battles that matter most — and that you’ll read about most — are all on the offensive line — and mostly at tackle. I think that by the time the season starts, the two starting tackles will be Jason Pinkston and Joe Thomas but Pinkston is clearly going to have earn it as he has started second team on the depth chart behind Jordan Gibbs and Thomas.

Also, Lucas Nix and Chris Jacobson will both try to work their way onto the two-deep at guard, which should be fun to watch given how highly both were regarded as prospects.

An underrated storyline on the O-line depth chart, but one I’ll be banging the drum over, is who will end up being second on the depth chart at center. That just looms as a terrifying issue.

So, Bill Stull is likely the starter. No one is shocked.

I think the conventional wisdom will hold with QB: that Greg Cross will be used to help mix things up as the #2 starter, with Kevan Smith the #3 starter and Pat Bostick taking a redshirt. You know they so wanted Bostick to take last year — especially after the training camp issues — but couldn’t. Give him a year just to keep building arm strength, work some more on his throwing style, keep learning the offensive system, and just make sure he is ready mentally.

Not sure what is about Cavanaugh’s offensive system. It a very traditional West Coast offense, but something about it really messes with QBs who haven’t had time to learn it for at least a year. That’s a big factor that helped Stull last fall win the job; and why he will be the starter this year. He knows it better than anyone on the team. He had two years behind Palko learning it, running it in practices, just getting it all. It doesn’t require Dan Marino level talent.

“We’re the type of offense where we’re not going to throw it 50 times. The guy doesn’t have to be Tom Brady. Our quarterback needs to be efficient, smart and make plays when there are plays to be made.

“We’re going to play defense, run the ball and play good special teams. That’s our trademark.”

The issue — and I’m standing in line to beat it into the ground along with most of the beat writers for training camp — the offensive line. It’s the most unsettled area on Pitt’s team. There are some positional battles at other groups, but not the widespread question marks all over the place that exist on the O-line.

“There’s a lot of loose things that need to be resolved,” Wannstedt said.

Even senior C.J. Davis, who has 30 consecutive starts at left guard, isn’t assured of his job after missing spring drills with a hamstring injury now that redshirt freshman Chris Jacobson, a high school All-American, has recovered from a knee injury.

“C.J.’s our starting left guard right now, but the great thing about hiring a new offensive line coach is Tony Wise doesn’t know C.J. Davis from Greg Gaskins,” Wannstedt said. “Everybody has to prove themselves. I like that. There’s something to that. It makes everybody better.

“Tony’s going to walk in and say, ‘These are our five best guys.’ And he’s not going to be concerned with who started last year, who’s a freshman and who’s a fifth-year senior.”

There’s more depth on the O-line than there was a year ago. Hopefully it won’t be tested like the last two years. Center still terrifies me. Even if Robb Houser is everything expected, there is still no true center backing him up right now. Honestly, if there is one position where I really hope Pitt gets the big recruit for this class, it is Center.

The 2008 media guide (PDF) came over the weekend (thanks, E.J.). Fully heralding the beginning of complete immersion into Pitt football. Not just looking for recruiting scraps and the occasional puff pieces.

Now we are on the verge of practice reports, subjective views on how things looked at points in drills or a scrimmage. Puff pieces on the various new coaches. Talk of how the offseason conditioning program has done wonders for players. Optimism, fueled by a lack of context and comparison. Good times.

The basketball summer league in Pittsburgh is over. If you actually care about the outcomes, the team that included Gary McGhee won. Yet, despite finishing with 20 points (including 11-14 on FTs) and 8 rebounds, McGhee knows reality.

“It was something fun to do for the summer time,” McGhee said. “Everyone came out, and had some fun. Sometimes there’s not a whole lot of defense, but it was a good experience.”

What’s good is that Pitt’s primary 3 — Fields, Young and Blair — were listed on the first team squad and more importantly 2 of the newcomers — Gibbs and Miller — made the all-rookie group. The Pitt players were taking it serious enough to go hard and compete. They thankfully didn’t get hurt, this sort of thing can only help team chemistry.

Overall, for basketball in Pittsburgh area, this has been big. Robert Morris is trying to build to mid-major consistency.

“We’ve realized that every step, starting with this summer league, will pay off,” Green said. “This summer league, going against (players from) the Big East and … Atlantic 10, it will help.”

This isn’t fundamental basketball. There are few set plays and little format. Referees’ whistles are rarely heard, and defense “isn’t what I or (Pitt coach) Jamie Dixon or (Duquesne coach) Ron Everhart would like it to be,” Rice said. But it’s a huge step toward improvement. The Robert Morris players will continue their education on toughness and teamwork, and get a first-hand look at how larger programs operate.

“It’s great they’re playing in this league,” Rice said. “They’ll find some bad habits, like shot selection, but when they play at Pitt or Duquesne or West Virginia, those guys won’t take us for granted.”

Duquesne also benefited from playing in the summer league. Even WVU found it valuable to encourage their players to drive up twice a week to compete.

Alex Ruoff has the fading remnants of a sizeable shiner under his left eye. The cause?

“Those guys in Pittsburgh,” West Virginia’s senior guard said, “think they’re pretty tough.”

Well, aren’t you the guy with the black eye? Still, that only adds to the rivalry and makes the competition in the summer league better.

The fact that there has been coverage of the summer league by multiple news outlets, beyond a cursory article explaining how it is underway. Add in that the sportsplex was always packed for these games shows just how much interest and a surge in popularity college basketball is having in the region.

It started with Pitt becoming a quality basketball program and has helped raise the other programs in the area. Mountaineer and Dukes fans probably don’t want to admit this, but the best things for their programs is Pitt to continue to have success. It raises the profile of the sport in the region, and encourages the other schools to try and keep up.

I’m not trying to put any undue pressure on Jermaine Dixon, but if he doesn’t make a decent contribution to Pitt basketball this year I am (not-so-)seriously considering establishing an online petition to convince Coach Jamie Dixon to never sign another JUCO player.

Well, Keith Benjamin likes how Jermaine Dixon has been looking on the court.

Benjamin likes the experience of sophomore Brad Wanamaker and the shooting ability of freshman Ashton Gibbs, but he sees junior-college transfer Jermaine Dixon as someone who can be an impact player when the Panthers begin the season in a few months.

“I like Jermaine a lot,” Benjamin said Monday night between games in Green Tree. “He’s a tough kid, plays great defense. He can shoot the ball. I think he might be the starting shooting guard. He’s very ready to play college basketball, not like any other junior-college player who has come through here. He’s ready to play Division I basketball. He’s always in the gym.

“Jermaine can come in and average 9 or 10 points a game. He’s very good at creating contact and getting fouled. He gets my thumbs-up. Look for him to have a great season.”

Dixon said he isn’t hung up on becoming a starter. “All I want to do is win,” he said.

But he does believe he can contribute in a big way to a team that has, if not a glaring weakness, at the very least a big question at shooting guard.

“I think I can come in and contribute right away,” he said. “Coach [Jamie] Dixon wants you to play defense and I like to play defense. Plus, they have a big hole to fill. They have great pieces around it. I just want to be another of the pieces.”

I’m happy to be here. I just want to help the team. I’ll do what ever I can, and… Sorry, started channeling Bull Durham.

It is amusing that even Benjamin seemed to acknowledge that the last three JUCO players — his teammates — have all been stiffs.

Ashton Gibbs has shown in the summer league that he can hit threes as well as he did in high school. By all accounts Bradley Wanamaker has been playing with a lot more confidence and poise. Wanamaker seems to understand how much faster the game is at college versus high school and now things are slowing down for him to see more of it.

For Wanamaker it really seems that the summer league has done a lot to make him feel more comfortable and confident about his own game.

Wanamaker has averaged 23 points over his last three games and has played in every game of the summer. That’s a tough thing to do with summer classes, but Wanamaker’s time spent in this summer league has been well worth it. He looks more confident driving to the basket, more confident with his jump shot, and looks like a natural at the point guard position. He is showing that he would be capable of giving Fields some rest while learning the position. It’s also possible he could be the Panthers’ sixth man at this point.

Even though the summer league is a far cry from next year’s Big East Tournament and NCAA Tournament, a Brad Wanamaker with this kind of confidence is a good thing to have in July. Wanamaker himself is first to admit it, and he credits the competition in this summer’s league.

“I love it: you’re going up against someone different everyday,” Wanamaker said. “It’s not just about going against your teammates. You get to go against someone else every night. I’ve been playing with a lot more confidence. I’ve been working on my jump shot. It makes me feel more comfortable, to shoot in a game. It’s fun.”

Wanamaker seems to also get that he doesn’t fit as a true shooting guard and seems to be working hard at being at least a competent back-up to Levance Fields at the point. Versatility will be the way he gets more minutes.

It was a minor surprise that Sam Young didn’t declare for the NBA Draft. That he didn’t even bother to “test the waters.” He had a break-out year, he’s one of the older juniors, and his knees have to be a source of constant concern.

Or perhaps he knew that he could very well go from fringe first-rounder in the mock drafts to undrafted on the day of the draft without showing some more. Maybe he realized that working the summer camps could help him as much as it does all the kids being recruited out of high school.

Following the Vince Carter camp, Young went to work at the LeBron Camp in Akron and left an impression with those that saw him. Whether it was a quick-hitter comment:

Pitt wing Sam Young showed serious inside-out game. The Panthers just always seem to find these kids, don’t they?

The inside-out game seemed to be what had all talking with regards to Sam Young.

Displayed inside/outside game unparalleled by anyone at the camp. The success of Young and Thabeet should have Big East fans pumped for an outstanding, competitive season.

Interestingly it was game performances from Young that stood out. Practice was something else.

Young struggled making shots in drills but was outstanding in the night scrimmages. When the Pittsburgh power forward is making his mid-range jumper, he is virtually unstoppable. He has patented a move that is unique to him and only him where he pump fakes with in centimeters of traveling which gets defenders well off their feet and they are completely unable to recover. It really works when he is hitting his jump shot though. He also proved he could defend players who are 5 to 6 inches taller than he. His superior strength keeps them away from the basket out the range where they are comfortable scoring.

After all of this, Young still got back to the ‘Burgh for summer league games where he dropped 40. I’m guessing the coaches are going to have to tie him down to get him to take a week or two off after the last few weeks of playing. Got to keep those knees fresh.

Of course other Pitt players were in the summer league games and Dwight Miller keeps getting rave reviews.

Miller has been a rebounding machine all summer, and on Wednesday night his offensive game was on. He finished with 10 points and 16 rebounds. The reason Miller gets so many rebounds is that he constantly hustles up and down the court. Because of his hustle and his willingness to be physical and do a lot of the dirty work underneath, he always finds himself in the right spot. Miller also blocked four shots.

I know its just summer league, but everything seems to suggest that Pitt may have found another excellent under-the-radar player in Miller.

Is it just a sign of wanting to see Pitt playing something? The expectations for the 08-09 season already pushing at me? I don’t know, but despite the silliness, the time involved in travel, cost of gas for a trip and what the wife would say if I even discussed driving to Pittsburgh for an evening to watch a couple summer league games… I’ve thought about it a lot.

It’s barely a month long in length, but it has become a popular event. The players from the schools in the area are very much into participating.

For the first time, all four Division I schools in the area will participate. Pitt, West Virginia, Duquesne and Robert Morris players, including incoming freshmen, will take part.

“This all started after I had a chance meeting with [Pitt coach] Jamie Dixon three years ago,” said league director John Giammarco. “He wanted a competitive summer league for the players around here. This isn’t pickup basketball. This is top-flight competition. I’m really proud the way this has grown and developed to what Jamie’s vision was. His commitment to basketball in Western Pennsylvania is second to none. He gets the big picture.”

…

“I’ve been around the local basketball scene for a long time and it’s been a long time since an offseason program generated this much interest,” Giammarco said. “This wouldn’t happen if all four schools didn’t work together to make this happen. Every other major city has something like this. It’s an exciting time for college basketball in Western Pennsylvania.”

I’ve said it plenty of times. This is a vital part of Coach Jamie Dixon’s legacy in building Pitt basketball for the long-term. Beyond simply keeping the present players in the area — staying on top of classwork, team unity and bonding, nutrition and conditioning, and hopefully out of trouble. By doing what he can to encourage and support the creation of a summer league (while still keeping clear of NCAA rules) he is strengthening Pitt basketball and creates goodwill, support and interest in the community and the high schools. So on the still rare times when Western PA does produce a quality D1 basketball player there’s more than just being the local team to pull them to Pitt. There’s the interaction of the players and memories of seeing things like this. And for some, playing on teams with the present players.

What’s also great, is that the interest isn’t just for the players. People want to watch.

Games are played every Monday and Wednesday night starting at 7 pm. Plan on getting there early. The parking lot was filled by 6:15.

Yes, I know the gym is small, but that’s excellent.

Still, the best matchup was the back-and-forth between Young and Blair, as the Pitt front-courters worked to out-do each other all night. Blair, who looks even quicker than he did at the end of the season, finished with 35 points and 12 rebounds and had at least five or six dunks, but they were so thunderous it looked like the entire structure of the hoop was going to collapse. Blair even looked up at the rim in the second half and pointed out that he bent it.

Young ran the show for the Aliquippa team. He scored 44 points and was 16-of-18 from two-point range. Of course, many of those 16 shots were dunks or lay-ins, and oftentimes they came after Young would grab a defensive rebound and then take it coast-to-coast for a jam or a reverse lay-in. Young talked after the game about some of the things he learned at Vince Carter’s camp last week, and it’s safe to say that he put a few of those things on display tonight.

Miller’s performance can’t be missed either. Miller switched teams this week to play alongside Young and Woodall. He finished with eight points and an impressive 14 rebounds. For a second game in a row, Miller showed a lot of hustle and he was in on any loose ball he could get his hands on. How tough is he? After taking an elbow to the mouth from Blair, the coach wanted him to take a breather, but Miller shook it off and stayed on the court.

The first week of the league, Blair, Young and Fields were all away at the various camps.

That gave the incoming and last year’s bench players a bigger chance to stand-out.

Incoming Pitt freshman Dwight Miller might have been the most athletic player on the floor in this game. The 6-8 swingman showed a good all-around game, contributing 21 points, including two three-pointers and a pair of monster dunks. He also grabbed five rebounds. Miller finished 7-of-13 from the field and 5-of-6 from the free throw line. He looks comfortable as a slasher, three-point shooter, and even a perimeter defender.

FWG had three solid performances from Pitt players. Ashton Gibbs was paired with Brad Wanamaker in the backcourt, with Gibbs playing the point and Wanamaker at the two, although Wanamaker played the one when Gibbs wasn’t in. Gibbs led with 18 points, including three three-pointers. Wanamaker added eight points and also had two steals. Biggs finished with 10 points and five rebounds.

Not sure why there is still more new stuff on basketball than football these days.

I’m sure the Pitt coaches are working on this. As are the strength and conditioning and nutritional consultants.

With PF Sam Young set to return for his senior season, Pitt’s priority is ensuring that 6-10 C Gary McGhee has the kind of offseason that turns him into a consistent rotation player. McGhee reached double figures in minutes only three times as a freshman, including in a solid game against South Florida when the Panthers were just beginning their recovery from injuries to SF Mike Cook and PG Levance Fields. McGhee will need to be better conditioned and more assertive to expand his role, but if he can play 12 to 15 minutes per game, the Panthers will be able to show opponents a different look.

It would be good not just to spell DeJuan Blair but also allow Pitt to throw a bigger look at teams with Blair and Young being able to slide to the 4 and 3 spots on the court, respectively. Getting McGhee more minutes and in the rotation consistently seems to be likely so that he can step in as a starter in his junior year.

Mike Cook (with Coach Dixon and Pitt’s help) formally submitted his appeal to the Big East for a 6th year of eligibility on Monday. The Big East then passes it on to the NCAA which will rule on it. A decision isn’t likely until sometime in June.

The NCAA has gotten a little more lax with medical waivers, but one question remains: where’s the available scholarship if he gets the clearance? Either Pitt knows that one of the present recruiting class is going to miss qualifying or there’s another transfer/player quitting coming soon.

Aaron Gray was back at Pitt and PittsburghPanthers.com has a Q&A.

What brings you back to Pittsburgh for the week?

“I love it here. It is a great situation for me. I am able to come back and work with the strength and conditioning coaches. I can work with players like DeJuan Blair and Austin Wallace and help them improve.”

…

Do you still try to stay in contact with your former teammates and coaches?

“Absolutely, I use them for advice and help all the time. Coach Dixon came out to training camp last year too. They have continued to be great teammates and coaches since I have been with Chicago.”

Were you able to catch any of Pitt’s Big East Championship run this spring?

“Oh yes, they had me on speakerphone the whole time. It was as if I was celebrating right there with them.”

Via NBE Basketball Report, this bit on a possible Pitt recruit having issues.

A St. Raymond high school basketball player was arrested Tuesday afternoon after an altercation with a coach during a team meeting at the school, according to a police source.

A witness said junior Kevin Parrom punched Ravens head coach Oliver Antigua in the face after the two had a brief argument in the locker room.

A person close to Parrom said the player was provoked by Antigua.

No charges have been filed and Oliver Antigua is the brother of former Pitt player and present (for a little longer) assistant coach Orlando. The small forward has offers from Pitt, Rutgers, WVU, Xavier and others.

No complaints about a solid 2-hour infomercial for Pitt football. It was fun to watch and nice to just enjoy it rather than try to analyze every little thing and go into heavy angst. It was a spring football scrimmage. The last one of spring practice. The biggest goal should have been to make sure no one got hurt.

Plenty of key players saw little or no time — McKillop, McCoy, Kinder, Mustakas, Collins, Jacobson, Davis and Pinkston — and 7 others didn’t suit up for the game. Plus there are freshmen that will be expected to be in the mix come August. As Coach Wannstedt said in the broadcast and was amply apparent, the defense was bland and didn’t really come hard against the offense too often.

Still, this was the chance for the coaches to get an idea of a rough depth chart and arguably the offense getting to have a chance will help with the confidence.

“Our offense, I thought, needed that,” said Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt, who did color analysis for the NFL Network telecast. “At our practices this spring, for the most part, our defense probably had the upper hand more times than not. It was good to see our offense respond in that fashion.”

I have no doubt that if this hadn’t been the final scrimmage/practice of the spring that the defense would have been lit into for the way they played. Maybe it was just because they had to lay back up front, that it disrupted them and took their edge. It’s just that the defense I’ve been reading all spring about hardly looked it.

The thing about the spring game is that it does give players a chance to really get noticed. Buddy Jackson, Mo Williams, Shariff Harris and Dorin Dickerson definitely took advantage from what was seen in the Blue-Gold game.

I’m guessing Harris suddenly seems the most intriguing. The redshirt freshman running back made his case to be the #3 RB. Heck, there are plenty of fans probably ready to pencil him in at #2. Kevin Gorman at the Trib can feel good for having a piece on Harris the day before the scrimmage.

“I can see improvement from when he started Day One until where we are, Day 13,” running backs coach David Walker said. “His thing is, he’s a big, physical runner. He got his shoulders turned downhill at times and made it tough for people to hang onto him.”

Despite a strong training camp, when his running style raised eyebrows, Harris was the odd-man out last season and took a redshirt. Turns out, it was the best thing for him. Not only did Harris develop his 6-foot-1 frame from 190 pounds to 225, he matured as a student and an athlete.

“I wasn’t ready last year,” said Harris, who was asked to elaborate. “Reading the defenses and the offense and knowing my plays. I wasn’t ready to play college football.”

He looked ready yesterday.

Dickerson looks very comfortable at the TE spot. Maurice Williams was able to use his size and speed well against the corners.

As for the QB spot, it is still Stull’s. Greg Cross brings a lot of excitement but right now he is a situational, Tim Tebow-in-his-freshman-year change of pace, special package QB. That’s good and will help Pitt’s offense a lot. He’s not, however, going to be the starter on August 30.

Bostick and Smith both looked good. Of course, with the limited pressure they had time. Something neither had last year (in every sense of the word).

Gene Collier joined with those intrigued by Cross.

“I’ve never been in a stadium this big; I loved it, loved the crowd, loved the atmosphere, and I can’t wait to play here in the fall,” said Cross, whose 29-yard scramble up the middle and 37-yard strike to Maurice Williams in the second half were the longest plays of the night.

“All of the quarterbacks are pulling for each other, and we’re all trying to move the team down the field. We’re all about winning.”

There was little doubt what Cross was about when he got to Fort Scott Community College in Kansas two years ago, because suddenly a program that had lost 24 consecutive games started winning more often than not. When he was done, Cross had led Fort Scott to 16 victories in two seasons and into the Valley of the Sun Bowl, where he threw for two touchdowns and ran 85 yards for another.

“When I first got there and the coaches saw how athletic I was — I mean I’d played all kinds of sports my whole life — they told me I was trying to be so perfect as a quarterback that it wasn’t working,” Cross said. “They told me just to be myself. Just to have fun.”

Pitt’s offensive coaches should have plenty of fun when they sit down and talk about this because Cross is so fast that he could serve as an occasional fuel injector for Matt Cavanaugh’s standard offense. With steady development in August added to his qualifications, he could be something much more.

Then there are the awards to the players at the end of spring practice.

Wannstedt announced the winners of the Ed Conway Award, annually presented to the most improved players of the spring. This year’s recipients were junior tight end Dorin Dickerson, junior receiver Cedric McGee (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla./Plantation) and junior defensive tackle Mick Williams.

Pitt also presented its freshman Academic Award, which was shared this year by defensive lineman Myles Caragein (Pittsburgh, Pa./Keystone Oaks) and offensive lineman Chris Jacobson (Pittsburgh, Pa./Keystone Oaks), both graduates of Pittsburgh’s Keystone Oaks High.

For the truly obsessed, offense and defense stats (PDF).