Here we go. Camp is wrapping up with some light work today and we pretty much know what the status of the two deep, injuries, attitudes (I just threw that one in) etc. are going into the season.
We have nine days until showtime so lets get our thoughts on record. I’ll throw some questions out and you share your thoughts and why you feel that way.
1. What will be PITT’s regular season record, what bowl game if any and why will it be this way?
2. What will be Tino Sunseri’s and Ray Graham’s final stats?
3. Which new “star”, either a new or returning player, will burst onto the scene in a way we didn’t expect?
4. What will be the most disappointing aspect of the season?
5. How will PITT fans feel in January of 2013 about the Paul Chryst hiring?
Obviously you guys do what you want to do but feel free to be as detailed as possible. I’ll throw mine out after the ball starts rolling.
2. Both Tino’s and Graham’s stats will be more reflective of what they did in 2010 than in 2011
3. Eric Williams or T Ezell
4. more close losses
5. positve
1) 7-5 and guess what a 3rd trip to the CCVA Tino & Sal Get together Bowl in beautiful Birmingham Alabami (yes i spelled that correct). It will be this way because we can’t have Sal & Roxy traveling too far to watch their son play in a bowl game.
**Note** Bowl game is subject to change if some league doesn’t meet their bowl eligible quota, leaving open a slot in the infamous Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl (see it’s closer to Knoxville where Sal is this year(at U Tenn.), haha 🙂 )
2) Sir Tino will move up in the Pitt record books ( yes I know, truly amazing and shows how measuring someone by statistics can be meaningless sometimes) and pass for an astounding 2500 yards with 20 TD’s and 15 picks. Sadly Ray Ray will be medically redshirted, but gets to energize PITT’s entrance into out inaugural season in the ACC !!
3) The new star will be….. Isaac Bennett !
(on the defensive side Tyrone Ezell from Steel
Valley HS becomes a star)
4) Not winning the BigEast in our Final Season 🙁
5)That depends on whether we win the much anticipated Bowl Game in Birmingham, St. Petersburg or Nashville or hey even maybe NYC.
If we win and finish 8-5 ppl will be ok with Chryst’s hiring and if we lose the bowl game, it will be meh.
P>S. now watch we’ll go 11-2 and play in the Orange Bowl. Which will make me very happy !
Veritas et Virtus
Hail to Pitt !
Belk bowl in charlotte
Sunseri 17 td 10 int Graham 800 yds rushing 9 td
Ray vinapol at safety will be a break out player
Most disappointing will be leaving big east without ever winning it outright
Pitt fans will be pleased with chryst and direction of program in January
P.S. class of ’69 think u missed commencement, lol
Sept.6 (Thurs.)@ Cincinnati – L
Sept.15Virginia Tech – L
Sept.22Gardner-Webb – W
Sept.29Open
Oct. 5 (Fri.)@ Syracuse – W
Oct. 13Louisville – W
Oct. 20@ Buffalo – W
Oct. 27Temple – W
Nov. 3@ Notre Dame – L
Nov. 9 (Fri.)@ Connecticut – W
Nov. 17Open
Nov. 24Rutgers – W
Dec. 1@ South Florida – W
Pitt will have one of the best and deepest secondaries in the BE if not the nation. The starting D-line will be very good again, but depth is a question. If Chryst is the offensive mind he is made out to be, the offense should get better barring another injury or disciplinary measure. Tino cannot lose games, PC’s offense should help him.
Pitt hasn’t shown they can beat Cincy. Pitt loses.
Louisville’s big star is Teddy Heisman Bridegwater. The D should negate him. Pitt beat Louisville away without Graham last season. Pitt wins this one.
VT and ND – I kind of think we might get a split here. But these teams get stud lineman. If Pitt has to fill another spot on one of the lines, they could get dominated by both of these teams. Pitt loses 2.
Rutgers is a very good team. Let’s see how they fare without Sciano. I started to have this as a L but since it is at home, I’ll change this to a win.
IF (BIG IF) Pitt is 8-3 going into USF game, that means they are playing well. Pitt has the speed on D to keep up with the southern burners. Plus Pitt has had the Bulls number for a while now.
Pitt goes 9-3.
**If Tino tanks. No more than 6-6.
**Tino 2,500 yds, 15 TDs, 12 INTs; RayRay 750yds, 6 TDs
**Rushel Shell
**Inconsistent play on both sides of the ball. Still giving up 4th Qtr leads – the Wannstache legacy lives on.
**Very Happy with PC
2. Tino will have stats similar to the 2010 season but with less mistakes. Lets say 2500 yards, 18 tds and 8 picks. Ray Graham will have 700 yards leading a 3 headed monster running attack.
3. New star will be Tyrone Ezell getting dirty in the trenches.
4. Shell not showing how good he can be until his first year in the ACC.
5. Wonderful and ready to take on the new national champion FSU Seminoles in the ACC.
2. Tino should have less than 30 sacks and more TD’s than INT’s; Graham will finish with under 1,000 yards rushing; I don’t see Graham getting serious playing time until October.
3. I think Street on O and Donald on D.
4. Attendance will be disappointing again and failure to win the Big East title.
5. Good but yearning for more. I think the play calling will be decent, game management very good and we should see players get better as the year progresses.
Pitt will be on firm footing for beginning of ACC play next year.
H2P!
Comment by Jeff 08.23.12 @ 10:07 am
LMAO
Yes but ur 2012 predictions ??
Let’ see 2102 – 2012 = 90 years + 5 years = 95 years. That means we could have Sir Tino playing for us as a 95th year Senior in 2102.
Gee, wonder if he’ll get any better by then ??
Predictions please !!
2. Tino – 2650 yards, 16 TD/14 Int; Ray – 1100, 6 TD. I don’t think Graham becomes the workhouse he was this year, mostly because I think Chryst will spread it around a la his UW teams.
3. TJ Clemmings finally turns his stars into sacks.
4. Most disappointing will be the inability to beat any of the higher-level teams on the schedule. I don’t think we’re gonna have the firepower if we need to come back against good teams.
5. We’ll feel good about TC. We’ll see some young guys looking promising, and we’ll be looking forward to the Savage/Voytik era and expecting to be competitive in the ACC in ’13.
2.) Sunersi. Average. Not as many mistakes. (by not being put in as many mistake friendly positions. Still missing some wide open receivers. (don’t know if there was enough time to help with his arm and mechanics).
Graham. Hofeully the knee holds up for him personally. Even if totally healthy, Chryst and Co. have always had a stable of RB’s being used, and with couple others we have, his carries will be down.
3.) I than Shanahan is going to have a good year. Allthough not passing a lot, I think when called for, back to solid route running will help him and Sunseri, and will be Sunseri’s go to guy.
4.) a.)Losing to Temple, UCONN or Buffalo. Feeling we’ll let one of these W’s get away. Maybe I’m jaded from the past.
b.) Seeing those bright yellow seats. Even if there are some good crowds, the yellow seats accentuate that “look, I’m an empty seat”. Hell, even during Steeler games you can tell how many people are out getting a pretzel and a beer.
5.) Upbeat and excited to get to the ACC and the ACC schedule. Will pick up some good recruits, after more players get to see what kind of season Pitt had, and seeing and getting to know better Chrysts coaching style and sincerity.
90% of those who post here think Fraud Graham is a coaching idiot. But remove WVU and Iowa from last year’s schedule and replace them with Temple and Gardner-Webb (i.e. this year’s schedule) and Pitt goes 8-4. That’s with the Tino, the system change, and all the injuries. Here’s thinking Chryst won’t say something like “we didn’t think they would blitz so much” and be good for at least one more win.
As for the bowl, I’ll guess the BCS Bowl or the Pinstripe bowl. It all depends on who Pitt loses too.
2. Tino 140/210 1100 yards 15 TDs 12 INT
Ray 200 carries, 1000 yards 12 TD’s
3. Sorry, don’t know
4. That they’ll probably be 40,000 or less fans for each game save maybe Virginia Tech.
5. I think people would be happy at 9-3, unless Pitt undergoes another collapse ala 2010 season.
1) 8-4
2) tino 19 td 11 int. rg 650 yards 4 tds
3) malcolm crockett. i think hell be a great change of pace back
4) we never get to see ray graham play a full season to his potential
5) some pitt fans are never happy. they will find something to complain about because theyre never happy unless theres something to complain about. however, the rational and reasonable fans will be pleased at optimistic about the future
2. Sunseri….2500 yds, 13 TDs, 13 INTs
Ray Graham….700 yds rushing, 7 TDs (I dont expect Graham to play much early and when he gets back he will still be splitting carries about 50-50 with Bennett)
3. Tyrone Ezell. Has the size at 6’4″ 300 to be dominant and I think pairing him with Donald could wreak havoc on the D-Line. Also, people may be expecting Lafayette Pitts to have a big year but I think he will prove to be a lockdown corner this year.
4. Losing to a bad team at some point because of poor QB play keeping the team from moving the ball.
5. Regardless of what Chryst does, there will be reasonable fans who know that one season is not enough to judge a head coach and unreasonable fans who will say Chryst is on the hot seat starting next season.
2. Similar to Bill Stull’s final season and Ray Graham will have 800 yards and 6 TD’s.
3. Shane Gordon finally contributes
4. Injuries and the depth to back them up
5. Excited but with an eye on recruiting abilities…remember, in my opinion depth is what hurts this team this year.
Tino 20 td’s 10 pics Ray 1000+10 tds
Under PC Tino will be the surprise player
Not enough fan support
PC will be loved in the burgh
If we don’t finish first in the big east look for Pitt to get screwed and go to the BBVA bowl again
1. 8-4 and going, going, back, back, to Birmingham!
2. Sunseri will throw for 2,400 with 17 TDs and 13 INTs; Graham will run for 1,020 yards and 9 TDs
3. On offense, I think Ronald Jones will emerge and have fans excited for 2013; on defense, Ezell and Clemmings will be forces.
4. Lack of a home game atmosphere (have you guys heard that before?) and lack of impact play at the QB position (not a knock actually).
5. I think most fans will be satisfied with the direction of the program. However, many fans will reserve judgment in order to analyze how recruiting is going.
(1) 10-2–Lose to one BE opponent but still win BE at 6-1 and get to BCS bowl. Pull an upset of either VA Tech or Notre Dame.
(2) Sunseri Stats–2700 yards, 20 tds and 9 picks.
Graham Stats–1000 yards, 10 tds over 9 games (Graham doesn’t play starters minutes until Gardner-Webb; splits carries with other backs the rest of the way; Bennett also gains 1,000)
(3) J.P. Holtz makes all BE 2nd team as a true frosh.
(4) Unexpected upset loss to one of the weaker BE teams due to playing a sloppy game and turning it over multiple times.
(5) Ecstatic–like ND fans felt after Ara Parseghian’s first season when he took a ND team that went 2-7 the prior year and finished 9-1.
2.) Tino plays the whole year, 2400 yards, 14 TDs, 9 INTs and a couple rushing TDs. Graham starts slow but gets 1,000 yards, along with Bennett, each back gets 10 TDs
3.) Your breakout star is J.P Holtz, who catches 8 TDS and about 750 yards recieving.
4.) Most disappointing aspect will be leaving the Big East without every having won an outright title.
5.)Pitt fans will feel glad just to have a coach come back for another year, but the angst-meter on recruiting will skyrocket as PC pulls in another average recruiting class. Steam will actually shoot out of Dokish’s ears.
2) Tino 2,900ish Graham 900ish (Bennet will also finish with that amount).
3) Lafyette Pitts All big east rumors of next Revis start.
4) Not having the chance to meet WVU in the backyard brawl or PSU for the in state civil war. Also Dan Mason not being a stud anymore.
5) PC like any coach should get 4 years this will be a start of the foundation. If he continues to convince top WPIAL kids to come/stay with their pitt verbal commitments like he did with Shell, Bisnowtay, and Holtz and continues to tread Pitt in the right direction he gets a mulligan for not winning more in his first season. Under PC pitt gets better and better everyday and every way. Ushering in a new successful era in the ACC next year with 9 wins coming in 2013.
2) Unfortunately I don’t think Tino will have a “Stull” like turnaround, but I do think the running backs will be good enough to get us some wins
3) I agree with the prior poster that Lafayette Pitts will be the break out star this year.
4) I hope I’m wrong but I think seeing Ray Graham not perform like his old self will be the shame of the year
5) Despite a so-so record, Pitt will be sound fundamentally and that will have Pitt fans optimistic about the future…and still believing in Paul Chryst.
For what it’s worth, I hope I’m wrong about most of this, and Pitt goes 9-3 and surprises all to win the Big East on our way out the door!
2. Tino: 17 TDs, 15 INT Graham: 900
3. Ronald Jones-most exciting plays, Hubie Graham-puts up huge numbers
4. A slow start (hope I am wrong)
5. Pitt fans will be happy with Chryst
2) Both Tino and Ray will receive 1st team BE honors with Tino passing for over 2000 yds, 21 TD and only 1 int. Ray runs for over 1000 yds although only starting in 8 games.
3) Shell, Holtz, Bisnowaty, Rippy and Voytik all burst on to the scene with stellar stats and by year’s end have been dubbed by the media as Pitt’s Freshman Fantastic Five.
4) The fact that Pitt didn’t get picked in the BCS selection process to play for the National Championship.
5) Paul Chryst’s inaugural season at Pitt is so impressive the he gets “Coach of the Year” honors and receives a gift of appreciation from the University of a bronze statue of himself placed outside of Heinz Field in honor of his accomplishments.
BTW, I just measured and I’ve developed and nine inch penis (limp) since beginning my medicine to treat my low T.
What the hell, if I’m going to dream, I say dream BIG!
HAIL TO PITT!!
I think PITT will be a 7-5 team this season, 8-4 at best and will get to some minor bowl. I think we are 3-3 after the first six games.
We have talent on this team and we, and every other team in college, always are ‘thin’ at certain positions.
My thoughts are that we are not going to be as good on defense as fans think we are. I am worried about the LB position not just because of depth but because the apparent starters aren’t experienced and it’s a crap shoot that they produce to their limits, which I think we’ll need there. Shane Gordon is a good one, Nick Grigsby hasn’t taken a snap and Eric Williams is untested.
Granted we have a good front four on paper but I’m worried about Lippert being quick enough to do his job at DE, especially if Bryan Murphy doesn’t come around. Mosley-Smith is so-so as far as talent plus desire and he didn’t exactly burn up the camps; LaQuentin Smith is completely untested as an interior lineman.
I see us giving up a couple big TD plays a game.
On offense I think Sunseri will hold his own. He’ll make bonehead mistakes but will play pretty well overall. To me the key is still Ray Graham. I love Bennett and he’s impressive as hell but he’s still a #2 back. Shell is an unknown and Crockett can’t seem to have three practices in a row without fumbling. That said I think our OL will do OK with the run game but we aren’t going to see anything like three 1000 rushers, not even two.
If Graham can’t be near pre-injury level this season we may hurting and I’ll go out on a limb and say that he MAY get 1000 yards if he plays the vast majority of the games but he won’t be near his 5.8 ypc average we saw last season.
That leaves the passing game to score points. We’ll score some points but no where near Wisconsin levels. I think we’ll beat last season’s 24 ppg, say maybe 28 ppg, but that means nothing if it comes in chunks against crap teams like last season and the defense can’t keep the opponent’s out of the endzone.
Last year we gave up 23 ppg. I don’t think we beat that this season. I see us giving up around 24 ppg.
As far as Sunseri’s totals I’ll say 17 TDs/10 INTs, 65% and 2500 yards.
Breakout player of the year will be Rotheram or Pitts. Vinopal, Grigsby and Brinson are sleepers.
Disappointment will be losing close games against better opponents much like last season when we dropped four big games by 12 points.
Fans will be split on Chryst. There won’t be any off-field drama and we’ll win 7-8 games but his recruiting will be better than most expected and most fans will look forward to next season.
(Please remember I am terrible with predictions all in all.)
Tino: 2600 yds, 12 TD, 15 INT; RG: 1000 yds, 8 TD
Shell
Tino will throw for 1700 yards, 14 TD’s 7 picks 20 sacks
Ray will not play much until late in the season
Breakout season goes to Ronald Jones
Cam will get sone freak injury and end his season too soon
We win the Big East and play in the Orange Bowl
Fans will think of Chryst what people thought of Howland..meat and potatoes taste good.
2. Tino 1500 yds, 6 TD, 4 int. gets injured/pulled. Ray over 1000 yds in 7 games.
3. Carswell the TE
4. loss in week 1 to Youngstown.
5. fans will be happy w PC by year end after a rough start.
Funny I am probably his biggest critic on this blog , yet I gave him the best stats with the most TD passes.
Life is strange, lol 🙂
And yes Reed you agree with me, 7-5 and some minor bowl. Could it be 3 years in a row to lovely Birmingham, or maybe the moderately lovlier, especialy in late Dec, NYC for the tradition laden Pinstripe Bowl. Or perhaps a trip to sunny Florida for whatever they’re calling that 4rth tier Bowl game in St. Petersburg this year.
I’m still hedging on the slot in the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl in Nashville opening up somehow and Pitt square dances it’s way down to Tennesshee (as Toupee Lou says). And another Christmas & New Years with the Sunseri’s.
Veritas et Virtus !
A winning season but not BE champs.
2. What will be Tino Sunseri’s and Ray Graham’s final stats?
63% completion rate; 2700yds; 19 TDs 7 ints
Ray-medical redshirt; not ready to go and won’t risk it. Hope I’m wrong and he is very healthy. If healthy and ready to go, he could be a difference maker in a few games this season and will esclipe the 1000 yd mark with a few other backs around 600 too.
3. Which new “star”, either a new or returning player, will burst onto the scene in a way we didn’t expect?
Vinopal and Cullen on a Defense that will be solid, but not spectacular.
Ronald Jones and Bennett will have some big plays ythis year. I have a feeling we could see some sildcat this year, too.
4. What will be the most disappointing aspect of the season?
Losing a heartbreaker or two when the team plays well but one or two plays separates the W from the L.
5. How will PITT fans feel in January of 2013 about the Paul Chryst hiring?
Positive. Many fans will have a “what could have been” feeling as Pitt will drop a BE game or two that it shouldn’t lose. (Adding to the tough games they lose to ND and VT.) Chryst will bring another feeling of stability to the program and hope for the future. We will notice that the team gets better as the year goes on–a mark of excellent coaching.
Though, yes, my 5 yards per attempt is probably a little low.
Louisville has recruited well, but so far has been a paper tiger.
Rutgers is in a state of upheaval, their head coach is in Tampa, and even prior to that they could never manage a Big East title.
USF is another paper tiger. Oh the big sleeping giant from Florida that will rise up and become the next Miami/UF/FSU… except those teams recruit top 10 talent nationwide while USF languishes in the 50s and 60s of the recruiting rankings.
Pitt should have the most talented team in this conference… except… well… one little 5’10” problem named Tino Sunseri.
I blame Todd Graham for leaving last year, but even with his ill fitting offense, this team would’ve won 9 games with a competent QB (and I thought by year’s end his defense was actually pretty damn good). Tino is NOT a competent QB.
Therefor, none of the more talented teams or paper tigers will win the conference this year.
Nope, it’ll be Cincinatti somehow as usual.
In 2011, with many more plays per game, Sunseri passed 30 time per game an Sunseri had 2600+ yards.
In 2010 we passed 26 times per game, in this same pro-type system, and Sunseri had 2500+ yards.
Wisconsin passed:
25 times per game in ’11
21 per game in ’10 (but this was the year of three 1000 yard rushers)
26 per game in ’09
26 per game in ’08
In this same system the Wisky QBs were passing at the same rate Sunseri was in ’10 and what I think he’ll be asked to do in ’12.
I believe the fans want to see less Sunseri passes but the staff may not feel the same way. Again, it wasn’t Sunseri’s passing that was a problem last year it was his poor decision making toward the end of the season late in the games… something we did NOT see in 2010.
If we think Paul Chryst is going to abandon the passing game we are mistaken. We don’t have the horses in the backfield to do what he did in 2010 and even then he passed 21 times per game.
Graham is out and injured, Bennett is good but not much PT and Crockett and Shell have no PT.
We have a new OL really and while I think they will run block OK I do not see multiple 1000 yard rushers on this team this season.
