Another weekend another Pitt loss, this time a heart breaker to UNC once again we had a chance to win it in the 4th quarter and weren't able to put them away. But while Pitt is reeling this weekend a lot of other exciting things happened that I think will benefit Pitt in the end.
1. Notre Dame fires it's DC - After starting 1-3 and seeing any hope of making a playoff run vanish against Duke this season Brian Kelly put every position up for grabs including the DC position on his staff. This comes a little less than a week after "stealing" away 4 star defensive tackle recruit Donovan Jeter. Pitt has lost a couple of battles this year to Notre Dame on the recruiting trail especially on the defensive side of the ball, I think/hope that this shakeup makes these kids rethink their commitment to the Notre Dame program since they will have no idea who their position coach will be or even if Brian Kelly will be able to survive this season (or will he move on to another program see below)
2. LSU Fires Les Miles and Cam Cameron - Les Miles wild tenure at LSU has come to an abrupt end after LSU gave both him and OC Cam Cameron their walking papers this weekend after an upset loss to Auburn on Saturday. I think many saw this change coming if things didn't turn around and turn around quickly. Some may say a controversial call at the end of the game by the clock operator caused Les to lose his job but I think even he would say there was no reason they should have been put in that position against Auburn. How does this affect Pitt you ask? well Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly has been at his post for quite a while and at 1-3 he probably can feel the heat growing under his seat. If LSU can't pry Jimbo Fisher out of Florida State I think they look to Tom Herman or Brian Kelly. Now I personally think that Houston gets an invitation to the Big 12 if this happens I think Tom Herman stays at Houston. In which case I think Brian Kelly makes the Jump to LSU and keeps the coaching carousel spinning. (poor poor Ed Orgeron passed over again).
3. PSU loses 49-10 - Like many of you while the loss to UNC stung mightily all you had to do was turn the channel to the PSU - Michigan game to feel a little better about the day. When the lone highlight for your team is a 300 pound kicker clothes lining a Michigan returner you know there is an issue. This puts PSU at 2-2 but with games against Ohio State, Iowa, and Michigan State still left on the schedule, and there is always that head scratching loss Time may be running our for Jimmy in Happy Valley. If Jimmy is canned and Kelly leaves ND get ready for a wild wild run to signing day.
4. Coaching Carousel - For those of you that think this coaching carousel will effect our staff, please put me down as thinking Duzzi stays and uses the unrest in the coaching ranks to finish this class strong.
5. Poor CB Play - For anyone that has been watching Pitt the last 2 weeks I wanted to post that there is a job opening on the Pitt football team. Qualifications must have eligibility left to play college football and be enrolled at the University of Pittsburgh, you must also have a pulse, and be able to stay with a WR in 1 on 1 coverage. This is both funny and not funny I like many of you had this illusion that Narduzzi would come in and fix the secondary over night that obviously hasn't happened however please allow HCPN more than 2 season to fix the dumpster fire that was the Pitt defense. IMO or DL play is vastly improved but even then the loss of Zeise and Hendrix have hurt this defense big time. With only Price really able to get pressure up front it has forced our DBs to play on an island longer and even the best CB's can't cover forever. At MSU Narduzzi always had a pass rush he was able to get pressure from his DE's and LB's he isn't getting that right now and it's killing our secondary in the process. I think some of us (me included) didn't realize how terrible our defense really was before he got here but there is improvement.
6. Sunday OT - Sunday was a tough day in the sporting world first Ace Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez dies in a boating accident and then we learn that we lost the King of Golf, Arnold Palmer. I never got to see Arnold play and I'm not a Golf fan at all but as a Pittsburgher I knew the importance he had to the city. While he was a sports icon to the whole nation he was so much more to the city of Pittsburgh. I did however get to see Fernandez pitch I'm not a Marlins fan or even that much of a fan of Pro baseball, but watching Fernandez work on the mound was always worth tuning in for, add in the story of his struggles to get to the United States and achieve his dreams. In 2015 he completed his United States Citizenship and you can tell that while he enjoyed pitching every 5th day I think he saw that as his greatest accomplishment. Any life lost is a life lost to soon, but at only 24 years old Jose left us far, far to soon. I heard this morning that only 5 day ago he announce that he and his girlfriend were expecting their first child. I hope one day that child understands the legacy their father left behind in such a short amount of time.
1. Notre Dame fires it's DC - After starting 1-3 and seeing any hope of making a playoff run vanish against Duke this season Brian Kelly put every position up for grabs including the DC position on his staff. This comes a little less than a week after "stealing" away 4 star defensive tackle recruit Donovan Jeter. Pitt has lost a couple of battles this year to Notre Dame on the recruiting trail especially on the defensive side of the ball, I think/hope that this shakeup makes these kids rethink their commitment to the Notre Dame program since they will have no idea who their position coach will be or even if Brian Kelly will be able to survive this season (or will he move on to another program see below)
2. LSU Fires Les Miles and Cam Cameron - Les Miles wild tenure at LSU has come to an abrupt end after LSU gave both him and OC Cam Cameron their walking papers this weekend after an upset loss to Auburn on Saturday. I think many saw this change coming if things didn't turn around and turn around quickly. Some may say a controversial call at the end of the game by the clock operator caused Les to lose his job but I think even he would say there was no reason they should have been put in that position against Auburn. How does this affect Pitt you ask? well Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly has been at his post for quite a while and at 1-3 he probably can feel the heat growing under his seat. If LSU can't pry Jimbo Fisher out of Florida State I think they look to Tom Herman or Brian Kelly. Now I personally think that Houston gets an invitation to the Big 12 if this happens I think Tom Herman stays at Houston. In which case I think Brian Kelly makes the Jump to LSU and keeps the coaching carousel spinning. (poor poor Ed Orgeron passed over again).
3. PSU loses 49-10 - Like many of you while the loss to UNC stung mightily all you had to do was turn the channel to the PSU - Michigan game to feel a little better about the day. When the lone highlight for your team is a 300 pound kicker clothes lining a Michigan returner you know there is an issue. This puts PSU at 2-2 but with games against Ohio State, Iowa, and Michigan State still left on the schedule, and there is always that head scratching loss Time may be running our for Jimmy in Happy Valley. If Jimmy is canned and Kelly leaves ND get ready for a wild wild run to signing day.
4. Coaching Carousel - For those of you that think this coaching carousel will effect our staff, please put me down as thinking Duzzi stays and uses the unrest in the coaching ranks to finish this class strong.
5. Poor CB Play - For anyone that has been watching Pitt the last 2 weeks I wanted to post that there is a job opening on the Pitt football team. Qualifications must have eligibility left to play college football and be enrolled at the University of Pittsburgh, you must also have a pulse, and be able to stay with a WR in 1 on 1 coverage. This is both funny and not funny I like many of you had this illusion that Narduzzi would come in and fix the secondary over night that obviously hasn't happened however please allow HCPN more than 2 season to fix the dumpster fire that was the Pitt defense. IMO or DL play is vastly improved but even then the loss of Zeise and Hendrix have hurt this defense big time. With only Price really able to get pressure up front it has forced our DBs to play on an island longer and even the best CB's can't cover forever. At MSU Narduzzi always had a pass rush he was able to get pressure from his DE's and LB's he isn't getting that right now and it's killing our secondary in the process. I think some of us (me included) didn't realize how terrible our defense really was before he got here but there is improvement.
6. Sunday OT - Sunday was a tough day in the sporting world first Ace Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez dies in a boating accident and then we learn that we lost the King of Golf, Arnold Palmer. I never got to see Arnold play and I'm not a Golf fan at all but as a Pittsburgher I knew the importance he had to the city. While he was a sports icon to the whole nation he was so much more to the city of Pittsburgh. I did however get to see Fernandez pitch I'm not a Marlins fan or even that much of a fan of Pro baseball, but watching Fernandez work on the mound was always worth tuning in for, add in the story of his struggles to get to the United States and achieve his dreams. In 2015 he completed his United States Citizenship and you can tell that while he enjoyed pitching every 5th day I think he saw that as his greatest accomplishment. Any life lost is a life lost to soon, but at only 24 years old Jose left us far, far to soon. I heard this morning that only 5 day ago he announce that he and his girlfriend were expecting their first child. I hope one day that child understands the legacy their father left behind in such a short amount of time.
