From the desk of Jim Snyder
A few thoughts on training camp
Maybe one of the big surprises so far is the offense line. Dave Wannstedt has said he knows this group was criticized last year but it appears that Wannstedt and coach Dunn like what they have on hand. There seems to be a growing confidence that they will be able to run the ball this fall. Freshman C.J.Davis has been singled out on a number occasions. Moon’s John Bachman and Burrell’s John Brown have also drawn some praise. It looks like senior Dale Williams could also be in the mix.
Pitt was slow to recruit West Allegheny’s C.J. Davis. Coach Harris had a bias for taller linemen and that is part of the reason. However, C.J. Davis told me part of the reason was his own fault. He was not taking care of business early in his high school career. Davis could turn out to be a great late pickup for Pitt.
Last year Walt Harris groused at the number of injured players sitting in the whirlpool and Pitt got off to a slow start. So far most of the injuries look like normal training camp injuries but you never can tell if missed practice time will hurt early in the season. The knee injury to defensive tackle Thomas Smith appears to be the most serious.
Going into training camp tight end John Pelusi looked like a lock for a redshirt. Pelusi has been an early surprise and might have the staff rethinking this notion. Using four tight ends might be a little over the top unless you are running some two tight end sets and have some formations where you use an H-back. In addition some tight ends could play on special teams. Tight end could prove to be the deepest position on the Pitt team.
There are a number of keys to this season. “Job One” is keeping Tyler Palko healthy. Seton-LaSalle’s Bill Stull should easily win the backup spot but Bill would have benefited from a year in the weight room. Joe Flacco transferring has robbed Bill Stull of a much needed redshirt year. Some additional time to allow his body to mature under the guidance of Coach Kent would have been nice.
This season may turn on the front-four on defense. Pitt has the best pair of corners in the conference and adequate safeties. H.B. Blades should be a force at middle linebacker and the Panthers have plenty of options on the outside. However, it does not matter how good your defensive backs are if you cannot pressure the passer. Coach Wannstedt has repeatedly made the point of needing more speed to rush the passer. One of my colleagues joked you half expect him to announce he is moving a couple of defensive backs into the front four any day now.
Who knows maybe freshman defensive end Gus Mustakas can make a move and push his way onto the two-deep chart. I guaranteed you if he does Harry would be “very pleased”.
Buchtel’s Tim Murphy has looked good so far. It would give the offense a huge boost if Tim can stay healthy this year. Murphy was a big time back in high school. One member of the staff likes to say he is a “beast” when describing his running style.
Some thoughts on the recruiting circuit
Pitt now has 14 verbal commitments. The number they will take is always a moving target. We have a long way to go to February. Dave Wannstedt and his staff are on a recruiting roll. It would not surprise us to see him take 6 to 8 more.
We spoke to Gateway’s Aaron Smith this week and he said he still plans to make a decision on August 27th. Rivals.com’s Mike Farrell was talking to some folks at Maryland and they do not think he will be a Terp. He has not told Pitt he will be a Panther but we think that is where he will end up. You always hate to use absolutes when covering recruiting but we think Smith could easily be the next Pitt commitment. Rivals.com has given Smith a 4-star rating.
Defensive back Ricky Gary from Pahokee might not be too far behind. Gary was measured at a little less than 5’ 8” at the Nike Camp in Miami but he has 27-28 offers so his height has not bothered a lot of coaches. Pahokee won the Florida 3A state championship the past two years. This program churns out Division 1 prospects on a regular basis. Harry e-mailed me off-line to say that it was a little curious that he was so pumped up about Pitt when he has not yet seen the place. Things can change in a hurry when you are following recruiting but it looks like Gary could be a Panther unless something goes horribly wrong Labor Day weekend.
We were talking to a reporter from Illinois who claims the Fighting Illini maybe be getting close to offering Perry’s Desmond Brentley who already has offers from Akron and Temple. Pitt already has commitments from two quarterbacks. Every shred of common sense tells you they are done taking quarterbacks except Dave Wannnstedt seems to have adopted Jamie Dixon line of “You never stop recruiting.” You never know when you will have an opportunity to strengthen your team. They will also continue to recruit those that have already committed to protect them from poachers.
We have reported before we lived in Princeton, NJ for a number of years about 2-3 miles from the Educational Testing Service. We knew a few folks that work there but never worked out a deal to get copies of SAT scores sent directly to the Pantherlair. Discussions about academic status are like stepping into quicksand. These prospects all have another year to pull up their grades and all have plenty of opportunities to take the SAT exams. You never really know who will qualify and who won’t.
Here we go into the quick sand. Recently a Rochester newspaper ran an article indicating that Kevin Collier struggled in his first couple of years in high school. Last year he did much better getting an 80+ GPA and he made the honor roll a couple of times. This summer we reported he took summer school courses to pull up his overall GPA. He needs to continue his progress over the next year if he is to make himself eligible (we think he will be).
We have heard reports from a couple of sources that LeSean McCoy may also have some work cut out for him to clear the NCAA Clearinghouse. It may be a partial reason for the slow speed of his entire recruiting process.
Despite the visits to Tennessee and Boston College we still think Pitt has a good shot at landing 4-star running back Kevin Collier. Mike Farrell ran into him in Boston and he told Mike he would not be visiting Maryland. Collier seems like a homebody and likes coach Walker. It should be Pitt or Syracuse.
For you LeSean McCoy fans. What happens if they get Kevin Collier? We think Pitt will continue to pursue McCoy until the very end. You never stop recruiting.
The NCAA now has rules, which will punish schools for failing to graduate players. The first 14 commits all appear to be easy qualifiers and some like Tyler Tkach, John Malecki, Nate Byham and Kevan Smith are very good students. It looks like the tailback position could be the exception to the rule. This staff may be willing to gamble to get a gifted running back.
Some Quick Hits
It looks like Steel Valley’s Luke Getsy will be the starting quarterback for J. D. Brookhart at the University of Akron. Former Panther Andy Alleman will start at guard for the Zips. They both would have provided depth this year at Pitt but that is water over the dam now. Former Panther Offensive Coordinator J.D. Brookhart had the best recruiting class in the MAC last year. It looks like he is headed in that direction again if he can keep the program from taking a step back this year after losing quarterback Charlie Frye who is now with the Cleveland Browns.
Rivals.com is in the process of upgrading the depth chart and the football roster. Check out Tyler Palko (No. 3) and Greg Lee (No. 86) on the roster at the left hand side of this page and you will get some idea what the finished product might look like. There is still a lot of clean up to do on the rosters. Rivals.com prides itself as having the best prospect database. The goal is now to develop the best roster of active players.
We have many new subscribers over the past 60 days. Most of our long-time subscribers are use to checking out the “Ticker” for recruiting updates. If you have missed a “team” article you can always find it on the “Headlines” on the top left hand side of the site. Chris Peak has taken many photos since training camp started. You can find them by checking under “Headlines” on the upper left hand side of this page.
It was good seeing ESPN confirm that they will be sending their Game Day crew to Pittsburgh for the Notre Dame game. We thought they would but they also keep contingence plans. Nice to see it officially announced. Announcers Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit and Lee Corso will all be on hand. We also have Keith Jackson set to do play by play in primetime on ABC. Hopefully Mark May will be doing studio updates. A win over the Fighting Irish would result in a lot of great publicity for Dave Wannstedt’s football program.
The War Room is targeted towards our premium customers. We ask that all information reported in the War Room MUST stay right here! That’s the way this deal works. When this information is repeated outside of the Between Fifth and Forbes forum it only cheapens the price of yours and every other die-hard who have purchased premium services. The War Room is one of our more popular features...thank you all for keeping the information on this board.
This post was edited on 8/19 1:08 PM by Jim Pantherlairif(GetAdminCookie() != 0) {document.write(' (Revisions[/URL])');}
A few thoughts on training camp
Maybe one of the big surprises so far is the offense line. Dave Wannstedt has said he knows this group was criticized last year but it appears that Wannstedt and coach Dunn like what they have on hand. There seems to be a growing confidence that they will be able to run the ball this fall. Freshman C.J.Davis has been singled out on a number occasions. Moon’s John Bachman and Burrell’s John Brown have also drawn some praise. It looks like senior Dale Williams could also be in the mix.
Pitt was slow to recruit West Allegheny’s C.J. Davis. Coach Harris had a bias for taller linemen and that is part of the reason. However, C.J. Davis told me part of the reason was his own fault. He was not taking care of business early in his high school career. Davis could turn out to be a great late pickup for Pitt.
Last year Walt Harris groused at the number of injured players sitting in the whirlpool and Pitt got off to a slow start. So far most of the injuries look like normal training camp injuries but you never can tell if missed practice time will hurt early in the season. The knee injury to defensive tackle Thomas Smith appears to be the most serious.
Going into training camp tight end John Pelusi looked like a lock for a redshirt. Pelusi has been an early surprise and might have the staff rethinking this notion. Using four tight ends might be a little over the top unless you are running some two tight end sets and have some formations where you use an H-back. In addition some tight ends could play on special teams. Tight end could prove to be the deepest position on the Pitt team.
There are a number of keys to this season. “Job One” is keeping Tyler Palko healthy. Seton-LaSalle’s Bill Stull should easily win the backup spot but Bill would have benefited from a year in the weight room. Joe Flacco transferring has robbed Bill Stull of a much needed redshirt year. Some additional time to allow his body to mature under the guidance of Coach Kent would have been nice.
This season may turn on the front-four on defense. Pitt has the best pair of corners in the conference and adequate safeties. H.B. Blades should be a force at middle linebacker and the Panthers have plenty of options on the outside. However, it does not matter how good your defensive backs are if you cannot pressure the passer. Coach Wannstedt has repeatedly made the point of needing more speed to rush the passer. One of my colleagues joked you half expect him to announce he is moving a couple of defensive backs into the front four any day now.
Who knows maybe freshman defensive end Gus Mustakas can make a move and push his way onto the two-deep chart. I guaranteed you if he does Harry would be “very pleased”.
Buchtel’s Tim Murphy has looked good so far. It would give the offense a huge boost if Tim can stay healthy this year. Murphy was a big time back in high school. One member of the staff likes to say he is a “beast” when describing his running style.
Some thoughts on the recruiting circuit
Pitt now has 14 verbal commitments. The number they will take is always a moving target. We have a long way to go to February. Dave Wannstedt and his staff are on a recruiting roll. It would not surprise us to see him take 6 to 8 more.
We spoke to Gateway’s Aaron Smith this week and he said he still plans to make a decision on August 27th. Rivals.com’s Mike Farrell was talking to some folks at Maryland and they do not think he will be a Terp. He has not told Pitt he will be a Panther but we think that is where he will end up. You always hate to use absolutes when covering recruiting but we think Smith could easily be the next Pitt commitment. Rivals.com has given Smith a 4-star rating.
Defensive back Ricky Gary from Pahokee might not be too far behind. Gary was measured at a little less than 5’ 8” at the Nike Camp in Miami but he has 27-28 offers so his height has not bothered a lot of coaches. Pahokee won the Florida 3A state championship the past two years. This program churns out Division 1 prospects on a regular basis. Harry e-mailed me off-line to say that it was a little curious that he was so pumped up about Pitt when he has not yet seen the place. Things can change in a hurry when you are following recruiting but it looks like Gary could be a Panther unless something goes horribly wrong Labor Day weekend.
We were talking to a reporter from Illinois who claims the Fighting Illini maybe be getting close to offering Perry’s Desmond Brentley who already has offers from Akron and Temple. Pitt already has commitments from two quarterbacks. Every shred of common sense tells you they are done taking quarterbacks except Dave Wannnstedt seems to have adopted Jamie Dixon line of “You never stop recruiting.” You never know when you will have an opportunity to strengthen your team. They will also continue to recruit those that have already committed to protect them from poachers.
We have reported before we lived in Princeton, NJ for a number of years about 2-3 miles from the Educational Testing Service. We knew a few folks that work there but never worked out a deal to get copies of SAT scores sent directly to the Pantherlair. Discussions about academic status are like stepping into quicksand. These prospects all have another year to pull up their grades and all have plenty of opportunities to take the SAT exams. You never really know who will qualify and who won’t.
Here we go into the quick sand. Recently a Rochester newspaper ran an article indicating that Kevin Collier struggled in his first couple of years in high school. Last year he did much better getting an 80+ GPA and he made the honor roll a couple of times. This summer we reported he took summer school courses to pull up his overall GPA. He needs to continue his progress over the next year if he is to make himself eligible (we think he will be).
We have heard reports from a couple of sources that LeSean McCoy may also have some work cut out for him to clear the NCAA Clearinghouse. It may be a partial reason for the slow speed of his entire recruiting process.
Despite the visits to Tennessee and Boston College we still think Pitt has a good shot at landing 4-star running back Kevin Collier. Mike Farrell ran into him in Boston and he told Mike he would not be visiting Maryland. Collier seems like a homebody and likes coach Walker. It should be Pitt or Syracuse.
For you LeSean McCoy fans. What happens if they get Kevin Collier? We think Pitt will continue to pursue McCoy until the very end. You never stop recruiting.
The NCAA now has rules, which will punish schools for failing to graduate players. The first 14 commits all appear to be easy qualifiers and some like Tyler Tkach, John Malecki, Nate Byham and Kevan Smith are very good students. It looks like the tailback position could be the exception to the rule. This staff may be willing to gamble to get a gifted running back.
Some Quick Hits
It looks like Steel Valley’s Luke Getsy will be the starting quarterback for J. D. Brookhart at the University of Akron. Former Panther Andy Alleman will start at guard for the Zips. They both would have provided depth this year at Pitt but that is water over the dam now. Former Panther Offensive Coordinator J.D. Brookhart had the best recruiting class in the MAC last year. It looks like he is headed in that direction again if he can keep the program from taking a step back this year after losing quarterback Charlie Frye who is now with the Cleveland Browns.
Rivals.com is in the process of upgrading the depth chart and the football roster. Check out Tyler Palko (No. 3) and Greg Lee (No. 86) on the roster at the left hand side of this page and you will get some idea what the finished product might look like. There is still a lot of clean up to do on the rosters. Rivals.com prides itself as having the best prospect database. The goal is now to develop the best roster of active players.
We have many new subscribers over the past 60 days. Most of our long-time subscribers are use to checking out the “Ticker” for recruiting updates. If you have missed a “team” article you can always find it on the “Headlines” on the top left hand side of the site. Chris Peak has taken many photos since training camp started. You can find them by checking under “Headlines” on the upper left hand side of this page.
It was good seeing ESPN confirm that they will be sending their Game Day crew to Pittsburgh for the Notre Dame game. We thought they would but they also keep contingence plans. Nice to see it officially announced. Announcers Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit and Lee Corso will all be on hand. We also have Keith Jackson set to do play by play in primetime on ABC. Hopefully Mark May will be doing studio updates. A win over the Fighting Irish would result in a lot of great publicity for Dave Wannstedt’s football program.
The War Room is targeted towards our premium customers. We ask that all information reported in the War Room MUST stay right here! That’s the way this deal works. When this information is repeated outside of the Between Fifth and Forbes forum it only cheapens the price of yours and every other die-hard who have purchased premium services. The War Room is one of our more popular features...thank you all for keeping the information on this board.
This post was edited on 8/19 1:08 PM by Jim Pantherlairif(GetAdminCookie() != 0) {document.write(' (Revisions[/URL])');}
