Stallings officially set this program back 7 seasons…

[HailToPitt725]

And it was a loooooooong seven seasons. First 20-win campaign since 2016. Officially cleansed of the muck brought on by Scott Barnes.

Congrats to the team and Coach Capel, as well as us fans. Now we need to pick up a big win against Syracuse on Saturday and carry this momentum into March! H2P.

 

[PittPoker]

The best question ever at 12:56

"We're gonna be above the noise".

 

[DT_PITT]

View embedded media

The best question ever at 12:56

"We're gonna be above the noise".

Burn this.

 

[PittPoker]

Burn this.

DT I don't remember now but gotta ask, you are usually an optimistic person on here. Were you at all excited about Stallings coming to Pitt or were you open that it could work? Just curious.

 

[DT_PITT]

DT I don't remember now but gotta ask, you are usually an optimistic person on here. Were you at all excited about Stallings coming to Pitt or were you open that it could work? Just curious.

The short answer is no - I wasn’t excited. I’ll type a longer answer tomorrow.

 

[UPitt '89]

And it was a loooooooong seven seasons. First 20-win campaign since 2016. Officially cleansed of the muck brought on by Scott Barnes.

Congrats to the team and Coach Capel, as well as us fans. Now we need to pick up a big win against Syracuse on Saturday and carry this momentum into March! H2P.

Stallings didn't.

BARNES DID.

 

[HOF Coach]

Stallings didn't.

BARNES DID.

"Listen shithead...you better get out of town NOW or I'm going to kick your ass!"

 

[TD_6082]

Capel deserves to be ACC Coach of the year. He actually made the tough decisions that saved the season (move on from Hugley and suspend Dior). While it's not always pretty, this team has played hard and with a lot of energy on most nights. Kudos to him and his staff.

I'm still highly doubtful he's going to work out long term. I think his contract runs through 2027. It will be interesting to see how Pitt plays it this off-season and how Chapel plays it.

 

[Parkview57]

suspend Dior

I highly doubt he was responsible for this, just following orders, IMO.

 

[BballinsiderfromPitt]

Capel deserves to be ACC Coach of the year. He actually made the tough decisions that saved the season (move on from Hugley and suspend Dior). While it's not always pretty, this team has played hard and with a lot of energy on most nights. Kudos to him and his staff.

I'm still highly doubtful he's going to work out long term. I think his contract runs through 2027. It will be interesting to see how Pitt plays it this off-season and how Chapel plays it.

Wow, we agree

Although I think he would welcome Hugley back next year which would put him right back in the hole he was in.

 

[PittPanther44]

I think we had some other overarching problems brewing. The program didn’t immediately snap back when KS left.

And it’s not that he was so bad that it wasn’t recoverable - he was bad AND those other challenges grew. The recruiting ground shifted. Kids weren’t looking to stay in one place for 5 years. The Pete needed upgrades.

So I think he was the beginning of a 6 year swoon - but not the only reason.

 

[PittPanther44]

Capel deserves to be ACC Coach of the year. He actually made the tough decisions that saved the season (move on from Hugley and suspend Dior). While it's not always pretty, this team has played hard and with a lot of energy on most nights. Kudos to him and his staff.

I'm still highly doubtful he's going to work out long term. I think his contract runs through 2027. It will be interesting to see how Pitt plays it this off-season and how Chapel plays it.

A few things need to happen. Need another nice crop of transfers. Need the young guys to take a step forward. If that happens, then I think it snowballs positively. Then hopefully the recruiting upgrades and the portal remains a net benefit

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

I still think Barnes and Turner should have been investigated. I would not be surprised if a bribe was paid.

 

[BballinsiderfromPitt]

I still think Barnes and Turner should have been investigated. I would not be surprised if a bribe was paid.

It was basically NIL. Legal bribing. It’s cronyism. It happens all the time in businesses all around the world

 

[Fk_Pitt]

It wasn’t Stallings.

Stallings was a mediocre coach that none of us wanted here. But it wasn’t him.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

It was basically NIL. Legal bribing. It’s cronyism. It happens all the time in businesses all around the world

Vandy had to buy Stallings out. My theory is that Turner bribed Stallings, as in literally paid him a sum of money to hire him. In return, Vandy paid Turner a handsome finders-fee for their next coach. Do you think this has any chance to being true?

 

[BballinsiderfromPitt]

Vandy had to buy Stallings out. My theory is that Turner bribed Stallings, as in literally paid him a sum of money to hire him. In return, Vandy paid Turner a handsome finders-fee for their next coach. Do you think this has any chance to being true?

No. I think stallings had his agent make a deal with Turner to get him a job. Whatever job it was. And turner went to Barnes and said we can get you on the west coast with the next job if you hire who we want. And boom it was done

 

[CaptainMurphy]

It wasn’t Stallings.

Stallings was a mediocre coach that none of us wanted here. But it wasn’t him.

Bingo. KS wasn’t a terrible coach but he’s was a terrible fit as he clearly wasn’t the guy to stop the deep slide the program was already headed into. And I think most of us could tell that from the moment he was hired.

 

[DT_PITT]

No. I think stallings had his agent make a deal with Turner to get him a job. Whatever job it was. And turner went to Barnes and said we can get you on the west coast with the next job if you hire who we want. And boom it was done

I know that Barnes was actively looking to get to the west coast just a few months after he started at Pitt.

 

[303vND]

Stallings didn't.

BARNES DID.

THIS!!!

 

[LeftCoastPanther]

It falls mostly on Gallagher and Pitt higher-ups who allowed the Stallings hire to happen. If it was known Barnes was already looking to get out then why should he make such a crucial decision regarding the future of the program?

Pitt didn't need an AD to hire Narduzzi as no one held the position at that time. Just an all-around embarrassing look for Pitt to let its hoops program fall off the cliff for six long years.

 

[DanMarinoFan1970]

Nordy blew as well

 

[bwh05]

I know that Barnes was actively looking to get to the west coast just a few months after he started at Pitt.

His family didn't want to be here basically immediately. He started trying to leave almost right away. Hiring Stallings here got him the job at Oregon State, I think most people know that story.

 

[pittguy81]

Stallings was a bad hire... so I blame Barnes for both pushing JD out and then pulling the trigger on Stallings

 

[DT_PITT]

DT I don't remember now but gotta ask, you are usually an optimistic person on here. Were you at all excited about Stallings coming to Pitt or were you open that it could work? Just curious.

Here's the longer answer.

I remember the Saturday before the Stallings was announced when I was texting with someone with very close knowledge of the search. I remember his text -- "it's looking like Stallings." I also remember my reply. "please not Stallings." I actually called him right after to ask specifically who he was talking to know if his reports were credible (even though I already knew).

So after Stallings was announced, I too had serious questions about the associations with Barnes and the Turner search firm. A couple of theories have been suggested in this thread and it's hard not to believe that there's not at least a little truth to some of them.

But beyond that problem, my immediate issue was it was hard for me to see, on paper, how Stallings could have been any kind of an equal of Dixon, let alone an upgrade. Plenty of this opinion came from the notion that I thought highly of Dixon. But I also know plenty of fans who were more than happy to see Dixon gone who felt much the same way.

Still, once we the information all settled in, I soon came to the conclusion that regardless if Stallings wasn't an upgrade either, he wasn't a hack. He was an experienced coach so we might as well see what he can do. But where I first started having some issues was with his recruiting in the first seven months. There was a lot of big talk (which is not unusual for any coach) but not much as far as results.

One example was Kamari Lawrence. The staff kept talking to folks saying they were really confident they would get him. Someone told me of a conversation they had with one of his staff saying they were sure they were get Lawrence and the very next day Lawrence trimmed his final list from 4 to 3 eliminating Pitt.

Still going into the season, I continued to keep an open mind. And I was pretty enthused when we beat Virginia. But of course, as the season when on, it became clear to me that he was indeed the wrong guy at the wrong time. And then 0-18 happened ...

 

[DT_PITT]

His family didn't want to be here basically immediately. He started trying to leave almost right away. Hiring Stallings here got him the job at Oregon State, I think most people know that story.

Dixon knew it too.

 

[The Ole Six-Fiver]

I still think Barnes and Turner should have been investigated. I would not be surprised if a bribe was paid.

Yes. These con artists definitely recognized a weak, bad chancellor (as it turned out Gallagher was) and indifferent, ineffectual board of trustees (plus terrible attorneys, apparently) and saw easy dupes. And dupe us they did. A real leader would have vowed vengeance and launched a legal crusade to ruin Barnes and Turner lives.

 

[Slick Manager of Champs]

It falls mostly on Gallagher and Pitt higher-ups who allowed the Stallings hire to happen. If it was known Barnes was already looking to get out then why should he make such a crucial decision regarding the future of the program?

Pitt didn't need an AD to hire Narduzzi as no one held the position at that time. Just an all-around embarrassing look for Pitt to let its hoops program fall off the cliff for six long years.

Gallagher wasn't J'Dennis level of incompetence, but he has pretty bad. His handling of Covid was terrible, and the whole Barnes/Stallings fiasco also falls on him. Good riddance. Hopefully the hire to replace him isn't internal, as one of the names would be really bad.

 

[Pitt8189]

Funny thing is now with Pitt getting national attention which school will make a run to hire Capel away?

 

[HailToPitt725]

Stallings didn't.

BARNES DID.

 

[The Ole Six-Fiver]

Gallagher wasn't J'Dennis level of incompetence, but he has pretty bad. His handling of Covid was terrible, and the whole Barnes/Stallings fiasco also falls on him. Good riddance. Hopefully the hire to replace him isn't internal, as one of the names would be really bad.

It was astounding and frankly disturbing that he kept the job. There are 3 to 5 things a Pitt chancellor can’t afford to let go to complete sh1t, and whether anyone here is willing to admit it or not, football and men’s basketball are in that top 3 to 5, whatever order you care to place them. We’re not talking a bad season or two, this was a total cratering and national humiliation that the brand name is just now crawling up from under.

 

[TheWerewolfFromTwilight]

I loathed the Stallings hire, but I can't put this all on him. Heck, that Champagnie, Toney, Johnson team was pretty solid as late as like January. Stalling had nothing to do with that implosion. There may have been some unfortunate circumstances surrounding him, but the fact is that Capel was pretty bad until this season. Like, a lot of coaches don't even get this season after his first four.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

Funny thing is now with Pitt getting national attention which school will make a run to hire Capel away?

Some lower P6s or A10 level teams may be interested. Keep an eye on Richmond. Capel had success there at VCU and its a decent A10 job. Wouldn't shock me if he tries to reset his clock by going there and trying to win there to get a better P6 job than Pitt.

 

[pittchagg]

Some lower P6s or A10 level teams may be interested. Keep an eye on Richmond. Capel had success there at VCU and its a decent A10 job. Wouldn't shock me if he tries to reset his clock by going there and trying to win there to get a better P6 job than Pitt.

Jeff Capel is not leaving an ACC job to go to Richmond, man.

 

[HOF Coach]

Jeff Capel is not leaving an ACC job to go to Richmond, man.

Only in SMF's delusional mind...

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

Jeff Capel is not leaving an ACC job to go to Richmond, man.

I dont think he would either but I think he'd consider it. Lets say he goes 12-10 at Pitt next year. That's not impossible. Then what?

 

[Slick Manager of Champs]

It was astounding and frankly disturbing that he kept the job. There are 3 to 5 things a Pitt chancellor can’t afford to let go to complete sh1t, and whether anyone here is willing to admit it or not, football and men’s basketball are in that top 3 to 5, whatever order you care to place them. We’re not talking a bad season or two, this was a total cratering and national humiliation that the brand name is just now crawling up from under.

to get absolutely played by Barnes was a complete dereliction of duty by Gallagher. I would have added the Capel extension as well but this year thankfully made that one null for now. And his handling of Covid....high schools were back in the classroom faster than the university. Locking down every building requiring everyone to badge in....the list goes on.

O'Conner was extremely incompetent, but Gallagher can also say to J'Dennis "Hey hold my beer...."

 

[Slick Manager of Champs]

I dont think he would either but I think he'd consider it. Lets say he goes 12-10 at Pitt next year. That's not impossible. Then what?

this next recruiting cycle is huge. Absolute studs in the backyard, when has that ever happened? Need to sign at least Thomas. If he does, I think he will be here awhile.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

this next recruiting cycle is huge. Absolute studs in the backyard, when has that ever happened? Need to sign at least Thomas. If he does, I think he will be here awhile.

That kid from Imani by way of 🇸🇸 is at Pitt every game it seems. Saw him again last night. Here's an article saying we are in Top 5. Still would like to know his story. Says he lives in Baldwin. Who is his guardian/handler?

Pitt Among Early Leaders for Five-Star F Alier Maluk

The Pitt Panthers have been pursuing five-star sophomore Alier Maluk as much as anyone.

www.si.com

 

[BballinsiderfromPitt]

Jeff Capel is not leaving an ACC job to go to Richmond, man.

Richmond isn’t even open or opening lol.

The only logical job he could leave for would be Georgia Tech. And in a lot of ways, he’s a better fit there than here. But I believe that’s Ryan Odom’s job to turn down. Although it should be Ron Hunter