War Room (May 20th)
From the desk of Jim Snyder
A week or so ago one of our colleagues had indicated that the Pitt coaching was very worried that quarterback Joe Flacco might transfer. They felt that Joe had performed well this spring and were not anxious to see him leave the program. As we have seen this week he is now at his home in New Jersey trying to decide which direction to go. The Pitt staff is scheduled to visit his home. We will make a note to follow up.
Pitt will be ranked in the Top 25 when most of the preseason publications are released. Most of the early ones have Pitt anywhere from No. 17 to No. 23. If Joe Flacco can not be persuaded to return Pitt will be very thin at quarterback with only true freshman Bill Stull and Shane Murray to back him up. As we reported earlier Bill Stull will enter Pitt early to get a jump on things. He will start in June. He has sat in on many of the quarterback meetings this spring but he is still a true freshman. We have always looked at Stull as someone who could benefit from a redshirt year. He simply needs time in the weight-room to allow his body to develop.
Ironically long-time Pitt fans will remember when Matt Cavanaugh got hurt in the Notre Dame game many years ago and Jackie Sherill did not have an adequately trained quarterback to back him up. Pitt fans had national championship dreams going into the season but Matt’s injury derailed the dreams. Coach Cavanaugh may be lighting candles this fall hoping Tyler Palko stays healthy if Flacco does not return.
A Pitt representative was scheduled to make a pitch to ESPN this week to see if they could hold their Game Day show in Pittsburgh Labor Day weekend when the Panthers host Notre Dame. There are a lot of good sub-plots in this one with Dave Wannstedt, Matt Cavanaugh and Charlie Weis all moving from the NFL to college football this fall. It is still too early to know if they had any success pitching the idea but it is one we like a lot.
Recruiting odds and ends
There were approximately 420 prospects at the Nike Camp at State College. By comparison there were approximately 220 players at the very first Adidas Camp at the UPMC complex on the Southside. This is not bad for a first effort. Most of the defensive coaches for Pitt were in attendance. In addition the Notre Dame coaching staff was out in full force including their new head coach Charlie Weis. In addition coaches from UConn, Rutgers, Toledo and Wisconsin were on hand. If they continue to hold this camp during the Evaluation Period so that college coaches can attend the size of this camp could grow. The real trick is getting the top players to attend. In some cases it is quality not quantity that really matters.
Why does Florida produce so many top football players? There are many reasons but one of them is spring practice. The high schools can hold 20 spring practice sessions. They also have a live “game/scrimmage” with another team in the spring. One high school coach complained he had a hard time getting in all the practice sessions because they extended beyond the school year and many players wanted to go on vacation with their families. Many Florida schools are practicing today. You may also have read the article out of Florida in which Coach Wannstedt singled out a player that was in his practice jersey. The quarterback prospect got an offer.
One recruit we talked to this week said the Pitt coaches told him they would be taking six (6) linemen this year. We are not sure if this is a hard number but Scott Corson and John Malecki are committed already. Coach Wannstedt also wants to land Jason Pinkston out of Baldwin. If they are successful that night leave room for three more. Coach Wannstedt has often said that he is not opposed to taking defensive lineman and converting him into offensive linemen. One colleague pointed out that Pitt’s best offensive lineman, Charles Spencer, came to Pitt as a defensive lineman.
Pitt has three (3) verbal commitments. Just how does that compare to other schools? There are a couple of schools that have several early offers but most are about where the Panthers are right now. Here are a few of the surrounding BCS schools for comparison: Penn State (2), Maryland (1), Ohio State (2), Louisville (0), Syracuse (0), and West Virginia (0). The “Evaluation Period” where college coaches visit high schools runs through the end of May. We don’t see big movement until this period ends. It gives players a chance to see who has made the trip to their high school and who did not. You might see a player or two commit prior to this but most will wait for this visiting period to end. Pitt appears to be about right where they should be for this portion of the recruiting process.
Tommie Campbell has been tearing up the track this spring. Just how does a player like this end up being rated 2-stars? One way to get the attention of recruiting services is to have a big junior year. Campbell was only a part-time starter early in his career due to his medical condition. The next best way to get noticed is to go to the camps. Seldom does a player from Aliquippa make it to the combines. The Nike Camps are by invitation only. To participate you must have the recommendation of your high school coach. We are not sure if Coach Mike Zmijanac is not recommending these guys or if it is just tough for them to make the trip to State College. Hopefully they will find it easier to make their way to the Adidas Camps in Pittsburgh in the future. Connecticut offered Campbell and so did a few MAC schools. He might have been more heavily recruited if he had more exposure. Pitt may have a diamond in the rough. Last year Coach Deal told me he thought he would eventually grow into a Will linebacker. It looks like Pitt will start him at safety.
From the desk of Jim Snyder
A week or so ago one of our colleagues had indicated that the Pitt coaching was very worried that quarterback Joe Flacco might transfer. They felt that Joe had performed well this spring and were not anxious to see him leave the program. As we have seen this week he is now at his home in New Jersey trying to decide which direction to go. The Pitt staff is scheduled to visit his home. We will make a note to follow up.
Pitt will be ranked in the Top 25 when most of the preseason publications are released. Most of the early ones have Pitt anywhere from No. 17 to No. 23. If Joe Flacco can not be persuaded to return Pitt will be very thin at quarterback with only true freshman Bill Stull and Shane Murray to back him up. As we reported earlier Bill Stull will enter Pitt early to get a jump on things. He will start in June. He has sat in on many of the quarterback meetings this spring but he is still a true freshman. We have always looked at Stull as someone who could benefit from a redshirt year. He simply needs time in the weight-room to allow his body to develop.
Ironically long-time Pitt fans will remember when Matt Cavanaugh got hurt in the Notre Dame game many years ago and Jackie Sherill did not have an adequately trained quarterback to back him up. Pitt fans had national championship dreams going into the season but Matt’s injury derailed the dreams. Coach Cavanaugh may be lighting candles this fall hoping Tyler Palko stays healthy if Flacco does not return.
A Pitt representative was scheduled to make a pitch to ESPN this week to see if they could hold their Game Day show in Pittsburgh Labor Day weekend when the Panthers host Notre Dame. There are a lot of good sub-plots in this one with Dave Wannstedt, Matt Cavanaugh and Charlie Weis all moving from the NFL to college football this fall. It is still too early to know if they had any success pitching the idea but it is one we like a lot.
Recruiting odds and ends
There were approximately 420 prospects at the Nike Camp at State College. By comparison there were approximately 220 players at the very first Adidas Camp at the UPMC complex on the Southside. This is not bad for a first effort. Most of the defensive coaches for Pitt were in attendance. In addition the Notre Dame coaching staff was out in full force including their new head coach Charlie Weis. In addition coaches from UConn, Rutgers, Toledo and Wisconsin were on hand. If they continue to hold this camp during the Evaluation Period so that college coaches can attend the size of this camp could grow. The real trick is getting the top players to attend. In some cases it is quality not quantity that really matters.
Why does Florida produce so many top football players? There are many reasons but one of them is spring practice. The high schools can hold 20 spring practice sessions. They also have a live “game/scrimmage” with another team in the spring. One high school coach complained he had a hard time getting in all the practice sessions because they extended beyond the school year and many players wanted to go on vacation with their families. Many Florida schools are practicing today. You may also have read the article out of Florida in which Coach Wannstedt singled out a player that was in his practice jersey. The quarterback prospect got an offer.
One recruit we talked to this week said the Pitt coaches told him they would be taking six (6) linemen this year. We are not sure if this is a hard number but Scott Corson and John Malecki are committed already. Coach Wannstedt also wants to land Jason Pinkston out of Baldwin. If they are successful that night leave room for three more. Coach Wannstedt has often said that he is not opposed to taking defensive lineman and converting him into offensive linemen. One colleague pointed out that Pitt’s best offensive lineman, Charles Spencer, came to Pitt as a defensive lineman.
Pitt has three (3) verbal commitments. Just how does that compare to other schools? There are a couple of schools that have several early offers but most are about where the Panthers are right now. Here are a few of the surrounding BCS schools for comparison: Penn State (2), Maryland (1), Ohio State (2), Louisville (0), Syracuse (0), and West Virginia (0). The “Evaluation Period” where college coaches visit high schools runs through the end of May. We don’t see big movement until this period ends. It gives players a chance to see who has made the trip to their high school and who did not. You might see a player or two commit prior to this but most will wait for this visiting period to end. Pitt appears to be about right where they should be for this portion of the recruiting process.
Tommie Campbell has been tearing up the track this spring. Just how does a player like this end up being rated 2-stars? One way to get the attention of recruiting services is to have a big junior year. Campbell was only a part-time starter early in his career due to his medical condition. The next best way to get noticed is to go to the camps. Seldom does a player from Aliquippa make it to the combines. The Nike Camps are by invitation only. To participate you must have the recommendation of your high school coach. We are not sure if Coach Mike Zmijanac is not recommending these guys or if it is just tough for them to make the trip to State College. Hopefully they will find it easier to make their way to the Adidas Camps in Pittsburgh in the future. Connecticut offered Campbell and so did a few MAC schools. He might have been more heavily recruited if he had more exposure. Pitt may have a diamond in the rough. Last year Coach Deal told me he thought he would eventually grow into a Will linebacker. It looks like Pitt will start him at safety.
