masthead.jpg

switchconcepts.com, U3dpdGNo-a25, DIRECT rubiconproject.com, 14766, RESELLER pubmatic.com, 30666, RESELLER, 5d62403b186f2ace appnexus.com, 1117, RESELLER thetradedesk.com, switchconcepts, RESELLER taboola.com, switchconceptopenrtb, RESELLER bidswitch.com, switchconcepts, RESELLER contextweb.com, 560031, RESELLER amazon-adsystem.com, 3160, RESELLER crimtan.com, switch, RESELLER quantcast.com, switchconcepts , RESELLER rhythmone.com, 1934627955, RESELLER ssphwy.com, switchconcepts, RESELLER emxdgt.com, 59, RESELLER appnexus.com, 1356, RESELLER sovrn.com, 96786, RESELLER, fafdf38b16bf6b2b indexexchange.com, 180008, RESELLER nativeads.com, 52853, RESELLER theagency.com, 1058, RESELLER google.com, pub-3515913239267445, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0
September 3, 2008

I thought things might be moving on, but Coach Wannstedt’s overall performance as Pitt head coach has continued to be a high topic of discussion. It is no longer about how effed up Pitt was against BGSU.

As has fairly been pointed out, the Falcons are a good team. They adjusted their game and beat Pitt. Pitt did not perform well on the field. There were some questionable decisions by the coaches. It does happen.

The issue, though, is not — and I don’t think it has been for the last couple of days — been about that game. It’s more that this is one more example on Coach Wannstedt’s shaky performance as a coach.

When Pitt released its game notes and depth chart (PDF), there was little change to it other than at linebacker where there are injuries.

Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said if starting linebackers Shane Murray (knee) and Adam Gunn (concussion) — both are listed as “day-to-day” don’t play against Buffalo, the Panthers will use either senior Austin Ransom or redshirt freshman Tristan Roberts for Murray at weak-side and redshirt freshmen Brandon Lindsey or Greg Williams for Gunn at strong-side.

This is it. Other than at his press conference reiterating that they need to get a couple guys some more time. Continually falling back on “it just didn’t work out/unfold/etc. that way,” excuse.

On playing time of freshmen Lucas Nix and Andrew Taglianetti:

Lucas will play for sure. We need to get him in the game. Last week we were looking for opportunities, and it just never came up the way the game unfolded. He will play this week regardless. We need to get him on the field and get him some playing time. (Andrew) Taglianetti was on field goal block, punt return, punt team, and kickoff team. He didn’t play any defense – I really didn’t expect him to play any defense. Right now we have Irvan Brown and Elijah Fields alternating in at the safety position. He’ll continue special teams and then we’ll go from there.

On Elijah Fields’ playing time:

We have packages where he’s a major player, where we think we can take advantage of some things. Just the way the game unfolded, we had three or four possessions of their normal offense and then they went to the swinging gate and the totem pole, two different offenses. One that I’ve never seen and one we use on field goal, and they hit a couple plays on us and because of some of the things they did it really didn’t give us a chance (to put Fields in defensively).

On not playing Gregg Cross against Bowling Green in retrospect:

I don’t know, it’s easy to look back and say maybe. We do have that ready to go, you’ve seen it work, seen it in practice. Even though we were behind and not scoring points, we felt like we had some opportunities to make some plays with what we were doing. To answer your question, that is a little package (featuring Cross) we do have. The situation just didn’t come up when we felt he would have made a difference.

Unbelievable. That set J Jones at Cat Basket off on a righteous rant worth reading in full.

The biggest indictment of the program and Wannstedt that has come out is the lack of change in the two deep. One position, right tackle, obviously needs to be changed but the official announcement is no change. Wannstedt has said that Lucas Nix needs to play this week no matter what but he has stated that before, remember his interviews before the Bowling Green game. Joe Thomas played the worst game of anybody on the offense but it appears that wasn’t enough to lose his starting job. This is indictative of Wanny’s entire reign here and I would expect not to see Nix unless we are in garbage time.

Make sure you go there to read the whole thing. He discusses the arrogance of Wannstedt. It’s a good point, because when Wannstedt says the things, he tends to do in a congenial way. A manner that is disarming, but is rife with condescension. He talks of his experience and how he has his way of doing things and how they have always worked (and then hopes no one realizes he’s talking 20 years ago or so).

If you have followed Wanny’s head coaching career in Chicago and Miami, then you should know this is the choppy point. Last year, the fan support was eroding — and then forestalled by the WVU win — but the media was still with him. Give him more time they said. Why? Because Wanny is so darn likable. Everyone wants him to succeed who is in contact with him.

Then this season has started with more of the same. Guess what’s happening to the media backing?

Make no mistake: The mess that was that game and the mess that is the Pitt program are on Wannstedt.

The man lost me Saturday. I really hate to say that because I’ve spent a lot of time and energy defending him. I eagerly endorsed his hiring — and Harris’ exit. I urged people to give him a fair chance through those first three tough seasons. I was convinced he was going to bring Pitt back and take it to heights Harris never could.

Not anymore.

What will be interesting to see is how many Pitt fans Wannstedt has lost.

Joe Starkey devotes his column to how Wanny is losing the fans.

Those weren’t samplers. Those were hard-core supporters, sick of watching Pitt underachieve under fourth-year coach Dave Wannstedt.

I asked Wannstedt on Tuesday if he thought the boos and heavy post-game criticism were justified or an overreaction to the first of 12 games.

I liked his answer.

“It was pretty justified,” he said. “I mean, let’s be real.”

I would, except there was no admission of responsibility from Wannstedt in the whole answer.

On whether or not the fan reaction was justified:

It was probably justified. I mean, let’s be real. We expected to go out there and play good and win the game, so when people are disappointed they are going to express it. And that’s part of the business you know, got to be able to handle that. You know how I feel about this school, I love these kids, and my focus now is getting ready for Buffalo. I believe in these kids, I know we have a good football team, I know we have good players. We just have to keep pressing forward.

Pressing forward. Just time to move on. These things happen.

Even in Buffalo, they have noticed as their team gets ready.

Wannstedt’s four years into his dream job and it’s been anything but dreamy. The Panthers have lost 13 of their last 18. Last Saturday they blew a 14-point lead in a loss to Bowling Green. This week’s game against the University at Buffalo amounts to a must win if Wannstedt’s to have any realistic shot at staying on the job despite signing a contract extension prior to this season.

The natives are restless. The Panthers are 13-point favorites. And if UB seems like the ideal foe for the moment consider that Bowling Green, its Mid-American Conference East brother, also went in as a 13-point underdog. Clearly Pitt’s in no position to take anything for granted.

Pitt’s Wannstedt era has rung discordant from the get-go. The Miami Dolphins were 1-8 when he “resigned” as head coach in November 2004. The Panthers quickly came calling but Wannstedt turned them away, unsure that he was ready to get right back onto the sidelines, even for his alma mater. He reconsidered soon thereafter and by Christmas was named the new coach. (One of the other finalists, by the way, was Bo Pelini, who beat out UB coach Turner Gill for the Nebraska job after last season. And Wannstedt once interviewed Gill for a vacancy on his Dolphins staff. Small world, coaching.)

It’s perplexing that Wannstedt has yet to have a winning season.

Wannstedt makes it sound like Pitt’s in transition, or retooling after a successful run. Neither shoe fits. He’s been at it more than three years. He has the athletes. Now what he needs are wins.

Yup.

Paul Zeise takes the defense that there is still plenty of football to be played this season. Yes, there is, but this isn’t about one game. Trying to pretend that the anger and frustration all arose out of one loss is bull. This has been building. Yes, other teams have recovered.

Teams have rebounded from ugly early season losses in the past:

• Michigan last year lost to Division I-AA Appalachian State and finished the season 9-4 and beat Florida in the Capital One Bowl.

• Wisconsin in 1999 lost to a terrible (3-8) Cincinnati team but finished the season as Big Ten champions, went 10-2 and beat Stanford in the Rose Bowl.

• Florida State in 1989 lost to Southern Mississippi in its first game and finished 10-2 and destroyed Nebraska in the Fiesta Bowl.

• Northwestern in 1996 lost to an awful (3-8) Wake Forest team and rebounded to finish 9-3 and play in the Citrus Bowl.

• In 1995, Northwestern lost to Miami (Ohio) in the second game of the season – and finished 10-2, Big Ten champs and played in the Rose Bowl.

• In 1993, Boston College lost to a terrible Northwestern (2-9) team and finished the season 9-3 and went to the Blockbuster Bowl.

• And though it was five games in, who can forget Virginia Tech losing to the greatest team ever compiled … Temple (2-9) … in 1998 and finishing 9-3 including a destruction of Alabama in the Music City Bowl.

Here’s the difference. The coaches on those teams. Lloyd Carr, Barry Alvarez, Dave Barnett, Tom Coughlin and Frank Beamer were the coaches on those teams. Dave Wannstedt has never drawn comparisons (or success) to them.

Also, consider that these coaches were actually capable of making real changes to their game or approach (well, maybe not Carr) — even if they wouldn’t necessarily admit it. Frank Beamer, just this week after losing to East Carolina, scrapped plans to redshirt sophomore QB Tyrod Taylor and return to the two-QB system. Why? Because it helps the team and it is more important than pride and trying to prove he knows best.





Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. – Albert Einstein

wanny has been a mediocre at best, downright awful coach at chicago, miami and now pitt. why did we think it would be any different in 2008??

Comment by Scott 09.03.08 @ 4:05 pm

all excuses, no accountability..same old, same old

Comment by Rex 09.03.08 @ 4:07 pm

Why Scott? Because we assumed he had enough weapons that it was OBVIOUS what he had to do and they he wouldn’t screw it up. He has a few weeks here to prove us wrong before the ship sinks but there’s no evidence from past years that he’ll do the right thing.

Comment by Dennis 09.03.08 @ 4:16 pm

I’ve been following the sports section from the Buffalo News semi-regularly since I left home (for Bills and Sabres news). UB football gets almost no coverage whatsoever. The Triple-A baseball team gets more coverage than they do. By a lot. So do the college basketball teams – Canisus, Niagara, and St. Bonaventure. By a lot.

The fact that the Pitt-Buffalo game is even on anyone’s radar, that says a lot about what they think about the game, and how winnable it is for them.

Comment by Brian of Brooklyn 09.03.08 @ 4:59 pm

Hey, is anyone from the Harrisburg area interested in carpooling out to Saturday’s game? I’m driving out from Lower Paxton either Friday night or Saturday morning (more likely) and am looking to defray costs.

Comment by Shawn 09.03.08 @ 5:28 pm

Assuming we all make it through the next few weeks alive, would anyone want to maybe have a little Pitt Blather get together? Like some game (Iowa? Rutgers?) get together and meet the writers/commenters at like Gate A or whatever? Just a thought..

Comment by Tim Z 09.03.08 @ 5:50 pm

We will get to see some of those back up linebackers now. Adam Gunn out for the remainder of the season with a fractured cervical vertebrae. Too bad for the young man, a fifth year senior….maybe the same committee that ruled on Mike Cook can consider an extra year of eligibility for Adam!

Comment by The Turk 09.03.08 @ 6:17 pm

who knows when pitt basketball can start practicing?

Comment by dc 09.03.08 @ 6:35 pm

October 17th?? i think i read…

Comment by Stuart 09.03.08 @ 6:55 pm

I don’t think it is the same as Cook’s situation. The ruling was Cook played in more the allowable % of games. Gun is red shirt senior who has only played one game out of a 12 game season. He gets 4 years of eligibility. His participation is less than 20% of the season and in the first half of the season so I believe he qualifies for a medical hardship waiver.

Comment by shadyforpresident 09.03.08 @ 7:00 pm

Wannstedt (and Cav apparently) are too chummy with the Prez, plus they made millions in the NFL. This is the end of the road for them. I honestly do feel they are earnest and want to lead Pitt to a better place. Yet they simply must feel no urgency to win. That’s killer anywhere in sports, but particularly in the cutthroat world of second-tier I-A college football. All of the best guys who started at our level (face it, we’re second tier at best) … Urban Meyer, Rodriguez (gotta give Satan his due), Petrino, et al, are ruthless and winning is everything for them to get to the elite level. They do anything to win. I don’t necessarily advocate outright trechery like some of them (Rodriguez and his ‘non-qualifiers’ at WVU, or anything Petrino ever did or said) but if you want your program to win, that’s what you need. Wannstedt doesn’t have that killer instinct any more if he ever did.

“I’ll do it on my terms, smashmouth football.” I’m a yinzer, so I can appreciate that on a certain level. But (1) that’s boring, especially when it doesn’t work; our program needs to be entertaining and (2) Dave,you don’t have the OL to do that, and in this era (and our tier) you probably never will. tOSU, Oklahoma, LSU, the huge football factories … they MIGHT be able to play that way because they’ll always have the top hogs. We don’t and won’t. You gotta adjust. Look how Rodriguez adjusted his system to fit the strengths of WVU … a pass-happy guy, he readily moved to nearly all-run, and had them winning big within a year with either old Nehlen leftovers or his own guys that were only there a year. It can and is being done all over the place, but not here.

Comment by geeman2001 09.03.08 @ 7:18 pm

Old news? I read today that Herb Pope will be playing for Seton Hall this year.

Comment by steve 09.03.08 @ 7:19 pm

“The most common misconception about the spread is that it is a finesse offense. It’s not. It’s still based off the power running game. It’s still based off physical, physical football.” The spread offense, as some run it, is not a substitute for the I-formation. It is an addition to it. There is no huddle. The object is to be so fast at the line that defenses are limited to a more basic defense and approach, limiting the time for defensive substitutions. When the ball is spotted and the official steps away, it is time to snap the ball.

Comment by shadyforpresident 09.03.08 @ 8:14 pm

Chas,

What, no love for Bowden when you were enumerating the coaches? For the record, that FSU team lost to an “inferior” Southern Miss team that had some guy named Favre at quarterback. Pretty sure that Zeise could have looked that one up.

Comment by johnny 09.03.08 @ 8:35 pm

This is getting old. Let’s just support the team for this Saturday.

Comment by matt42 09.03.08 @ 8:38 pm

I dont think im going to Saturdays game aginst Buffalo. Im still frusterated from the opener. I think that this season is a win win for everybody.Either we will go to a bowl game, or Wannstdet will be gone ending the 4 years of frusteration which he caused. That being said I think there are several coaches (in D1 college) who would want this job knowing that they could come in and win right away. Heck it only took Newisheul one game at his alma mater to win, unlike our poster boy who once again couldnt get his players to hold onto a 10 point lead.

Comment by Lou 09.03.08 @ 8:38 pm

I’m astounded that just about everyone thinks that changing coaches is going to bring about miracles. What do you expect a new coach to do zap them with a magic twanger and all of a sudden they’ll start blocking and tackling.

And does anybody think Newisheul might have inherited a better team with a 5 star strong armed QB any a way better defense.

Comment by shadyforpresident 09.03.08 @ 9:24 pm

shady, it doesn’t matter if ucla is better than pitt. we lost at home to fucking BOWLING GREEN!! that’s the point. it’s unacceptable.

Comment by Scott 09.03.08 @ 9:53 pm

shady4prez-
You obviously don’t understand what a difference a coaching change can make on the SAME individuals. What changes are the attitudes in the locker room. The attitudes on the field. The play calling that puts teams in the position to win. Put Wanny on the BGSU side and he DOESN’T adjust the gameplan when they go down 14-0. It is so obvious. Look at what happened with the NY Mets this year. Willie gets the boot, Mets start winning. David Wright even came out after Willie was gone and said the change helped the clubhouse immensely and made players WANT to come to the ballpark early. Winning is 90% mental/ attitude. At Pitt, the coaches need to stop acting like a 10 point underdog every game even when we are favored….Coaches need to stop being satisfied with a field goal when 30 secs are still on the clock….Coaches need to show these kids that they have confidence in their abilities, REGARDLESS OF SENIORITY! Bama went out and spanked Clemson with 9 or 10 freshman starters…Coaches need to put the best players on the field and run plays where the goal is to always end up with 7. (not 3, or field position…) This team is getting ridiculed amongst college football fans around the nation. I can’t even imagine the field day the media would have if they were in NYC…
The UCLA situation was one example that happened to have a 5 star QB. Lets talk about the coaching change at Buffalo then. This guy comes into a losing program that never had more than 2 wins in the MAC the past 10 years…but the second year in, their new Coach goes 5-3 in the MAC. Can’t explain that “coaching change success” on a 5 star strong armed QB….

Comment by nycbruce 09.03.08 @ 10:14 pm

P.S.- HAIL TO PITT!….I miss Larry Fitz….

Comment by nycbruce 09.03.08 @ 10:16 pm

The program can’t and won’t replace Wannstedt. If we stagnate this year, we have the ready-made scapegoat in Cavanaugh. They will gently ease him out like they did with Rhoads (who was essentially fired after the Navy game, at least tactically, since they stopped playing his defense after that…but kept him around to jump up and down and reap the rewards of a new DC job out of the conference … he gets a job, raise, and we don’t have to eat his contract … win/win).

With Cav it will have to go down differently, absolutely nobody will want him, at least as a OC … but he hopefully has invested well. I don’t think they fire him either though, a quiet buyout perhaps.

Anyway, that will be it for scapegoats though. Dave will be on an island after this year. The only question remaining, how long does all the things he does right (good with alumni, families, recruits, local coaches, keeps a lid on discipline and academics, etc) keep him in Nordenberg’s favor before the angry masses make so much noise that he has to go?

Comment by geeman2001 09.03.08 @ 10:30 pm

nycbruce,

What happen to the players earning the coaches trust by playing well and generating the coaches confidence in the individual and team? Since when does the coach have to blow confidence into a player’s ear before he plays well? If a player gets chance to play shouldn’t he have confidence in his abilities regardless of the coaches demeanor?

Comment by shadyforpresident 09.03.08 @ 10:52 pm

Couple of comments:

You’d think changing coaches doesn’t make a difference right away but I think what Turner Gill has done in Buffalo shows a great coach makes all the difference. Most of the UB squad are players from before his time, so he’s taking a 1-10 team and teaching them how to win.

As for the coverage UB gets back home, it’s true no one paid any attention to UB football before Gill arrived, but it’s much better now. The basketball team had a good run in 2005 and got some attention. The fact is Buffalo, like Pittsburgh, loves a winner.

Back in the 70’s UB dropped out of D1 completely. They wanted to be known strictly for academics. It wasn’t until the mid-90’s that they realized that a university needs great athletics too to gain a national rep. So it’s been a long climb back to respectability.

It started with AD Warde Manuel when he hired Turner Gill. Hopefully Gill will stick around long enough for UB to reach a level of success that it can sustain. We certainly hope that as the program improves, Gill will prefer to stay and become the icon of the program like his mentor Tom Osborne at Nebraska.

PTR

Comment by PromoTheRobot 09.03.08 @ 11:03 pm

What’s everyone’s guesses for Death Spiral Dave’s excuses/rationalizations/reasons for this weekends upcoming debacle? I’m going with inexperienced linebacker play, penalties, and they showed some formations that we haven’t seen before.

Comment by Dead, Jail, or Pitt Football 09.03.08 @ 11:53 pm

Shady,

Its about making the system fit the kids you have, and winning with those kids. Thats why shitty talent (WVU) beats alot of other “less talented” teams.

Stay on the Titanic with Cav and Wanstedt. You can stop trying to convince people with 2 eyes that this is going somewhere. There were tons of people that had faith, after all the shit we’ve been through, all the way until kickoff Saturday.

We’re not stupid. We know how this trainwreck ends.

Comment by Stuart 09.04.08 @ 12:32 am

Geeman,

If we stopped playing Rhoads’ D against Navy, why did we use the same D against BG?

I have a feeling that is Wanny D.

If you were to tell me that Wanny uses a wait and react D because it worked at Oklahoma State in 1978, I would believe you 100%.

One thing is for sure, the college game hasn’t changed since the 70’s.

Next saturday’s gameplan: Run up the middle, Run up the middle, bubble screen, run up the middle, bubble screen, run up the middle, run up the middle, 5 yard out route, run up the middle, run up the middle.

I wasn’t specific but you can throw in some drops by turner and sacks on Stull since the only thing Thomas is blocking is our chance at moving the ball forwards a few yards.

Comment by Dan 09.04.08 @ 1:12 am

Coaching does make a difference. Urban Meyer won the NC with players Ron Zook recruited. This coaching staff shoud be on a very short leash. They don’t just have to beat Buffalo, they need to win big!

Comment by Pittastic 09.04.08 @ 5:50 am

Wow, I never realized that Stull would hit that 40 yard down field pass, Turner would catch that pass, Thomas would pancake a couple of defenders in the process, and McCoy wouldn’t fumble any more, if they only had confidence in the play calling.

It seems like it is time to hire a sports psychologist.

Comment by shadyforpresident 09.04.08 @ 8:38 am

at least cavanugh admited fault about the play calling… lets see what adjustments are made for saturday.. and hopefully BG was more of a hangover and we get our heads out of our ass. A “wake up call”

3-1 and a win against southflorida would make everybody ease up…. (i know.. i know that doesn’t seem possible right now..or at all!!).

Comment by Snala the Panther 09.04.08 @ 9:23 am

While we can question the coach’s decisions, let’s support these kids! I’ll be there Saturday and I hope you all will be too; I’m ready to forget last week and turn things around. LET’S GO PITT!

Comment by JohnFromDC 09.04.08 @ 10:09 am

Do we seriously need to bring up a Paul Rhoads defense reference? Come on, everyone saw his defenses in the Walt years – they werent good.

Pitt needs to look like a completely different team against Buffalo if there is any hope for the season.

Comment by Joey D 09.04.08 @ 10:17 am

Let’s Go Pitt!

Comment by ChrisA 09.04.08 @ 12:12 pm

Hey We Choked Last Week but that was last Week. Lets get excited about this week. I waited too long for Pitt football begin the season to let that one loss bring me down.
Lets see what type of heart our players, coaches and fans have after last week and see if we play inspired ball with all the fan support.
Buffale be ready because I expect fire for four quarters.

HAIL TO PITT win lose or draw. Beat Buffalo

Comment by cdmoore25 09.04.08 @ 12:57 pm

All i’m saying is that the Rhoads’ D sure looked a hell of alot like the D we saw on saturday.

Comment by Dan 09.04.08 @ 4:38 pm

Powered by WordPress © PittBlather.com

Site Meter