Getting closer to real focus on the 2009 football team.
Big East Media Days are coming. In roughly 2 weeks, media folk will descend on Newport, Rhode Island for golfing, lobsters and clams (and yet I still have not received my invite). They will contendedly speak well of the atmosphere and setting before professing to random guesses as to the order of the top-6 teams in the conference (and toss a coin over Louisville and Syracuse for #7 and #8).
There will also be the player interviews. Unlike the past couple years, there are no clear “stars” coming into this season in the conference outside of USF’s George Selvie. This is who Pitt will be bringing:
- Greg Romeus, Junior, DE
- John Malecki,Senior, RG
- Nate Byham, Senior, TE
Romeus and Byham make sense since both are top playmakers for Pitt. Byham should be a top candidate for All-American and Mackey Award honors. Romeus is considered one of the best DEs in the conference and a potential top-player at the position in college.
Malecki is something of a surprise. Reliable. Consistent. A senior anchor on the O-line.
Yet, no sign of the senior QB. Bill Stull is glaring by his absence. Perhaps Coach Wannstedt is trying to protect Stull from being asked about the way he ended the season and prevent early talk of a QB controversy.
It won’t work. If anything, not bringing Stull will fuel the questions and theories that Stull is anything but a lock to be the starter.
A week after media days, Pitt will kick of its own media day and the start of practice. August 11 is the day, making them one of the last BE teams to start practicing.
Brian Bennett, the Big East football writer for ESPN.com, has done a great job all summer with material. I haven’t linked or given him enough credit for making the ESPN.com BE Blog a daily read. A couple weeks ago, he had an interview with Pitt Defensive Coordinator Phil Bennett.
I would think Aaron Berry also has to be one of those leaders, too, right?
PB: No question. I’ve been very fortunate in my career to have coached some great corners. His feet are as quick as Terrence Newman’s, and I don’t say that lightly. I think Aaron knows it’s time and he’s got to become more consistent. He’s worked hard this summer and he knows what he means to this team.
He had some issues this spring and was suspended for the final couple of practices. Do you think he’s got everything in order now?
PB: I do. Everybody says this, but if you’ve ever heard or watched me, you know I’m pretty tough on them. I’m demanding. I just think Aaron learned some lessons, as we all have, and I think we’re fixing to see him step up and have the type of year that we all think he’s capable of having.
I know it’s early, but do you see any incoming freshmen who might earn their way into some playing time this year?
PB: I mentioned Dan Mason, and we’ll give him a look. We’ve got a young man named Jason Hendricks that we’ll look at. But it’s just too early. I think Dave will tell you this, that hopefully our program is to a point where, no, we wouldn’t be counting on any of them to play as freshmen. But there are variables that happen, and you have to deal with them, so we’ll just have to wait and see.
The defense, as everyone know will be counted on to be a dominating force. When you start running through the questions at various positions/units the questions on defense are mostly about players stepping up this year (like Aaron Berry and the rest of the secondary). The only spot where it’s a true question mark on the defense is at linebacker.
Offense though, has questions at QB, RB, the O-line (esp. Center). Add in the unknown factors for punter and kicker and there’s a lot to wonder.
Joe Starkey did a scattershot column on Pitt, Coach Wannstedt and recruiting. Ostensibly about recruiting the 2010 class and needing to cast a wider net, he ends it with the need to win this year.
Junior quarterback Pat Bostick was a big-time recruit who has yet to fulfill his potential. Wannstedt believes Bostick and incumbent Bill Stull “have talent,” along with redshirt freshman Tino Sunseri and true freshman Kolby Gray.
Wannstedt expressed confidence in that group and said: “We’re on a few championship quarterbacks this year (recruiting-wise), and I believe we’ll get one.”
That would certainly round out the Class of 2010, but the pressing issue at Pitt is 2009.
It’s time to build on that 9-4 record and win a conference title.
It is telling that a team that lost its stud running back, has questions at QB, a new OC, and a new punter and kicker is considered a legit team to win the Big East. Is it another down year in the conference or just that no one really knows anything about the other teams?
Plus – and people forget this, PITT was excellent in TOP and in Redzone scoring (thanks to Shady).
We’ll see those numbers drop a bit i think – but we’ll also see a different approach to offense and I think we’ll be satisfied – IMO if 3rd down conversions (putrid last season) and some more consistent extended drives keep our defense off the field, then our D will be good enough to lower their opponent’s scoring output and we’ll win games.
Maybe not 36-33 type games, but we’ll do OK.
As was discussed on the Bill Stull post last week, there are a lot of “ifs” going into this season, but if the “ifs” pan out, this is going to be one hell of a team.