About this camp....

[ksquared33]

.....we will need to see who is ready to make that progression up another notch & establish themselves as our next leaders, playmakers(both O & D), the blue collar team first plug & play reserves, etc.
The fact that Chris Clark & Dewayne Hendrix missed last year thru injuries set back what many of us thought would have already established them as being key components & leaders capable of lending maturity & leadership. Can either or both of these 2 step up in game 1 against Youngstown St & establish that they are exactly who we had hoped they would be thus giving the team a major shot in the arm going into the St Penn & Okie St. games.
I am not as worried about guys like Jackson or Motley & Briggs being in the starting line-up early on as both have quality game & pressure experience. Both of those guys have made progress in each year at Pitt & I expect that to continue this year. Plus the front 7 will have more speed & athletic ability to hopefully raise the level of pressure on opposing offenses. All these kids will have another year under theirs belts of knowing what it is that Coach Duzz demands of them to make this D work.
I am never 1 to expect true frosh to excel on day 1 or that first year but I do see Paris Ford as having an impact on this years D & Special teams. I think the kid is that kind of special if put on the big stage early. In any case he makes his teammates better because of what his speed brings to the table.
I am not nearly as concerned about our O-Line especially w/ getting Officer healthy & having JJ-S back after knee surgery & a missed season. Dintino has been around the block & knows what will be expected. I trust he will step up & do the job, Bookser needs to get his head on straight & hopefully what occurred will be a serious wake-up call for the kid. When Alex has been on the field he seems to have his head on straight so hopefully he can focus more on what's important because he's a baller w/ a potential pro future.
I read where someone suggested losing Tre Tipton was not a major blow because he was a possession receiver but in my opinion that is exactly what this team needs to compliment both Jester & Quad. Browne or DeNucci or whoever QB's will need to find his go to possession receiver the most to build up some confidence, completions, timing before feeling free enough to take those downfield high risk big play opportunities to our playmakers. Not saying Weah or Quad cannot be effective doing this but I just had a feeling Tre was about to really be the receiver when the 3rd & 6 play needed to be made. Tre showed the ability to go low for a grab or do whatever was needed to make the play.. I was just very confident Tre was coming into his own. I do believe we have the talent & numbers at receiver to feel the void but I do feel sorry for Tre & wish him a complete recovery to get back next year.
Coach Duzz made a great point yesterday when he said that replacing Canada was not about matching the 41 pt's a game because it is not gonna happen. It's about getting W's & winning games point blank. What this team needs to do is find it's own identity, allow players to be their own people & not try living up to a James Conner, Nate Peterman, DoJo, Orndoff, Juan Price, etc...,
etc....
IMO the LB corps is where this team finds the biggest transformation, advancement, progress from last few years Pitt defense's. W/ this I will include the 2 DE's as I believe we will see some very imaginative player collections out on the field at multiple positions at any given down & distance. For the first time since Coach Duzz has been here he's going to put his athletes on defense in position to make plays & challenge opposing offense's. I really think Coach Duzz is going to bait teams into trying to attack us as if it's last year.....IMO I believe the defensive staff is hoping that teams come at us based on last years film especially St Penn & Okie St.....
After the first 3 games given the comp we will have played this team will have a good idea who they are & what they are trying to become.

H2 PITT !!!

H2 PITT !!!

 

[USN_Panther]

.....we will need to see who is ready to make that progression up another notch & establish themselves as our next leaders, playmakers(both O & D), the blue collar team first plug & play reserves, etc.
The fact that Chris Clark & Dewayne Hendrix missed last year thru injuries set back what many of us thought would have already established them as being key components & leaders capable of lending maturity & leadership. Can either or both of these 2 step up in game 1 against Youngstown St & establish that they are exactly who we had hoped they would be thus giving the team a major shot in the arm going into the St Penn & Okie St. games.
I am not as worried about guys like Jackson or Motley & Briggs being in the starting line-up early on as both have quality game & pressure experience. Both of those guys have made progress in each year at Pitt & I expect that to continue this year. Plus the front 7 will have more speed & athletic ability to hopefully raise the level of pressure on opposing offenses. All these kids will have another year under theirs belts of knowing what it is that Coach Duzz demands of them to make this D work.
I am never 1 to expect true frosh to excel on day 1 or that first year but I do see Paris Ford as having an impact on this years D & Special teams. I think the kid is that kind of special if put on the big stage early. In any case he makes his teammates better because of what his speed brings to the table.
I am not nearly as concerned about our O-Line especially w/ getting Officer healthy & having JJ-S back after knee surgery & a missed season. Dintino has been around the block & knows what will be expected. I trust he will step up & do the job, Bookser needs to get his head on straight & hopefully what occurred will be a serious wake-up call for the kid. When Alex has been on the field he seems to have his head on straight so hopefully he can focus more on what's important because he's a baller w/ a potential pro future.
I read where someone suggested losing Tre Tipton was not a major blow because he was a possession receiver but in my opinion that is exactly what this team needs to compliment both Jester & Quad. Browne or DeNucci or whoever QB's will need to find his go to possession receiver the most to build up some confidence, completions, timing before feeling free enough to take those downfield high risk big play opportunities to our playmakers. Not saying Weah or Quad cannot be effective doing this but I just had a feeling Tre was about to really be the receiver when the 3rd & 6 play needed to be made. Tre showed the ability to go low for a grab or do whatever was needed to make the play.. I was just very confident Tre was coming into his own. I do believe we have the talent & numbers at receiver to feel the void but I do feel sorry for Tre & wish him a complete recovery to get back next year.
Coach Duzz made a great point yesterday when he said that replacing Canada was not about matching the 41 pt's a game because it is not gonna happen. It's about getting W's & winning games point blank. What this team needs to do is find it's own identity, allow players to be their own people & not try living up to a James Conner, Nate Peterman, DoJo, Orndoff, Juan Price, etc...,
etc....
IMO the LB corps is where this team finds the biggest transformation, advancement, progress from last few years Pitt defense's. W/ this I will include the 2 DE's as I believe we will see some very imaginative player collections out on the field at multiple positions at any given down & distance. For the first time since Coach Duzz has been here he's going to put his athletes on defense in position to make plays & challenge opposing offense's. I really think Coach Duzz is going to bait teams into trying to attack us as if it's last year.....IMO I believe the defensive staff is hoping that teams come at us based on last years film especially St Penn & Okie St.....
After the first 3 games given the comp we will have played this team will have a good idea who they are & what they are trying to become.

H2 PITT !!!

H2 PITT !!!

Could Flowers or Matthews be that 3rd and 6 clutch receiver that moves the chains?

 

[thebadby2]

Could Flowers or Matthews be that 3rd and 6 clutch receiver that moves the chains?

Flowers a possession receiver? Wait a minute-accordimg to Mr. Lightning U himself-Steel Curtain-Flowers is supposed to be the next Randy Moss-esque home run hitter. How dare you. Anyway, since Matthews got all the true frosh reps last year, I'd say he's the more likely candidate to be that possession type.

 

[Cathedral Lawn Frisbee]

Nice write up! Had to refill my coffee before finishing.

 

[Delpanther]

No confidence in Motley, Briggs or Jackson....they did nothing last year to suggest they are starting caliber players. Jackson was horrible against Syracuse( notwithstanding the pick 6) and Briggs is still searching for his underwear which he was faked out of multiple times by that 150lb NW RB in the bowl game.

 

[Revenge Of The Noise]

No confidence in Motley, Briggs or Jackson....they did nothing last year to suggest they are starting caliber players. Jackson was horrible against Syracuse( notwithstanding the pick 6) and Briggs is still searching for his underwear which he was faked out of multiple times by that 150lb NW RB in the bowl game.

Indeed. If this D, particularly individuals mentioned here, can show the turnaround ... 180 wouldn't be adequate to describe, i think 540 might approach it .. that some have outright taken for granted for the coming season let alone merely hope...these coaches should be locked in for perpetuity because they are the greatest ever.

 

[Las Panteras]

7-5

 

[vegasgreed]

True. Motley, Briggs and Jackson are not ACC caliber players, as in good players. If guys like Coleman, Miller and Hamlin cannot beat these guys out, our D is in trouble for the second year in a row.

The other thing i would point out with the OP, he mentioned Camp and Watts are going to cause some big problems the opposing OL. We might be a year or two away from that happening.

No confidence in Motley, Briggs or Jackson....they did nothing last year to suggest they are starting caliber players. Jackson was horrible against Syracuse( notwithstanding the pick 6) and Briggs is still searching for his underwear which he was faked out of multiple times by that 150lb NW RB in the bowl game.

 

[cpc247]

True. Motley, Briggs and Jackson are not ACC caliber players, as in good players. If guys like Coleman, Miller and Hamlin cannot beat these guys out, our D is in trouble for the second year in a row.

The other thing i would point out with the OP, he mentioned Camp and Watts are going to cause some big problems the opposing OL. We might be a year or two away from that happening.

I like this realistic post.... I agree talent is in the stable, but this year might be the "calm" before the storm in terms of waiting for keys classes to mature "on field" experience. The only thing I'd add is that Motley has the potential to come out of now where like JW did at WR. He has played a lot of reps as an underclassmen and has some physical tools to go with that. Kinda hoping he breaks through this year in a big way (especially if no Ford). For this year to go 8-4 or 9-3 some young offensive and defensive linemen are going to have to play out of there minds... Pitt is clearly heading in the right direction talent wise.

 

[csking]

No confidence in Motley, Briggs or Jackson....they did nothing last year to suggest they are starting caliber players. Jackson was horrible against Syracuse( notwithstanding the pick 6) and Briggs is still searching for his underwear which he was faked out of multiple times by that 150lb NW RB in the bowl game.

Jackson was a RS Frosh last year, give the kid some credit. And by the way I do not think it's fair to throw out his great plays in order to try making your point.
Why is it a kid like Hamlin or Coleman will get all kinds of leeway(why, because they were H.S. high 3 low 4 star kids) where as Briggs, Motley & Jackson came in w/ much less fanfare so it's just easier to rag on their games. Briggs has more than lived up to honoring his offer as he will leave Pitt a 4 year letter winner the same as Motley & Jackson.
When a RB gets into the secondary it's a whole lot easier (more room to run) evading tacklers. If that is the best reasoning you have for making your point you failed to make it. By the way that kid made our entire D look bad last year.
Why is it people want to sum up a kids entire career based on what they did as RS Soph's or Frosh as if they will not continue to work hard , improve & develop.
I've been on this site long enough to understand how certain posters base their opinions about players on whatever a kids H.S. rating was from the recruiting sites.

H2 PITT !!!

 

[Revenge Of The Noise]

Jackson was a RS Frosh last year, give the kid some credit. And by the way I do not think it's fair to throw out his great plays in order to try making your point.
Why is it a kid like Hamlin or Coleman will get all kinds of leeway(why, because they were H.S. high 3 low 4 star kids) where as Briggs, Motley & Jackson came in w/ much less fanfare so it's just easier to rag on their games. Briggs has more than lived up to honoring his offer as he will leave Pitt a 4 year letter winner the same as Motley & Jackson.
When a RB gets into the secondary it's a whole lot easier (more room to run) evading tacklers. If that is the best reasoning you have for making your point you failed to make it. By the way that kid made our entire D look bad last year.
Why is it people want to sum up a kids entire career based on what they did as RS Soph's or Frosh as if they will not continue to work hard , improve & develop.
I've been on this site long enough to understand how certain posters base their opinions about players on whatever a kids H.S. rating was from the recruiting sites.

H2 PITT !!!

I do think Jackson holds some potential.

The others ... well ...

Let's see what kind of defensive guru our coach actually is, I guess. He's a stubborn one who believes in his system, that we know

 

[Delpanther]

Jackson was a RS Frosh last year, give the kid some credit. And by the way I do not think it's fair to throw out his great plays in order to try making your point.
Why is it a kid like Hamlin or Coleman will get all kinds of leeway(why, because they were H.S. high 3 low 4 star kids) where as Briggs, Motley & Jackson came in w/ much less fanfare so it's just easier to rag on their games. Briggs has more than lived up to honoring his offer as he will leave Pitt a 4 year letter winner the same as Motley & Jackson.
When a RB gets into the secondary it's a whole lot easier (more room to run) evading tacklers. If that is the best reasoning you have for making your point you failed to make it. By the way that kid made our entire D look bad last year.
Why is it people want to sum up a kids entire career based on what they did as RS Soph's or Frosh as if they will not continue to work hard , improve & develop.
I've been on this site long enough to understand how certain posters base their opinions about players on whatever a kids H.S. rating was from the recruiting sites.

H2 PITT !!!

Briggs has done nothing...get a clue. Jackson has nice size and may turn into a DB...time will tell but he stunk last year. Motley...,meh.. too small.

 

[Pitt-Chains]

Could Flowers or Matthews be that 3rd and 6 clutch receiver that moves the chains?

When we are on offense can't wait for the line judge signal to "move the chains"..

 

[DC_Area_Panther]

There likely will be very few positive take aways from the Youngstown game, IMO. I expect we will see plain vanilla much like the Villanova game last year.

Most likely we will have lots of fan hand wringing immediately after Youngstown with dire predictions of embarrassing blowout losses to OK St & PSU as a result of a boring pedestrian win.

 

[pittmeister]

7-5

Once again, a positive and insightful post....

 

[Jeffburgh]

Briggs has done nothing...get a clue. Jackson has nice size and may turn into a DB...time will tell but he stunk last year. Motley...,meh.. too small.

I generally agree, Motley and Briggs have limitations. Good program guys, can contribute, but aren't going to be the guys who win games.

Jackson has a real chance to be a player, he has good size and is surprisingly athletic. This year will tell a lot about him.

 

[Las Panteras]

Once again, a positive and insightful post....

and if my prediction read "10-2" you would have given it a "like".

Classic koolaider....

cheers.......

 

[pittmeister]

and if my prediction read "10-2" you would have given it a "like".

Classic koolaider....

cheers.......

No, If you're going to say 7-5, try and elaborate and give us some reasoning behind your prediction. In the process, try and use proper English and complete sentences while doing so... Also, mix in some positive posts as well every once in awhile. A little change of pace might improve your personality...

BTW.... What did you predict last year at this time?

 

[Las Panteras]

[QUOTE="pittmeister, post: 1941627, A little change of pace might improve your personality...

BTW.... What did you predict last year at this time?[/QUOTE]

Improve my personality????

On an anonymous online message board ??

That is delicious........