Perhaps Georgia Tech AD Dan Radackovich misremembered?

Or perhaps it was AD Steve Pederson and Assistant Athletic Director/Football Operations Chris LaSala?

You may recall Post-Gazette beat writer Paul Zeise wrote this.

There are rumors flying around the Internet that Pitt and Georgia Tech are nearing a deal to play a home and home in football. As it turns out, they seem to be just that — rumors, and not very credible ones.

How do I know?

I asked Steve Pederson — who in turn asked Chris LaSala — and both laughed as they said they have never spoken with Georgia Tech.

Since I was likely the source thanks to a loyal reader and an Atlanta resident, I couldn’t back up the “rumor” at the time. The station only put the first half of the interview on their site.

Thankfully there are all these technological things like e-mail and mp3s. So, I e-mailed the producer of Mayhem in the A.M. at Sports Radio 790 The Zone in Atlanta, Scott Klug. He was nice enough to send me the MP3 of the second part of their interview with Georgia Tech AD Dan Radakovich.

Here’s the final 1:47 of the interview where they do get into the non-con football schedule.

GT AD Dan Radakovich Interview

Is this conclusive that it will happen? No. Does it suggest that Pitt and GT have done more than a little talking? I’d say so.

So, at least now that “rumor” has a source.

Solid podcasting from CFB Weekly takes a step backward this week. They talk to me about Dave Wannstedt, Pitt and dodging the Morelli bullet. Take a listen and fully grasp why I should be read and not heard.

Also on there, the always entertaining Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician. Really, it almost  took a coach on the hot seat episode as UCLA and Ole Miss bloggers were also in the mix this week.

– A “marathon” negotiating session last week led to former Panther Darrelle Revis getting a deal done with the New York Jets. Aside from 1st overall pick JaMarcus Russell and Revis, every other 1st round pick had been signed. Revis has a bright future ahead of him, and SI’s Peter King lists him as a CB on his “All-Future Team.”

The Cleveland Browns thought enough of him to have him ranked as a top-five player in the draft this year — and the Jets thanked their lucky stars Revis was still there at No. 14. He’s got excellent cover skills and is a willing tackler.

– CBS SportsLine predicts Pitt will finish sixth in the Big East over UConn and Syracuse.

6. Pittsburgh: Which way you headed, Wanny? Without a proven quarterback and six new starters on defense, Dave Wannstedt is on the hot seat. Watch roadies at Virginia and Michigan State. They will be an indicator of his future.

Pitt and Cincinnati in the 5/6 spots seem to be a toss up. And the comment about Wannstedt being on the hot seat is a bit premature; but it got some talk in the discussion thread.

– Sports Illustrated devoted this week’s issue to previewing college football. They also have Pitt coming in at #6 in the BE with a 5-7 overall record and 2-5 in conference. Not a ton of love there — but they do give a nod to Oderick Turner who is going to be a little more widely known since he’s our top receiver right now.

– Both PSI and Kevin Gorman report that freshman offensive guard Chris Jacobson badly hurt his right knee and will need surgery. The procedure will like take place next week and though he will possibly miss the whole season, Wannstedt did not entirely rule him out for the rest of the year. Obviously, redshirting him is looking like the smart option.

– Beano Cook was a guest on Mark Madden’s show on ESPN Radio 1250. Cook, who Madden calls the “Pope of college football,” says Pitt’s home schedule is the worst it’s been since World War II. That’s not a joke — Beano knows. He also says that LeSean McCoy will see a ton of playing time this year and will make an immediate impact. I found it funny when Cook, at a young 75 years old, referred to McCoy as “Shady.” He also says McCoy will be Pitt’s running back for 3 years before jumping to the NFL.

For the Big East media days, Rivals Radio interviewed a player from each Big East team. Pitt’s representative was Derek Kinder and the interview can be heard here. Before even finishing greeting one another, the interviewer immediately asks, “Who is going to be your starting quarterback?” The answer was pretty much what you’d expect: he’s seen three different guys in practice and didn’t say if any where ahead of the others.

He says the upcoming season isn’t looking too bad and that last year’s 6-6 record was a failure in the end. When he talks about them needing to finish games better, I automatically gag and think of the Michigan State and UConn games. In all, it’s a quick little interview, and not a bad listen.

Also, for your Penn State fill of the week, two articles about PSU and more specifically, their fan base. The first is from Rakes of Mallow, a Notre Dame blog. Penn State and Notre Dame are two of the three teams I dislike the most (WVU the third) but the ND writer makes some great points; highly recommended reading.

I don’t blame Penn State for trying to find a rival, as they don’t really have one. Ohio State is considerably more concerned with Michigan, and vice-versa, while the Irish are more focused on the Wolverines and Trojans. They could restart the local rivalry with Pitt, but the Lions envision themselves on some sort of blue-and-white pedestal when it comes to playing the Panthers.

There was also a reader submission from Mondesi’s House about college allegiances. The reader says that his Penn State co-workers dislike his favorite coach, Jim Tressel.

You would think Jim Tressel stole some of these fans’ dates to the prom, they HATE him with such passion.

This is the classic case of where PSU fans are looking for a rival. They try to act all tough towards Ohio State when Buckeye fans simply shrug it off since they have more important teams to throw their animosity towards.

Reminder that I will be doing a segment or two on The Sports Contraption with Dave Dameshek tonight on 93.7 The Zone. It should be sometime after 7:30. As of this time, Dave’s wife has not gone into labor. The appearance will be live, but hopefully with a bit of a 9 second delay in case I release an expletive deleted. Yes, I tend to keep it clean on the blog, but as my friends can attest, I am not nearly so good in conversation.

Dave’s even got his own entry on Wikipedia where you will learn about his extensive relationship with Jimmy Kimmel and Adam Carolla projects.

I’m looking forward to it. Hopefully I won’t provide too many dead air moments or um and ah too much.

I’ll be making my Pittsburgh radio debut tomorrow on the Dave Dameshek Sports Contraption on 93.7 The Zone. Yes, that’s right. Despite doing this for 3 and 3/4 years, this will be the first time a radio show will be speaking to me. That sure keeps the old ego in check.

You can listen on the internet, but you have to do a free, short registration (so do that early). The only thing that might cancel the appearance will be if his wife finally goes into labor. She is apparently due any time, so…

The show is new (as is the whole program format) and Dameshek has been active in reaching out to the Pittsburgh sports bloggers. On Monday he had the guy behind Mondesishouse.com on for a couple segments. It’s a smart approach in that it gets some different people on the radio who pay close attention to Pittsburgh sports giving some different views. Not to mention create some positive vibes with the online community and more promotion for the show (such as this post).

As you can expect the discussion will be on Pitt, though I’m sure other things may creep into it.