Guess the P-G columnist who wrote the following.

For a nationally elite team such as Pitt, the Big East regular season and tournament are relatively minor preludes to the NCAA tournament.

Answer. The same guy who wrote this today.

Can a seriously flawed team overcome its deficiencies and advance to the Final Four?

Yes, it’s Bob Smizik. So, now a Pitt team that went 4-1 since the former column was written is now “seriously flawed.” If Pitt is seriously flawed, then so is every team in the NCAA. Reading Smizik’s column, you would think that Wisconsin would be the toughest foe awaiting Pitt. He devalues Oklahoma St., a team that is just as tough as Pitt, but has gotten better perimeter shooting; and was arguably the highest #2 seed after winning both the Big XII regular and conference championship — but was penalized for not finishing the conference championship before the seeding committee had decided.

I mean, I like it when there are legitimate criticisms from the local paper of the team. What I don’t like are knee-jerk contrarian positions just for the sake of being controversial or not like the rest. That is all this piece seems to be.

Our NCAA Basketball coverage to announce Pitt’s football schedule (good timing for the athletic department to release the info a couple days before the NCAA Basketball Tournament). The big story, Pitt plays WVU on Thanksgiving night. Thanks. You know what the likelihood is that I’ll make that one? It’s inversely related to my marriage.

Sept. 4 at South Florida
Sept. 11 Ohio
Sept. 18 Nebraska
Sept. 25 Furman
Sept. 30 (Thurs.) at Connecticut* (ESPN or ESPN 2)
Oct. 9 at Temple*
Oct. 16 Boston College*
Oct. 23 Rutgers*
Nov. 6 at Syracuse*
Nov. 13 at Notre Dame (NBC)
Nov. 25 (Thurs.) West Virginia* (ESPN)

West Virginia Coach, Rich Rodriguez isn’t thrilled with the game though

If Rodriguez had his way, however, the Mountaineers wouldn’t play at all that week.

“The only bad thing about those games on Thanksgiving is that it is during hunting season,” Rodriguez said. “Thanksgiving week, I’d rather not play, especially if it’s a home game, because many of the fans will be in the woods and in tree stands.”

Insert your own joke here.

I hate them, and a scan of the archives at PSB will back that up. They are the stock and trade of sports writers, and tv commentators who are lazy or just dull. Greg Doyel runs down the list of cliches and where they are in the NCAA Tournament. Sadly, depressingly accurate. Also, a summary of storylines and other notes in the East (Rutherford) region.

Craig Esherick has been a disaster as head coach at Georgetown. Yet he had survived, and looked like he made it through another year. Not only survived, but was arrogant about it. As Gregg Doyel at his CBS blog put it on March 11 (no permalinks):

Georgetown was right to give Esherick the chance to succeed John Thompson in 1998-99, and now Georgetown would be right to give someone else the chance to succeed Esherick, who has taken the Hoyas to 30-year lows.
…
Esherick remains defiant, crazily demanding kudos for Georgetown’s 30-year postseason run instead of apologizing that it ended under his watch.

“That’s a pretty incredible streak that I don’t think our school got credit for — that I don’t think I got any credit for,” he said Wednesday.

Kind of like Duke football after Steve Spurrier left in 1989, Georgetown basketball has become relevant only for its irrelevance. The difference is, from an athletics point of view, Duke doesn’t need football to matter. It has basketball.

Georgetown has nothing but basketball, which means that, under Esherick, Georgetown has nothing.

Well, it looks like the situation has changed. Georgetown fired him — in a released statement. If you’re counting at home, that makes two storied Big East programs looking for new head basketball coaches.