From the desk of Jim Snyder
Hoops talk
Pitt played well in the first half at Notre Dame last night and led by five at the break. Notre Dame did not shoot well from three-point range early. At the end of the night Pitt was out rebounded and Notre Dame made a run making 4 three-pointers in a row. This is a game Pitt could easily have lost even if Mike Cook and Levance Fields were both healthy. Notre Dame is better at home than they are on the road and they have a long win streak to prove it.
Ronald Ramon was 0-8 on the night and was passing up open shots late. If he had made 3 of 8 it might have been a different game.
Sam Young had a solid game but during Notre Dame’s second half run he turned the ball over twice, missed a free throw and missed a dunk. The Panthers needed someone to make a play and Young went into a two-minute funk during the run.
If Pitt can find a way to win 3 of their last 5 games they will be where they need to be. This ship will not be totally righted until Levance Fields is starting at point guard and playing 30+ minutes per game. Pitt still has an RPI ranking of 21. Louisville is ranked No. 14. If the Panthers can find a way to beat the Cards on Sunday the RPI Ranking would get a nice boost and the Panthers will be headed to the NCAA tournament.
Football Future Schedules
This past week the University of New Hampshire indicated they had deals with Pitt, Army and Boston College. The Times Leader reported that New Hampshire will visit Heinz Field in 2010 and will be paid $300,000 by Pitt for the visit. These 1AA programs are in high demand from the SEC, Big Ten and others since the NCAA expanded to a 12-game schedule.
We reported earlier that Pitt has also has a four-year deal with Buffalo. We reported this deal was done by former AD Jeff Long and many are skeptical at Pitt that they will visit Buffalo twice. They will probably be bought out of the second visit at some point down the road. For the time being we are showing all four games on our Future Schedules which you can find under Quick Links.
There had been a report out of South Bend that Pitt’s eight-year deal was no longer a home and away deal but a 5-3 arrangement. The folks at Pitt are still saying as far as they are concerned it is still a home and away deal. That is how we will continue to reflect this contract on our Future Schedule report.
We had an article linked to one of our message boards this past week about UConn coach Randy Edsall lobbying for the Big East to add a ninth team for football. This is a story that will be repeated by many of the Big East football schools in coming years. Scheduling home games is very difficult when the conference only delivers 3 games every other year.
Mike Tranghese said this week “We have a commitment that the schools will be together at least five more years (because of the TV contract). Aside from that, though, I have not had one conversation about a possible split with our presidents. As in football, our basketball coaches are complaining about scheduling.”
It appears that if a split occurs the basketball only schools would retain the Big East name and the rights to the tournament in Madison Square Garden. It is enough to slow folks down.
The football scheduling problem has the potential to cost each school a million dollars a year.
The motive to add a ninth football school is very strong but at least for now appears to be on the back burner. However it is one that will not go away. Right now they are stuck in a Catch 22.
Depth chart
We have updated our depth chart going into spring training. We have deliberately left off all members of the Class of 2008 with the exception of junior college transfers Greg Cross and Robb Houser. These two will be available for spring camp. The others are still in high school (with the exception of Ronald Hobby).
We also tried to keep off as many redshirt freshman as possible. Obviously this group will get their chance this spring. The one that gets the most buzz is Myles Caragein. I suspect Coach Gattuso will battle to keep him on the defensive side of the ball. If Coach Gattuso wins this argument it could be others may be moved to add depth to the offensive line. John Malecki and Craig Bokor could be candidates to move.
Both offensive tackle slots will be big question marks this spring. Jason Pinkston is not supposed to fully participate this spring which means a lot of reps for others.
At this time last year the buzz was that Dorin Dickerson would be all-world at linebacker. It now appears he will get a look at tight end in the spring with TE Nate Byham being held out. It is always possible he could be back at linebacker by the time we get to fall camp.
The depth chart is crowded at running back. One of the freshmen will be moved (Greg Williams) to linebacker. Both Williams and Shariff Harris showed some spark at running back in limited opportunities early last fall.
How much movement occurs this spring depends in part on who is healthy enough to play this spring. We will move folks around once we get into spring camp which starts March 25th.
The coaching staff is struggling with the 85-player limit. It may be that a couple that cannot make their way on to the two-deep chart this spring might be advised to move on.
Basketball commitment
This past week Juco Junction, which is a part of the Rivals network, broke the story that Pitt had a verbal commitment from guard Jermaine Dixon (6’ 3”). Tony Greco did a good job on a follow up interview with him. I have to say this one came out of left field but in hindsight makes sense.
Pitt graduates senior guards Ronald Ramon and Keith Benjamin. The injury to Levance Fields exposed some depth problems at guard. This keeps the pressure off Travon Woodall and/or Ashton Gibbs to contribute immediately as true freshman. As we discovered with Brad Wanamaker this year the transition is often not easy.
Bringing it a junior college player also helps them with class balance. The coaching staff will need to open up a scholarship. Cassin Diggs, Austin Wallace and Sam Young are all possibilities.
We posted on the Center Court at the Pete board that Pitt commit Ashton Gibbs broke a school record this week. He is now the all-time leading scorer at this school with 1,790 points. Former Panther point guard Brandin Knight attended this school so they have had their share of good basketball players. In the same game that Gibbs broke the scoring record, his coach, Bob Farrell, won his 700th game at this highly successful program. Seton Hall Prep (21-4) has a big game on Saturday in the finals of the Essex County tournament. They will face No. 1 seed Science Park (21-2).
Last night ESPN carried St Anthony’s game with American Christian 64-53. Pitt commit Travon Woodallhad 15 points.
Woodall does not start for St Anthony’s. I have seen them play several times this year. He is, however, on the floor at crunch time. Last night when American Christian went ahead in the second half Woodall scored a basket to put the Friars ahead. It was a lead they never relinquished. Late in the game in calmly put in two free throws and made passes that resulted in two fast break baskets by St Anthony’s to help put the game away.
Last night’s televised game was loaded with Division 1 basketball players. We have an article on the game on the Ticker. Please check it out.
Football recruiting recap
Pitt will hold a Junior Day on Sunday when the basketball team hosts Louisville. Pitt has invited 90 prospects to attend. The staff will come back with a Blue Chip Day during the spring practice sessions which start next month.
A small sample of some that were invited:
Corey Brown WR Gateway
Dorian Bell LB Gateway
Todd Thomas WR Beaver Falls
Brock DeCicco TE Thomas Jefferson
Dan Mason LB Penn Hills
Dontae Brown WR Penn Hills
Corey King OL Lakeview
Tyrone Ezell DL Steel Valley
Jack Lippert DE Central Dauphin
Levi Brown DT Bethlehem Liberty
Anthony Stolliulino LB Southern Regional
Adam Citko OT Archbishop Carroll
A.J. Fenton LB Erie McDowell
Paul Carrezola TE Neshaminy
Sean Stanley DE Gaithersburg, MD.
Several other schools will also hold junior days this weekend including Virginia and Notre Dame. Some players like Eric Shrive will take the opportunity to visit one of them. Shrive will visit Notre Dame and Seneca Valley’s C.J. Brown will visit Virginia. On the other hand Adam Citko was invited to Notre Dame but told the Pantherlair he would visit Pitt instead.
Steelton-Highspire running back Jeremy Young said in an interview this week he will attend Notre Dame’s Junior Day.
Pitt will hold a Blue Chip Day for juniors during spring camp so those that miss coming this Sunday can always visit that one.
As a reminder there will be a Nike combine at the UPMC complex on the Southside on Sunday March 2nd. If you know any that are interested there is still plenty of time to register.
Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak tells us Bock DeCicco is just coming off basketball and wants to workout before attending and he plans to go to the Nike combine in Columbus on March 29th. Adam Citko told us he plans to attend the Nike combine in Baltimore on April 19th. There is a link on the Home page for any that want to register.
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.
Hoops talk
Pitt played well in the first half at Notre Dame last night and led by five at the break. Notre Dame did not shoot well from three-point range early. At the end of the night Pitt was out rebounded and Notre Dame made a run making 4 three-pointers in a row. This is a game Pitt could easily have lost even if Mike Cook and Levance Fields were both healthy. Notre Dame is better at home than they are on the road and they have a long win streak to prove it.
Ronald Ramon was 0-8 on the night and was passing up open shots late. If he had made 3 of 8 it might have been a different game.
Sam Young had a solid game but during Notre Dame’s second half run he turned the ball over twice, missed a free throw and missed a dunk. The Panthers needed someone to make a play and Young went into a two-minute funk during the run.
If Pitt can find a way to win 3 of their last 5 games they will be where they need to be. This ship will not be totally righted until Levance Fields is starting at point guard and playing 30+ minutes per game. Pitt still has an RPI ranking of 21. Louisville is ranked No. 14. If the Panthers can find a way to beat the Cards on Sunday the RPI Ranking would get a nice boost and the Panthers will be headed to the NCAA tournament.
Football Future Schedules
This past week the University of New Hampshire indicated they had deals with Pitt, Army and Boston College. The Times Leader reported that New Hampshire will visit Heinz Field in 2010 and will be paid $300,000 by Pitt for the visit. These 1AA programs are in high demand from the SEC, Big Ten and others since the NCAA expanded to a 12-game schedule.
We reported earlier that Pitt has also has a four-year deal with Buffalo. We reported this deal was done by former AD Jeff Long and many are skeptical at Pitt that they will visit Buffalo twice. They will probably be bought out of the second visit at some point down the road. For the time being we are showing all four games on our Future Schedules which you can find under Quick Links.
There had been a report out of South Bend that Pitt’s eight-year deal was no longer a home and away deal but a 5-3 arrangement. The folks at Pitt are still saying as far as they are concerned it is still a home and away deal. That is how we will continue to reflect this contract on our Future Schedule report.
We had an article linked to one of our message boards this past week about UConn coach Randy Edsall lobbying for the Big East to add a ninth team for football. This is a story that will be repeated by many of the Big East football schools in coming years. Scheduling home games is very difficult when the conference only delivers 3 games every other year.
Mike Tranghese said this week “We have a commitment that the schools will be together at least five more years (because of the TV contract). Aside from that, though, I have not had one conversation about a possible split with our presidents. As in football, our basketball coaches are complaining about scheduling.”
It appears that if a split occurs the basketball only schools would retain the Big East name and the rights to the tournament in Madison Square Garden. It is enough to slow folks down.
The football scheduling problem has the potential to cost each school a million dollars a year.
The motive to add a ninth football school is very strong but at least for now appears to be on the back burner. However it is one that will not go away. Right now they are stuck in a Catch 22.
Depth chart
We have updated our depth chart going into spring training. We have deliberately left off all members of the Class of 2008 with the exception of junior college transfers Greg Cross and Robb Houser. These two will be available for spring camp. The others are still in high school (with the exception of Ronald Hobby).
We also tried to keep off as many redshirt freshman as possible. Obviously this group will get their chance this spring. The one that gets the most buzz is Myles Caragein. I suspect Coach Gattuso will battle to keep him on the defensive side of the ball. If Coach Gattuso wins this argument it could be others may be moved to add depth to the offensive line. John Malecki and Craig Bokor could be candidates to move.
Both offensive tackle slots will be big question marks this spring. Jason Pinkston is not supposed to fully participate this spring which means a lot of reps for others.
At this time last year the buzz was that Dorin Dickerson would be all-world at linebacker. It now appears he will get a look at tight end in the spring with TE Nate Byham being held out. It is always possible he could be back at linebacker by the time we get to fall camp.
The depth chart is crowded at running back. One of the freshmen will be moved (Greg Williams) to linebacker. Both Williams and Shariff Harris showed some spark at running back in limited opportunities early last fall.
How much movement occurs this spring depends in part on who is healthy enough to play this spring. We will move folks around once we get into spring camp which starts March 25th.
The coaching staff is struggling with the 85-player limit. It may be that a couple that cannot make their way on to the two-deep chart this spring might be advised to move on.
Basketball commitment
This past week Juco Junction, which is a part of the Rivals network, broke the story that Pitt had a verbal commitment from guard Jermaine Dixon (6’ 3”). Tony Greco did a good job on a follow up interview with him. I have to say this one came out of left field but in hindsight makes sense.
Pitt graduates senior guards Ronald Ramon and Keith Benjamin. The injury to Levance Fields exposed some depth problems at guard. This keeps the pressure off Travon Woodall and/or Ashton Gibbs to contribute immediately as true freshman. As we discovered with Brad Wanamaker this year the transition is often not easy.
Bringing it a junior college player also helps them with class balance. The coaching staff will need to open up a scholarship. Cassin Diggs, Austin Wallace and Sam Young are all possibilities.
We posted on the Center Court at the Pete board that Pitt commit Ashton Gibbs broke a school record this week. He is now the all-time leading scorer at this school with 1,790 points. Former Panther point guard Brandin Knight attended this school so they have had their share of good basketball players. In the same game that Gibbs broke the scoring record, his coach, Bob Farrell, won his 700th game at this highly successful program. Seton Hall Prep (21-4) has a big game on Saturday in the finals of the Essex County tournament. They will face No. 1 seed Science Park (21-2).
Last night ESPN carried St Anthony’s game with American Christian 64-53. Pitt commit Travon Woodallhad 15 points.
Woodall does not start for St Anthony’s. I have seen them play several times this year. He is, however, on the floor at crunch time. Last night when American Christian went ahead in the second half Woodall scored a basket to put the Friars ahead. It was a lead they never relinquished. Late in the game in calmly put in two free throws and made passes that resulted in two fast break baskets by St Anthony’s to help put the game away.
Last night’s televised game was loaded with Division 1 basketball players. We have an article on the game on the Ticker. Please check it out.
Football recruiting recap
Pitt will hold a Junior Day on Sunday when the basketball team hosts Louisville. Pitt has invited 90 prospects to attend. The staff will come back with a Blue Chip Day during the spring practice sessions which start next month.
A small sample of some that were invited:
Corey Brown WR Gateway
Dorian Bell LB Gateway
Todd Thomas WR Beaver Falls
Brock DeCicco TE Thomas Jefferson
Dan Mason LB Penn Hills
Dontae Brown WR Penn Hills
Corey King OL Lakeview
Tyrone Ezell DL Steel Valley
Jack Lippert DE Central Dauphin
Levi Brown DT Bethlehem Liberty
Anthony Stolliulino LB Southern Regional
Adam Citko OT Archbishop Carroll
A.J. Fenton LB Erie McDowell
Paul Carrezola TE Neshaminy
Sean Stanley DE Gaithersburg, MD.
Several other schools will also hold junior days this weekend including Virginia and Notre Dame. Some players like Eric Shrive will take the opportunity to visit one of them. Shrive will visit Notre Dame and Seneca Valley’s C.J. Brown will visit Virginia. On the other hand Adam Citko was invited to Notre Dame but told the Pantherlair he would visit Pitt instead.
Steelton-Highspire running back Jeremy Young said in an interview this week he will attend Notre Dame’s Junior Day.
Pitt will hold a Blue Chip Day for juniors during spring camp so those that miss coming this Sunday can always visit that one.
As a reminder there will be a Nike combine at the UPMC complex on the Southside on Sunday March 2nd. If you know any that are interested there is still plenty of time to register.
Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak tells us Bock DeCicco is just coming off basketball and wants to workout before attending and he plans to go to the Nike combine in Columbus on March 29th. Adam Citko told us he plans to attend the Nike combine in Baltimore on April 19th. There is a link on the Home page for any that want to register.
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.
