Doing the Thursday Night FS1 game right now. Listening to his voice makes me forget, just for a minute, the nightmare that was the Haywood/Graham/Chryst era.
WANNY!
- Thread starter Sean Miller Fan
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Haha. Come on now, 13 months before he was fired, we were ranked #9 and I made a post on what had to happen for Pitt to play for the NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP. Of course, we lost the next 2. While it would have been the longest of longshots, we literly discussed Pitt winning a NC......13 months before he was fired. There were some exciting times with Wanny.
There's no question replacing him was the right move ... if Pitt had any intent of keeping even the same level of commitment, let alone upgrade. Tragically Pitt had no intent of that, so it would have been better just to have kept the status quo. The last 5 years have been a complete flunking waste of time.
6 years as coach, 3 bowl games, zero bcs bowls... Peaked at third place in conference.
I'm very serious. Only you would be silly enough to discuss a national championship with a coach inable to win a bad conference.
Look at his record against uconn, Rutgers, cincy, and wvu.
No WE didn't discuss Pitt playing for the NC. Nobody with an IQ above 70 could have thought Pitt had a chance for the NC that year
No offense intended, but this board needs another Wanny thread as much as Jerry Sandusky needs a subscription to Playboy Magazine.
Peaked at 3rd place? Pitt won a share of the conference his last year. Pitt won over 27 games his last 3 years. Anybody that thinks replacing Wannstedt was good for the program needs their head examined.
pitt-girl, This is one of those things that is going to strike a nerve as long as we continue to suck. When we start winning 9 to 10 games a year, and bring in Top 20 recruiting classes every year, along with a coach that doesn't bail at the first whiff of another job, then we will move past it. This was Gottfried/Hackett Part II in that it was a move that set the program back several years. It sucks and its embarassing for the program.
And lost to the best two teams directly .
Dave won 26 games at his peak over 3 seasons...
With 7 wins being his 6th.
We were ranked #9 on Thanksgiving with 2 rankes teams coming up. 2 wins there and the other 7 teams losing (Cincy would have lost to us) and there's a chance we play for the NC. Longshot, I know but how close have we been to that since then?
Also, to say he missed 3 bowl games is misleading. He missed bowl games at 5-6 and 6-6. Graham and Chryst went to bowl games with similar records only because 12 games were allowed and they added 10 or so extra bowl games.
You can say what you want about Wanny, but there should be no credit given to Chryst or Graham for making bowls while Wanny didnt. Only reason Chryst and Wanny did was because of the expansion of bowl games in their tenure.
Again, as with Wanny, easy peasy to get rid of a guy who is floundering.
But what is the objective/commitment going to be in the replacement? Balls-in to win, or cheap caretaker to go .500 and keep the conference checks coming?
As with Wanny, maybe the results with Jamie are becoming half-ass, but it's better than the complete asses the administration have and will replace them with.
I dunno exactly the problem Jamie is having right now. Clearly he IS having them. But the assistant from Bucknell they'd end up replacing him with after an embarrassing clumsy "search" hardly is the answer. You think they'd be bringing in a top guy?
Before the screaming starts, I like Duz just fine, good energy, good back story, and if you're going to settle for a career coordinator who will work for crappy 2Mil, Duz was by far the best we could prob hope for. But he ain't a splash hire. At best we're in for tons of growing pains as he apprentices for Dantonio's job. At worst he'll be Foge.
Wanny gave up a lot of TD's, but at least had a returner back deep for the resulting kickoff every time. That's where running Wanny off with no plan or commitment to win has us 5 years later.
I don't think Wanny was floundering.
Here's the thing... Pitt had won 27 games in that 3 year period and was a year removed from a 10 win season. Wanny had established Pitt as a school that was becoming more and more attractive to recruits. Now, 2010 was disappointing and the product on the field was lousy that year, despite the 8-5 record. But given the recent success and recruiting momentum, he damn sure should have been retained another year or two until everyone had more clarity if the program was starting to tank or if 2010 was just a year of poor leadership, head cases, and underachievement that takes place in every program on occasion.
They had to bring in somebody really strong to justify that move and they failed in a big way.
Here's the thing... Pitt had won 27 games in that 3 year period and was a year removed from a 10 win season. Wanny had established Pitt as a school that was becoming more and more attractive to recruits. Now, 2010 was disappointing and the product on the field was lousy that year, despite the 8-5 record. But given the recent success and recruiting momentum, he damn sure should have been retained another year or two until everyone had more clarity if the program was starting to tank or if 2010 was just a year of poor leadership, head cases, and underachievement that takes place in every program on occasion.
They had to bring in somebody really strong to justify that move and they failed in a big way.
TD has apparently never heard of a tiebreaker....
I've kicked the dead horse that is Dave Wannstedt enough. All I'll say is that the two people defending him so far in this thread, one's considered insane by everyone else here, and the other thinks James Franklin and Lane Kiffin are good head coaches.
I've kicked the dead horse that is Dave Wannstedt enough. All I'll say is that the two people defending him so far in this thread, one's considered insane by everyone else here, and the other thinks James Franklin and Lane Kiffin are good head coaches.
I loved Wanny-but I also understood that he/his staff had faults (primarily offensive situational playcalling). I said at the time, and maintain, that I would be okay with moving on from him if we had a clear upgrade. We did not.
So, no matter what you thought of him, in retrospect we should have kept him.
So, no matter what you thought of him, in retrospect we should have kept him.
Pitt was 5-2 in 2010 and had the same record as WVU and UCONN that year. Oddly enough those two losses were against WVU and UConn. Most people with a shred of logic can deduct that if WVU, UConn, and Pitt have the same record, and pitt lost to the other two, they finished in third out of those three teams.
The only two people in this universe that consider it a feather in wanny's cap that they were "co-champs" in an atrocious conference are wanny and td-6082.
The only two people in this universe that consider it a feather in wanny's cap that they were "co-champs" in an atrocious conference are wanny and td-6082.
Exactly. And as far as rehashing it over and over, by dumping guys who maybe never got over the hump but did ok at times, to replace with never-weres and likely never-wills ... it's going to lead to rehashing.
I know the strategy to just keep firing and hiring low ball candidates until one hits the lottery seems like a sound one to the suits at the wine spritzer mixers, but it's garbage. The fanbase (such as what's left of it) dies a little more each time. I've missed more games in the last 4 years than I had since 1984 total. If we see more of what we saw last week, I anticipate I might have better plans for some of those home games in November, too. Many others will as well. Then there can be more attendance threads, wondering what the "problem" is.
Looking at the wikipedia page for that 2010 season, pitt was a heavy favorite to win the big east that season....they recieved 22 out of 24 first place votes. that probably had something to do with the 5 or 6 future nfl draft picks on the team. and they ended up losing five games that season. gr8 job wanny!
At the time, I was ok with firing him. I wouldnt have done it but I could understand it. However, the Haywood/Graham/Chryst combo as a replacement was worse than anybody could have imagined. Luckily Barry took Chryst off our hands and paid us a few million to do it so maybe we finally have the right guy, maybe.
I mean there is absolutely no debating that in hindsight, the firing of Wanny was terrible. We would have done better than 4 straight 6-6's. Nobody can debate that.
If Wanny was a slightly better coach, Pitt would have been 12-0 in 2009 and would have finished #3. No national title game, but close.
Why do people keep mention Hayward. he was not given due process on a BS charge , by a BS AD, who hired a BS coach who had previously turned Pitt down then left with no notice or respect. You cannot really count him in any of Pitt's coaching mess. He was never given a chance and we don't know what might have happened except their would have been no graham.
Yep - and if I was younger, better-looking, super-wealthy, and the CEO of a major movie studio, I'd have a shot at banging Kate Upton.
As my father used to always say, if a frog had wings, he wouldn't bump his a**. Wannstedt was a good recruiter, but a poor coach.
Yep, throw in Callahan at Nebraska and Millions in Two Buyouts and one can see the effects of Steve Pederson on both Programs as both try to become top 25 Programs again!
At least Fox Sports acknowledges that Pitt's Alumnus Dave Wannstedt's analysis a body of facts learned by study with his education, experience and insights as entertaining, valuable, and why he still has a high paying job today, unlike Pederson sitting at home counting his Buyout Money due to personal and professional errors and misjudgments of his own making, of Pederson's Poison and Puke for Pitt, Players, and Fans!
I love listening to Wannstedt and love that Pitt finally dumped Pederson just like Nebraska knew it had to do too! Both Programs are better off for today and the future!
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Stability alone would have been enough to salvage more than a bunch of 6-6 seasons. By the time Chryst was hired, the roster was in shambles, and the current roster still shows the effects of the outrageous situation that pitt was in...there are still very few seniors on the team.
The morons that chose to rid themselves of wanny had zero follow up plan. If you are going to fire a successful, popular coach, its probably best not to do it in half assed fashion, and its probably best not to have a half assed coaching search. that coaching search was a true comedy of errors.
So true, Pederson was not prepared to have a Solid Back-Up for Wannstedt and few Good or Great Coaches wanted to work under Pederson anyway, and then they filled their pockets with Pitt Money as they kept paying out Buyouts and Lawsuit Settlements on his terrible errors.....it was the Poison of Pederson himself that Pitt had to Puke out to move on to better and bigger things for the future of the Program!
It's really no different at all...just different shades of mediocre, same as under Wanny.
I don't carry water for any coaches. But, your hypocrisy of holding onto Wanny's best 2 seasons a bench mark, while ignoring Dixon's consistently superior performance is noted.
No, I don't consider it a feather in his cap. However, this board seems to have a lot of Walt Harris lovers that think 2004's 4-way tie co-championship was much better. I don't see how a 4-2 record that results in a 4 way tie in a 7 team league (with Temple a member in the process of getting booted) is any better. I'm sorry, but receiving an ass-kicking in a BCS Bowl against a non-BCS opponent is nothing to brag about either.
Souf, I'm a huge fan of Dixon & I think he has done a remarkable job at Pitt. Post-season aside, his job status has never deserved to be questioned. However, at this point, its fairly obvious he IS floundering and its hard to see much light at the end of the tunnel right now. Maybe its time he was on the clock. That's all I'm saying.
So.. he deserves to be on the clock for performing..even during this down stretch..as well if not better than Wannstedt..who you are pining for?
I have news for you... if things don't improve...I won't cry if they move on Dixon- just like I didn't cry for Walt or Wanny for performing below Dixon's level.
Because that team beat BC and WVU, the two best teams in the conference (while spitting the bit against Cuse)...
Whereas Wanny's team lost to the best teams...
and let us also not forget... ended up LOSING the tie-breaker with a 2 game lead going into it's final 3 games, if my memory serves.
One team WON big games to earn a share and make the BCS game.
another LOST big games down the stretch and failed to make a bcs game.
One team had low expectations and exceeded them (hence Walt won BECOY).
The other.. floundered all season long, and lost in embarrassing fashion on national TV several times.
Context.
Again ... just who do you think they would replace him with?
They actually spend a bit on Dixon now. It isn't enough that would return a significant upgrade for his replacement, though. They'd have to amp it up. They won't. Hell, they might even go DOWN, as they did after Wanny and his assistants. "Refocus on academics and discipline."
Many will cry in hope more than proof that Gallagher is "different". After all, he made brave noise that we want to be 'winners'. Yet, when the smoke cleared, we spent next to nothing more on Narduzzi and staff than we spent on Chryst. That's more telling than rhetoric.
Duz's hiring process appeared to be a LOT more professional than the last few and there's much to be said for that, but it's still the low-ball gamble that we'll strike gold with a tin budget. A basketball hire right now would be much the same.
If Pitt decided to stop settling for middle of the pack and go balls-in, I am all for it. But to change just to replace one gibrone with another, no thanks.
And Jamie, at least, has accomplished a great deal (certainly more than Wanny, though as I've posted, dumping him was a mistake too in retrospect). Retaining Jamie is a FAR better gamble than the gibrone who'd likely follow.
It's such a shame. In Pittsburgh, winning sports is regularly proven to return its investment massively. Win a couple championships, and Pitt (the university) magically would join the Kings of Pittsburgh, would be given anything on its wish list. It would be the best investment Pitt could ever make. Pitt gets shafted by the community and state now by merely being an excellent institution. Sad to say, nobody cares. It's taken for granted. Whipping boy for all ills. Funding rrduced, even as tax status gets attacked. Isn't Pitt tired of that? So, beat the morons in this region at its favorite game -- namely, football!
Souf, don't forget the win at Notre Dame also.
Yeah, they went 6-5, but ND notched wins against Top 10 teams Michigan and Tennessee.
Pitt probably doesn't win the tiebreaker if they lose that game.
Yeah, they went 6-5, but ND notched wins against Top 10 teams Michigan and Tennessee.
Pitt probably doesn't win the tiebreaker if they lose that game.
geeman, while I agree with some of your points, I'm curious: what would have qualified as a splash hire [on this go around]?
I don't think Pitt is in position to take anyone from any BCS schools. And these hires don't always work out either. See RichRod at Michigan. And so far, our buddy James Franklin.
I don't think Pitt is in position to take anyone from any BCS schools. And these hires don't always work out either. See RichRod at Michigan. And so far, our buddy James Franklin.
That was 2010 I believe, we where 9-1 and where only beaten by a comeback for Wisconsin lead by Russell Wilson, then lost to WVU and the infamous 45-44 loss to Cincy, after leading 31-10. Finished 10-3 after beating UNC in the Tire Bowl! It was an OK year, but going into that WVU game, it felt like BCS was possible.
