I’m not going to dwell on the Syracuse game. I mean it. If you want to see some good summation, check out Zeise’s “Good, Bad, Ugly.” from yesterday. Not much more needs to be added by me on that.

Survive and advance has been what we’ve seen from PItt. The players aren’t denying it, but they aren’t apologizing for it either.

And as Pitt middle linebacker Scott McKillop describes it, the Panthers would be able to wipe away some of the negative vibes that have surrounded the program since losing the season opener to Bowling Green and struggling to beat mediocre teams in each of their past three games.

“Whatever it looked like, whatever people think about it, whatever we did or didn’t do right — we won the game and now we are 3-1 and on a little bit of a roll,” McKillop said.

“Now we go to find out where we stand — South Florida is the measuring stick for the rest of the conference. They are a great team and they’ve been rolling this year.

“It has been a long time since we got a chance to play on national television with something on the line and we need to capitalize on it — we need to show that we’re a good team, that we can play with good teams and beat them.”

You know, he’s right. In terms of showing that, rather than just being a spoiler or that Pitt was “making progress,” it has been a while before a national TV audience. You would have to go back to the Rutgers game of 2006 for the last nationally broadcast game where Pitt had a chance to show people that they weren’t a pretender. Pitt was 6-1 and Rutgers was 6-0. One of those teams was going to turn out to be a fake. It was Pitt as that was the 1st of 5 straight losses to doom the season.

Now it’s the first real test and it will be for all to see. Three wins so far. A good chance none of the teams Pitt has beaten will finish above .500, so that has held to the typical standards. The only teams Pitt has beaten that finished better than 6-6 have been Cinci (in ’06 and ’07) and WVU (’07). 3-16 in Wannstedt’s tenure (and the jury is still out on whether BGSU gets put in that group). Thursday night games have been a flop for Pitt — period.

The Panthers are hoping to reverse a disturbing trend when they play the Bulls at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Raymond James Stadium. Pitt won four of its first five games on ESPN’s Thursday night package — including a 21-17 victory over Miami in 1997 — but has lost eight of its past nine. The exception was a 16-13 victory over West Virginia in 2004, which helped clinch a share of the Big East title and, ultimately, a BCS bowl.

Wannstedt is 0-3 on Thursdays. Not that he’s worried — about himself?

“I’ve been around these short weeks,” Wannstedt said.

“Every year when I was with the Cowboys, I think four years when I was with the Bears and three years when I was with the Dolphins, we played on Thursday — Thanksgiving — and one thing that I think helps you more than anything else is what you do the week before.

So pulling out a win against a really bad team means, what?

“If you do well the week before, if you look back, teams usually on a short practice, guys aren’t as sore, guys are into it and guys are excited to go out and play again.

“So the win [against Syracuse] will definitely give us a chance to prepare as best we can in three days.”

I suppose from an attitude standpoint since they came away with a win it will.

Guess what? Pitt needs to run the ball.

Wannstedt is correct in stating that the running game has served as a great indicator of how Pitt fares. Over the past 16 games, dating to the start of the 2007 season, Pitt is 8-5 when it runs for 100 or more yards, 3-2 when it runs for 150-plus yards and 2-0 when it surpasses the 200-yard mark. The Panthers are 0-3 when held to less than 100 yards.

“For us to win games, we’ve got to run the ball,” Wannstedt said, “or it won’t happen.”

Well considering the QB situation over the last 16 games, yes, it would be vital. In those same games, the Pitt QBs have thrown for under 200 yards in 12 of the 16 games (5-7 record) and exceeded 200 yards 4 times (1-3 record). Pitt hasn’t had a 300+ passing game since Palko graduated. Say what you will, but this is really a Wannstedt/Cavanaugh team with those passing numbers.

Well, at least there are no mousetraps this week.

“If you need a theme to get pumped for this week’s game, you might as well not show up,” Pitt tailback LaRod Stephens-Howling said. “Everybody better be ready to play. We know it’s going to be a tough game. And we have to be ready. We know it’s going to be a great atmosphere for them, being at home, and their fans are real rowdy. But we have a pretty much veteran team, so we’ll be ready for that.

“This is a big game for us. We knew that, starting last week, every game is for the Big East championship, so that’s going to continue with every game. Every one is for the Big East championship from now on out. [South Florida] is one of the top teams in the Big East that everybody is talking about right now, so it’s definitely another big statement game for us.”

Although the players know this a very big game and aren’t afraid to say it, Wannstedt has tried to downplay the magnitude of the game. He said the Panthers are going to treat it like any other game.

Sure. It’s just your typical Thursday night road game on ESPN against the #10 team in the country. Nothing different there compared to all the other games played this season. He did have to answer questions at the weekly press conference about whether this team “has turned the corner.”

“I hope. We’ll find out. This will be a great opportunity this week. This will test us in areas where we haven’t been tested — the atmosphere, the talent — a lot of different factors.”

So, this is a big game.

When the question turned to Bill Stull’s struggles. Guess what theme Coach Wannstedt sticks with?

“Billy has struggled a little bit on some of those short passes and I think that’s because he’s just anxious to get those guys the ball when they’re open. That’s a little bit of inexperience but as I’ve said many times before, he’s only making his fifth start. He’ll improve every game.”

That’s funny. Most people watching Stull thinks it’s because his footwork has been shoddy. Dancing about, throwing off the back foot, and generally not stepping into his throws. Maybe he is forgetting, maybe he just doesn’t think he has room with the O-line. Whatever, I am not buying the “inexperience” excuse.

Before the season, it was how Stull was the best kept secret in the Big East and would surprise people. He struggles and it’s inexperience.

I like Stull. I think he’s the best option at starting QB. The fact is, though, he hasn’t been very good. If it’s “inexperience” as Wannstedt puts it — despite being a redshirt junior and having been in the system all this time — then that is one more issue with offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh’s development of QBs. And that sure doesn’t bode well with those that follow Stull.

Wannstedt also said that LB Shane Murray saw action in about 15 plays versus Syracuse and could see more on Thursday. Right guard Joe Thomas has a turned right ankle, but should be available — if not starting on Thursday.

DPJ of Cat Basket was at the press conference and he reports that Wannstedt was a little more critical of Stull’s performance than the transcribed quote indicated. He was not inspired.

Also this week, the subject of Jonathan Baldwin and Lucas Nix was brought up. Dave said that it was unfair to the older guys like Joe Thomas to have them out of the game for a freshman. He also cited inexperience and mistakes as reasons of why they could not play. Luckily someone in the audience pointed out that Baldwin caught the 2 point conversion pass and almost broke a screen pass on a 3rd and forever into a first down. The only response Dave Wannstedt had for that was that we were on a 3rd down and wanted to do a safe play where we would not lose any yardage. I wish someone would have pointed out the continual bad play of Turner and asked about that, unfortunately we were left with a non-answer.

The vibe from this press conference really gives off the impression that Wannstedt knows what our limitations are, but he refuses to address and change to fix those weaknesses. I really don’t think Greg Cross will get any significant playing time, and neither will Baldwin or Nix. I’m also afraid that this team is not being given any motivation to go out and upset this team. If the team does not believe we can win, then there is no way we will win. We need to come out angry and play like it is us against the world just as we did last year vs WVU. I just hope that on Friday morning there are a ton of comments telling me that I was wrong.

Are you kidding me? Unfair to older guys? What happened to the best players play? Oh, but they might make a mistake. Ugh.

This from ESPN.com Big East writer Brian Bennett says more of what we already knew.

Mark from The Burgh writes: Why do you think Wannstache is so reluctant to use his young talent that he is just leaving on the shelf, it’s like you have to be a junior or older to play or I guess a redshirt sophomore? How many games do you think the Panthers can win? They are winning in some close games that has to be good for something I would think.

Brian Bennett: Wannstedt’s reliance on veteran players is a reflection of his conservative nature and his background as an NFL guy. I thought his comments on the Big East coaches’ teleconference Monday were telling, when he basically said that in big games the first thing he looks at is how to avoid mistakes that will lose the game. That’s the mentality. The other thing to note, at least this year, is that the Panthers haven’t had any breathers. Every single game has been life or death in the second half, even Syracuse. It’s hard to put young players in those spots. As far as how many they can win, I’d say right now they’d be favored in three more games this year (Navy, Rutgers, Louisville) with two more games looking like toss-ups (at Notre Dame, at Cincinnati). Plus, they have the rematch with West Virginia at home. So my original prediction of eight wins is still very possible if they continue to improve.

[Emphasis added.]

I’m not encouraged about Thursday night.

No real shock here. Connor Lee took Big East Special Teams Player of the Week for his 14 point performance against Syracuse. That’s the most points accounted for by a kicker in the Big east this year.

Mike Holmes of Syracuse who returned the 90-yard kickoff for a TD and 207 total return yards made honor roll.

Oh, and Matt Grothe the USF QB took offensive player of the week honors for the second time this season.

Well, it seems that Pitt was ultimately tripped up by the insane NCAA and conference rules that got Nebraska this summer. Darnell Dodson is not permitted to come to Pitt.

Dodson was a class of 2007 commitment for Pittsburgh, but found out last September that he was not going to be cleared by the NCAA Clearinghouse. Since Dodson was enrolled at Pittsburgh and declared a non-qualifier, he was not allowed to be on scholarship at Pitt due to the Big East rule not allowing member schools to accept non-qualifiers…

Of course, Dodson had initially appeared eligible, but the NCAA Clearinghouse came back with more questions — in September. They hadn’t ruled on his status prior to the start of Pitt’s fall semester. In fact, they didn’t rule on him until October.

That left him and Pitt in a questionable situation. Especially since he was already enrolled. That meant all Pitt and Dodson could do would be take a chance with an appeal when the time came. It didn’t and an additional upshot is that the Big East keeps him from being recruited by any other Big East teams. Seems the Big East has a rule akin to the Big 12 that says if a non-qualifier is enrolled — even if he is declared a non-qualifier after the fact — he is out at all BE schools after he goes to Junior College. Which is really stupid since the NCAA banned kids from going to prep school when they can’t get eligible — so Dodson had little choice but to go JUCO.

Given Dodson’s from the Maryalnd, I’m guessing Gary Williams and Maryland will be active in pursuing him. Along with schools like VCU and Virginia Tech. Good luck to Darnell Dodson.

Pitt almost immediately, though, filled the scholarship with a power forward/center project in Talib Zanna.

Talib Zanna has impressed the NBE Basketball Report in the summer for the player he has become, but the player he could become has always had our staff very intrigued. Early in July at the Agent Zero to Hero event Zanna showed his ability to run the floor and improved willingness to battle in the post. At the Reebok Summer Championships Zanna displayed ability to face-up and attack off the dribble.

At 6-foot-9 and 220 pounds Zanna has the size to compete in the Big East and the athletic ability that had college coaches watching this summer. One major college assistant watching Zanna this summer remarked he “Has Major upside! Very long and athletic. Rebounds very well.” Zanna finished his summer playing for the Triple Threat AAU program after starting the AAU circuit with the DC Blue Devils. He will compete in his senior season with Bishop McNamara this season.

Tanna also had interest/offers from Georgetown, UConn and Providence. Not to mention VT, Clemson and Villanova.

Rivals.com doesn’t have him ranked or starred. Scout.com puts him as a 3-star and ESPN.com/Scouts, Inc. considers him a top-150 player (Insider subs.).

Zanna is a highly skilled and athletic big man who missed most of his sophomore year due to injury. This native of Nigeria has lots of bounce that enables him to get to the ball quickly on the glass to rebound and to dunk a lot. For his size he can face and penetrate, pass off the high post, and drop an occasional three. Able to score with either hand, Talib plays much in the mold of Tim Duncan.

Definitely a player that Pitt looks at as a development project, high-upside player.

Zanna, who came to the United States from Nigeria in 2006, was in Pittsburgh when the Panthers’ played host to Iowa earlier this month at Heinz Field.

Zanna has a reputation as a player who can run the floor and is willing to battle inside.

“He’s a strong, athletic kid,” said Keith Stevens, who coached Zanna on the D.C. Blue Devils AAU team. “He has a lot of potential. He has the ability go 15 feet from the basket and hit shots; and he’s a solid defender. He’s going to be a perfect complement to Dante Taylor.”

Locally, Tom Droney crossed Wake Forest off his list. He’s down to Pitt, Davidson and ND.

A nice puffer on ex-head coach Walt Harris.

“Pitt still means a lot to me,” he said. “Some of the people there still mean a lot to me …

“You can’t have a better chancellor than Mark Nordenberg. He was great to me. And it was wonderful that they brought Steve Pederson back [as athletic director]. He’s the smartest guy I’ve ever been around. They’ll bring Pitt back.”

It’s amazing Harris isn’t bitter about the way he was forced out at Pitt despite twice being Big East Conference Coach of the Year and leading the Panthers to six bowl games, including the Fiesta Bowl in his final season. It’s also amazing he isn’t reveling in the fact that his successor, Dave Wannstedt, in his fourth season, has not come close to matching his success. Pitt didn’t go to a bowl the past three seasons and lost its opener to Bowling Green this season with Harris in the Heinz Field stands.

The Harris era never has seemed better.

Harris never has seemed so smart.

“How does being bitter help me?” Harris asked. “How does it make my situation any better?

“Our record at Pitt is what it was. I’m very proud of it. I’m very proud of some of the other things we did there. Our graduation rate. Keeping the off-the-field problems to a minimum … “

The vitriol some have directed at Harris in the past always puzzled me. Half seemed to be because it was felt that he didn’t recruit well enough, one-third was about his coaching deficiencies and the rest seemed to be his personality and media dealings. It’s noticeably dimmed in the past year as we still wait for Wannstedt to take Pitt to that “next level.”

I know that Harris reached a point with Pitt where it seemed they both needed to go their separate ways, so I am glad that Harris still speaks kindly of his time at Pitt.

Then there’s Andrew Johnson, one of the key defectors from Pitt’s lost 2004 recruiting class — and a significant blow to Walt Harris’ tenure. Johnson was supposed to be a can’t-miss, blue-chip running back. He missed.

Andrew Johnson drew the ire of Pitt fans when he backed out of a verbal commitment to the hometown Panthers to play for his dream school, the University of Miami, in 2004. Four years later, the North Hills High School graduate is now playing for the Akron Zips.

He claims no regrets over the way his career went. Sure.

Rough sketch right now. There are some changes a-coming to the BlogPoll.

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Oklahoma	1
2	LSU	3
3	Alabama	6
4	Missouri	1
5	Texas	2
6	South Florida	4
7	Penn State	4
8	Georgia	4
9	Brigham Young	5
10	Southern Cal	9
11	Auburn	2
12	Texas Tech	3
13	Florida	7
14	Ohio State	2
15	Kansas	3
16	Utah	1
17	Connecticut	3
18	Vanderbilt	1
19	Virginia Tech	3
20	Boise State	3
21	Ball State	4
22	Michigan State	4
23	Wake Forest	15
24	Northwestern	2
25	Fresno State	1

I might be kind of hard on Wisconsin, but blowing that game and the way they have struggled has me hesitant. Some other teams should have fallen further, but with all the upsets over the weekend it kept them from falling further. After all, that would mean moving other teams that I’m just not sure deserve to go too much higher.

Is this what Pitt is this year? A team that just keeps winning by the skin-of-their teeth. Even coming back against the worst team in the Big East and possibly the worst team amongst the BCS Conference teams (Washington and Washington St. may have something to say).

Falling September 28, 2008

I’m trying to be positive. I really am. I can’t ignore, however, that this is the third straight game where we find ourselves exhaling and saying, “at least they won.”

A lot of people talked about Pitt’s physical conditioning wearing down Iowa last week. This week, that really showed against Syracuse in the second half. As Pitt shifted to running the ball, you could see the Orange defense wear down. That’s great, but I just don’t think Pitt can count on that. Especially against the better teams.

Apparently, Coach Wannstedt, er, expected this kind of game.

“Anybody who thought it was going to be different than what it was this afternoon has no clue about young athletes and coaches and trying to win,” he said.

Actually, anyone with some knowledge of the college game had every right to expect a Pitt rout from the first kickoff and not a game in which a fourth-quarter rally would be needed for victory.

He didn’t really put the play on youth did he? Sadly, there is no Wannstedt transcript. He does know that Syracuse had 25 freshmen and sophomores on their offense and defense two-deep? Pitt starts and plays a lot less youth.

Well, the 10-point deficit to the Orange was the largest Pitt has ever overcome in the Wannstedt era.

It was the largest deficit Pitt (3-1, 1-0) has overcome under Wannstedt, who improved to 19-20 in his fourth season, including 4-7 in Big East road games. Syracuse (1-4, 0-1) has lost 20 of its past 22 conference contests.

“You can always refer back to that,” Wannstedt said of overcoming a double-digit deficit, “but I look at that kind of like going for it on fourth down; you’d rather not.”

The running game — to no one’s shock — broke out against one of the worst run defenses in the country. LeSean McCoy broke out in the second-half when Pitt focused on the run. 147 yards on the day. One run in particular stands out.

McCoy only had one long run in the game, a 34-yarder in the third quarter, and the end of it was the most entertaining part. On the first play after Pitt gambled on fourth-and-inches from its 32-yard line and made the first down on a quarterback sneak, McCoy burst over right tackle and into the clear. He cut to the sideline, and the race was on. He made it all the way to the SU 32 before three tacklers cut him off. Seeing one SU player in front of him, one alongside him and one behind him, McCoy promptly sat down on the Carrier Dome turf.

“Hey, I gassed out,” he said. “I didn’t have anymore gas in me. I didn’t even have enough gas to get out of bounds.”

Fellow tailback LaRod Stephens-Howling wasn’t buying the explanation but vowed to wait a day before letting McCoy have it.

“I already told him we’re not going to talk about that until the film room tomorrow,” Stephens-Howling said with a smile.

Coach Wannstedt broke tradition by handing out a game ball right after the game.

“I thought our kids did a great job at halftime of not coming unglued, of staying positive. I normally don’t award game balls in the locker room until I see the film … but LaRod Stephens-Howling, the guy made tackles on kickoffs, the guy made tackles on punts and he obviously scored the two touchdowns.”

Probably could have given one to Connor Lee as well. Do you really need game film to determine that nailing 4 FGs — 3 of them of 40 yards or more — in the game merits a game ball? Especially when it ties a Pitt record. Not to mention, still not missing and XP.

Not that Pitt didn’t get help from Syracuse.

Pitt benefitted from one major break in the first half when Orange coach Greg Robinson decided against going for a first down on fourth-and-1 at the Panthers’ 38.

Instead, he ordered a punt. To that point, the Orange had dominated play and led, 14-3, while the Panthers’ defense spun its wheels.

“That decision gave us confidence,” said Pitt middle linebacker Scott McKillop.

The Panthers, who mostly conceded the outcome likely would have been different if Syracuse had forged a 21-3 lead, responded by outscoring the Orange, 31-10, after the punt.

You don’t say? You mean having a 4th and 1 inside the 40 and punting says something to the opposing defense? Not to mention what it must say to that team’s offense. I guess Greg Robinson didn’t review the tape of the BGSU-Pitt game. And man, did Robinson face questions.

The fourth-and-1 play from the Pitt 38 in the first quarter with the Orange leading 14-3 looked bad – and Robinson was hammered pretty good for his decision (I mentioned on the blog it was poor game management). Here’s another piece to that play – center Jim McKenzie failed to snap the ball when Pitt jumped off sides. It’s a set play that the Orange works on twice a week. If McKenzie snaps it, Pitt is either flagged for being off-sides or quarterback Cam Dantley bulls ahead. The problem was, McKenzie didn’t snap the ball. Brain freeze?

“We had our chance to convert and didn’t get it,” Robinson said of the fourth-down play. “The risk and reward was good.”In his post-game press conference Saturday after the loss to Pitt, Robinson took one for the team by declaring he wasn’t desperate in that situation. He never brought up the fact it was a set play and that McKenzie didn’t execute the snap. McKenzie had at least two poor snaps with Dantley in the shotgun formation. One contributed to a sack.

I was wondering about that. Pitt did jump, but Syracuse never snapped and then just froze. I admit that stats ranking teams with only 4 or 5 games played, generally don’t say a lot. In Syracuse’s case, they do.

– Third down conversions – SU’s offense is ranked 115th nationally.

– Third down conversions defense – Orange is ranked 117th nationally.

Here’s two more:

– First downs offense – SU is ranked 116th

– First downs defense – SU is ranked 115th

Eeewwww.

Oh, and it also helped that Greg Robinson is a moron as a head coach. He decided that Curtis Brinkley needed a break late in the game. Sure Brinkley had run for 106 yards at that point. Sure Pitt had just finished a nearly 5 minute scoring drive to tie the game.

Brinkley said he was good to go. His body langauge suggested he was not the least bit happy about standing on the sidelines during that point of the game.

“That was very frustrating,” Brinkley said. “I wanted to be in the game, but at the end of the day it’s a coach’s decision and the coach decided to put somebody else in. I wasn’t hurt or nothing. I wasn’t tired. I mean, my momemtum carried me throughout the whole game. My adrenaline was rushing from the first play. I ain’t get tired throughout any minute of the game.

“It was a coach’s decision. If it was up to me I would have played more, and if it was up to other people, they probably would have wanted to play more. But the coaches wanted who they wanted out there, and all I could was listen to them and, you know, respect what they want.”

Robinson said Brinkley, who rushed 16 times for 119 yards, was fatigued.

“Doug had hurt himself, tweaked his ankle,” Robinson said. “I felt we really didn’t have him at full speed. Antwon is a guy that has been very impressive to us. The idea was, we’re playing to try to win the football game, and when Curtis needed a blow, we needed to put him in. We were going to use Doug just because he’s such a fine blocker for third down situations.”

Antwon Bailey only gained 5 yards on two carries, then Dantley was sacked on 3d down. Needless to say the natives are unhappy. Yet Greg Robinson is still employed as I type this.

While Bill Stull passed for only 166 yards, Derek Kinder was responsible for 92 of them with 8 catches. Kinder also got a puffer from the local paper.

Cat Basket is still frustrated with the coaches and the way they call the game.

Pitt Panther Prowl is trying to find more positives than negatives.

Not much time to dwell on this game (thankfully). Big Thursday night game coming up.

Well, James Padgett decided to choose Maryland.

“It came down to Pitt and Maryland, and Pitt signed two big men in the Class of 2009 so Maryland was left,” Padgett said.

He made the right call for himself. Well, really the decision was made for him. He did have two top choices but hadn’t made a choice. After a point, Pitt wasn’t waiting and he couldn’t wait to see if something better than Maryland would come along. Or worse, if Maryland wouldn’t wait for him to decide.

It’s an illustrative item on recruiting. Programs and players have to make decisions how long to wait. How long to hold a scholarship. How long to wait and make a decision. Only the elite, blue-chippers can make a team wait and a team will wait. Those that aren’t — no matter what their potential might be — have to balance and measure.

Gary Parrish at CBS Sports applauds Dixon’s extension and that Pitt took the chance with Dixon.

“Everybody thought I was too young because I was only 37 and I’d be the youngest coach in the conference,” Dixon said by phone Thursday. “But I pointed out to the chancellor that the school had once named a 37-year-old the dean of the law school.”

Why was this relevant, you ask? Because that one-time 37-year-old dean of the law school had become the 55-year-old chancellor hiring the basketball coach. “The chancellor likes telling that story,” Dixon said with a laugh. And it’s a story worth retelling now because Nordenberg’s brilliant decision to take a chance on an unproven assistant was highlighted again Thursday when the school announced an extension of Dixon’s contract through the 2015-16 season.

There’s a slight revision, but at least there’s an acknowledgment that the first choice was the late Skip Prosser.

“They offered Skip the job first, and there’s a funny story about that,” Dixon recalled. “When I got the job my first recruiting trip was in Houston, and as soon as I walked in the gym the first person I saw was Skip Prosser and we just started laughing. I said ‘Skip, I owe you. I owe you.'”

Now, I hate to revisit the Mike Cook decision, but in light of Syracuse’s Eric Devendorf getting a medical redshirt some see a little unfairness.

Devendorf tore the ACL in his left knee in the tenth game of the season. Cook tore the ACL in his left knee in the 11th game of the season. Both sat out for the rest of the year.

So how can the Big East give one player an extra year of eligibility and send the other packing?

Well, apparently that one game makes a large difference. Taking into account that the NCAA does not count NCAA tournament games and only counts one conference tournament game, Devendorf played in 10 of his team’s 32 games, which is 31%. And Cook played in 11 of his team’s 32 games, which is 34%. (If we counted all Big East Tournament games, NIT games and NCAA Tournament games, Devendorf would’ve played in 28% of ‘Cuse’s games and Cook would’ve played in 29.7% of Pitt’s games.)

Of course, the way the NCAA counts games is all over the board, so I’m not actually sure. I don’t begrudge the Orange or Devendorf getting the extra year of eligibility. In fact, I’m happy. I like Paul Harris and Jonny Flynn. The Orange are so much easier to hate with Devendorf on the team.

It’s live blog day. Pitt on the road. I’m at home.

New tech, though. The live blog will be in a more interactive/chat format. With the comments appearing right with my blog comments.

The comments will be subject to approval in this format. Highly irrelevant comments, Abusive commenting or excessive cursing (unless warranted) will not get posted.

Unfortunately, WordPress based blogs are not as compatible with the CoverItLive software to plop it right in the post. So click the link below to go to the liveblog at noon. It will appear as a pop-up box.

Click Here

The game is on WTAE in Pittsburgh. For those with ESPN Gameplan, it will be showed on that. It’s an ESPN Regional game. You can see it on the following sports cable channels depending on your region:

SNY (SportsNet New York)

MASN (DC region)

Altitude Sports and Entertainment

Courtesy of DanS who is at the game.

Crowd control

Never let it be said that Syracuse lacks gallows humor.

How about a game of Bingo (PDF)? They have 3 different cards.

Play along

Here’s the blueprint to how Syracuse can beat Pitt. Strangely, it doesn’t involve lulling Wannstedt into a false sense that the game is over by going down 14-0 in the first quarter.

Quick comparison on the game that is a must-win for both coaches.

Conference opener. It’s sort of a clean slate.

“It is sort of like starting over now,” Wannstedt said. “The first three weeks, you put them behind you and you make the focus what our main goal is, win the Big East title. I am sure Syracuse feels the same way, and so this will be a very tough game because I’m sure the Orange will be more than ready to play.”

Of course, Pitt still has two more non-cons to play.

A quick summary of two disappointing teams under their respective coaches. Since it is out of Rochester, the focus is more on the ‘Cuse shortcomings.

Well, what do you know. Even OC Cavanaugh admits there is some reason for disappointment with the offense.

“You have to get some of those chunk runs,” he said. “I don’t think you’re going to go out there and average 5 yards per carry on 40 carries, (but) at some point you’re going to break one. We’ve got guys that can go the distance.”

Through three games Pitt is averaging 3.6 yards per rush.

“We’re all disappointed that the numbers aren’t where they’re supposed to be,” Cavanaugh said. “Nobody wants to discount winning a couple games, we just feel to complement our offense we need to run the ball for more yards than we’re getting, and we’re close.

“I’m hoping we can get both LeSean and LaRod on track here pretty quick, and start being a little more efficient running the football.”

No word about the passing game.

Greg Robinson has no choice but to pretend he isn’t about to be fired at any moment (like after this weekend). The players are at least saying the insane party line about things.

“I believe the time is now,” defensive end Anthony Perkins said. “We’re going like a water hose, springing spurts (of progress). Everything’s coming together.”

…

“I’ve been excited all week about it. This is a great opportunity for us,” Robinson said. “I don’t see it as any other way, and I’m not going to let something get in the way of that. This is all about coaching this football team to win a Big East football game.

Syracuse is hoping to build on the momentum they took away from last week’s 30-21 home win over Northeastern.

“It’s good to have a win like that, to know that we’re capable of winning,” Syracuse senior safety Bruce Williams said. “It’s really important for us, just to get one and feel that taste.”

Nothing like the momentum of beating a 1-AA team.

Well, it happened again. A bunch of links that piled up during the week and now I just have to dump them.

Pitt hasn’t taken a lot of penalties. That has to make Coach Wannstedt happy. Just look at the company Pitt is keeping in that category.

The other thing I noticed was that many of these schools this season are in the northeast. Boston College is the least penalized team in the country thus far, followed by Pitt at No. 2 and then a two-way tie at third among Navy and Vandy with Syracuse at No. 5.

And Vandy is the only undefeated team in the top-5. Wait for the bottom 5:

#118 Georgia 4-0
#118 Texas Tech 4-0
#117 Utah 4-0
#116 Florida 3-0
#115 TCU 4-0

…

Tech coach Mike Leach, the guy who loves pirates more than anyone I’ve ever met, has an interesting take on this as well. “I’ve thought about that, and in our case, we wouldn’t be in the top five if you removed our first game (18 penalties), where we were really aggressive and sloppy,” he said. “We were too close to the edge, although it’s not unusual for us to be up there. Thing is, if you look at the list of some of those least penalized teams. There’s a lot of really bad teams there, and maybe they’re not pushing the envelope enough. Maybe they’re saying ‘We’ll at least we’re disciplined.’

Disciplined my (butt). You’re just afraid to play hard.

“John Wooden used to say teams that make the most mistakes will win and that means don’t let the fear of failure keep you from playing aggressively.

“The other part of it is, if you open it up like we do and like Florida does and some of these other teams do, you have more individual matchups where two people are isolated and you can see what’s happening better than say if we just hand it to a running back and everybody wedge-blocks up the middle.”

Gotta love Mike Leach.

Speaking of deceptive numbers. Pitt is 9-9 in the Red Zone this year. One of 8 teams that is batting 1.000. Guess who else is in there? Syracuse. They are 11-11.

The coaching hot seat topic is big. It’s funny (not really), about 4-years ago Pitt went up to the Carrier Dome for what I called the “lame-duck bowl.” Reasoning that the losing coach was sure to be fired. I was wrong. Both coaches were gone after that season (yes, I know, technically Harris left for another job, but come on. PItt was shoving him out the door). I’m not saying there will be a repeat, but if Pitt were to somehow lose this game, well yeah it could be the thing.

Syracuse fans are having visions of Lloyd Carr.

Adam Gunn featured and talking about his injury in a broader story on injuries in football.

Over to ESPN’s Big East blogger, Brian Bennett. He has a nice piece on Austin Ransom. His list of things to Watch in the Big East, the middle 3 are tied to the Pitt-Syracuse game.

5. Pittsburgh’s consistency. Panthers coach Dave Wannstedt has placed mouse traps around the football complex this week to try to remind his team not to succumb to a “trap game” at Syracuse. Please. Pitt isn’t good enough yet to look past anyone, especially an Orange team that lost by only three points at Heinz Field last year.

6. Syracuse’s confidence. Did finally getting a win give the Orange enough of an ego boost that they can hang with Pitt? That would have to be some boost. But the Panthers offense isn’t that tough to devise game plans for or contain, and Syracuse has traditionally played Pittsburgh tough. But if it is a blowout …

7. Greg Robinson’s situation. I don’t believe Daryl Gross will fire Robinson before October. But the way the Syracuse athletic director talked this week, it’s clear he’s moving rapidly in that direction. A hapless performance by the Orange would put everyone on Robinson watch beginning late Saturday afternoon.

Local Syracuse station focuses on Syracuse wanting revenge for last year. Slight tangent, notice that the TV station still uses the old “Pittsburgh” logo. Yeesh.

I’ve never understood how in the Syracuse coaching change they could let present Pitt running back coach (and ‘Cuse alum) get away. I’m not complaining, I just can’t believe it. A nice piece on Walker and LeSean McCoy.

He’d love nothing more than to break out this weekend in Syracuse because of Walker.

“It’s big,” he said. “I always jerk him around, mess around with him. Obviously, he’s from the ‘Cuse and played at Syracuse. I’ve seen some tape of him. I always mess around with him about it. It’s a little something extra for him to go back there, play them and come out with the win. That’s big.”

Hmm. Wonder if that had anything to do with LaRod Stephens-Howling going for 221 at the Carrier Dome a couple years back?

Anyone remember when the Pitt coaches talked about having Stephens-Howling and McCoy in the backfield at the same time?

Q: When are we going to see McCoy and Stephens-Howling in the backfield together?

ZEISE: Good question. I have no idea but it was something we were told would happen and it was worked on throughout training camp. Heck, I even wrote a story about it. Again, all of these things are situational and coaches have concerns about trying to do too much or get too many formations involved so it wouldn’t shock me if we see fewer formations and whatnot as opposed to more. In fact, Dave Wannstedt said as much on Monday at his news conference, that the Panthers are trying too do many things on offense and that is taking him somewhat out of his comfort zone.

From Paul Zeise’s chat on Thursday, a couple questions about passing downfield.

the_Pitts: Why doesn’t Stull throw across the middle more to his TEs? It seems like he can get 10 to 15 yards every time on those plays.

Paul Zeise: Those plays are there to be had indeed, particularly against the defensive fronts that Pitt has and will face. But those passes also don’t seem to be a priority as this offense seems to favor shorter passes and passes that go sideways, like wide receiver screens, bubble screens, passes to the fullbacks, circle routes to the tailbacks etc. etc……

…

ConservativeCav: If you dont throw down the field, the LB’s and safeties will move closer to line of scrimmage to stuff the run!!!

Paul Zeise: I know this — and that might explain why LeSean McCoy is not finding much room to run these days.

Do the coaches know this, though?

Expect a lot of running from both sides. Pitt is still looking to get the running game going, in case you hadn’t heard.

Pitt (2-1) has neither eclipsed 200 team rushing yards nor had a 100-yard rusher through its first three games and ranks last in the Big East in rushing yards (123.3). If the Panthers are can’t cure their run game against a Syracuse defense that allows 198.2 yards a game, it could spell trouble.

“We’re all a little disappointed that the numbers aren’t where they should be,” Pitt offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh said. “Nobody wants to discount winning a couple games, but we feel like, to complement our offense, we need to run for more yards than we’re getting.

“And I feel like we’re close.”

So Pitt’s a bit disappointed in their running game. What about Pitt’s run defense?

“I haven’t been pleased with our run defense,” Wannstedt said. “We’ve been OK, but we haven’t been dominant in anything.”

DC Phil Bennett sees room for improvement, but does think the defense is getting better.

“Our focus has been on us, and how we can get better,” Bennett said. “I thought we finished [the Iowa] game, and there were so many things that you could see, and one is that we are just one or two plays in the game away from a really, really fine game. We just need to keep striving for perfection in order to do that.

“At this point, it really doesn’t matter who we play. We need to focus on the little things we can do better, that is more important — taking care of us and not our opponent.”

And finally still more questions about how Pitt uses (or more precisely, doesn’t use) the players it recruits.

Q: I am a little confused about Collins. He is not used in short yardage situations. He is not used to change pace or mix the play calling up and so far he hasn’t been the greatest blocker. What myth does the staff work under regarding the necessity of a full back except for their 1982 Pro style offense?

Zeise: I could not agree more. I have been saying this one for the past three years — why did this guy get recruited to come here if he is not going to be used in a role that takes advantage of what he does well? He seems to be a good player, coaches seem to think he is a good player, but he is just not a part of the game plan at all. I understand that fullbacks are becoming sort of like the dinosaurs — extinct — but when you have a player with this guy’s skills, at least when he has the ball in his hands, to not use him seems to me like you are leaving some things on the table. I don’t think the guys is a big-time playmaker who deserves 20 touches a game, but between receptions and rushes, is five or six per game too many to ask for?

Zeise has always seemed to have a man-crush on Collins, but the point is still valid. At this point, I almost think Pitt would be better served putting in another offensive lineman at the fullback spot just to provide better blocking.

Sean of Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician — the best Syracuse blog, and the best Big East blogger out there — and I traded questions, answers and self-pity ahead of the Pitt Syracuse game tomorrow. My responses to his canny questions are here.

1. Okay, so exactly who is healthy for the Orange? Seems like on top of everything else, there are injuries and curious attempts to maintain redshirts. What running backs can Pitt expect to see? I understand it’s the Cam Dantley reign at QB.

When you ask who is healthy are you asking from a physical standpoint or a mental one? Big difference. Assuming you mean physical, there’s really only one player you might not see and that’s Delone Carter. Before straining his knee a few weeks ago Carter was entrenched as the #2 back on roster and good for 10-15 carries/game behind Curtis Brinkley. The good news for SU is that we have Doug Hogue ready to step in and cover the role until Carter is up to speed again. My guess is that you’ll see a little bit of Carter, a little more of Hogue and whole lot of Brinkley.

There’s also freshman Averin Collier who was said before the season to have a shot at some serious PT. Combine the success of Brinkley et al and a leg injury in the summer and Collier hasn’t seen play #1 yet this season. A smart coach might redshirt this future star so that you can maximize this potential. But we’re not dealing with a smart coach. So Collier is still active. And unless Curtis Brinkley is run over by a tank and Delone Carter’s leg arbitrarily falls off, Collier won’t see very much action this season, if at all.

Cam Dantley is indeed the quarterback. He doesn’t exactly do a lot to convince us he is the man to lead us back to glory but he’s certainly doing enough to warrant holding on to the starting job for now. It was a surprise to SU fans when Andrew Robinson was benched so quickly but in retrospect it was a long time coming. Robinson was having mechanical problems all pre-season and if Greg Robinson actually based his decisions on who deserves it and not on what the nice thing to do is, Dantley would have been the starter at the beginning of the year.

2. AlmostFest? WTF? For a noon game? Exactly how many people actually show up for any sort of concert at 10am?

I’ll have you know that StormFront is Upstate New York’s PREMIERE Billy Joel cover band. You haven’t heard Downeaster Alexa until you’ve heard it filtered through six guys from Albany who’ve never set foot in Long Island.

I don’t know much about the greater Pittsburgh area but what I know about Syracuse is this…this is PRIME cover band territory. These people LOVE Billy Joel, KISS and Van Halen. But how often do Billy Joel, KISS and Van Halen make it up to that part of the country? Once every five years? If that? Cover bands are like nature’s pacifiers in Central NY.

Of course, there is no KISS cover band this year. Worse than that, there is no midget KISS Cover band this year. If you’re not gonna do it right…don’t do it.

3. Everyone and their dog knows Greg Robinson is dead coach walking. Is this going to go the distance for the season or does the good DOCTOR end it early?

I have been saying for the past couple weeks that, assuming we lose, he’s getting fired immediately following this game. Syracuse has a bye coming up, it’s perfect timing. So naturally, that won’t happen.

I’m beginning to come around to this theory that he’ll get the Zook Treatment and be allowed to finish the season. If he doesn’t get fired after this one, you might as well let him finish out the season at that point. It won’t make a difference either way but I guess you won’t look entirely heartless if you let him stick around and try to get a sympathy win over Rutgers.

What will NOT happen is Greg keeping his job all season long only to be fired when its over. There’s just no possible way, it’s too late.

4. Dave Wannstedt is hanging mousetraps around the practice facility to let the players know this is a trap game. What is Greg Robinson doing to motivate the Orange this week?

You can keep your stinkin’ moustraps. You know what we use? Arbitrary, ultimately-meaningless catchphrases. We’re fightin’ the fight. We’re working on our want-to and we’re improving our have-to. We’re really flashing. We’re turning corners and pushing through ceilings and giving more than 100% which seems impossible but you would be wrong in thinking so.

5. So, after Lane Kiffen, and possibly present OC Mitch Browning, who are the names that the DOCTOR is supposed to be considering with the “first pick of the draft”?

Well, first I’ll give you the list of coaches who are apparently being pushed on us by our own alumni:

Marty Morninwheg, Kevin Gilbride, George O’Leary…

I’d add more but I passed out just writing that list. For the people who think they’re doing us a favor by pushing these people for the job, I hate you all.

Who are the legit candidates at this very moment in time?

Turner Gill, Al Golden, Lane Kiffin, Skip Holtz, Florida OC Dan Mullen, Illinois OC Mike Locksley and UCLA OC Norm Chow.

Now, all of this could change vastly by the time December rolls around so I’m not one for getting too worked up about it just yet. As long as its eventually not a lifer NFL assistant desperate for a head coaching job, I’m probably gonna be fine with it.

6. Aside from seeing a slimmed Pat Shadle, what unexpected sights can Pitt fans expect from Syracuse?

You can’t underestimate how good Pat Shadle looks, no homo. It’s something to be seen.

I think you’ll be surprised with how good our running game is.

I think you won’t be surprised with how bad everything else is.

I think you’ll be surprised how good our punter is.

I think you won’t be surprised that he’s the best player on the team.

I think you’ll be surprised at Cam Dantley’s arm strength.

I think you won’t be surprised.to see we only take advantage of it once or twice all game.

I think you’ll be surprised by the assortment of signs that SU fans bring to the game displaying their disdain for the current status.

Then again, I think you won’t.

Sean will almost certainly be doing his own liveblog/chat tomorrow. Read TNIAAM regularly for the latest on the end of the Greg Robinson era.

Coach Jamie Dixon is in New Jersey today for St. Benedict’s Dan Hurley’s coaching clinic. Dixon is one of the headline/name speakers at the clinic. I’m sure he’ll get congratulations from some of the other coaches for the raise — though, when you’re hanging out with Bill Self and Rick Barnes you are still on the low end of the pay scale.

Legends Classic Championship Round Tickets go on sale this morning. The games at the Prudential Center in Newark on November 28 and 29 will include Pitt, Mississippi St., Washington St., and Texas Tech. Dick Weiss included Sam Young and DeJuan Blair on his list of players that the Wooden Award Committee should stick on the watchlist.

Levance Field’s ankle is now officially a source of anxiety. I’m not putting it at major anxiety, but it is a concern. The latest setback is an infection that has put the kibosh on rehab and conditioning while it heals.

It isn’t expected that he will miss the season or anything, but it will slow him down when practice starts in October. The only upside is that it will give the other guards opportunities to compete to run the offense initially.

On the subject of Dixon’s extension, the terms weren’t disclosed but it is expected that he will be making around $1.5 million per year. Dixon has a great comfort level with the PItt powers.

Pederson offered Dixon more money and three more years on his existing contract, and Dixon had only one question: how long the administration of Pederson, Vice Chancellor Jerry Cochran and Chancellor Mark Nordenberg would remain intact.

“My only concern, and I raised this to Steve, was this contract runs for eight years,” Dixon said. “I wanted to know how long they will be here, what the direction of the university is and where they will be.

“They couldn’t give me guarantees, but that’s a big part of our success. Jerry, Steve and the chancellor are a big part of it. They’ve done an unbelievable job running this place.”

AD Pederson says it’s not just an extension by a few years.

“Essentially, we reworked the whole deal,” Pederson said. “We didn’t just add three years. The terms changed for the whole seven-year period.”

Pederson declined to reveal financial terms of the contract, which paid Dixon a salary of $1.3 million last season, but he said it includes a raise that places Dixon among the upper-echelon of Big East Conference coaches.

“There’s really is something special about Jamie,” Pederson said. “The reasons he loves it here and the reasons he’s so loyal are real sincere reasons. From my standpoint, this wasn’t a contract extension done for recruiting reasons or public-relations reasons. It was done because we want him to be the coach here a long time, and he wants to be the coach here a long time.”

Well, maybe upper-middle of the BE coaches. We are talking pay for coaches like Calhoun, Pitino, Boeheim, Huggins and Wright. To say nothing of the fact that Brey got a raise from ND. Marquette actually helped lower the upper-end with Crean moving to Indiana.

With Dixon’s 132 wins, he’s a virtual lock to pass Paul Evans’ 147 wins to move to 3d on Pitt’s all-time coaching wins list. Behind only Robert Timmons (174 wins) and H.C. (Doc) Carlson (367).

Joe Starkey feels his cynicism over coaching declarations of loyalty beaten back in the case of Coach Dixon.

Call me a sucker, but I think so, too. I think Dixon really is going to be here for the next seven years — and quite possibly longer.

Several reasons for that.

For one, Dixon seems deeply connected to Pitt’s administration — he’s much tighter with Pederson than he was with former athletic director Jeff Long, for example — and truly seems to appreciate the city and that Pitt took a chance on him.

I believe Dixon when he says he wants to become synonymous with this program the way Mike Krzyzewski is with Duke.

Coach “J,” anyone?

“I don’t want to be the guy looking for the next job,” said Dixon, who owns the best winning percentage (.680) in Big East history. “I don’t want to be the guy who gets fired, (either).”

I’m still a cynic. Don’t get me wrong. I love that Dixon is Pitt’s coach. He wins, there is absolutely no whiff of impropriety. He has been the best fit for Pitt.  While Dixon is highly successful, his success has been less overtly spectacular. This has aided the school in keeping him.

Administrators and ADs at other programs are aware of him and keep putting him on the short list. His maintenance and slow growth of Pitt’s program, though, has kept him from becoming a splashy name. He doesn’t excite the big money boosters at other programs. That means less pressure on the AD to pursue and money thrown at Dixon. A lot less than a coach at a mid-major or another school who engineers a quick turnaround or makes a big splash by getting to the Sweet 16 very abruptly.

Given the history of Pitt in keeping coaches and paying the money, I think this has been a big help in keeping Dixon and building his trust and desire to stay at Pitt over time. There was only after his 3d year, the serious threat to him leaving.

Now having said that, never assume “forever.” There are a couple places on the West Coast that could come calling in the next 3-5 years that can’t be taken lightly. Oregon may have extended Ernie Kent, but if he flounders they will cut him loose. They have lots of money going into new facilities and they have Phil Knight of Nike ready to give them more for anything they need. I also don’t think I will breathe easier until Lute Olson retires and is actually replaced at Arizona. That is an attractive job and they will have the money to throw as well.

With basketball practice starting in less than 3 weeks, Josh (Merlin) Verlin over at the Oakland Zoo is getting geared up. He’s happy about the Dixon extension and notes that Pitt’s Media Day will be on October 16, the day before the first official day teams can practice.

Finally, for the hoops deprived, the tip-off for college basketball junkies will be on Tuesday November 18.

A marathon of 14 college basketball games on Nov. 18 — spread over 23 consecutive hours — will help kick off the 2008-09 college basketball season on ESPN.

The games open at midnight ET with national championship game runner-up Memphis hosting Massachusetts, where Tigers head coach John Calipari once coached. It wraps up with the two winningest programs in college hoops history — Kentucky and North Carolina — meeting in Chapel Hill at 9 p.m. ET.

Wheee.

The sad thing is I’m actually a paying subscriber for this service. I tried watching the live “All-Access” video of AD Pederson and Coach Dixon announcing Dixon’s contract extension. Got choppy feed that froze a couple minutes in. Then the audio died. Tried re-launching several times only to be told that the program I requested had not yet started. There’s little point in trying to do these sort of events with streaming feeds if you can’t make them work.

I know, this isn’t the athletic department’s fault. It’s a problem with CSTV/CBS College Sports service. Yeah, well, Pitt has this branded as “Panthers All-Access” so it is their fault and their problem. Nothing like bad tech and lousy service to spoil a good story. Fan outreach only works, if it reaches the fans.

Sorry had to vent.

Here’s the story.

Pitt athletic director Steve Pederson announced today that men’s basketball coach Jamie Dixon has been given a three-year contract extension, through the 2015-16 season.

“This contract extension is all about commitment: our commitment to Jamie and his commitment to the University of Pittsburgh,” Pederson said in a statement. “Jamie has risen to the top of his profession in a very short period of time. He is deserving of this commitment by the university for establishing Pitt basketball as one of the nation’s premier programs.

…

“Five years ago, we gave a young but extraordinarily capable and committed head coach the opportunity to lead our men’s basketball program — which he had helped move onto the national stage — to even higher level of quality and impact,” Pitt Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg said. “Under Jamie Dixon’s leadership, that program has secured a position as one of the country’s finest — widely respected for its success in competition, its high-quality student-athletes and its strong guiding values. Jamie Dixon not only is one of college basketball’s best coaches, he also is one of our university’s best representatives.

“Today’s announcement is a clear reflection of our shared desire to have him continue in those roles for many years to come.”

I’m happy about this. Coach Dixon has done a great job at Pitt, and things keep looking brighter. It has been an interesting thing to watch Dixon grow more comfortable in his role and being the public face of the team. Something that took him a couple years to really grasp. His mannerisms and the way he looks in public and in front of a camera have become more at ease and more comfortable.

He has hired and replaced assistants well. The talent has continued to trend upward. Despite the ever increasing competitiveness and brutality of the Big East, Pitt has been one of the top teams in the conference almost every year.

Continual and steady growth. The next step is to go deeper in the NCAA Tournament. That just seems like a matter of time as Coach Dixon continues to improve as a coach and the talent level of the team keeps improving.

Pitt has been smart enough to stay reasonably pro-active on his extensions and raises. Dixon in turn has been loyal and quickly extinguished much interest in him this past off-season. This is the nature of college sports and coaches salaries. A good way to lose a coach is to drag out negotiations and nickel-and-dime on contracts. It gives other schools a chance to drive a wedge and take an opening. Dixon may be the highest paid employee at the University of Pittsburgh, but he’s only middle, maybe upper-middle in terms of compensation in the Big East.

And just before publishing, they put out the official press release. Here’s Dixon’s statement.

“I am grateful to the University of Pittsburgh for the opportunity and support that I have received here. I love both the University and our outstanding city. I’m fortunate to be surrounded by a special group of players, a great coaching staff, the most supportive administration in the country and tremendous fans. Our success can be attributed directly to those components. We’ve been able to celebrate Big East Championships and NCAA Tournament appearances while playing in the sold out Petersen Events Center. My family considers Pittsburgh home.”

The news has been seeping out since yesterday night — KDKA TV mentioned it (Hat tip to Joe T.) — that Dixon was signing a long-rumored extension today. Sure enough.

Pitt will hold a news conference this morning to announce that men’s basketball Jamie Dixon has signed a contract extension. Dixon, the top earner at the university last fiscal year with a salary of nearly $1.3 million, had been signed through the 2012-13 season.

Details of the extension were not immediately known.

Now, the Pitt site has this:

Pitt Athletic Director Steve Pederson will hold a press conference for an important men’s basketball related announcement on Thursday, Sept. 25 at 11 a.m.

The press conference will be streamed live and free on the site. Warning, the “All-Access” that Pitt uses from CSTV only works in Explorer. Firefox gets rejected.

The one thing definitely lacking from Pitt to this point is the offensive “big play.” When a 36-yard pass play between Bill Stull and Oderick Turner in the Buffalo game is the longest play of the season followed by a 28-yard shuffle pass to LeSean McCoy versus Iowa, well you just tell yourself that this offense wasn’t geared towards the big play. Of course, when you then read the coach talking about the wide receivers and McCoy needing/getting close to the “big play,” it can be a bit frustrating.

This has led to the question of why McCoy hasn’t taken a direct snap from the Wildcat formation to this point. To say nothing of the limited appearances of Greg Cross.

He’s not much of a threat when he’s on the bench and, given starting quarterback Bill Stull’s struggles against Iowa, Wannstedt is being asked why the ball wasn’t in Cross’s hands more. Pitt had seven three-and-out possessions during the game, including six in a row at one point.

Stull was 11-of-25 for 129 yards and an interception. Cross was sacked for a 10-yard loss on the only other play he had the ball.

“We do have a series of plays for him other than the two we ran last week,” Wannstedt said. “We’ll see how things unfold. He’s been practicing and doing everything since Day 1 in camp.”

McCoy also hasn’t been used out of the Wildcat this season, even though defenses are stacking the line of scrimmage to contain his running. The sophomore has 242 yards in three games, down from 347 yards last season — even though he wasn’t a starter at the beginning of that season.

Of course, the issue of how, when and frequency with the use of Greg Cross is the center of the debate on Pitt using the Wildcat offense. It apparently didn’t help when the Miami Dolphins used it with great success to blow out the New England Patriots.

The instant success of Cross, coupled with the Miami Dolphins unveiling the Wildcat for six plays that accounted for 119 yards and five touchdowns in ending the New England Patriots’ 21-game regular-season win streak Sunday, has only opened Cavanaugh to more second-guessing.

Yet, Cavanaugh stood by his convictions Wednesday that Bill Stull deserves to be Pitt’s starting quarterback, that Cross will be used when situations allow and the Wildcat isn’t the answer to what ails an offense that ranks last in the Big East in rushing yards per game (123.3).

After spending 25 seasons in the NFL as a player and coach, Cavanaugh believes the Wildcat isn’t going to last long in the league.

“If you pull that out of nowhere – much like our Michigan State game last year – it’s tough to adjust to. It sounds like (the Dolphins) got some big plays out of it,” said Cavanaugh, who spent 11 seasons as an NFL assistant coach, eight as an offensive coordinator. “I’m sure it’s not going to be the rage. I’m sure every team in the NFL has asked for a copy of that game and is going to watch it and start preparing for it. I’m sure that’s what Miami wanted to do, spring it on somebody and make them prepare for it.”

I’m going to assume Cavanaugh was asked about it’s potential impact in the NFL. The problem I see, is his dismissal of it for college as well. Like Wannstedt, he seems to be treating it more as a gimmick that might occasionally surprise an opposing team. Not as something that can be utilized productively in the course of a normal offensive scheme and gameplan. I find that disheartening.

Although Pitt hasn’t unveiled the Wildcat this season, Cavanaugh didn’t dismiss the notion that the Panthers could use it when the time is right. Where LeSean “Shady” McCoy took the snaps out of the unbalanced formation last season, Cross is more likely to handle them this time. But Cavanaugh warned that the Wildcat won’t replace the West Coast as Pitt’s base offense, mostly because of the physical pounding the quarterback endures.

“I would think the best way to do that is with a real athletic quarterback who you don’t mind running the football because he’s going to get hit – a lot – but he’s got the ability to pull the football out and throw it,” Cavanaugh said. “I think (Cross) is probably more adept at running the Wildcat right now. He’s more of a good runner. You expose your quarterbacks to hits that Shady’s used to taking, not a quarterback. If you’re going to do it and you mix it in for four or five snaps a game, you do it. If it becomes a bigger part of the offense, you’re probably better off with a back.”

Yeah, and the spread will never catch-on in the college game. It’s just a gimmick. Again, this is about using the players on the team and their talents in a way that provides the best opportunity for success.

While I have been very critical this season about Wannstedt, one area he deserves credit for has been the play of special teams. Wannstedt has been directly coaching that area. I’ve been very happy with most of the coverage on kickoffs and punts. To say nothing, of successfully attacking the kickers and punters.

He said the units are seemingly starting to get comfortable with some of the changes he has made to their schemes — such as the new spread-out punting formation, which enables the coverage units to get down the field quickly and has led to quicker punts — but there are still too many glitches for his liking.

“The kids are working hard at it,” Wannstedt said. “Our kickoffs have been the best they have been over the past two weeks, certainly the best since I have been here, and that goes for where we are kicking too, hang time and distance.

“We’re close on our kickoff returns — two of them last week, we were one block from breaking them. So we just need to keep working on our fundamentals and keep improving.”

The kickoffs have indeed improved, largely thanks to redshirt sophomore Luke Briggs, a walk-on. The Panthers tried out several players for the kickoff position and began the season with Conor Lee, but Briggs has stepped in and excelled.

But Lee and punter Dave Brytus have, as Wannstedt said, also been excellent and that has been a big boost for the special teams units.

Lee has made all eight of his extra-point attempts and three of four field-goal attempts on the season while Brytus has averaged 43.8 yards per kick, has kicked directionally well and was named the Big East special teams player of the week this past week for his performance in a 21-20 win against Iowa.

The one area of concern, though, has been punt returns.

While some blame Berry for not breaking one longer than 12 yards through the first three games this season, Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt is more concerned with Berry catching the ball and getting good field position.

“Aaron Berry hasn’t really had much of a chance,” said Wannstedt, who’s coaching the special teams since Charlie Partridge left for Wisconsin. “It’s not like he’s catching the ball and he’s got nothing but field in front of him. He’s had people down there too fast. We’ve got to work on our hold-ups.”

Wannstedt said Berry’s sure-handedness and willingness to stay in harm’s way is what separates him from other return candidates, such as receivers Derek Kinder, T.J. Porter, Aaron Smith and Aundre Wright.

“He’s the most consistent at catching the football — trust me on that,” Wannstedt said. “The thing that is most important to me is having a guy back there that will field the ball. That’s the No. 1 thing: you want to catch the ball.

“We have a lot of guys that might be faster than Aaron or maybe better with the ball in their hand. But LaRod Stephens-Howling can’t catch punts. I’d love to have him back there, but he’s never returned punts. That’s the other side of the coin.”

It does seem, though, that Berry is thinking too much back there. Looking for exactly the right place to run, rather than just taking off. Seems to be a theme. Players trying to think about what they are supposed to do overruling their own abilities and instincts.

I wonder if the coaches have pushed a little too much on that. Making them worry too much about mistakes, and making it that much harder to have the big play.