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400 carries @ 5.00+ yards per carry should equal Pitt's second Heisman trophy. Not even taking account receptions, yardage and touchdowns.
 
It would also be the worst possible thing he could do for that kid in the long-term. I think/hope he was exaggerating.
 
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It would also be the worst possible thing he could do for that kid in the long-term. I think/hope he was exaggerating.

Leveon Bell got 389 carries in a season while they were at MSU together. Someone asked him at ACC Media Day if he was concerned about getting other RBs more carries and he basically said no. He mentioned Bell, said Conner is going to get a lot of carries and would give him the ball now to carry it back to Pittsburgh from Pinehurst, NC if he could which is the type of comedy I really appreciate.
 
Yeah, I know Bell got that many carries but he is the anomaly. If you look at running back to carry the ball that often, the shelf life is very short. Also, Bell's running style is not nearly as violent as Conner's.

Trust me on this one, JC will not have a long professional career even if he is good enough because of the way he runs. You just can't continue to absorb that much contact.
 
Yeah, I know Bell got that many carries but he is the anomaly. If you look at running back to carry the ball that often, the shelf life is very short. Also, Bell's running style is not nearly as violent as Conner's.

Trust me on this one, JC will not have a long professional career even if he is good enough because of the way he runs. You just can't continue to absorb that much contact.

JC is either a good NFL back or not. Getting 400 carries vs 350 in his last college season isn't going to make or break him.

IF it were to work out with him winning the heisman, and that is heady stuff, it would be something that he could bank on the rest of his life.
 
JC is either a good NFL back or not. Getting 400 carries vs 350 in his last college season isn't going to make or break him.

IF it were to work out with him winning the heisman, and that is heady stuff, it would be something that he could bank on the rest of his life.

What?!

Getting that many carries absolutely could break him - quite literally. If I were him, or his family, I'd much rather fall back on that fat NFL paycheck than a trophy.

This is why I say NO collegiate RB who has the option to turn pro and cash in on a big check should ever stay in college for one second longer than is required of him. The risk far outweighs the reward.

In fact, I would go so far as to say that any coach who advises a high end RB to stay in school is actively hurting that kid. Also, any high end RB who stays in school is being disloyal to himself and his own family.
 
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In fact, I would go so far as to say that any coach who advises a high end RB to stay in school is actively hurting that kid. Also, any high end RB who stays in school is being disloyal to himself and his own family.

Those are some pretty strong feelings DVY. Are you really Dr. Phil masquerading as a Pitt fan? haha
 
I completely agree with the good dr. Rbs only have some career licks that they can take.
 
All RBs only have so many carries in them at the college & pro levels. JC’s styles also limits his #. I would like to have him start games but sprinkle in James Ibrahim and Ollison until the 4th Q.

If fresh, he will be the hammer we need to finish games….IMO
 
Those are some pretty strong feelings DVY. Are you really Dr. Phil masquerading as a Pitt fan? haha

Lol! (In my best Texas huckster accent):

Dr. Phil: What you need to understand, Tyler is that you cannot continue to snort cocaine and beat your wife.

(audience enthusiastically applauds)

Monstrous husband: I hear what you're saying but I like the way cocaine makes me feel and sometimes my wife gets lippy and needs to get put back in her place.

(Audience booze at that seemingly misogynistic sentiment.)

Dr. Phil: Carol, do you like it when he snorts cocaine and beats you?

Battered wife: No, I hate it. I hate it so much (she says tearing up).

Dr. Phil: Well, you must not hate it too badly because you stay with him. Why do you stay with him?

(jeers from the audience judging why this idiot stays with her monster of a husband)

Battered wife: I don't know (more tears). I guess it's because my daddy also used to snort cocaine and beat on my mama and I just thought that's how it works.

Dr. Phil: Well, that is not how it works – at least not how it supposed to work. Husbands are supposed to be supportive of their wives and treat them like they did on their wedding day.

(Audience offers full throated support at this point. Clearly Dr. Phil gets it.)

Dr. Phil: Tyler, you're going to go to counseling and you're going to stop snorting cocaine in greeting on your wife. Is that clear?

Monstrous husband: Yes, it is. Thank you so much for all your help.

(dysfunctional couple hugs on national television)

Another happy ending.

I just loosely described every Dr. Phil show ever made.
 
There's a sweet spot of how much you work an elite back so that you get his impact, without killing the golden goose (aka, he's a beaten dog by your last two or three games, which coincide with our hardest games (hopefully including a bowl). At the same time you want to maximize his stats and notoriety, which of course is positive for him, but the program too, because it entices other recruits who see you can deliver this.

Finally, particularly if the guy is a jr or sr, you also have some interest to work other backs in, because you know the top guy will be leaving (maybe even sooner if the ACL gods are angered), and want to know what you have behind him (plus, if they were top recruits, you might have promised to give them some early play, and you don't want defections). Plus, maybe even to show a new look to the offense.

So it's not just a matter of simply riding the horse until he drops ...
 
Especially given the fact that running back is one of the few areas of the team that appears to possess decent depth.

Ibrahim is serviceable and better than I thought he was. Chris James also played well last year in limited duty and I'm told that Ollison might be the best player of them all. And that was before we even get into the Hall kid from Youngstown.

There is no reason for them to not disburse some of Conner's carries. It is foolish to ride him like some are suggesting we should.
 
400 carries @ 5.00+ yards per carry should equal Pitt's second Heisman trophy. Not even taking account receptions, yardage and touchdowns.

UHHHH.......NO.......

pitt will have to win 10 games....and that isnt happening

Best case scenario....JC goes to NYC and gets a lousy meal.
 
unless we win 10-12 games, he's not going to win the heisman. there will be other players with great stats on teams with a great year. which a couple may go undefeated, like osu.

vegas takes heisman action before the start of every year. i have no idea what the odds are but jc is not at the top of the list.
 
Dr. von,
Audience booze??????

Where did you go to school? WVU?

Lol! (In my best Texas huckster accent):

Dr. Phil: What you need to understand, Tyler is that you cannot continue to snort cocaine and beat your wife.

(audience enthusiastically applauds)

Monstrous husband: I hear what you're saying but I like the way cocaine makes me feel and sometimes my wife gets lippy and needs to get put back in her place.

(Audience booze at that seemingly misogynistic sentiment.)

Dr. Phil: Carol, do you like it when he snorts cocaine and beats you?

Battered wife: No, I hate it. I hate it so much (she says tearing up).

Dr. Phil: Well, you must not hate it too badly because you stay with him. Why do you stay with him?

(jeers from the audience judging why this idiot stays with her monster of a husband)

Battered wife: I don't know (more tears). I guess it's because my daddy also used to snort cocaine and beat on my mama and I just thought that's how it works.

Dr. Phil: Well, that is not how it works – at least not how it supposed to work. Husbands are supposed to be supportive of their wives and treat them like they did on their wedding day.

(Audience offers full throated support at this point. Clearly Dr. Phil gets it.)

Dr. Phil: Tyler, you're going to go to counseling and you're going to stop snorting cocaine in greeting on your wife. Is that clear?

Monstrous husband: Yes, it is. Thank you so much for all your help.

(dysfunctional couple hugs on national television)

Another happy ending.

I just loosely described every Dr. Phil show ever made.
 
Coach Duzz is really comfortable and effective in these settings. Very conversational.
 
He was also very good on tv during the ESPN ACC coaches interview.

As for Conner, I definitely see him averaging over 25 carries per game this year
 
That is too many carries and would be a good way to get him hurt.

15–20 carries per game is more than enough – especially if they're going to use him in passing situations.

Give the other 10-15 carries to some combination of the other backs. That's why you have so many running backs on your roster.
 
What Narduzzi has to do is win games and if he thinks that Conner getting 400 carries is what it will take to win, then so be it. I don't think Narduzzi was actually being literal when he said that and they wouldn't put his career at risk by blatantly putting him out there for 30+ carries a game.

400 Carries = 30 Carries Per Game -- Conner only had 29 or more carries 5 times last season. Three of those 5 games in which he carried the ball over 30 times came in Pitt's first 4 games. Once Voytik started to improve (and Conner was banged up a little), Conner only carried the ball 29+ times twice in 9 games. In those two games, Conner combined to average 7+ yards per carry.

As a competitor, If Conner is averaging 7+ yards per carry, he's not going to want to be taken out of the game, especially if the game is on the line. Even with a 38 carry game last season, he only had 300 carries. I think Narduzzi and Chaney (who had multiple 1000 yard rushers last season) will be smart. However, they aren't going to have him on a "carry count" and I highly doubt he would want to be on one.

I'm in favor of seeing Pitt rush about 40-45 times per game (they had 46 per game last season). 20-25 to Conner, 10-15 to James and/or Ollison (whoever wins or splits the 2nd RB duty) and the rest 5-8 being Voytik,
 
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