This is the final day of annoying solicitations. I’m happy to write that it looks like all costs will be covered for the next two years with a final round of contributions. A couple of the checks have already arrived.

Yesterday I wrote about no political ads for this election. One other ad-related note that you won’t see. Any of the ad-sense programs. You know, those little text ads at the bottom of posts on other sites. I’m not a big fan of them, and with the support received, I see no reason to plug those in and create more clutter.

That’s one of the things I am very happy to with this site — keeping it relatively clean, uncluttered and simple.

Thanks to the support of everyone, it gets to stay that way.

I think some cautious skepticism about the football team is still warranted. It’s hard with so many pieces starting to look like they are coming into place.

The defense looks strong overall — even if there are some areas with thin depth. The defensive line appears to finally be a point of strength. The linebackers have a hard-nosed, aggressive guy in the middle with more depth than at any point in years. Safety, while not deep, has talent.

On offense there is a stud running back. The receiving corps while not flashy is deep and talented. The QB situation looks a bit better. Even the offensive line has some hope with players coming back from injury, a center that looks like a great find from JUCO ranks and a blue-chip freshman who should be able to grab a starting job immediately.

The coaching staff was overhauled, and seems to be on the same page.

Add in the strong finish from last year that raises the optimism. As further proof of how close Pitt might be, I have seen many cite that Pitt lost 4 of its games by 7 or fewer points. That just a couple bounces, a couple less injuries (or better officiating *cough* Rutgers *cough*) and Pitt would have been at least 6-6 or even, possibly 8-4. Suggesting how close Pitt might be.

On the flip side, though, Pitt also won 3 games by 7 or fewer points. Meaning that a 3-4 record in tight games suggests Pitt was very close to where they should have been, record-wise.

I was thinking about that as I kept coming back to this look at the Big East and team’s schedules.

Two things struck me right away. First, how unsure people are about the Big East after the assumption that WVU will be good and Syracuse will suck. Second, upon reflection I can’t disagree.

The eyeballing of schedules where you pick out almost certain losses or wins for the Big East teams yields a lot more toss-ups than usual. In large part because the teams in the Big East have improved and there is more parity.

UConn had a great season last year, and they didn’t lose much. USF and Rutgers have shown stability and are establishing themselves as consistent top-25 or right around there teams. Cinci is on their way there with Kelly as coach and especially if Mauk gets that 6th year at QB. Louisville is just a big question mark — they could implode with all the JUCOs brought in or could gel like a K-State team.

Then there’s Pitt.

This might be the strongest Panther team yet under Dave Wannstedt, but the schedule could make it a challenging year. There’s a chance for a big start with a home win over Iowa in mid-September, but the Big East slate starts out with two road games against Syracuse and South Florida. Going to Navy and Notre Dame will make it four road dates in a five-game span, and then there’s the finishing kick. After getting a mid-November week off, the Panthers have to play at Cincinnati, West Virginia, and at Connecticut. That could be just tough enough to ruin Big East title hopes.

They don’t give Pitt any “Likely losses” but after the two MAC warm-ups there are also no other “near certain wins” either. And I can’t argue too hard against that. Even the Syracuse game being in Syracuse does make that closer to a toss-up than a lock right now.

Some sad news, Dennis who has been contributing to PittBlather for the past year is leaving.

Dennis will be entering his senior year of high school (which, given the quality of his writing was a startling revelation to me) and has a crush of the usual issues including a summer job and working on college choices and visits. How he had the discipline, time and interest to post at all is a stunner. Especially when I think back to that increasingly dim memory of my lack of drive in high school.

He passed this along, though, an e-mail from DPJ of Cat Basket about trying to improve the gameday atmosphere at Heinz Field.

I was at a meeting with Steve Pederson and Dave Wannstedt where they challenged myself as well as other student leaders to improve the gameday atmosphere. While others were arguing that free t-shirts and hotdogs were the only way to get people to come, I argued that making the in game experience better was the real key for improving attendance (other than winning of course). Some people on SGB and other organizations felt I was crazy. Luckily Dr. Kathy Humphrey, Chris Ferris, and some other fellow student leaders agreed.

During the conclusion of the meeting, I along with our SGB president and Program Council Lecture Director was placed in charge of trying to figure out ways to make the in game experience better. One thing we all agreed upon was that there doesn’t seem to be anything engaging the fans to make them feel more included in the game. Sure we want to have a beach ball in the student section and to incorporate other ideas to make the entire stadium seem like one cohesive unit. However, we felt that there was one big thing that Pitt hasn’t used to our advantage yet. We have that massive jumbotron that usually is one big advertisement the entire game. Have you ever notice how excited people get when the Heinz ketchup flows??? That is why we decided that one of the most effective ways to improve the atmosphere is to use the jumbotron to get the crowd involved. Have you ever been to a Pens game and seen how they use a small outdated jumbotron to get the crowd fired up? Well, why can’t we use our state of the art equipment to get our fans fired up?

They are looking for more suggestions about improving the gameday atmosphere. So head over there with any thoughts.

This seems to be an ongoing process to try and figure out ways to get people to not only come to the games, but be engaged. You may recall the letter AD Pederson sent to season ticket holders after the 07 season. Cutting ticket prices will help sell more tickets, but the issue is getting the people to actually use them and not just sit on their hands.

Obviously the effort alone is a welcome step. Making an effort to get others to throw ideas out there. Rather than just act without actually talking to others who might be closer to the situation or have a better feel.
Here’s one for the jumbotron when the moment calls for the crowd to get fired up or make noise. It builds off the “shave the ’stache” concept (yeah, I’m going to keep pushing this). I’m thinking Mike Ditka standing next to a cardboard cutout of Wannstedt. Ditka stroking his own mustache then speaking to the camera, “Hey Panther fans, I want to see this thing shaved as much as you do,” pointing to the Wannstache, “so how about some noise?!”

Just a couple more days of slightly annoying pledge posts.

One of the things I hate about election years are political ads when I’m watching sports. Drives me nuts. Watching sports is part of the escape from the daily crap. Partisan stuff just wears on me.

So, with everyone’s support for this site, I will get to be more picky about what I accept for blogads on this site. I’m making a promise now, that for this Presidential election there will no political ads on PittBlather.com. No pro- or anti- anything regarding the candidates (including non-Presidential) or “issue” ads. It’s going to be nasty enough, probably by September.
Essentially I’m promising a politics-free safe-haven.

Just click one of the begging buttons on the right sidebar and make sure this can be a reality.

After a while, you do have to convince yourself of that. I mean, otherwise, yet another revised top-25 list for college football in May would be, well, filler or just a waste of time. That — that just can’t be.

From the Viacom empire, Dennis Dodd at CBS Sports revises his top-25 and moves Pitt down a spot to #22.

The feel good vibe from the West Virginia win hasn’t diminished yet. Dave Wannstedt might finally be putting it together. Tailback LeSean McCoy was a freshman All-American who surpassed some of Tony Dorsett’s freshman numbers. Linebacker Scott McKillop led the nation in tackles.

From the Big East, WVU #9, USF #19, UConn #21, Cinci #25.

Then there is CSTV.com (another online arm of Viacom). Their college football editor moved Pitt from #24 to #20 in his revision.

The pressure is on Dave Wannstedt. He keeps bringing in these highly rated recruiting classes, but doesn’t have much to show for it on the field. But off of that impressive win over West Virginia in the season finale, and the duo of LeSean McCoy and Pat Bostick leading the offense, there’s reason to be very optimistic. Panthers’ defense should be strong.

Of course, no one else actually thinks Bostick will be the starter (or see playing time) this season (hello, redshirt). A fact even most national writers who paid any attention to things were aware.

“The question with Billy Stull was could he come back full speed after his thumb injury?” Wannstedt said. “He has proven that he can. With the year off and all the lifting he did in the weight room, his arm looks a little stronger to me. Right now, he is probably the most advanced of the group.”

Stull, a homegrown product of Pittsburgh, said his thumb injury might have been a blessing in disguise. Stull said he gained about 10 pounds and now weighs 212. “It’s definitely one thing I noticed when I was able to start throwing,” Stull said. “My arm strength is better.”

…

Still, it appears to be Stull’s job to lose. “He’s tough as far as reading the defense and hitting the targets,” McCoy said. “It’s going to help out the running game tremendously. It was tough last year because there were so many guys in the box. Everybody knew we were going to run the ball.”

McCoy isn’t the one calling the shots on offense, but it doesn’t hurt to have him speak with confidence on the likely starting QB.

Not sure how Chris McKillop’s tryout with the Jets went over the weekend. The former Pitt DE was trying out at Linebacker. It’s as much about making an impression to be invited back in the summer and to maybe create some additional interest from other teams.

That seems to be the result for Mike Phillips after his Browns’ tryout. He didn’t get invited back.

“It was a great opportunity to be in front of a lot of scouts,” Phillips said. “I think it opened some doors for a lot of things to happen. I have to keep working and go from there.”

Phillips has no intention of ending his dream. He’ll confer with his representation at the DeBartolo Co. and see if he can get a chance with another team.

“I’ll have to talk to my agent and look at the rosters of other teams and what they really need,” he said.

…

One possible destination for Phillips is Chicago. He and his agent weighed offers from the Browns and Bears before deciding on the Browns.

’’When I talked to my agent, we felt like the Browns were the better situation,” he said. “Things didn’t work out the way we thought.”

Which of course, does go back to taking advantage of the educational opportunities at Pitt. Just ask Ben Pryor.

Pryor, a highly sought Western Pennsylvania high school football player in 1976 who played in four college bowl games, is enjoying his career in education. He received his degree in elementary education in 1998 and his Masters in 2000.

“It’s going well in this change of careers, and I enjoy what I am doing,” said Pryor, who previously worked in the steel industry.

A focus of Pryor’s daily responsibilities is working with ninth graders entering Roosevelt High, a school of approximately 2,800 students in Prince Georges County, a Washington suburb.

On May 17, Pryor will be one of eight inductees during the A-K Valley Sports Hall of Fame’s 39th banquet at the Clarion Hotel in New Kensington.

Pryor had tremendous success in both high school football and basketball. He was named first-team all-state, a Parade Magazine All-American and an adidas All-American in 1976, and played in the 1977 Big 33 all-star football game.

There are always other things after football.

This is day 2 of the pledge drive for PittBlather.com. For those who don’t remember why I ask for support, here’s why. When I started writing PittBlather (and its predecessor PittSportsBlather), the deal with my wife was that this would not cost anything other than time.

Keep in mind that your contributions to PittBlather.com can help to indoctrinate the next generation of Pitt fans.*

_{*This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA.}

As per Andy Katz at ESPN.com (Insider sub., hat tip to Matt O.), Pitt appears to be one of the participants in the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic supporting Coaches versus Cancer.

Matchups for the Coaches vs. Cancer and CBE tournaments will be determined soon. But one juicy rematch could occur in Madison Square Garden next November.

If the four hosts advance to New York for the CVC, the likely semifinals could be Duke vs. Pitt and UCLA vs. Michigan. Duke is scheduled to play Michigan a week later, so that would detract from a Duke-Michigan semifinal and set up a likely Duke-Pitt rematch of a dandy game last December at MSG. Assuming UCLA wins, then you’d either have a classic UCLA-Duke final of the event with two of the best name programs in the game, or a UCLA-Pitt game, which pits two top 10 teams and two best friends in Ben Howland and Jamie Dixon of UCLA and Pitt, respectively.

The CVC is run by the Gazelle Group. They don’t list this year’s participants yet, but the “Regional Rounds” (read: campus locations of the 4 favorites) are scheduled for November 10-14. Everyone will be in fear of being “Gardner-Webbed” this go round.
The Semifinals are at MSG on November 20, with the Championship on November 21. The site has a sign-up page for e-mail updates and to enter to win free tickets.

The Tom Herrion media appreciation continues. Jeff Goodman at Fox Sports lists his top-20 assistants at “high-major” programs. Herrion comes in at #11.

Herrion jumped on Jamie Dixon’s staff prior to last season and was recently promoted to associate head coach. He was previously the head coach at the College of Charleston for four years and averaged 20 wins per season in his tenure. The 40-year-old also worked for Pete Gillen for eight years at Virginia and Providence.

Goodman moved Pitt to #11 in his updated early pre-season top-25 after the declarations of early entry.

The Panthers lose senior guards Ronald Ramon and Keith Benjamin. While both are replaceable, Jamie Dixon will need to find someone who can shoot the ball from the perimeter. Pittsburgh has point guard Levance Fields back and healthy and Sam Young and DeJuan Blair are a force up front, while guys like Gilbert Brown and Tyrell Biggs showed flashes.

From the Big East, UConn #3, Louisville #5, ND #7, G-town #13, ‘Nova #17, Marquette #18, WVU #21.

The meme that — the Big East is a loaded beast of a conference this year — has already started will only get stronger after the summer and the draft returnees. That of course will create the backlash and contrarian arguments for the ACC or Pac-10.

Rivals.com, has Pitt way up in their really early poll (#2). One of their writers has Pitt as his #1 pre-season team.

Here is what Pittsburgh has returning: one of the nation’s best point guards, one of the nation’s best forwards and one of the nation’s best centers, not to mention one of the nation’s best coaches. And that’s just for starters. The Panthers also hope to have back a fourth starter, swingman Mike Cook, who suffered a torn ACL in the 11th game last season. Cook was a senior, but he has applied for a medical redshirt.

…

When Connecticut beat Pittsburgh 60-53 last season in the teams’ only meeting, in Hartford mind you, neither Fields, who was out with a broken foot, nor Cook was available. When Fields returned after a 12-game absence and regained his stamina, the Panthers ripped through the Big East tournament to claim the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. They beat Louisville, Marquette and Georgetown on consecutive days.

That’s the Pitt team I expect to see this season. From November into April.

Here’s hoping the players don’t start buying into the hype and their own press-clippings.

It’s that dreaded time again. It’s been two years and now it’s time to ask for donations in support of PittBlather.com. Unlike the last time, this go-round has modest goals. I’m just looking to take care of server costs for the next couple of years along with getting some work done on the site.

I’m as uncomfortable about asking as you probably are reading this.

As usual, all the contributions during this week will be plowed directly into this site.

Some of you have already hit the begging buttons this year, so thanks once more.

If you are more comfortable directly sending a check, drop me an e-mail at pittblather-at-gmail-dot-com and I’ll give you an address.

It’s with your assistance that this kind of hard work can continue.