The offseason storylines are always the same:
The football team spent the time between spring camp and training camp improving by every physical measure. Pat Narduzzi even acknowledged that as a tried-and-true talking point during Media Day on Tuesday.
"It's clichéd: we're bigger, faster, stronger. We truly are."
And Narduzzi is probably right. We've mentioned Narduzzi's observation that Pitt, as a team, has lost 230 pounds of "cargo" (fat) and added 362 pounds of "horsepower" (muscle). But also worth mentioning is the man who coined those terms: strength and conditioning coach Dave Andrews.
2015 is Andrews' first year as a head strength and conditioning coach for a football program, but he has spent the last three years in an assistant role at Illinois and Notre Dame, and he worked in a variety of strength roles for seven years at Cincinnati.
Before moving to the strength side of things, though, Andrews was a graduate assistant for Narduzzi, who was the defensive coordinator for the Bearcats at the time. On Wednesday, Narduzzi said that Andrews was his "right-hand man," adding that Andrews "was my guy."
And when it came time to hire a strength and conditioning coach at Pitt, Narduzzi didn't hesitate.
"My first hire," he said. "That was my first hire because I knew who I wanted. Now, if I didn't have him or he said no, I would have been in freak mode, I guess, trying to find out who I want. And it probably would have been my last hire because I would have made sure I got the right guy. I think he's one of the best in the country."
We often talk about the value of the strength coach, since he and his staff spend the offseason working more closely with the players than the assistant coaches can. But given the breadth of the position, the strength coach is probably as important of a hire as a head coach will make. And Narduzzi said that Andrews has all the necessary components:
Expertise in strength training, an understanding of the science behind said training and a strong sense of discipline.
"What else do you want?"
We all can debate the value of a strength coach; it probably gets overplayed both ways. But I think we can all agree that it's better to have a good one than a bad one, and given the way Narduzzi has approached things since he got to Pitt - with a very specific plan and a concrete idea on how to execute it - there's at least some reason to have confidence in Andrews' impact, since he was thought of so highly by Narduzzi.
In the middle
It really seems like Pitt's got a chance to find some strength in the middle of its defensive line this season. Maybe not Aaron Donald-level strength, but the defensive tackles keep getting positive reviews.
That dated back to the spring when the coaching staff named Tyrique Jarrett the most improved defensive player and also spoke highly of Khaynin Mosley-Smith and Darryl Render. Pitt's got size in the middle, and while there isn't a whole lot of production in those players' histories - Render has 2.5 career sacks, Mosley-Smith has recorded two and Jarrett has nine career tackles (none for loss) in his two years - the potential seems to be there.
And as we've mentioned the last couple days, the defensive tackles look like they can be mixed and matched. Jarrett and Mosley-Smith are the "big" bodies in that trio, which would traditionally put them at nose tackle or the "one-technique," while Render is a bit more athletic and a bit quicker, which would mean he's a "three-technique."
Those players will still play those positions, but Narduzzi said Thursday that no one is locked into a specific spot, calling the two interior positions "very interchangeable."
"They're the same. The way we coach them, you could be a three and a one, a three and a two; all the things that Coach Sims is coaching them. They're both d-tackles," Narduzzi said. "The difference is - they're both d-tackles, they both stop the run game the same - the biggest difference is, your three-technique you would like to be a little more athletic because he's a pass-rush guy.
"Usually, the tackle has to sit on the end and the guard to the three-technique side usually has a one-on-one. So you'd like a little bit better pass-rusher at that position, but we have different ways of getting that done with twists and different movements."
A key player
The defensive tackle positions are interchangeable, but it helps to have players who can also serve in both roles. Mosley-Smith's athleticism has been well-documented; for a player who is listed at 305 and has been around that size for much of his career, he moves remarkably well and has a quickness that could give him an edge as a pass-rusher.
His combination of athleticism and size makes him a good fit at both spots, so Mosley-Smith can line up next to Render or Jarrett, who are both better-suited to the three-technique (Render) or the one-technique (Jarrett).
Of course, this coaching staff isn't the first to think that about Mosley-Smith; the Dave Wannstedt staff certainly saw that potential in him as a recruit in the class of 2010, Todd Graham saw it, too, and the last staff believed he could do it. The issue always was conditioning, and that's something Mosley-Smith will have to continue to work on.
But for Mosley-Smith and Jarrett, the coaches might be able to work around conditioning issues - Jarrett has them, too - by only needing those guys for two downs. If Pitt's third-down package features three defensive linemen, then that trio will likely be Render flanked by two defensive ends. So if Pitt can get a strong push from Mosley-Smith and/or Jarrett on first and second downs, then they might be able to get a breather on third down.
The result, at least on Day Four of training camp, is that it looks like Pitt might be able to put together a pretty strong trio of defensive tackles. And then there are players like Mark Scarpinato, Jeremiah Taleniand Connor Dintino who could also figure into the mix.
I mentioned on Tuesday that Pitt seemed to have a solid three-deep at defensive tackle, and it still looks that way. Even James Conner remarked after Thursday's practice that the interior linemen could be pretty stout.
Or, as Narduzzi put it, "We're pretty salty inside."
Coaching help
Speaking of Narduzzi and defensive linemen, the head coach inserted himself into the line drills during an early portion of Thursday's practice.
While the bulk of the team worked on special teams walk-throughs, led by special teams coordinator Andre Powell, Narduzzi made his way to the other end of the field, where defensive line coach Tom Sims was working with his position group.
In short order, Narduzzi was running the drill, which was based on changing alignments quickly and making calls based on tight end motion and that kind of thing. Narduzzi was the "barker," so to speak, shouting out the alignment and the checks. Once or twice he even dashed to the other side of the ball to line up as the quarterback and try to draw the linemen offsides with some hard counts and other tricks.
Narduzzi's stated goal as head coach is to coach the coaches, but as is often the case with coaches who have the profession in their blood, he can't help himself; sometimes, you just gotta get out there and coach.
Continued in the next post...
The football team spent the time between spring camp and training camp improving by every physical measure. Pat Narduzzi even acknowledged that as a tried-and-true talking point during Media Day on Tuesday.
"It's clichéd: we're bigger, faster, stronger. We truly are."
And Narduzzi is probably right. We've mentioned Narduzzi's observation that Pitt, as a team, has lost 230 pounds of "cargo" (fat) and added 362 pounds of "horsepower" (muscle). But also worth mentioning is the man who coined those terms: strength and conditioning coach Dave Andrews.
2015 is Andrews' first year as a head strength and conditioning coach for a football program, but he has spent the last three years in an assistant role at Illinois and Notre Dame, and he worked in a variety of strength roles for seven years at Cincinnati.
Before moving to the strength side of things, though, Andrews was a graduate assistant for Narduzzi, who was the defensive coordinator for the Bearcats at the time. On Wednesday, Narduzzi said that Andrews was his "right-hand man," adding that Andrews "was my guy."
And when it came time to hire a strength and conditioning coach at Pitt, Narduzzi didn't hesitate.
"My first hire," he said. "That was my first hire because I knew who I wanted. Now, if I didn't have him or he said no, I would have been in freak mode, I guess, trying to find out who I want. And it probably would have been my last hire because I would have made sure I got the right guy. I think he's one of the best in the country."
We often talk about the value of the strength coach, since he and his staff spend the offseason working more closely with the players than the assistant coaches can. But given the breadth of the position, the strength coach is probably as important of a hire as a head coach will make. And Narduzzi said that Andrews has all the necessary components:
Expertise in strength training, an understanding of the science behind said training and a strong sense of discipline.
"What else do you want?"
We all can debate the value of a strength coach; it probably gets overplayed both ways. But I think we can all agree that it's better to have a good one than a bad one, and given the way Narduzzi has approached things since he got to Pitt - with a very specific plan and a concrete idea on how to execute it - there's at least some reason to have confidence in Andrews' impact, since he was thought of so highly by Narduzzi.
In the middle
It really seems like Pitt's got a chance to find some strength in the middle of its defensive line this season. Maybe not Aaron Donald-level strength, but the defensive tackles keep getting positive reviews.
That dated back to the spring when the coaching staff named Tyrique Jarrett the most improved defensive player and also spoke highly of Khaynin Mosley-Smith and Darryl Render. Pitt's got size in the middle, and while there isn't a whole lot of production in those players' histories - Render has 2.5 career sacks, Mosley-Smith has recorded two and Jarrett has nine career tackles (none for loss) in his two years - the potential seems to be there.
And as we've mentioned the last couple days, the defensive tackles look like they can be mixed and matched. Jarrett and Mosley-Smith are the "big" bodies in that trio, which would traditionally put them at nose tackle or the "one-technique," while Render is a bit more athletic and a bit quicker, which would mean he's a "three-technique."
Those players will still play those positions, but Narduzzi said Thursday that no one is locked into a specific spot, calling the two interior positions "very interchangeable."
"They're the same. The way we coach them, you could be a three and a one, a three and a two; all the things that Coach Sims is coaching them. They're both d-tackles," Narduzzi said. "The difference is - they're both d-tackles, they both stop the run game the same - the biggest difference is, your three-technique you would like to be a little more athletic because he's a pass-rush guy.
"Usually, the tackle has to sit on the end and the guard to the three-technique side usually has a one-on-one. So you'd like a little bit better pass-rusher at that position, but we have different ways of getting that done with twists and different movements."
A key player
The defensive tackle positions are interchangeable, but it helps to have players who can also serve in both roles. Mosley-Smith's athleticism has been well-documented; for a player who is listed at 305 and has been around that size for much of his career, he moves remarkably well and has a quickness that could give him an edge as a pass-rusher.
His combination of athleticism and size makes him a good fit at both spots, so Mosley-Smith can line up next to Render or Jarrett, who are both better-suited to the three-technique (Render) or the one-technique (Jarrett).
Of course, this coaching staff isn't the first to think that about Mosley-Smith; the Dave Wannstedt staff certainly saw that potential in him as a recruit in the class of 2010, Todd Graham saw it, too, and the last staff believed he could do it. The issue always was conditioning, and that's something Mosley-Smith will have to continue to work on.
But for Mosley-Smith and Jarrett, the coaches might be able to work around conditioning issues - Jarrett has them, too - by only needing those guys for two downs. If Pitt's third-down package features three defensive linemen, then that trio will likely be Render flanked by two defensive ends. So if Pitt can get a strong push from Mosley-Smith and/or Jarrett on first and second downs, then they might be able to get a breather on third down.
The result, at least on Day Four of training camp, is that it looks like Pitt might be able to put together a pretty strong trio of defensive tackles. And then there are players like Mark Scarpinato, Jeremiah Taleniand Connor Dintino who could also figure into the mix.
I mentioned on Tuesday that Pitt seemed to have a solid three-deep at defensive tackle, and it still looks that way. Even James Conner remarked after Thursday's practice that the interior linemen could be pretty stout.
Or, as Narduzzi put it, "We're pretty salty inside."
Coaching help
Speaking of Narduzzi and defensive linemen, the head coach inserted himself into the line drills during an early portion of Thursday's practice.
While the bulk of the team worked on special teams walk-throughs, led by special teams coordinator Andre Powell, Narduzzi made his way to the other end of the field, where defensive line coach Tom Sims was working with his position group.
In short order, Narduzzi was running the drill, which was based on changing alignments quickly and making calls based on tight end motion and that kind of thing. Narduzzi was the "barker," so to speak, shouting out the alignment and the checks. Once or twice he even dashed to the other side of the ball to line up as the quarterback and try to draw the linemen offsides with some hard counts and other tricks.
Narduzzi's stated goal as head coach is to coach the coaches, but as is often the case with coaches who have the profession in their blood, he can't help himself; sometimes, you just gotta get out there and coach.
Continued in the next post...
