Pitt is still my team but
- Thread starter Mikefln
- Start date
So to get this right if you went to Pitt, Pitt owes you nothing and if you didn't go to Pitt, Pitt owes you nothing. OK fair enough. But it works both way. Pitt alums and non alums owe Pitt nothing either.
I agree. So nobody cares if you publicly state that you are now through with the team. It is an absolute exercise in narcissism.
fair enough, but this is a message board. People are free to state as they like as long as a certain decorum is followed, which I did. No one said you had to read, you can move a long if you wish.
I agree that Pitt "owes" none of us anything. I disagree that non-alumni fans have no skin in the game. When you CHOOSE a team, they are yours.
That is part of Pitt's institutional problem. Treating athletics like its a polo match at Hartwood Acres, a worthy affair only for the cap-and-gowned "Cathedralati". For an urban school like Pitt, that's BS. Pitt can't afford to alienate ANY fans. Whether or not they have a sheepskin from Dear Old U-N-I is irrelevant. Two close friends of mine hold graduate degrees from Pitt (one has a Pitt BA as well) and they gave up on the Panthers a decade or more ago. In contrast, two other buddies and I -- all non-Pitt grads, have held basketball tickets since 1983. Now, I'd make a strong case that Pitt MBB has broken our hearts over that spell, but the Panthers have also given us many, many thrilling moments -- far more relative to football, which was the sporting king of the campus back in 1982 (while men's hoops played third fiddle to wrestling).
I think the common theme here is that we would all like to see Pitt enjoy at least "average" success once in a while, as measured against similar programs that have tasted a great season more often. The frustration is a perceived acceptance of mediocrity and the same old excuses and do-it-on-the-cheap year after year. And for those of us who are old enough to remember Majors/Sherrill, it's a tough pill to swallow knowing that we might never live to see a major bowl season again.
As a non alum you can choose and un choose all you want. Those that went to the school never can un choose. So walking away is not an option and is a ridiculous discussion to have. When Heinz opens up again, Pitt football will get the same number of ardent fans no matter what the record is.
You could deliver a motivational speech to each graduating class about the commitment o the alma mater. The turnstiles indicate that a lot of Pitt grads have walked away.
Like Prez41 stated, kids sports are priority#1. It was always painful for me when I knew that I was going to miss a Pitt football game. That has ended with being mediocre. Now I almost feel like I do about the Pirates, except as an alumnus I have the pride of the university. But my Saturdays will be spent following my son’s football games at RMU.
This. I went to UVA but Pitt was always my team because my dad and grandfather went there. I never got into UVA sports.
I think my support of the school has been notable. I'm a prior season ticket holder, I watch all the games, I buy and wear the merchandise, I go to the bowl games (yep, been to El Paso), I donate to the athletics department, but most of all I am out there, a living and breathing reminder to people that Pitt has passionate and dedicated football fans. I'm a billboard for the University of Pittsburgh.
With all due respect, someone like me is probably more valuable to the school than a Pitt graduate that's indifferent or only meekly supports the sports teams, who doesn't go to the bowl games and every road game at Georgia Tech, etc. Not just in my direct contribution to the school via donations but also my active advertising of the school. Pitt isn't a place that can afford to lose any fans, let alone ones that have been through the many, many downs of this program and stayed loyal. I went to another ACC school, one that's quite good at my second favorite sport. My wife went to Clemson. But my loyalty, for better or worse, up until now has been with Pitt. It's becoming and admittedly harder commitment to keep making but for now I'm still here.
It would be an unreal joy for me to experience one magical year in Pitt football. Just one 10 win season where we smoked the rest of the Coastal. I don't think that Pitt should settle for anything less than such a modest goal.
Enough that my seats for the Notre Dame game were at essentially the 50 yard line behind the Pitt bench.
Which is not meant so much as a pat on the back for me as it is a comment on the pathetic state of Pitt football donations, because I have never claimed to be one of the high dollar donors. But I do donate more than most, fwiw.
Couldn’t agree more. Like you I am not a grad. I went to Tennessee in the early 90’s when football was really good there but my love was always Pitt growing up just outside the city. Went to Pitt stadium many times as a kid and when we didn’t go my dad had them on the radio so they were just my team. Pitt didn’t offer my degree so I went to TN and loved everything about my time there but even while there followed Pitt religiously as much as I could without the technology of today. To this day I would choose to watch Pitt over my alma mater and did so Saturday choosing to watch Pitt get demolished rather than UT doing the same against Alabama.
I have been waiting a long time for the next two years to get here as Tennessee and Pitt play and there is absolutely zero chance I’d miss either game and be wearing blue and gold. Even while at TN I always wore Pitt gear to games and had a lot of interesting conversations with people about my love of Pitt but once people heard why they understood even though Pitt was completely irrelevant in the years I was in school.
I too am a walking billboard I must have 100 Pitt tshirts and at least 30 Pitt sweatshirts and I might have 2 Tennessee sweatshirts. I live in Maryland now and and have since 2002 and had season tickets until this year. A short 180 mile trip up to my old home seemed easy enough for the last 18 years but it does get less enjoyable as the years go on and nothing changes. I compare Pitt to golf where they suck you back with that one big win like a great round will do that I have once or twice each golf season but in the end I am just a mediocre player where I can shoot 10-12 over but every now and then will shoot a 75 or 76 when I had a great day. I realize I will never be a 2-3 handicap but I am slowly starting to realize Pitt is just an 8-4 to 6-6 team and mired in mediocrity and that magical 11-1 season is as likely as me shooting a 3 under.
I can’t say I’m done but like many others I think spending my time doing other things rather than all day driving to watch mediocre football is in my future.
I have been waiting a long time for the next two years to get here as Tennessee and Pitt play and there is absolutely zero chance I’d miss either game and be wearing blue and gold. Even while at TN I always wore Pitt gear to games and had a lot of interesting conversations with people about my love of Pitt but once people heard why they understood even though Pitt was completely irrelevant in the years I was in school.
I too am a walking billboard I must have 100 Pitt tshirts and at least 30 Pitt sweatshirts and I might have 2 Tennessee sweatshirts. I live in Maryland now and and have since 2002 and had season tickets until this year. A short 180 mile trip up to my old home seemed easy enough for the last 18 years but it does get less enjoyable as the years go on and nothing changes. I compare Pitt to golf where they suck you back with that one big win like a great round will do that I have once or twice each golf season but in the end I am just a mediocre player where I can shoot 10-12 over but every now and then will shoot a 75 or 76 when I had a great day. I realize I will never be a 2-3 handicap but I am slowly starting to realize Pitt is just an 8-4 to 6-6 team and mired in mediocrity and that magical 11-1 season is as likely as me shooting a 3 under.
I can’t say I’m done but like many others I think spending my time doing other things rather than all day driving to watch mediocre football is in my future.
I would have had a LOT more patience for Narduzzi if he would NOT LOST every game after arguably his biggest win - clinching the Coastal by beating Wake Forest. Who does that and then goes out and gets trounced the next week to a mediocre (7-6) Miami team?? And his team looked disinterested in even playing the damn game!!!
Getting trounced by Clemson... big deal. Then goes out and seemingly just looks for ways to lose to Stanford and finish what WAS a promising season... a mediocre 7-7. That was the sign he is NOT a good coach.
Getting trounced by Clemson... big deal. Then goes out and seemingly just looks for ways to lose to Stanford and finish what WAS a promising season... a mediocre 7-7. That was the sign he is NOT a good coach.
I am a loyal daughter. Most of my friends are not alumni and they show out for all games and they are more loyal than the alumni.
I really believe this is whats going to happen moving forward. Never underestimate the ability for people to "detach." Season ticket holders can not in themselves make changes but they can choose to spend their money elsewhere. If that happens, it's going to be very difficult for the the AD to counter with more years of inept play and performance. There has to be some accountability or people will just say screw it.
I agree with your thoughts about the value of the non-alumni fans... call us fans-at-large or Friends of the University or whatever. Pitt's reach should extend beyond Old School Ties. I've spent the better part of a lifetime "evangelizing" unallied Yinzers toward the Pitt camp. It's been a hard sell, except for a few years, post-Sandusky, when a lot of people distanced from Penn State. Pitt doesn't make it easy. But people like us need to make up a hige part of the fan base, if not the majority.
I take it further. Name the Blue Blood program and they probably have over 3 non alum die hard fans for every 1 alum. You think Penn St/Ohio St/ ND/ Bama/ ETC graduated all those people? No the great majority by far are non-alums.
Yes.... witness the select circle of out-of-town schools who have fans everywhere around here: UNC and Duke for hoops, Notre Dame for football. Miami of Florida. Really, who the hell would be a fan of that stupid "U" and wear those godawful colors? BUT... Miami is an established brand with a cool factor that outkicks its coverage. Pitt dabbles in being "Pittsburgh's college team" but I wish they would go all in. Maybe the Pitt Studios and the ability to use media other than the Post-Nitter gazette and Happy Valley Tribune will pay off in the long run.
My brother in law's entire family are huge "SEC" fans. They love Georgia, of course, but for some reason they also love LSU and Alabama? And they're ok with their kids going to any school as long as it's in the SEC. It makes no sense to me. None of them went to UGA or any other SEC school. They just think the SEC is better than everywhere else because of football.
So yeah, you can say I didn't go to Pitt and that's true but at least no one has a reason to question my loyalty. It's not like we have years packed full of good memories and I've just been along for the party.
So damn glad I took this approach last year after the ND game. Last week I watched it hours after the game because my family went to a car show and fishing. Today I watched part of the 1st quarter then took my son and 3 of his friends to moraine to kayak and fishing. Just got done and was ignoring this board but some on in the Ice Cream line spared me the agony of wàtching it tonight.
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