My thoughts on Chaney are all over the place, sort of like his play calling this season. He did a nice job getting Boyd the ball in a lot of different ways this year and he limited the mistakes of Peterman. He didn’t commit to the run at times and I feel it caused the offense to struggle at times, but I thought he did a decent enough job. I also thought the offense would take a step forward next season with Chaney in his second year.
Unfortunately that won’t happen, but it also allows Pitt to get a different guy in here. One that might be a better recruiter and also be a little more consistent. So that brings me to the first thing: OC Candidates
Now there are a lot of names being thrown out there, mostly by fans, but I’ll address the first couple that have been “talking” points.
Don Treadwell: He’s not a good candidate, regardless of the fact that he has ties to Narduzzi. He struggled at Michigan State and they’ve actually improved offensively since he’s left. He was awful as a HC and the offenses he had were horrid there. He was terrible in his first year as an OC at Kent State. He’s a guy on the “downswing” in his coaching career. Pitt should be hiring someone on the upswing.
Pep Hamilton, Van Pelt, Bloomgren — All are decent candidates, but none of them are coming to Pitt. Hamilton is a guy that could probably get another OC job in the NFL, Van Pelt doesn’t have a degree and has never coached in College, and Bloomgren is going to be a HC soon or a NFL OC soon. Don’t get me wrong though — If Hamilton and Bloomgren were options, I’d have no problem with that.
Bill Legg, Eddie Gran, Tyson Helton, Mike Yurich — Not ideal candidates at Pitt. I really don’t think Pitt goes for a guy that wants to be 10 personnel the majority of the game. They are all great coaches, but not the type of fits that I expect Pitt to go after.
This brings me to guys that I think could be considered:
There is probably a guy not on that list that Narduzzi is actually going after, but those are some candidates that I’ve heard and/or like.
Recruiting:
Pitt is going to flip guys and guys are going to flip from Pitt, that’s just the nature of the game. Chase Pine is a guy that I think will stay with Pitt, but the fact that people were so mad that he took another visit while hosting 3 guys that were committed to Pitt is hypocritical. Pitt is going to continue to host guys that are recruited elsewhere, but their targets and commits have every right to go out and see other schools. You have to be able to trust the coaches and that they’ll be able to keep the kids that committed to them in the first place.
Which brings me to the 3 guys Pitt got commitments from this week. OL was a big question mark, but Williams and Morgan are great gets. Morgan is a big kid and will benefit from a year or two of sitting, but he has potential. Kind of reminds me of JJS in terms of potential/size combo. I like Williams as well and I think Pitt definitely did a good job recruiting those two.
Campbell was a big surprise for me when he committed especially because both of his parents were Rutgers alum. He’s a nice athlete and someone I can see being a real problem for the ACC in Narduzzi’s defense.
With UGA’s QB Commit saying that he’s solid with Georgia, I don’t see MacVittie leaving Pitt. I could be wrong, but he’s been one of Pitt’s bigger recruiters and his family loved Narduzzi and Chaney, not just Chaney. Narduzzi also was up front with him and I think that buys some points with him and his parents.
Winfree, Hamlin, Miller, Hill, Washington, Camp and Watts seem like the last remaining targets for the staff. There are probably a few more out there, but if the staff gets 4 of those 7, I think they’ve put together a really good/underrated class. I know Sanders isn’t in that list, but I really don’t think Pitt gets him to flip so I’m leaving him off. If they get him, that’s a bonus in my eyes. I do think Pitt needs to add at least one more DT and I really like Camp and Watts, hopefully they get one of those two.
Pitt is going to be losing more than just the ones that have already transferred. If Voytik decides to leave (which will probably be after spring ball with the new offensive coordinator IMO) then that adds another scholarship, but there will be at least 5-9 more that leave so just be ready for that.
More:
Penn State’s OC hire is a good hire regardless of the hate towards them. Moorehead is a respected coach, has western PA ties and was a successful head coach. Franklin will benefit from having a guy that was successful as a head coach even if it was at a lesser level. With that, Hack is not a fit in his offense and he should either leave and go to a different program, or leave for the NFL. Either way, they should have to prep a new QB for next season.
Also, out of all the HC turnover this season, I can’t believe Tom Herman is not one of the guys that moved on and Muschamp is a guy that gets another SEC coaching job, in a division where he failed miserably. Sometimes I don’t understand college football AD’s.
I feel like Chris with such a long post. Enjoy
Unfortunately that won’t happen, but it also allows Pitt to get a different guy in here. One that might be a better recruiter and also be a little more consistent. So that brings me to the first thing: OC Candidates
Now there are a lot of names being thrown out there, mostly by fans, but I’ll address the first couple that have been “talking” points.
Don Treadwell: He’s not a good candidate, regardless of the fact that he has ties to Narduzzi. He struggled at Michigan State and they’ve actually improved offensively since he’s left. He was awful as a HC and the offenses he had were horrid there. He was terrible in his first year as an OC at Kent State. He’s a guy on the “downswing” in his coaching career. Pitt should be hiring someone on the upswing.
Pep Hamilton, Van Pelt, Bloomgren — All are decent candidates, but none of them are coming to Pitt. Hamilton is a guy that could probably get another OC job in the NFL, Van Pelt doesn’t have a degree and has never coached in College, and Bloomgren is going to be a HC soon or a NFL OC soon. Don’t get me wrong though — If Hamilton and Bloomgren were options, I’d have no problem with that.
Bill Legg, Eddie Gran, Tyson Helton, Mike Yurich — Not ideal candidates at Pitt. I really don’t think Pitt goes for a guy that wants to be 10 personnel the majority of the game. They are all great coaches, but not the type of fits that I expect Pitt to go after.
This brings me to guys that I think could be considered:
- James Coley — Coley was Jimbo Fisher’s offensive coordinator for a couple years (not calling plays) and then went to Miami to run his own show. He’s a guy that’s a great recruiter and he’s coached in the ACC and had success. It's yet to be determined though if Richt will want to keep him on though.
- Billy Napier — Napier is a big time assistant on Saban’s staff, but he’s also been an offensive coordinator in the ACC at Clemson. He’s a really good recruiter and would be a good addition to Pitt. He’s learned from some good offensive minds since his time as an OC as well (Kiffin and McElwain. (Napier’s Offense in 2009 Clemson: )
- Dan Enos — Would Pitt go back to Arkansas to land another OC? They might. Enos didn’t set the world on fire to start the season, but as the year went on, especially at the midway point, the team averaged 49.8 Points Per Game (43.2 PPG in SEC Play). They did that against LSU, Auburn, Ole Miss and 2 other SEC Teams. They did struggle early, which is concerning, but after they got rolling they were extremely hard to defend. Plus he coached with Narduzzi for two years at Michigan State.
There is probably a guy not on that list that Narduzzi is actually going after, but those are some candidates that I’ve heard and/or like.
Recruiting:
Pitt is going to flip guys and guys are going to flip from Pitt, that’s just the nature of the game. Chase Pine is a guy that I think will stay with Pitt, but the fact that people were so mad that he took another visit while hosting 3 guys that were committed to Pitt is hypocritical. Pitt is going to continue to host guys that are recruited elsewhere, but their targets and commits have every right to go out and see other schools. You have to be able to trust the coaches and that they’ll be able to keep the kids that committed to them in the first place.
Which brings me to the 3 guys Pitt got commitments from this week. OL was a big question mark, but Williams and Morgan are great gets. Morgan is a big kid and will benefit from a year or two of sitting, but he has potential. Kind of reminds me of JJS in terms of potential/size combo. I like Williams as well and I think Pitt definitely did a good job recruiting those two.
Campbell was a big surprise for me when he committed especially because both of his parents were Rutgers alum. He’s a nice athlete and someone I can see being a real problem for the ACC in Narduzzi’s defense.
With UGA’s QB Commit saying that he’s solid with Georgia, I don’t see MacVittie leaving Pitt. I could be wrong, but he’s been one of Pitt’s bigger recruiters and his family loved Narduzzi and Chaney, not just Chaney. Narduzzi also was up front with him and I think that buys some points with him and his parents.
Winfree, Hamlin, Miller, Hill, Washington, Camp and Watts seem like the last remaining targets for the staff. There are probably a few more out there, but if the staff gets 4 of those 7, I think they’ve put together a really good/underrated class. I know Sanders isn’t in that list, but I really don’t think Pitt gets him to flip so I’m leaving him off. If they get him, that’s a bonus in my eyes. I do think Pitt needs to add at least one more DT and I really like Camp and Watts, hopefully they get one of those two.
Pitt is going to be losing more than just the ones that have already transferred. If Voytik decides to leave (which will probably be after spring ball with the new offensive coordinator IMO) then that adds another scholarship, but there will be at least 5-9 more that leave so just be ready for that.
More:
Penn State’s OC hire is a good hire regardless of the hate towards them. Moorehead is a respected coach, has western PA ties and was a successful head coach. Franklin will benefit from having a guy that was successful as a head coach even if it was at a lesser level. With that, Hack is not a fit in his offense and he should either leave and go to a different program, or leave for the NFL. Either way, they should have to prep a new QB for next season.
Also, out of all the HC turnover this season, I can’t believe Tom Herman is not one of the guys that moved on and Muschamp is a guy that gets another SEC coaching job, in a division where he failed miserably. Sometimes I don’t understand college football AD’s.
I feel like Chris with such a long post. Enjoy
