This is just Ped State trying to flex their muscles and show Pitt, if you steal our recruits, we will come after yours. My source at Pitt says Bostad is NOT going to the Bears.

I really hope he’s not going to CHI…Chryst has put together a wonderful staff so far…

Nice to see Chyrst is trying to bring in some DB’s taller than 5’8″. Keeping my fingers crossed on Bostad. Picking up Denman would be a coup…

Smizass reports “Pitt OC going to Bears”, then in his comments section Smizass says, “This story is very speculative. The only source is a Chicago radio guy. Neither major Chicago newspaper is reporting the story. — Bob Smizik”

My question is then why report it????

In additiona to Denman, I am interested to see if we can get Holtz on board at TE.

I am so happy to see Voytik and Shell sticking with their committment. I think if they left this class could have/would have fallen apart. But with them being the two linchpins, this class will remain solid. And if we can get 2-3 more top tier recruits, this will be a strong base for our future.

Jim – or at least if he is going to post it in his blog, state at the top that it is very speculative and in fact was already being shot down by the time he posted it. For Smizik to defend his post is just intellectually dishonest. He wrote the headline and the lead in.

Very, very careless on his end, unless he cares more about page hits than integrity.

PG just put this rumor to bed.

This is the differenc ebetween a blog and a newpaper article. Blogs eixst to create online discussions .. and I see no problem in reporting a story as both Cahs and Smizik did .. as long as you reveal the source and state that it has not yer been confirmed by parties involved.

You would would normally await for confirmation before publishing an article. Note that neither the Chicago Tribune or Sun posted an article about this

It is a well known fact that Smizik is a schmuck.

I read on another board that Chad Voytik is tryin to recruit a TE that is a Fla commit to Pitt. You goota love this kid’s loyalty and big picture outlook. He is working hard to make “his” team better.

Smizik is a penn state lover allways has been
and will slant things to mess pitt up thought you knew that

according to paul zeise, bostad isnt going anywhere. its also relieving to see voytik stay committed

Reed has great insider info. Why don’t we get him to chime in with some words of wisdom?

wbb – I guess my issue is with the way Smizik presented the info, not that he posted it on his blog. His lead-in (which he wrote) credits the report to a CBS radio station in Chicago, making it look like a real news report. Additionally, nowhere in the lead-in or the title does he make it clear that this is a highly speculative report. If he only used his blog to report rumors, that might be ok, but since he also used it to report actual news (since he no longer writes a column), I think he should be more careful in his choice of words.

His refusal to acknowledge that he could have done better is more a reflection on his stubbornness than anything else, IHMO.

in retrospect it’s kind of funny that the breaking news is that a coach is NOT leaving Pitt.

A few thoughts, dudes…

I know the last year+ hasn’t been exactly easy on Pitt football fans, and no one needs to be reminded of that. We’ve all been put through the wringer and it’s probably being compounded by the basketball team finally having an off-year for the first time in several years.

But the abject panic I’ve read here over losing just one recruit and seeing three others waver while the rest of the class remains decidedly intact is a bit surprising. That’s even moreso the case when you consider that the highest-regarded names among the class – Voytik, Shell, Bisnowaty, the Davis brothers – seem to be the most firm commitments among them. Most of them have even gone so far as to publicly issue definitive statements affirming their status, which is about the best fans can expect prior to Signing Day.

I don’t know…it just seems like there’s a lost sense of perspective here. Every time a program changes coaches, there’s going to be changeover among the recruits. It happens every time, whether the program is Ohio State or Eastern Michigan. We just witnessed it 12 months ago, and that was much, much worse than what’s happening right now.

Chryst is universally regarded as someone who has his sh*t together. Barry Alvarez – who still very much pulls the strings in Madison – lobbied for the guy, to the known detriment of his own program. And no matter how overblown the “questionable recruiter” thing became with Chryst, at the very least he has guys on his staff in Rudolph and Bostad who have been around that block and are considered to be excellent recruiters.

(Side note: I tend to think far too much was made of Chryst’s alleged lack of recruiting chops. Zeise and Dokish made a couple of comments about Chryst not being quite the dynamic personality type that some other coaches may be, and that it COULD influence his abilities to recruit. Next thing we know, he’s the equivalent of “Bill Belichick on Media Day” walking into the homes of kids and he won’t be able to recruit. Seems like some of those comments were taken way beyond what they were intended to say.)

I know things can change between now & then. I know that given the happenings of the last 13-14 months, most of us still have one foot on the ledge.

But let the process play out. Chryst and Co. have done a great job keeping this class together. Just because Voytik got an offer from Penn State doesn’t mean he’s going; chances are he’s probably still getting calls from other schools. As some others have mentioned, these guys are out trying to bring in other names as well, and they’ve managed to at least generate some interest on the parts of some pretty high-profile kids who weren’t previously on Pitt’s radar.

Let the process play out.

smizik is a prick who would do any thing to mess pitt up but he loves penn state.

Stoosh i hear you but as you said things are not normel and the shit seams to hit the fan every
day maybe next year we can be relaxed
but not this year or last year.

Actually I think Smizass is a Pitt grad who used to be a gym teacher in East Liberty prior to his media days.

Smizik is indeed a graduate of Pitt. His bitterness probably stems from the fact that he never got laid as a student.

Smize is a Pitt grad who thinks his criticism of Pitt shows exemplary objectivity. He also voted Jason White from Oklahoma over Larry Fitz for Heisman, and still stands by his pick.

Zeise is still here how abought that i thought
he went to AZ with his buddy TG.

I think it’s normal to be worried about the recruiting chops of any long time assistant who has not been a head coach for the simple reason that there is no definitive track record to analyze.

For Chryst, he is perceived to lack a dynamic

personality and rumors abound that he “is not a god recruiter/does not like recruiting”. Given that success in NCAA FB is something luke 80% talent and 20% scheme, that’s a legitimate worry. I like how the new HC has said all the right things to the fan base, that still says nothing about his recruiting abilities.

He could still end up as Paul Hackett, v 2.0.

Smizik is another example of how far journalism has fallen. The fact that he he does not even write his own column, instead he cuts and pasted other columns, is a sin.

Again, Smizik retired as a journalist and was asked back by the PG editor to do a blog. His mission is to provide blogs of local interest to PG sports fan, and apparently he does it well since it generates numerous response on a variety of sports’ issues.

Don’t get me wrong — I have long opposed Smizik’s and Cook’s negativism, especially towards Pitt which I believe was subective, and have written a couple of letters to the editor about that very topic many years ago.

These blogs now offer you the chance to raise your objection directly to the source.

@ Stoosh — well said.

Wbb and Dan i have a observation except for 2 recruits j j denman being one.

all the vists and names that are HC is looking at
were and are players pitt was looking at allready
some had not been offered but all were on pitts
list

the point i am makeing is this i have had a look at the players that they were looking at for wisconsin thoes that did not commit as well as thoes that did

any the only one brought in for a vist is jj denman none from the wisconsin list and i am not talking abought there commits so mutch as there outher players the ones still in play

Dan Wbb and outhers when TG camein he had 8 vists
from texas and signed 5 players and one from louisana and players vist from michigan and illinois . becuse that is were his asst came from.

we have had no vist from wisconsin none from illinois
none from North carolia were his asst are from
that seams odd dont you think all are vists are players pitt allready had on there list.

pk you out there

Here’s an update on coach Bostad from ESPN Chicago.

http://espn.go.com/chicago/nfl/story/_/id/7479622/chicago-bears-narrow-search-offensive-line-coach

I suspect that Chryst and Co are following their motto…don’t talk about it do it!

Smizass not such a good nickname how about Bob Jizik?

According to Chris Peake, Bostad is visiting Denman at Pennsbury right now.

ok if you dont care you dont care but pitt has
had no vist from players from wisconsin or illinois or michigan all places these coachs have recruited in for wisconsin
and as some one else who posts on here said pitt cant live on recruits from pa and ohio alone
and no vists from players from any ACC states.

Ray Filapaldo of the Post-Gazette reported on the PG website that Bob Bostad is not leaving and he will indeed be Pitt’s offensive Coordinator. He is in fact currently out on a recruiting trip.

I would be more worried about recruiting if we still had 25 slots to fill. As it now stands, we only have around 5 openings with Holtz and Denman slotted for two of them. Next year, I am sure there will be a greater push to attract recruits from ACC country (i.e. GA, MD, VA, NC, FL) as well as continued recruiting of OH and PA.

Frank, im here. Anthony standifer three star cb from illinois has pitt in his top 3. Pitt has another dt terrell jackson 3 stars visiting this week as well as willie henry. What else os on your mind?

Tx panther, i know that holtz is a pitt lean but i thought it was still 50/50 with denman

Tx Panther-Stated well.
I have a question for the board. Isn’t Bostad under contract to Pitt? Would he not have to seek permission to talk to ANY other team about a coaching vacancy? Surely, someone at Pitt would know if his leaving was a done deal or not.

“Pitt recently entered the mix for three-star cornerback Anthony Standifer (from Illinois)and now the Panthers are in his final three.”

Jw, yes but odds are he didnt talk to anybody some crackhead radio host probably just threw out a name

TX Panther, I’m with you. They’ve been able to keep the nucleus together and what they can bring in now will be icing on the cake. With only 5 open slots available, you don’t want to be throwing scholarships around. If they can get Holtz and Denman that would be big. If you have a couple of scolarships left, chase more good prospects next year when you have a full year to recruit.

pk standifer henry and jackson were all ready on pitts list from last coachs they are not any one brought in from new coachs read my last 3 posts and you will understand my point

Standifer said pitt just entered the mix, but i dont see why thats a problem. These kids had no interest in pitt before now they do that speaks positively about this staffs recruiting ability

pk you did not read my last 3 posts look him up
you will see he has had pitt listed as med for some time we the old coachs have been in touch with him for some time
yes the new coachs got him to vist
all iam saying is they have not brought any one new in from were they recuited before when they were with wisconsin all these vists were kids pitt allready had on there list

I agree Pk, the previous Pitt coaching staff had no chance of landing Standifer. Now he has Pitt in his top 3, thanks to Paul Chryst.

Frankcan, again, i dont think that matters. They know what good football players look like so if theyre trying to finish where graham left recruitibg wise for certain positions thats fine because graham had a good thing going as far as recruiting

Not sure I get where they HAVE to bring/turn a Wisconsin recruit to be successful. If they do great but not sure that is a requirement that validates this staff as good recruiters. IMO if they can keep most of the verbals and add some of others to me that is successful given they have not been on the job for that long.

It is a well known fact that Smizik is a schmuck.

Comment by TX Panther 01.19.12 @ 12:07 pm

haha

And I might add, a schmuck who looks like Larry Fine of the Stooges. Maybe they’re related.

Hey Frank, been away from my desk.

You make a good point. Allthough, we only have a few slots to fill, so who knows.

Plus, maybe we will get a suprise or two.

Also, remember this, the kids that TG was recruiting, he was recruiting to Tulsa, then he came to Pitt, some of those kids probably had stars in their eyes, that instead of going to Tulsa, they could now go to a BCS team!!!

Coming from Wisconsin, they wouldn’t have the same stars in their eyes. Nothing against Pitt either, we have our history, I’m just saying, going from a BCS to a BCS type program wouldn’t have kids going “oh boy”. They would really have to like the coach himself, instead of all the other things. School, location etc. etc.

I think we’ll be allright!

@EMEL, don’t insult Larry!

Recruiting is like going on a blind date that your buddy hooked you up with… Sometimes the rankings are legit…. sometimes it’s all “hype”

From the little that we’re hearing it appears that Coach Chryst is going quietly about his business. That’s pretty much what we were led to expect about how he operates. He’s not blowing a trumpet about what he’s up to, and what we’re finding out is often coming from the kids themselves. We’ve read that he’s spoken to the recruits by telephone and has made a number of visits. And he appears to have made a positive impression – Voytik and Holtz were particularly upbeat as I recall. Most of the class seems to be staying together and given the timescales I’m not sure it’s reasonable to expect much more than that. Certainly if they can add couple of the names being bandied about then they’d have to be considered to have done an excellent job.
Hail to Pitt!

A couple of points regarding recruiting…

As of right now we don’t have five slots open. We are currently at the maximum 85 scholarship limit with the commitments we currently have. That said we know there will be some wiggle room with 5th year seniors and some transfers but to point to Chryst’s lack of getting a big volume of recruits on board will probably not happen. It cold be only a few and he may save some scholarships for 2013.

So, it’s not surprising that Chryst & co. haven’t been in desperation mode trying to keep kids like Parks and Conwell because their leaving opens up slots for kids THIS staff may want on-board. The fact that we celebrate this staff’s approach to football as opposed to Graham’s approach can also be looked at the difference in who that staff wants on the roster.

As to the reports that Chryst doesn’t like recruiting or isn’t good at it. I wonder if that isn’t a bit of urban football myth. Bielema was quoted as saying that Chryst was his recruiting ‘closer’ and that in his (Bielema) recruiting assignments Chryst only had the QBs to actually go out and recruit.

But – and I’ve said that before – let’s say that Chryst doesn’t necessarily like to recruit. I’ll bet if you got honest answers from all the staff coaches in college football over 75% would say the exact same thing. Folks – no one really ‘likes’ to recruit but it is a necessary evil.

With that, just because he may not like it doesn’t mean he can’t be great at it. I went from being a very operational military officer involved in all kinds of interesting field mission then, with promotion, got ‘kicked upstairs’ to a HQ administration job – which at first I didn’t like at all. But, that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to bust ass to be the best bureaucrat there I could be… and I did. That is replicated millions of times a day in the workforce.

Chryst will do exactly the same thing and from all accounts has been doing it since he signed on with PITT. Those two names mentioned above are just a couple of recruits the staff have been after and it is obvious that they are working hard to that end. We’ll hear other names float around also.

But, if you are expecting great recruiting news each and every day – don’t hold your breath. LOI Day is the final grade. The only thing that matters is the results and, as stated above, the fact that Chryst kept 17 out of 19 commitments from leaving is a damn good recruiting job in it’s self.

pk you dont get the point i forget you are 17 no one is saying they are doeing a bad job at least not yet.
i will try one more time they have not brought any one to vist that they had on there list. if you dont get the point we will talk of something else later.

DAN yes it is true they only have a few to give
but at least you get may point.
a new coach and he has nobody from his old recruiting grounds that he wants to bring in for a vist it seams odd to me not one from wisconsin or illinois or michigan were they have been recruting all year
it seams strange to me he brings no one for a visit but at least you get my point.

Frankcan,

I think they’re completely different circumstances. Bu the time Fraud was hire last year PItt’s recruiting class had evaporated. HE HAD to bring his recruits here for at least 5 reasons:

A) Fill up the number of recruits (or just take a year off from having new players)

B) Fit “his system”.

C) Tulsa (and even Michigan) had lost most of their staff including head coach so it was more natural for those guys to come here, and

D) Most kids would leap at the chance to go from maybe playing at Pitt in a BCS conference as opposed to Tulsa.

This year,

A) We have a highly rated almost full class already,

B) Chryst seems to be more about fitting system to the players than players to the system

C) Wisconsin still has their head coach and several others,

D) Few players considering Wisconsin are going to see Pitt as a step up. Rose Bowl team to BBVA loser. Program to underacheiver.

In other words, I’m not worried. The fact that he’s got a couple to look at us is enough for me. Especially with 2-3 weeks or the job.

Next year’s class will be the test.

bowling Green Panther i am not saying he is doeing bad
it might be easyer if i give you a example of what i am trying to say
lets say i am a coach who has been recruiting for
wisconsin all year one of the players i bring there doesent like the school he says it is to far in the sticks but i like the kid.

now i am in a new school what do i do i call the kid i say come vist me in my new school i think you will like it

all coachs have kids they wanted for one reason or another they could not get them at there old school but when they go some were else its come on down

all i am saying is no one from were they recruited all year it is strange

and if you all dont see that what can i say.

Frank – this weekend we have three new recruits visiting; two from Ohio and one from WA state (who would be the fastest Panther on the roster should he sign on).

The pay sites have good info on this stuff.

Believe me, this staff isn’t sitting on their thumbs.

Reed, who is the visitor from WA state?

Reed i know i posted that before any one else

check my posts from the lst 2 days and i did not use pay sites to find it out

that is not my point i gess i am not speaking
english thoes player were on pitts list already

what gets me and none of you seam to get it is all the vists are people pitt all ready had marked bye TG

none come from wisconsins list or are kids they were recruting while at there old schools and i just find that strange that they had no one of there own to bring in for a vist

do you under stand i am not saying they are doeing a bad job just cant belive they have no one that they recruited all year that they want to vist us

pk i told you abought the kid from wa state 3 days ago dont you remmber the one with no stars now they list him as a 2 star

Frank, i know what you are saying but with only 2 weeks left til loi day, they would have to completely change the way they recruited those kids and sell completely different things. I think it seems like this staff has targeted lineman and cb’s. Which is good because both are positions that you can never have too much depth at.

Frnk, i dont recall whats his name? If you remember

Frank, i dont recall whats his name? If you remember

Ryan lewis it was wheni was bitching abougt them not signing 3 or 4 stars and tell reed i told you abought the ohio vists you know the Dline man what 3 or 4 days ago

If Bostad is at Pennbury telling this prize OL recruit right now how much he would like to coach him in his college career while at the same time entertaining another job possibility (and I don’t know if he is), then he is no better than a recent HC of ours.

pk are you out there did you get the name i posted it for you

ryan lewis is a 6 foot RB and CB he averaged
12.5 yard per carry he runs 4.4 SECONDs in the
the 40 yd dash and is being recruited as a CB
he gained 970 yards this year from the RB postion

frank im here. i had to shovel snow and take out the garbage. thanks for the name but yea you did tell me about henry. i wasnt sure about jackson though. if pitt could add another cb and dl, plus hopefully one or both of denman and holtz this will all together be a very good class

dammit jimmy were are you

Buddy Jackson was faster, but did not pan out as a good CB. Can Lewis cover? Is he a hitter? I love the speed and decent height at CB. Any video on him? Keep up the good work, Frankcan.

bossdaws yes i think there is video type in his name and the word football. that will take you were you want to go i will go there now to see

bossdaws NO video of him

Reed: You convinced me. What you have written makes sense. In fact, you make a lot of sense a lot of times. Thank you. Now I can get back to mybooks and prayers and wait for signing day. Or better yet, trust the coaches that Pitt has hired, even though we were burned, big time, last time.. Rev. George in Columbus

thanks Frankcan. Appreciate all your hard work on here on recruiting. Keep us posted. A CB with speed who can cover is a must. Saw he has offers from Colorado & Utah.

Also our head coach may have had a gentleman’s agreement with his former employee that he would take a couple coaches with him but please don’t go after their recruits. Plus, he seems a lot more ethical and professional than our former coach, so maybe he finds it to be a sleazy move to recruit too many guys who had picked Wisconsin.

Also, since Ped State went after our top recruit, I say we go after their top 4 recruits as payback – and kick em while they’re down. Oh wait, I just finished saying our coach wouldn’t likely do stuff like that, damn … Maybe once he could get old school eye for an eye. We are very fortunate both Voytik and Shell are staying with Pitt.

It makes no difference to me what “Jerry’s kids” in State College do or who they offer. They are scum…liars and gutless cowards…not a man among them.
We have what appears to be a proven group of coaches. It is not their style to talk alot…by comparison, it is precisely the stye of Graham and that filth in Morganhole. I don’t think we can out scum the scum bags of the world. That is not in Pitt’s DNA and thank God for it!!
Whatever the last 12 months have done, they have brought out the best in our players…man, I can’t think of a better result than that….hard times don’t mold character as much as they reveal it…..I love what I have seen.
Now, we have a man at the helm who will lead by example and not the sound bite….
God Bless for sure on that…

ok..i know im gonna catch some heat for bringing up psu..but, i was just wondering…Im 37 and i grew up hating psu..but things have changed..ever since jo pa gont canned(YES!!) i kind of dont hate them anymore….does anyone else feel this way??

honestly,

I am sad about PSU. Not the program, but how they sold their souls and still live in denial.

Hey there was some time ago where I posted here how a lot of us would die to have the longevity, stability, program that PSU had under JoePa.

I had stated that my hope was that Wanny would’ve been that guy.

But that was all an illusion. I was wrong to believe that illusion.

I will say this as a proud Pitt fan. I never want a successful program at the cost of my very soul.

You can say that is a no brainer, but look at a lot of the lost souls in Happy Valley. They care more about their football and reputation then the fact that this god awful sin was perpetuated for an illusion.

That is why I feel sad for PSU. It has lost it’s way and really has shown little to no remorse. Only what the PR firm tells them to show.

DaveD

I think Chryst and company are out there talking to a lot of propects and we’re not going to know whole alot about unless it happens to at a local ball game like the other night at Shaler, when Paul Chryst was recruiting Holtz. I do think they pull out a few surprizes by signing day. They only have 5 slots yet to fill. Good night and
Hail to Pitt!

pitt for life no i hate them more every day

DaveD

I couldnt have said it better myself..good post

Dish i dont want theguys that picked wisconsin
i want some of theguys off there list who they were working on but who have not picked a school yet

like these OTs jake meador jordan diamond dan gibbs all over 6 foot 4 and 300 pounds or rb keith byars or LB IKE SPERMAN OR DT VINCENT VALENTINE and many more who are on wisconsin list but not commited

I have no sadness or pity for Penn State. They continue to be in COMPLETE denial and they still just don’t get it. I can’t say it enough – they JUST DON’T GET IT. They want things to go back the way they were as fast as possible and don’t give a crap about the lives they helped ruin. I thought I couldn’t hate a program more than I hated PSU before all this, but my hate strengthens every day despite my best efforts to not let them get to me. I have friends that went there. Many smart people went and still go there. It’s just so disturbing that otherwise reasonable people act like they’re in a cult when it comes to all this crap. Their ongoing abject arrogance and willful obliviousness equals if not exceeds Enron. Offering Voytik, the most vocal and loyal recruit, is proof positive of that.

Sandusky is going to burn in hell but I have little doubt that PSU will receive anything but a slap on the wrist. It is so very unfortunate that their arrogance may be founded as far as escaping any kind of meaningful punishment. I thought I was I better person but I wish them nothing but the worst.

Hey Frank, I think I may be able to ease your sould a bit.

Yes, I understand exactly what you are saying. I do believe we are kind of close to being filled up for this year allready.

Not many spots open.

Now, follow me, come next year, after a full year at Pitt, when recruiting starts, I would like to think we will see some kids from each of our recruiting coaches areas. Probably some kids from Wisconsin, Illinois and North Carolina.

Think about how late they got to get started. Then, they look at the list, and there is only a few spots open.

Maybe the guy has a few guys from Illinois, maybe Chryst told him, “hey, we allready have targeted the last 2 or 3 guys for this year”.

Maybe the fella from N. Carolina said, “I have a couple guys I could see if they want to come”, again, maybe Chryst said, “is there really a chance for them to totally change their mind and come to Pitt at this point?”

The answer being, “no, but, I could give it a shot”, and Chryst answers back, “hey, lets just concentrate on the 5 or 6 we have targeted and hope we can get 2 or 3.

Hard to believe we’re saying this again, almost unfathomable, but, our new head coach just got thrown into the fire.

I think next year, you will see a lot of recruits coming for visits, from the coaches special geographical area of concentration.

Just got home, from somewhere I had no access to tv or radio…

Pens beat the Rangers in NYC??? Sweet!!!!

Chas, Thanks for the great article and recruiting info. Its much appreciated. Suppose thanks goes out to everyone on this board for their additional feedback and info.
My impressions of the new head coach can best be described by taking a look at former Pitt players Scott and Chris McKillop. To me, they were not extremely gifted with natural athletisim, yet still they played their positions as well as most anyone in the country. I attribute that to how they were coached. When a player has that deep of an understanding of the game, they can do amazing things on the field. This is by far the greatest assest Paul Cryst brings to the table. He seems like the type of coach who can turn the McKillops of the country into All-Americans. Most college coaches have a vast understanding of the game of football, but not all of them are able to teach and pass on that knowledge. It’s like in school: Some teachers can teach, some know everything but can’t teach, and a few are able to do both. I believe PC is of the latter type and if the players are willing to work at what he teaches we are in for one heck of a run.

DAN thanks at least you under stand what i ment and i understand you
but look up these 2 ot who are on wisconsins list and tell if you would like them to be 2 of the 5 we have left
jake meador and dan gibbs just type name and word
football after name.

On the discussion about Penn State. Let’s not paint with too wide a brush here. I think that the ruling class of Penn State, the Board of Directors, wasn’t in denial at all. The fact is they were kept in the dark on purpose…”Spanier, the trustees said, had minimized the grand jury probe during a May briefing on the investigation.”

Spanier had been telling them as far back as 2008 that this issue was a minor one involving the retired Sandusky and was centered on his actions in another county. However, Spanier knew from the minute he was called into testify in front of the Grand Jury that the case revolved around incidents on the PSU campus in the Lasch building and he didn’t inform the BOT of that.

In fact, as soon as they were made aware of the extent of the situation they took quick and decisive action, include something that was sure to be controversial as hell in firing Joe Paterno. I’ve linked the article below in which the BOT interview reveals that the BOT was basically lied to about the Grand Jury report by the university president – who BTW could have legally divulged almost every detail of the report.

I think us PITT fans look at those in “denial” as being all of PSU but IMO in reality it is mostly the students and some fanatic alumni there. In my experience talking with PSU grads, of which there are tons down here in Maryland, almost all of them agreed with the BOT’s actions.

PSU isn’t going to get rid of or minimize the football program as some PITT fans want – that is just never going to happen especially when it has been bringing in a steady $70M a year. PSU will weather the storm and take some serious hits but in five years the university will be back to functioning normally.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/regional/s_777567.html

Here is an excellent article in the NY Times about how the decision to fire Paterno was made.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/19/sports/ncaafootball/penn-state-trustees-recall-decision-to-fire-paterno.html

From the PG – for those north of the city that may be interested:

Steven Adams is a Pitt recruit who is ranked among the top 10 players in the country by some scouting services. He will play in the Pittsburgh area Jan. 29.

Adams, a 6-foot-10 forward at Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, Mass., will play in the Pittsburgh Basketball Club Legends Classic at Ambridge High School. Notre Dame Prep will play Massanutten Academy (Va.) at 2 p.m. in the four-game event. At noon, Lincoln Park meets Shaler. Beaver Falls plays Sharon at 3:30 and West Allegheny takes on Highlands at 5.

Reed, I agree. The PSU alunms that I know (I grew up with a handful) are all embarrassed and take no issue with JoePa’s firing and the other actions taken b y their board.

In fact, there is on alum who I know well that is adamant that they should shut down the FB program for a year. He insists that would be the true “Penn State Way.” However, he agrees with me that the the real PS Way is making $70m year.

Ive seen on many different sites that steven adams has been “off to a slow start” and “unimpressive”. This is BS. They say this because in only his second game in america, he only had 4 points 5 rebounds and 3 blocks. Ill tell you why its garbage: in that game he had s head injury because he dove ob after a loose ball, something pitt fans should appreciate, and barely played in the first hslf. In his first game against the #1 center in 2013 he had 23 points 13 rbs 3 blocks and 2 assts. plus, hes only been with his team for 2 weeks whfn most hsve been with theirs for an entire summer. The kid looked impressive.

I also saw james robinson play on espnu the other day and he looked like the ultimate game manager. He had something like 12 points 7 assists 5 rebounds 1 to. He had some beautiful passes and made sone vlutch shots and it just seemed like he had a freat bball iq. These kids will be great players but i cant stress enough pitts need for another quality forward or 2 guard for the 2012 class

Pk, I agree — 2 games, and one a double-double!!

Interesting article on ESPN….

How did top Big East top 2008 recruits do?

January, 19, 2012
Jan 19

3:30

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By Andrea Adelson

Our friends at ESPN Recruiting Nation took a look back at the ESPNU 150 recruits in the class of 2008 to see how they fared. The Big East had four players on that list, all at Pitt.

No. 25 Jonathan Baldwin, WR. Baldwin was a top performer at Pitt,with 127 catches for 2,304 yards and 16 touchdowns over three seasons. He declared for the NFL draft after his junior season and was selected 26th overall by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2011.

No. 102 Shayne Hale, ILB. Hale redshirted his first year and then was moved to defensive end. He has appeared in just three games over the past two seasons.

No. 110 Chris Burns, RB. Burns transferred to Massachusetts following the 2010 season because of limited playing time. He played in four games and will have one more year of eligibility next fall.

No. 124 Lucas Nix, OL. Nix has been a mainstay on the offensive line for the past three seasons, but a knee injury early this season limited him to seven games. He has the potential to be third- or fourth-round pick in the NFL draft.

markp’s thread just shows how accurate these recruiting rankings can be. Two of the four where very good players. Burns was a bust and the jury is still out on Hale. But he is very close to being labeled as a bust.

Frank, I’ll take both of them!!

Dan yes so would I

I agree with some of the posters above regarding PSU. There are too many people indicting the entire institution for the isolated actions of a few people, who are now being properly dealt with. You can’t judge the reaction of the entire community based on the dillusional statements of a bunch of drunk students and a small group of fanatical fans.

I am a Pitt grad and a Pitt fan, but I’ve been working at PSU for almost a decade, and I can tell you that the perception that everyone up here is some kind of bleed-blue-and-white nutjob is completely off base. There are those people, but they are a minority (and I think most of them live in Philly and NJ anyway). Most people up here that I know agree with firing JoePa and the others. I think most PSU employees are glad to be rid of Spanier in any case. Believe it or not, there are also a very large number of people here who view this as an academic institution first and don’t give a rat’s a** about the football progam, but even we don’t see how punishing the current players or staff serves any purpose.

The bottom line is that a few people did the wrong things to protect a football program that they considered too important than it should be. There is nothing unique or insidious about the culture at PSU, and the same kind of fan idiocy exists elsewhere, including Pitt. People need to realize that the same thing could happen, and may already be happening, at ANY university. There’s too much money invovled, too many greedy administrators, and too many weirdos out there – and the clever ones can always find ways to hide inside a big organization, just like these guys did. So, some people really need to stop looking at everyone associated with PSU with their self-righteous indignation – they are the clueless ones.

this is guess but i think pitts DL coach
will be al holcomb

Steve…
Have to disagree that the PSU thing could have happened at any university…you are throwing everyone else under the same PSU bus.
If you read the NYTimes article you will see that the Trustees fretted over firing the football coach but no real angst over firing the university president.
Sorry Steve, that could not have happened at “any university”. It happens where people have absolute power. I am not into righteous indignation, but neither am I inclined to but every university in the same low place that the leaders at PSU were for so long.