If you have a subscription to the Athletic....long article on what happened?

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

‘It’s time to stop living in the past’: Picking through the bones of the once-proud Pitt basketball program

The Panthers did not merely have success or tradition, they had an identity for 10-plus years. Can Jeff Capel help them find one again?

theathletic.com

As time expired, Boston College’s Makai Ashton-Langford missed an off-balance layup, and a cheer went up from the crowd. It was as cathartic as it was celebratory. Any win these days — no matter the skill of the opponent or the chaos to the finish — will do, and as the fans ambled out into the frigid night, they seemed more like survivors than winners.

It didn’t use to be this way. Once the Pete counted as one of the better home-court advantages in college basketball, its raucous atmosphere built around its student section. The Oakland Zoo denizens sat not just behind the basketball stanchions, but along the sideline across from the benches. Gifted some of the best seats in the building, the students returned the favor by regularly turning the house into a rager.

 

[Pittnerski]

Can you post the whole article?

 

[TheSpecialSauce]

I’ll take a pass on reading what some Nitter has to say about the Pitt athletic program.

 

[PittMed]

‘It’s time to stop living in the past’: Picking through the bones of the once-proud Pitt basketball program

The Panthers did not merely have success or tradition, they had an identity for 10-plus years. Can Jeff Capel help them find one again?

theathletic.com

As time expired, Boston College’s Makai Ashton-Langford missed an off-balance layup, and a cheer went up from the crowd. It was as cathartic as it was celebratory. Any win these days — no matter the skill of the opponent or the chaos to the finish — will do, and as the fans ambled out into the frigid night, they seemed more like survivors than winners.

It didn’t use to be this way. Once the Pete counted as one of the better home-court advantages in college basketball, its raucous atmosphere built around its student section. The Oakland Zoo denizens sat not just behind the basketball stanchions, but along the sideline across from the benches. Gifted some of the best seats in the building, the students returned the favor by regularly turning the house into a rager.

That was a great article. Makes me want to
stick with Capel.

It’s about this time each year there is some optimism with the team. Lets change the script and continue to improve. Let’s continue to fight and not wane the rest of the year.

 

[cabe23]

That was a great article. Makes me want to
stick with Capel.

It’s about this time each year there is some optimism with the team. Lets change the script and continue to improve. Let’s continue to fight and not wane the rest of the year.

Well you're in luck because that article makes me think he'll definitely be back.

 

[King Of All Message Boards]

I’ll take a pass on reading what some Nitter has to say about the Pitt athletic program.

She’s been more than fair when writing about Pitt hoops when she was with ESPN. I don’t subscribe so I can’t read this one but I’d be surprised if it’s any kind of hit piece or biased at all.

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

Can you post the whole article?

It's really long.

 

[King Of All Message Boards]

It's really long.

And I would imagine it’s frowned upon and would likely be removed. I’m sure Peak doesn’t want his paid articles being posted anywhere.

 

[JD1976]

Great article. A rough trip down memory lane though. Everyone here should find a way to read this article.

Stalling declined to comment. I give the guy credit, he has never talked once about his time at Pitt. You’d think he’d at least like to try to defend himself. I guess a lot has to do with the fact that he doesn’t have any allies in the national media.

 

[meadvillecoach]

Just finished it. She left nothing out. The whole story is there. My take is if I was an athletic director I would keep the story in my desk and every so often pull it out and reread it. Then do the exact opposite

 

[LeftCoastPanther]

I sure hope she called out Gallagher, Barnes and Todd Turner from the search firm.

 

[Fsgolfdr]

Great article. A rough trip down memory lane though. Everyone here should find a way to read this article.

Stalling declined to comment. I give the guy credit, he has never talked once about his time at Pitt. You’d think he’d at least like to try to defend himself. I guess a lot has to do with the fact that he doesn’t have any allies in the national media.

Or he signed a nondisclosure document.

Plus he’s not going to change anyones mind on what happened.

Something that always fascinated me was that none of the players ever spoke up and said anything negative about him or their experience while at Pitt and that his three best players never considered staying once he was fired .

 

[JD1976]

I sure hope she called out Gallagher, Barnes and Todd Turner from the search firm.

She definitely laid out Barnes’ missteps and even reached out to him for comment. Of course, he declined. She also mentioned the “love triangle” between Turner, Stallings and Barnes.

 

[upj87]

It's really long.

that's what she said...


might be interesting to see the copy/paste limits here..

 

[TheWerewolfFromTwilight]

Honestly, we should have never been what we were for as long as we were. It was the perfect storm of events. But what inherent advantages do we have over our competitors? I would argue not many. We should absolutely not be this bad, but being a nearly perennial top 10 team for a little over a decade is likely never going to happen again.

In an ideal scenario, we put together a program that isn't as good in the regular season but balances that out with deeper tournament runs every once in a while.

In a real-life scenario, we suck really bad and now celebrate wins over teams we would have defeated by 40 ten years ago.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

Honestly, we should have never been what we were for as long as we were. It was the perfect storm of events. But what inherent advantages do we have over our competitors? I would argue not many. We should absolutely not be this bad, but being a nearly perennial top 10 team for a little over a decade is likely never going to happen again.

In an ideal scenario, we put together a program that isn't as good in the regular season but balances that out with deeper tournament runs every once in a while.

In a real-life scenario, we suck really bad and now celebrate wins over teams we would have defeated by 40 ten years ago.

We have been the opposite of what Pitt football has been....40 years of mediocrity until this season. Pitt basketball was Top 10 for a decade and then the worst P6 program for 6 years. There shouldn't have been that big of a variance. Pitt should be NC St, Seton Hall, Creighton. Not Duke, Kentucky (which is where we were for 10 years) or NW, DePaul, or BC (where we are now)

 

[TheWerewolfFromTwilight]

We have been the opposite of what Pitt football has been....40 years of mediocrity until this season. Pitt basketball was Top 10 for a decade and then the worst P6 program for 6 years. There shouldn't have been that big of a variance. Pitt should be NC St, Seton Hall, Creighton. Not Duke, Kentucky (which is where we were for 10 years) or NW, DePaul, or BC (where we are now)

It's tough when you look through the ACC teams and try to determine which programs we should be unequivocally better than. There really aren't many, in my opinion. But, at the very least, us and about ten other teams in the conference should more or less be "taking turns" (some years in the top; some years in the middle; some years at the bottom).

 

[King Of All Message Boards]

 

[Slick Manager of Champs]

It's tough when you look through the ACC teams and try to determine which programs we should be unequivocally better than. There really aren't many, in my opinion. But, at the very least, us and about ten other teams in the conference should more or less be "taking turns" (some years in the top; some years in the middle; some years at the bottom).

why is WVU better than us? If WVU can have that kind of success, no reason Pitt can't.

 

[PittPharm2002]

I sure hope she called out Gallagher, Barnes and Todd Turner from the search firm.

And the BOT and boosters
Gallagher and Barnes being so weak to listen to the noise still bothers me

 

[thebadby2]

Just finished it. She left nothing out. The whole story is there. My take is if I was an athletic director I would keep the story in my desk and every so often pull it out and reread it. Then do the exact opposite

If she left nothing out, she had to have addressed the decline of the program toward the end of Dixon's tenure, before he left and the program went completely over the cliff.

What did the article say about that?

 

[Franb]

why is WVU better than us? If WVU can have that kind of success, no reason Pitt can't.

They have a Hall of Fame coach. It is that simple. Getting that coach is the challenge.

 

[LeftCoastPanther]

And the BOT and boosters
Gallagher and Barnes being so weak to listen to the noise still bothers me

My buddy copied and sent me the article. I hate reading boosters interviewed. They're the impatient ones who want more, more, more and can screw up a good thing.

 

[King Of All Message Boards]

They have a Hall of Fame coach. It is that simple. Getting that coach is the challenge.

And before that had good ones. And they’ve also benefitted from longevity. Huggy being an alum certainly worked in their favor but bottom line they got it done.

 

[PittPharm2002]

They have a great coach and stuck with hom
Through down seasons

And before that had good ones. And they’ve also benefitted from longevity. Huggy being an alum certainly worked in their favor but bottom line they got it done.

yep they followed Beilein with Huggy and stuck with him even during some down seasons .

they also support their athletic department -
Last article I found their donations were about 2.5x Pitt’s

 

[LeftCoastPanther]

They have a great coach and stuck with hom
Through down seasons

yep they followed Beilein with Huggy and stuck with him even during some down seasons .

they also support their athletic department -
Last article I found their donations were about 2.5x Pitt’s

And WVU went from long-time coach Catlett to Beilein?

Pitt got screwed with bad luck when it had Grgurich, who was perfect for the move to the Big East, and he was one of those guys who hated being the top dog. Much more comfortable being an assistant.

 

[gary2]

And WVU went from long-time coach Catlett to Beilein?

Pitt got screwed with bad luck when it had Grgurich, who was perfect for the move to the Big East, and he was one of those guys who hated being the top dog. Much more comfortable being an assistant.

I though Tim threatened to quit multiple times because he didn’t feel he was being given what was needed?

That doesn’t seem like the attitude of someone comfortable with being an assistant.

 

[LeftCoastPanther]

I though Tim threatened to quit multiple times because he didn’t feel he was being given what was needed?

That doesn’t seem like the attitude of someone comfortable with being an assistant.

I wouldn't know if he quit over disputes, but knowing Pitt it wouldn't shock me if there is proof in an old article. He did quit the Vegas job in 1994 after seven games due to stress.

 

[gary2]

I wouldn't know if he quit over disputes, but knowing Pitt it wouldn't shock me if there is proof in an old article. He did quit the Vegas job in 1994 after seven games due to stress.

There was quite a lot going on out there at the time.

Cheech and Chong would have been stressed.

 

[JD1976]

If she left nothing out, she had to have addressed the decline of the program toward the end of Dixon's tenure, before he left and the program went completely over the cliff.

What did the article say about that?

Yes that was addressed and not glossed over though it wasn’t really anything too pointed at Dixon.

 

[PittPharm2002]

I’m still endlessly amused 6 years later folks talking about the “decline “ when we made the ncaat 3 of the 4 years and haven’t even sniffed it since he left

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

I’m still endlessly amused 6 years later folks talking about the “decline “ when we made the ncaat 3 of the 4 years and haven’t even sniffed it since he left

3 out of 5. The decline started after the Butler loss. You dont run a coach off for that but 3 mid-range NCAA seeds in 5 years is a significant decline. However, it should have been viewed as a "return to normal." We were never going to be a Top 10 program again

 

[thebadby2]

Yes that was addressed and not glossed over though it wasn’t really anything too pointed at Dixon.

What did the article attribute it to?

 

[King Of All Message Boards]

What did the article attribute it to?

Lack of eye contact

 

[TheSpecialSauce]

A portion of our fanbase got spoiled with all our success under Howland and Dixon. Some high powered boosters and fans thought we could do better than Dixon and were clearly wrong. Barnes was used as the henchman and played Pitt like a fiddle along with this cronies.

Moral of the story - know your role and be careful for what you wish for. It makes a lot more sense to spend money on facility upgrades and a good coaching staff once you have one in place. The alternative is spending a lot more money on buyouts for bad coaches that lose a lot.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

What a waste of a free trial. This article is more/less a history lesson for non-Pitt fans. I like Dana O'Neil but this article didn't offer anything that we didn't already know. Nothing interesting.

Her sources of Ron Cook (who doesn't know college basketball at all) and an unnamed HS coach were bad.

This article could have been so much more. The biggest thing I took away from this is maybe Dixon is willing to return with his statement that he loves Pittsburgh. I know, probably not, but this article was a waste of time.

 

[gary2]

I wouldn't know if he quit over disputes, but knowing Pitt it wouldn't shock me if there is proof in an old article. He did quit the Vegas job in 1994 after seven games due to stress.

There is a section on Tim in Sam Sciullo Jr’s - Pitt. 100 years of Pitt basketball.

There are details and quotes from both sportswriters and ex players supporting the position that Tim was engaged in a constant battle with the administration trying to get things he felt he needed.

Pitt

From 2001-2004, no Division IA men's college basketball program in the country had a better winning percentage (88-16, .846) than the University of Pittsburgh. Pitt also won (or shared) three consecutive Big East Conference regular-season or tournament championships during that period...

books.google.com

 

[PittPharm2002]

3 out of 5. The decline started after the Butler loss. You dont run a coach off for that but 3 mid-range NCAA seeds in 5 years is a significant decline. However, it should have been viewed as a "return to normal." We were never going to be a Top 10 program again

My statement didn’t need any corrections 3/4 is correct , super chief .
Fire up your google machine, rain man.

 

[PittMed]

Great article. A rough trip down memory lane though. Everyone here should find a way to read this article.

Stalling declined to comment. I give the guy credit, he has never talked once about his time at Pitt. You’d think he’d at least like to try to defend himself. I guess a lot has to do with the fact that he doesn’t have any allies in the national media.

This is a good take. The presser --- which I attended... I will never forget. What an odd experience.

 

[NTOP]

why is WVU better than us? If WVU can have that kind of success, no reason Pitt can't.

They kept their best coach.