Our team at Rivals along with Paul and the Pitt Sports News staff are going to be giving a free month to all active subscribers to say thank you for your patience and make up for the few days here in between publishers. More details on that below.

I did hear your concerns through the transition about not being able to answer all questions that were asked. There were contractual restrictions that dictated what and when we could share in some instances, but I will take responsibility for the transition to Pitt Sports News not happening immediately on March 1. That was our intention, but there were hurdles that we had not cleared in time to get that done right away. As I said last week, though, our priority here is to bring you elite coverage of Pitt athletics and give you a community to discuss your favorite team, cheer them on, celebrate (sometimes commiserate) and share the latest news and information. Paul's connections to the program are unmatched and Karl is an up and coming voice in this market who brings a tremendous work ethic. I am extremely excited for the future of this site!

Here is how the free month will be applied to your account: First, your account must currently be active. An account cannot be edited if it is in a cancelling state, even if your subscription runs through later in the year. Our engineers will not be applying the free month to accounts until Monday, so if you recently cancelled you have through the weekend to take your account out of a cancelled state (you can still cancel in the future, but have to be active when the free month is applied). If you are an annual subscriber, the free month will extend your current year one month. For instance, if your subscription renews in September, it would now not renew until October. If you are a monthly subscriber, this will apply to your next month.

Thank you for your continued contributions and presence on this site, and we look forward to the future of Pitt Sports News here at Rivals!

Hey Gang,

I posted an update on the spring goings on with Pitt's most successful team. If you feel so inclined...

lhttps://pittsburgh.rivals.com/news/checking-in-on-pitt-volleyball

Lots of little nuggets in this one.....

I have a thread opened on the football board for this week's live chat which begins at noon.

What day is he supposed to visit Pitt?

Today's notebook is loaded with notes and nuggets from the weekend. Hope you enjoy.....

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Tough break for Pitt. Dugger is a seriously talented kid who made strides this spring. The coaching staff is very high on Mason Heintschel, though, and Cole Gonzales is a solid veteran option at backup.

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Not one player drafted.

After being a fan of Pitt sports since 1955 plus being an alumnus, a lot of changes have happened to the University, collegiate athletics, and conferences, In general, I believe that Pitt, Syracuse, and BC are on the cusp of deciding that they cannot and do not wish to be the semi-pro stepchild of professional sports.

How much does athletics add to the bottom line for universities in building facilities (yes, I know the old Woody Hayes saying about his team building OSU), hiring top professors, and doing valuable research? Frankly, not very much as the General Fund has augmented the athletic programs.

Certainly most people really do enjoy rooting for their favorite team or college. Nothing wrong with that and it is a healthy activity for students and fans. But, reality has to hit the road that even with the proposed settlement, various sports will be cut or dwindled. Conferences will be The Big TWO and the beggars at the table. Even the ACC changed their Departure Policy and will give more money to Florida State, Clemson, and probably half the conferences before Pitt, Syracuse, or BC. That decision rests on viewership of each ACC team's games over a five year period. The ACC is becoming uncomfortable and perhaps vulnerable now.

I definitely understand dislike of what I am writing but reality is how the university looks at things. Pitt has had some great periods in football and even basketball, but the reality again is that those times were not decades or generations. When you start to consider paying players $250,000+ per year, then you are buying ever changing rosters and depreciating the value of what a university is as a primary function for society.

A little insight, EJ can back up knowing me and his father as well. We used to be a close student body before playing athletics became a full time job. We would gather in the Tuck Shop, flirt with sorority sisters, etc. This group included Paul Martha, Marty Schottenheimer, Rick Leeson, and almost all the football and basketball players. We had a hell of a lot of fun and enjoyed the athletics while being proud to be a far higher ranked school than Farmers University aka Penn State. Pitt was a private university and its chancellor was spending freely to make Pitt an Ivy League School. Well, that changed and Pitt became State Related and then budgets were scrutinized more so than previously. Pitt never had a faculty or administration that was favoring athletics over academics. Nor should we!

There is the huge financial mistake of Victory Heights. There is absolutely no viable space or reason to build a new "Pitt Stadium." Plus, the mistake of the Trimester System destroyed much of what other universities enjoy, a sense of Class of XXXX. Is it any wonder that alumni donations do not match those of other similar sized universities?

Do it again Sanders and Gabriel two QBS drafted

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Konata Mumpfield ended up being the third and final Pitt player drafted this year. Seventh round to the Los Angeles Rams, which is where Louis Riddick was hoping he'd land in a social media post earlier this week. It's a nice landing spot for Mumpfield.

Now we will wait and see where the Pitt players who weren't drafted will sign as UDFAs.

belongs to Texas QB Quinn Ewers. He left Texas, after first getting a million dollars to go to Ohio State. No doubt he felt Arch Manning coming after his job.

Here's the thing, especially with QB's of all people, and still before some (hopefully) guiderails are applied to paying players 98% of the QB's in college are more valuable to their college programs than an NFL franchise. Ewers will now struggle at the NFL minimum salary with no guarantees.

Ewers could have (should have) transferred from Texas to who knows...ND, A&M, Tennessee for millions of dollars and a chance to play himself into a better NFL draft position or....just have a bigger paycheck.

Expect this to resonate with alot of kids when they make the decision to leave for the NFL now. Especially QB's.

A nice Monday evening surprise for Pitt fans. Jeff Capel has picked up a commitment from 7-foot forward Kieran Mullen (St. Thomas More HS in Connecticut). The Vancouver native will redshirt next season.

He's an intriguing prospect. He has to pack on some weight, but 7-footers don't grow on trees. He's got the tools to eventually be a good college basketball player. Worthwhile pickup for the Panthers.

Today's notebook is loaded with notes and nuggets from the weekend. Hope you enjoy.....

Did we pony up the extra money? Hopefully! Just curious

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Here is the weekend edition of the Redshirt Diaries with a lot of recruiting nuggets and a look at both the basketball and football rosters