I, too, remain hugely optimistic. But as for us being 3rd or 4th in the conference — great! The depth of this conference has been ignored for too long by the national media (as we all saw when looking at BCS results over the past ten years and the pathetic showing of the ACC). This way, when we win the conference, people will be impressed with the legitimacy of the accomplishment.

Stu Mandel is funny. If Pitt had lost to WVU (and thus been consistent with the poor play and results of the whole season), his article with Pitt would have been called “Five Coaches on the Hot Seat”. Just shows you how one game has caused people to change perception radically. My perception hasn’t changed at all. I’m still of the opinion that Pitt was lucky to beat a WVU team that was looking past it toward the MNC game.

BTW, Stull didn’t particularly impress me in his lone game vs. Eastern Mich last year.

Yeah, Stull did suck in the opening game last year and thank God he got hurt….14 of 20 with 177 yds and a TD. Looks pretty good considering we got a win. Dumb ass!

I’ve watched the 100th Backyard Brawl about 30 times since the end of the season and I’m convinced that Pitt’s D knew what plays WVU was running. I hope Rhoa_es sticks it to those hillbillies with Auburn.

Chas, there is no question that our offense will be better this year than it was last year. Just in the passing game alone, there will be marked improvement (it can’t go anywhere but up!). The improved play of our offense will mean less time on the field for our defense. That should help with some of those late game fades. Sorry Joshua, once again your hatred for Wanny has blnded you from the facts. The facts are, after the Navy game, our defense held some very good offenses in check, including CINN, LVILLE, RU, SoFla, and WVU. Yes, we held SoFla’s offense in check. Turnovers killed us in that game. If you have the WVU game on tape, you will see that luck had nothing to do with it. Our players were beating their players off the blocks all night long. Our defensive play calling was spot on. WVU could have run their offense for 12 straight quarters and we would still have won that game. The fact is Wanny out coached Rich Rod, and it kills you to know that. On Stull, a QB in his first start as a college player did not impress you? Hmmmm…..

ChrisA,

I have been looking for a copy of last years Back Yard Brawl. Is there any way I could get a copy from you? I am willing to pay you for your help. Youre help would be greatly appreciated. Please send me an email at “mwd6@pitt.edu” if we can work something out. Thank you.

Matt

you can buy the dvd at the team store.

link to shoppittpanthers.com

magadog,

Thanks but that is only highlights and interviews. I am looking for the entire game.

I only have it on my DVR…theres a way to get it off by recording it to my computer, then burning it to a DVD, but i don’t think the quality will be that great…if you still want it, let me know…

Stuart,

If you could somehow make it happen, I would really appreciate it. As long as it is not to much trouble.

We could probably hook up at one of the home games, maybe bowling green on Aug 30th. Or we could make another arrangement. Again my email is mwd6@pitt.edu … Thank you.

If anyone else has a better idea and would like to help please let me know.

All I keep hearing from the same old crowd is the Jim Tracy “40-35 OMG!!!!11!!!!” BS. Yes, the WVU win was nice, but it could easily be like the post-ASG 2006 Pirates–an aberration. And how everyone screams “WVU OMG!!!!!1!!” sounds just like Jim Tracy and his media cohorts were screaming “40-35 OMG!!!!1!!!!” No difference whatsoever. The postmortem that was written of the 2007 season still applies, even if it was scrapped after the WVU game.

And when I said I wasn’t impressed by Stull, I meant that I wasn’t impressed by how he handled the EMU rush.

!!!!!!!!1!!!!!!1111!!!!!!!

The WVU game was not an aberration. Luck will not win a game like that. The scheme was right and the players executed. If anything, WVU was lucky the game was as close as it was with those ludicrous phantom holding calls on (1) a TD and (2) a key first down.

If you watch the Navy game, you’ll see the exact opposite. The scheme was all wrong- for a large part of the game there was a hole in the middle of the defensive line that Navy exploited perfectly. They weren’t even blocking the D-ends, but instead sending their undersized quick tackles out on the LBs. The result was an endless string of 8, 10, 12 yard runs straight up the gut.

Football is usually a much more exacting game than “they were looking past” this or that. I for one am extremely optimistic because the tools are obviously there for a big season. WVU had it all on the line and Pitt took it from them- plain and simple. There is a lot to be excited about.

This year will be better.

We have QB’s this year. Not proven QB’s mind you but the pure number of them has to add up to something. Plus all now have seen game time something that was lacking last year when only Stull had seen limited playing time.

We saw the last pure Rhoades defense in the Navy game. Wanny took it away from him. There is no other explanation that makes any sense. I watched Rhoades and his D just suck for many years and that was with NFL drafted players on his team. The Bend over and take it D is history. No longer will we have NFL corners lining up 15 yards off the ball every play and NFL Linebackers sitting there waiting for a ball carrier with a head of steam to run them over.

Also Kinder is back. Many forget how special that guy was.

I’m optimistic, but like many I expect to see improvements in the Win Department. The win over wvu was big, and I do expect it to carry over. The offense, in that game, didn’t do anything dangerous, and played to the strength of run first and let Pat make simple throws (a few sterling catches helped). The Defense was let loose, played close to the line and attacked the line of scrimmage, blowing up wvu plays time and time again, and our D looked faster than all season.

SO now we come to 2008, and like many of the pundits, I imagine we’ll be better….but at this time of year, every team and every fan believes their team is set for a big year…thus, we need to establish McCoy and friends running first, throw downfield to keep their DBs deep, and we need to ALWAYS play attack-minded D.

Yes, as a fan I can justify 12 wins without a problem…realistically, 8 or 9 wins would be a huge year!

Hail to PITT!
-al-

Stull was by far the most impressive QB in the spring scrimmage on TV. Lightning quick with both his reads and his passes.

I hope WVU runs all over Auburn because that will justify all the Rhodes-bashing I’ve been doing for 5 years.

Joshua keeps relating the win over WVU last year to “Jim Tracy saying, ’40-35 OMG!!!111!!1!'” as though there is a real comparison.

The Pirates haven’t had a winning season since 1992. Pitt has been to several bowl games in that amount of time, including a BCS game.

The Pirates having a 40-35 record part way through a season is an aberration because for the last 16 years they have done nothing to commit to even trying to win. Trading away talent, scape-goating managers who are given nothing to work with, pulling people from the farm system too early then trading them just as they start panning out; the Pirates don’t want to win. They make a profit without having to spend the money on trying to win.

Pitt, on the other hand, has tried winning in football. They have had ups and downs, but they have been trying to get the program back to at least a place of respectability. Hiring Wanny wasn’t a gimmick, but was a shot at really fixing the program. The kind of recruiting he has done is a testament to the fact that he wasn’t just a gimmick hire to buy time. If things don’t pan out over the next few years, it will be because he is a better recruiter than a coach. But unlike the Pirates, he has surrounded himself with enough talent that winning is actually a possibility now.

It isn’t and won’t be a possibility for the Pirates until they get ownership/management who thinks it is worth spending money on good players in order to build a winning team.

Plain and simple, Pitt has the tools and the commitment to win. It is a matter of execution at this point. The Pirates lack the tools, commitment, and execution. So 40-35 record was a shock to Jim Tracy. 13-9 was the culmination and payoff of a long period of watching and waiting for the Panthers.

Joshua putts from the rough!

Stuart, I would like a copy of that game as well. I’ve been looking around and can’t find it anywhere. I would totally pay you for your trouble! Email me at anjmi@aol.com. Thanks….