It’s the first day of pads for the Pitt football team, and while Pat Narduzzi said the coaches planned to have just three live, full-contact periods, the fact remains that full pads mean contact, regardless of how many times the coaches yell “stay up.”
But even if the coaches want to limit the contact, they still relish it when they see it, because it - finally - gives them a real indication of who can play football. That receiver who has been making catches all over the place now has to consider the very real possibility that making a catch in a certain area means he will almost definitely take a shot.
That can change a player’s approach a bit.
The same goes for the cornerback who has been all over the field making plays. Now that those tight ends or running backs or even some receivers who might be bigger than him and initiate contact and make those plays sting a little, the equation changes.
And for the running back who is tired of his runs ending with a whistle-inducing “touch,” well, now they can earn a few more yards on their own.
And all of this, as we’ve said a few times, means the coaches will have something a lot more tangible upon which to base their judgments about which players are earning playing time. That goes double for Saturday’s scrimmage (which is closed to the media).
- Narduzzi said he’s interested to see how the quarterbacks respond in Saturday’s scrimmage. Even though they might not be “live” and open to contact - Nate Peterman certainly won’t be - it’s still a different kind of challenge to know that the defensive players are going at full-speed.
The competition at quarterback, of course, is for the backup job. To that end, Narduzzi said one player is slightly ahead of the others.
“I think right now, if I had to guess, (Ben) DiNucci and Manny (Stocker) are kind of neck-and-neck, but maybe Manny’s got a head over him right now. And then I’d say (Thomas) MacVittie has shown some good things out there as well. So there’s some good competition out there as well.”
The reality is, each of the candidates has his own issues. Stocker is a better runner than thrower, DiNucci’s mechanics are still, um, quirky, and MacVittie is a freshman - with all of the struggles that come with being a first-year player.
I assume that the scrimmage performances will largely mirror the practice performances - and meeting-room participation - that Narduzzi and Matt Canada have based their evaluations on thus far. But the scrimmage does provide an opportunity for all three quarterbacks to separate themselves a little bit. The time will come in the third week of camp when the coaches will start focusing the practice reps on the top two quarterbacks, and the scrimmages will give each of those guys a chance to earn the bulk of the reps behind Peterman.
- The scrimmage will also be an opportunity for some of the young receivers. I asked Narduzzi prior to Friday’s practice what he has seen out of the freshmen.
“They’ve all got a chance,” he said. “You look at Aaron Mathews, he’s a big, tall guy that can run and he goes up and gets the ball. He’s been impressive. Maurice Ffrench has been impressive. And Ruben Flowers has done some good things. But I’d say Aaron Mathews has probably shown the most as far as deep-ball threat, and Maurice Ffrench catching the ball out of the backfield, is what I’ve seen so far. But I’m impressed with all of them.”
Mathews is the intriguing one there. Something of a late add-on to the class - Pitt flipped him from Penn State a few days before Signing Day - Mathews was a prospect the Pitt coaches had to be convinced about, to a certain extent. They weren’t sure he could play receiver, but they needed another wideout in the class and decided to pursue Mathews.
What they ended up with was a player who immediately upon his arrival became the tallest receiver on the team (the tallest non-lineman on the team, really), and I think the coaches have seen the value of that height. They don’t have anyone else who has that size, and even if he doesn’t have the top-end speed of a player like Ffrench, his size can and will create mismatches.
We’ve talked so much about how the coaches want more explosive playmakers at receiver and running back, and that’s true: they feel like they need to add speed to the roster at those positions. But size like Mathews has is a rare element as well, and if he can be solid in knowing his assignments, I think his size could move him closer to the list of recruits who might not redshirt this year.
It’s early to say definitively that he will play, but coaches love the things they can’t coach, and Mathews has one of those things. Used properly, it can add a missing dimension to the offense.
“Just go and look at what he looks like down there,” Narduzzi said. “He’s a specimen and a Clairton product. It’s good to have those local guys.”
- The jockeying of positions at linebacker continues, with Quintin Wirginis getting some work at the Star linebacker position, at least in Pitt’s nickel package. Bam Bradley is still the favorite to win the starting job, but the coaches are giving Oluwaseun Idowu and Elijah Zeise, as well as Wirginis, a shot there, too.
- Next week should see some movement with the cornerbacks. The two guys to watch (obviously) are Damar Hamlin and Therran Coleman. Coleman has been working behind returning starter Avonte Maddox, while Hamlin is in the three-way battle for the other starting job with Ryan Lewis and Phillipie Motley.
Scrimmage production - the coaches use a point system - started boosting Jordan Whitehead’s stock in the second week of training camp last year. If Hamlin and/or Coleman start making plays in the scrimmages and earning those production points, some movement could be afoot.
- I also think the offensive line will get really interesting next week. Jaryd Jones-Smith remains the guy to watch, since I think his position will determine a lot of what happens on the rest of the line.
- A final observation from Friday’s media window: during punt return drills, special teams coordinator Andre Powell took a new approach to creating distractions for the punt returners.
He sprayed water in their faces.
While Jordan Whitehead, Rafael Araujo-Lopes and Avonte Maddox were lining up to catch the punts, Powell would get close with a spray battle. He didn’t get close enough to fully interfere with their vision, but the spray definitely impacted the returners.
I’ve seen a lot of drills in the past and I’ve seen coaches come up with unique ways to distract punt returners. But that was a first.
But even if the coaches want to limit the contact, they still relish it when they see it, because it - finally - gives them a real indication of who can play football. That receiver who has been making catches all over the place now has to consider the very real possibility that making a catch in a certain area means he will almost definitely take a shot.
That can change a player’s approach a bit.
The same goes for the cornerback who has been all over the field making plays. Now that those tight ends or running backs or even some receivers who might be bigger than him and initiate contact and make those plays sting a little, the equation changes.
And for the running back who is tired of his runs ending with a whistle-inducing “touch,” well, now they can earn a few more yards on their own.
And all of this, as we’ve said a few times, means the coaches will have something a lot more tangible upon which to base their judgments about which players are earning playing time. That goes double for Saturday’s scrimmage (which is closed to the media).
- Narduzzi said he’s interested to see how the quarterbacks respond in Saturday’s scrimmage. Even though they might not be “live” and open to contact - Nate Peterman certainly won’t be - it’s still a different kind of challenge to know that the defensive players are going at full-speed.
The competition at quarterback, of course, is for the backup job. To that end, Narduzzi said one player is slightly ahead of the others.
“I think right now, if I had to guess, (Ben) DiNucci and Manny (Stocker) are kind of neck-and-neck, but maybe Manny’s got a head over him right now. And then I’d say (Thomas) MacVittie has shown some good things out there as well. So there’s some good competition out there as well.”
The reality is, each of the candidates has his own issues. Stocker is a better runner than thrower, DiNucci’s mechanics are still, um, quirky, and MacVittie is a freshman - with all of the struggles that come with being a first-year player.
I assume that the scrimmage performances will largely mirror the practice performances - and meeting-room participation - that Narduzzi and Matt Canada have based their evaluations on thus far. But the scrimmage does provide an opportunity for all three quarterbacks to separate themselves a little bit. The time will come in the third week of camp when the coaches will start focusing the practice reps on the top two quarterbacks, and the scrimmages will give each of those guys a chance to earn the bulk of the reps behind Peterman.
- The scrimmage will also be an opportunity for some of the young receivers. I asked Narduzzi prior to Friday’s practice what he has seen out of the freshmen.
“They’ve all got a chance,” he said. “You look at Aaron Mathews, he’s a big, tall guy that can run and he goes up and gets the ball. He’s been impressive. Maurice Ffrench has been impressive. And Ruben Flowers has done some good things. But I’d say Aaron Mathews has probably shown the most as far as deep-ball threat, and Maurice Ffrench catching the ball out of the backfield, is what I’ve seen so far. But I’m impressed with all of them.”
Mathews is the intriguing one there. Something of a late add-on to the class - Pitt flipped him from Penn State a few days before Signing Day - Mathews was a prospect the Pitt coaches had to be convinced about, to a certain extent. They weren’t sure he could play receiver, but they needed another wideout in the class and decided to pursue Mathews.
What they ended up with was a player who immediately upon his arrival became the tallest receiver on the team (the tallest non-lineman on the team, really), and I think the coaches have seen the value of that height. They don’t have anyone else who has that size, and even if he doesn’t have the top-end speed of a player like Ffrench, his size can and will create mismatches.
We’ve talked so much about how the coaches want more explosive playmakers at receiver and running back, and that’s true: they feel like they need to add speed to the roster at those positions. But size like Mathews has is a rare element as well, and if he can be solid in knowing his assignments, I think his size could move him closer to the list of recruits who might not redshirt this year.
It’s early to say definitively that he will play, but coaches love the things they can’t coach, and Mathews has one of those things. Used properly, it can add a missing dimension to the offense.
“Just go and look at what he looks like down there,” Narduzzi said. “He’s a specimen and a Clairton product. It’s good to have those local guys.”
- The jockeying of positions at linebacker continues, with Quintin Wirginis getting some work at the Star linebacker position, at least in Pitt’s nickel package. Bam Bradley is still the favorite to win the starting job, but the coaches are giving Oluwaseun Idowu and Elijah Zeise, as well as Wirginis, a shot there, too.
- Next week should see some movement with the cornerbacks. The two guys to watch (obviously) are Damar Hamlin and Therran Coleman. Coleman has been working behind returning starter Avonte Maddox, while Hamlin is in the three-way battle for the other starting job with Ryan Lewis and Phillipie Motley.
Scrimmage production - the coaches use a point system - started boosting Jordan Whitehead’s stock in the second week of training camp last year. If Hamlin and/or Coleman start making plays in the scrimmages and earning those production points, some movement could be afoot.
- I also think the offensive line will get really interesting next week. Jaryd Jones-Smith remains the guy to watch, since I think his position will determine a lot of what happens on the rest of the line.
- A final observation from Friday’s media window: during punt return drills, special teams coordinator Andre Powell took a new approach to creating distractions for the punt returners.
He sprayed water in their faces.
While Jordan Whitehead, Rafael Araujo-Lopes and Avonte Maddox were lining up to catch the punts, Powell would get close with a spray battle. He didn’t get close enough to fully interfere with their vision, but the spray definitely impacted the returners.
I’ve seen a lot of drills in the past and I’ve seen coaches come up with unique ways to distract punt returners. But that was a first.
