At 2-10, Narduzzi is coaching for his job next season
- Thread starter Sean Miller Fan
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You should always be concerned that the replacement coach will be far worse. Pitt basketball still hasn’t recovered
Lets say we go 2-10 and then 4-8. Its nearly impossible to be worse than that. This isnt letting Dixon walk. Duzz has been bad except when he has Kenny at QB.
I agree. But he's a poor man's version of them (in performance... not cost, unfortunately).
It can absolutely get worse.
The thing that you seem to not understand though is that it can also get better. Hiring Kevin Stallings is a choice, not a necessity. Hiring Slugger Heywood is a choice, not a necessity.
The fact that so many Pitt fans are so willing to accept less than mediocre coaching simply because it is theoretically possible that it could get worse will never make any sense to me.
We had 9 wins last year without Kenny, only exceeded one time by Wanny (and not anyone else post 1981.) His two eight win seasons even exceeded Chryst's and Graham's best seasons. Second best record in the ACC over eight years at a school that's like 9th? best in the ACC in attendance, revenue, and local talent.
If he needs to go, Heather will do it, but your definition of bad is silly.
As we speak novenas are being offered up praying Narduzzi‘s new wardrobe is green and white!
8 + an exhibition win and against a very weak schedule
Paul Chryst had the easiest schedule in the past 20 years in 2014 and avoided a losing season by the skin of his teeth. Winning the games you are supposed to win is job #1.
Narduzzi is still king of the average coaches since Sherrill, the prettiest fat girl at the prom.
during the fiasco filled years of 2011-2014 we still managed to never finish under 6 wins with 2 coaches who are not currently coaching at the P5 level. The Majors2 & Hackett years were a result of more than just bad coaching (although they were pretty awful). With smart OOC scheduling, decent admin & NIL support, and the ACC at its current level any coach can mail in a 6-6 season. So yeah, if we have another season next year under .500, what's the point of stability any longer? Just role the dice, chances are you won't do worse and might actually do better.
2014 was the easiest schedule in Pitt history. 2022 and 2021 were also up there as well.
Most people won’t know my name, but StanleyPK is from the old days of Stanley P Kachowski, WDVE, 102.5. Grad of 1977, so I know the Pitt athletics programs from way back, probably many of the posters weren’t even born then. This program, both FB and BB has turned into a nightmare, mostly from an administration standpoint and coaching standpoint. The Duzz as most call him here, would be gone if it wasn’t for Kenny Pickett, who bailed him out of getting fired with his excellent play. The loss yesterday was attributed to the undisciplined team of 2 personal foul penalties, not the bad spot on the QB slide, that’s on the head coach. Pitt is not unlike any other school that sees a coach have success and extend his contract for many years to come. I get that we will never see the glory days again, but let’s beat who we are supposed to beat, win the marginal games every now and then and sneak a win where we aren’t supposed to win. Duzz is not the answer. PS, I was at the Sugar Bowl in 77, when we won the National Championship, so I have street cred. Hail to Pitt.
I'm a '78 grad so I've seen as much as you. The FB and BB programs today are in the best shape they've been in many years. Narduzzi is the best coach since Sherrill.
Narduzzi records without Kenny Pickett:
8-4 (inherited Boyd, Conner, Chryst OL)
8-4 (Conner and Chryst OL)
5-7
8-4 (one of easiest schedules in school history, wins over Duke and 7-5 Syr were only wins over teams with winning records)
2-10
2 losing seasons in 5 years. 8-4s greatly helped by Chryst's offensive recruiting.
Until they quit doing final rankings after bowl games, they aren't exhibitions
When did he go 2-10?
Guess what. He recruited and had Kenny Pickett on his team. To ignore that is the epitome of stupidity.
The reason I say that is because he is not a good coach unless he has a generational QB to bail him out. Even with Kenny we werent good and lucked out that a global pandemic gave him an extra year. Still managed to eff up 2 games with Kenny. Narduzzi's plan to get to the "next level" is essentially to find a 1st Round QB that no one offers. That isnt something you can reliably count on.
yeah, you never hear anyone say "take away Barkley and Franklin has never won the Big10". That argument ranks up there, or down there I guess I should say.
The difference there is Franklin won a competitive recruiting battle for a blue chipper, something he often does. And he didnt need a pandemic to do it. So, its possible Franklin could replicate this. Getting a Heisman QB by beating out Marist for him and then getting an extra year due to a pandemic isnt something you can replicate
It is looking more like it will be 3-9. BC or Syracuse, but not both.
But 2-10, 3-9, 4-8…all different shades of poop. Who cares.
The only questions really remaining are how willing this guy and this school is to change. It won’t help to replace Cignetti if he just hires someone exactly like him.
And regarding NIL, is the school willing to let player spending get ramped up to compete with the recruits we are disastrously losing now at every turn.
If neither of these factors is going to be different, a new HC will not solve the problems of the program. They are institutional (and increasingly, existential).
However, changing the HC is the classic (lazy, disingenuous) way a school that really doesn’t care to try to show it DOES care. “What do you MEAN we’re not serious?” But then it refuses to change the issues that really are causing the problem. A band new guy wearing brand new blublockers isn’t going to help.
But the guy makes too much money for that charade to happen yet, so they’ll have to wait out a couple more bad years to get that buyout down. Or more in Pitt fashion of late, maybe Duz will say something ‘incorrect’ on TV and they can try to go after him for cause.
It’s not looking like a happy ending for anyone, particularly the long suffering paying customers.
But 2-10, 3-9, 4-8…all different shades of poop. Who cares.
The only questions really remaining are how willing this guy and this school is to change. It won’t help to replace Cignetti if he just hires someone exactly like him.
And regarding NIL, is the school willing to let player spending get ramped up to compete with the recruits we are disastrously losing now at every turn.
If neither of these factors is going to be different, a new HC will not solve the problems of the program. They are institutional (and increasingly, existential).
However, changing the HC is the classic (lazy, disingenuous) way a school that really doesn’t care to try to show it DOES care. “What do you MEAN we’re not serious?” But then it refuses to change the issues that really are causing the problem. A band new guy wearing brand new blublockers isn’t going to help.
But the guy makes too much money for that charade to happen yet, so they’ll have to wait out a couple more bad years to get that buyout down. Or more in Pitt fashion of late, maybe Duz will say something ‘incorrect’ on TV and they can try to go after him for cause.
It’s not looking like a happy ending for anyone, particularly the long suffering paying customers.
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Competitive recruiting battle? He flipped Barkley on signing day from Rutgers. How is that different than Narduzzi beating out Temple for Pickett?
While that is a fair argument, it could also be said that the Pitt staff had a good eye for talent and found KP when he was overlooked elsewhere. And I don't think it's fair to discount those seasons, even if PN just got "lucky". It still happened and the Ws still count no matter what the circumstances were.
I'm not agreeing with his point, but I think that I remember some strange story about why SB originally committed to Butgers. Like his family didn't understand everything or something. He was the #77 recruit and I suspect he could've gone just about anywhere.
They deserve credit but a lot of luck is also involved. They will never find another Temple QB turned Heisman guy
No. He was considering flipping to UNC late. Congratulations goes to Duzz I guess for not allowing a 2 star QB whose stock rose during the season to flip.
What Im saying is this is never going to happen again. Never. His defense consistently sucks and he spends all his time and personnel on D so the only way he can win is if he lucks into generational offensive talent to outscore everyone and even then he'll give up 45 to a MAC school and lose a school. He's not a good coach
SMF loves to put qualifiers on his arguments. If he was on the Pro Football Hall of Fame committee, he'd be asking what Belichek did without Brady and what did Noll do without Bradshaw. Lombardi was barely over .500 with the Redskins, without the talent on the Packers he was nothing.
You have to put disclaimers in assessing coaches, especially football coaches because success is largely determined by how good your QB is. Is Bill Bellichick one of the greatest NFL coaches of all time, all things being equal? I dont know how you can say that. There are many NFL coaches who could have won with Brady the way he did.
Can't stand the guy, but many other coaches in the NFL could have gone to the Super Bowl 8 times and won 6 with Brady? Shula went to only one Super Bowl with Marino and lost. One of them must have really sucked.
He had the best player in league history. Is he a good coach? Sure? Best ever? Its impossible to say because he had the best QB. The same can be said for Phil Jackson. Its amazing but when I have better players on my youth teams, I usually win and when I dont, I usually lose.
I never said he was the best coach ever. I said he was a hall of fame coach.
You said many coaches could do what he did. Not many coaches are hall of famers.
You say now that it's impossible to say whether or not he's the best coach ever. Previously you said that many coaches could do what he did, which is pretty much saying he's not the best ever.
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