Doing an interview with a coach that centers around recruiting losses is not easy. Per NCAA regs, the coach can’t actually comment on recruits. He can speak vaguely, but that doesn’t do much when people are looking for answers.
So, the effort by Coach Wannstedt to talk a little about the football program as fans try to understand all the misses by the program for local players that seemed like locks for Pitt probably did not accomplish much. For all intents and purposes it was a Rorschach test for where you stand on Wannstedt and the program at this point.
Those in the concerned to panic mode over the recruiting probably found themselves pissed and frustrated because he did not give much clarity in how things will be better. He just tossed out numbers that hold little context.
Wannstedt said he’s confident the Panthers will have a great recruiting class by February. This week, the Panthers will hold two more prospect camps and he expects the total number of players to come through to be about 650, which is far more than they have had in the past.
“If you think about, we had about 50 or 60 kids at our prospect camps,” Wannstedt said.
“So we’re making a lot of progress in that area. And at this point, we are way ahead in recruiting than we have been — at this point the last few years there were probably 40 kids I was comfortable offering a scholarship to — right now, I’d say we are at about 75.
“We are further ahead with quality names at every position and more players come through here than at any point since I have been here. We’re banging heads with the top programs for kids and there will be some wins and losses. We believe we have the best program in the country, but it may not be for everyone.
“But we’re going to get our share of guys, and they are going to be great players who are going to be excited about winning and being a part of Pitt football.”
Those that are being patient to having blind faith in Wannstedt will read the same bit with optimism and the expectations that things will work themselves out by February.
As for recruiting, Wannstedt withstood the backlash of losing seven WPIAL prospects to either Penn State or Michigan, most notably after offensive linemen Miles Dieffenbach of Fox Chapel and Tom Ricketts Jr. of North Allegheny picked Penn State on consecutive days earlier this month. Their losses were prominent because Dieffenbach’s father, George, is a long-time Pitt tennis coach and Ricketts’ father played for the Panthers in the 1980s.
While NCAA rules prevent Wannstedt from speaking publicly about prospects, he was adamant that the Panthers will remain major players for the top recruits in Western Pennsylvania and beyond. Pitt has received three verbal commitments from the Class of 2010 and could add more after it hosts an individual skills camp this weekend on the South Side. He also is planning to host an additional Blue Chip Day in August.
“Nothing has changed,” Wannstedt said, repeating it for emphasis. “I will just say the last three years, at this time of the year, I’ve felt good about 40 players. Today, I’m at 75. We are further ahead with this year’s recruiting class with quality names at every position than we’ve been since I’ve been here. … We’re going to end up with not a good class, a great class.”
I maintain a fierce ambivalence about it all. It’s hard not to be at least a little edgy about recruiting to this point. The misses are a bit glaring and jarring.
At the same time, it is still a long way until February. Recruitments reopen. Decisions change. There seems little to be gained by getting too worked up over things in June.
And as I have said, I believe part of this is tied directly to Pitt’s underachievement the first 3 years of Wannstedt. A mostly good last year hardly balances the scales. There has to be more improvement even without McCoy, Kinder, McKillop and Davis to show the top recruits that progress and promise is happening.
You cannot win without a good quarterback
As a long-suffering Redskins fan, this has been a painful lesson to learn. My father died thinking his beloved home team was a linebacker away from a championship. He was wrong. Defense does not win championships. Mannings do.
(Walker Lamond is the author of the blog and upcoming book “Rules for My Unborn Son” from St. Martin’s Press.)
You can do reall well with an average QB, and pretty good OL and defense.
JoePa’s first 4 undefeated seasons (of 5) was done with an average QB. Bama’s last year BCS team had a QB not much better than Stull, as was LSU’s QB the year before when they won it all. Oklahoma won a championship with an average QB back in 2000, and a couple years later its QB won a Heisman (over Fitz.)
I know, I know .. a good QB, especially if he is a real good athlete, can make up for many deficiencies; however, quality teams and programs are known year in and year out for their quality lines on each side of the ball.
The issue is that since the departure of Joe Moore, Pitt has lost too many area quality OLs to other schools .. and unfortunately, this tren continues.
What made these teams super was their offensive lines (the Hogs) led by former Pitt stars, Mark May and Russ Grimm.
Pitt’s last real success (late 70s / early 80s)fielded teams that included the likes of Sweeney, Covert, Fralic, Brzoza as well as Grimm and May … all except for May are from Western PA.
Note that I’m not implying that QB play isn’t important but I honestly believe that, if you have a good defense, OL is more important than QB.
Look at the numbers Palko put up in his senior year, and the defense stunk — didn’t even make a bowl. Last year was complete opposite — good defense, decent OL (except bowl game) and average QB, and still won 9 games.
The Sun Bowl provided a perfect example of this. The defense played well, but the offense had no balance. In large part, this was because OSU’s defense had no fear that Pitt’s QB would complete anything over the middle of the field (at least as long as Stull was in the game). After the first drive, every Pitt passing play was either down the sidelines or for very short yardage (even the announcers started making fun of the sideline routes).
I’m not advocating a run and gun approach, but the longer this coaching staff accepts(more by its actions than its words) that mediocre QB play is sufficient, the longer we, as fans, will wait for a truly breakthrough season.
Remember — the player of the game was a defensive lineman for OSU. Blaming the QB is always the easy thing to do, and Stull certainly was bad, but he was by no means the sole reason for being shut out.
Granted, if the OL is awful the entire offense will be as well, but the point that steve and pantherman is making is that until Pitt gets acceptable play from the QB position BCS victories will be hard to get. In high-level sports, glaring weaknesses are usually exploited.
Of course, while Ben is a master of finding a receiver and completing the pass while on the run (and has been since his arrival here), I don’t remember one instance last year when Stull made an improvisational play … he may have done so against Rutgers, his best game before getting hurt, but can’t remember any specific play.
Pitt’s Big East record in Walt Harris’s final four seasons at Pitt: 18-9.
Wanny is 14-14.
‘nuf said.
I agree, Wanny is an enigma but I have to say his hire for a DC last year was a very good move and the new OC will be a much needed upgrade over Cav. All Wanny has to do is be a great closer in the recruiting process and a leaving the strategy to the OC and DC.
I think they will be OK this year, even with Bill Stull as QB.
I’ve a feeling it was a combination of both actually. Cav (and DW) were so adverse to turnovers that I think Cav called too many out patterns and Stull felt scared to even test the waters with the TEs and crossing patterns during his checkdowns – except once in a long while.
I understand the theory that in doing this – playing the sidelines, supposedly would clear the interior for McCoy once he should break into the second level, but discount the benefit of skewing our whole passing game only to support the run. It’s like we thought we were playing to a strength, when in reality we were crippling ourselves.
I did notice that the times Pat Bostick was in he’d throw across the middle more than Stull, and yes – sometimes they resulted in an INT. But if we (Cignetti) pushes from the start of camp that his QB will have to use all of the field, either QB will feel more comfortable in doing it.
When you have TEs like Byham and DD (who had some great long plays downfield) and WRs like Baldwin and Turner – it’s killing our offense to allow the defense to make the sideline an extra defender.
I have to admit, I keep hoping that Bostick somehow pulls ahead of Stull this summer. I just think that he is a little better physically than Stull, and frankly is more cerebral, for whatever that is worth. I think Stull works hard, and might be a really good guy, but he is the most physically limited of the QB’s, IMHO.
Put on top of that the vagaries of these recruiting sites “star” system of rating kids who haven’t even entered their senior years in HS and it’s just too much to get worked up about.
It’s pretty obvious to me that DW and staff are concentrating more nationally (or maybe better put – regionally) and less on the WPIAL area… just look at the RBs who we are getting so excited to see on the field this year – Lewis, Graham and Douglas (who BTW ESPN rates higher than the other two) and you’ll see they are from NJ, NJ and FL respectively.
The two OLs were misses on PITT’s part no doubt, however I find it rather funny that the most vocal critics in this are pointing to the fact of the PITT ties these kids have rather than their skill levels. Should DW sign two other OLs with comparable skills I won’t give a rat’s ass about the two who chose not to play at PITT. Either way I don’t give much of any rodent’s ass at this point.