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From the Desk of Jim Snyder
Getsy and the transfer issue
Many teams around the country will not allow a player to transfer to schools within their own conference or to any other school they play on a regular basis. The NCAA has stacked transfer rules in favor of the coaches and against the players in order to discourage transfers. These rules often have very good intentions but occasionally you end up with results that defy logic a little bit. Certainly no coach at Pitt should ever allow a player to another Big East school (this would preclude a transfer to WVU) nor should they allow transfers to Penn State or Ohio State. This would preclude a player transferring to a BCS school that Pitt recruits against on an annual basis. This summer we all saw running back Barrington Edwards transfer to North Carolina after looking at Pitt. He was not permitted to transfer from LSU to another SEC school. The attempts by Coach Harris (which were supported by Pitt AD Jeff Long) to block transfers to a Mid-American Conference school were a mistake. It was not a big mistake but a little mistake. However these little mistakes have a way of having a cumulative effect. If you want to recruit in Western PA or Eastern Ohio going forward you better treat kids right. High school coaches can have very long memories on how you treat their kids. The two players had limited options because of their last minute decision. The attempt to block them was made in an attempt to keep them from leaving Pitt. I am not sure you really want players that no longer want to be there. Both Getsy and Alleman transferred for the oldest reason possible. It did not work out for them at Pitt and they still thought they were capable on playing college football. In the case of Andy Alleman his home is 15 miles from the Akron campus. His attempt to transfer to Akron was in effect him trying to go home after it not working out for him at Pitt.
Local media ahead of themselves
I have to admit it is a little unusual for the media to pile on before you have played yet to play your first game. Ron Cook and Bob Smizik smell blood in the water and occasionally a few of their media colleagues jump in to protected them so they do not take all of the heat with the Pitt administrators. I have a very good friend who happens to be a Florida Gator fan. He received his doctorates degree from Florida and has been a season ticketholder for decades. He claims Florida coach Ron Zook is an excellent recruiter but he reminds him of Forrest Gump. He is such a poor speaker that he feels embarrass the university every time he opens his mouth. My friend lives in fear that Florida will end up in a BCS Bowl this year and that it will take them a very long time to get rid of Coach Zook. The fact that Steve Spurrier is available has only increased the fear level of Florida alums. Coach Harris sometimes suffers from this same affliction. He says the politically correct thing or the usual coach speak but somehow it does not come across as his best effort. A number of Pitt fans have worked themselves up to the same point as my Gator friend. They now find themselves rooting against Pitt out of fear they might be wrong. I have had a number of Pitt alums say to me their worst fear is that Pitt ends up going 9-2 and ends up in a BCS bowl and somehow then somehow manages to win it. I guess that is why they call them fans (fanatics).
All I know for sure is that Walt Harris is the currently the head coach at the University of Pittsburgh. He has a contract for the 2004, 2005 and 2006 seasons. Certainly expectation levels have been lowered among Pitt fans. Who knows maybe the young Panthers will surprise the experts. Even though Pitt does not open until this weekend I have already been able to take in a number of high school and college games this year. Sometimes my team has won and sometimes they have lost but I have usually found a way to enjoy a college football game.
Just how many ships will be coming to Pitt?
How many scholarships are available? This number is always a moving target. This spring we told you Pitt had a very small senior class and as a result the Pitt staff was looking at a small recruiting class. Things have changed. A few members of the class of 2004 did not qualify and a couple have transferred out. Right now it would look like a class of 18-20 although you might have to save a ship for players like Craig Bokor.
Little recruiting talk
Pitt and Syracuse have both been chasing wide receivers Lavar Lobdell and Oderick Turner. The beating that Purdue put on Syracuse last weekend cannot have done the Orange any favors. If Pitt can avoid the same fate they could gain ground. Oderick Turner is tentatively scheduled to take in the Ohio University game this weekend.
Pitt has a number of scholarship offers out for wide receivers. If they strike out with that group they may take another look at EJ Morton-Green out of Cincinnati Princeton or Keith Massey out of Columbus Brookhaven.
A sure verbal for West Virginia?
A “birdie” stopped by to say that some schools were continuing to recruit running back Jason Gwaltney (6’ 0” 234). Gwaltney committed to West Virginia earlier this year and was in Morgantown this past weekend to watch the Mountaineers blowout East Carolina. We spoke to Gwaltney this week and he told the Pantherlair that he still hopes to take “official visits” to Pittsburgh, West Virginia and Michigan State. He said he might visit Michigan State next weekend but still had to talk to his high school coach. Gwaltney is a 4 star player and is ranked by Rivals.com as one of their Top 100 prospects in the country. He has already visited West Virginia four times and plans to go back for a 5th visit so I would still look at them as the leader. We will follow up to see if he carries through with his plans to Pittsburgh and East Lansing. Gwaltney told the Pantherlair those were the only three schools he is still considering.
This post was edited on 9/10 7:36 AM by Jim Pantherlair
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From the Desk of Jim Snyder
Getsy and the transfer issue
Many teams around the country will not allow a player to transfer to schools within their own conference or to any other school they play on a regular basis. The NCAA has stacked transfer rules in favor of the coaches and against the players in order to discourage transfers. These rules often have very good intentions but occasionally you end up with results that defy logic a little bit. Certainly no coach at Pitt should ever allow a player to another Big East school (this would preclude a transfer to WVU) nor should they allow transfers to Penn State or Ohio State. This would preclude a player transferring to a BCS school that Pitt recruits against on an annual basis. This summer we all saw running back Barrington Edwards transfer to North Carolina after looking at Pitt. He was not permitted to transfer from LSU to another SEC school. The attempts by Coach Harris (which were supported by Pitt AD Jeff Long) to block transfers to a Mid-American Conference school were a mistake. It was not a big mistake but a little mistake. However these little mistakes have a way of having a cumulative effect. If you want to recruit in Western PA or Eastern Ohio going forward you better treat kids right. High school coaches can have very long memories on how you treat their kids. The two players had limited options because of their last minute decision. The attempt to block them was made in an attempt to keep them from leaving Pitt. I am not sure you really want players that no longer want to be there. Both Getsy and Alleman transferred for the oldest reason possible. It did not work out for them at Pitt and they still thought they were capable on playing college football. In the case of Andy Alleman his home is 15 miles from the Akron campus. His attempt to transfer to Akron was in effect him trying to go home after it not working out for him at Pitt.
Local media ahead of themselves
I have to admit it is a little unusual for the media to pile on before you have played yet to play your first game. Ron Cook and Bob Smizik smell blood in the water and occasionally a few of their media colleagues jump in to protected them so they do not take all of the heat with the Pitt administrators. I have a very good friend who happens to be a Florida Gator fan. He received his doctorates degree from Florida and has been a season ticketholder for decades. He claims Florida coach Ron Zook is an excellent recruiter but he reminds him of Forrest Gump. He is such a poor speaker that he feels embarrass the university every time he opens his mouth. My friend lives in fear that Florida will end up in a BCS Bowl this year and that it will take them a very long time to get rid of Coach Zook. The fact that Steve Spurrier is available has only increased the fear level of Florida alums. Coach Harris sometimes suffers from this same affliction. He says the politically correct thing or the usual coach speak but somehow it does not come across as his best effort. A number of Pitt fans have worked themselves up to the same point as my Gator friend. They now find themselves rooting against Pitt out of fear they might be wrong. I have had a number of Pitt alums say to me their worst fear is that Pitt ends up going 9-2 and ends up in a BCS bowl and somehow then somehow manages to win it. I guess that is why they call them fans (fanatics).
All I know for sure is that Walt Harris is the currently the head coach at the University of Pittsburgh. He has a contract for the 2004, 2005 and 2006 seasons. Certainly expectation levels have been lowered among Pitt fans. Who knows maybe the young Panthers will surprise the experts. Even though Pitt does not open until this weekend I have already been able to take in a number of high school and college games this year. Sometimes my team has won and sometimes they have lost but I have usually found a way to enjoy a college football game.
Just how many ships will be coming to Pitt?
How many scholarships are available? This number is always a moving target. This spring we told you Pitt had a very small senior class and as a result the Pitt staff was looking at a small recruiting class. Things have changed. A few members of the class of 2004 did not qualify and a couple have transferred out. Right now it would look like a class of 18-20 although you might have to save a ship for players like Craig Bokor.
Little recruiting talk
Pitt and Syracuse have both been chasing wide receivers Lavar Lobdell and Oderick Turner. The beating that Purdue put on Syracuse last weekend cannot have done the Orange any favors. If Pitt can avoid the same fate they could gain ground. Oderick Turner is tentatively scheduled to take in the Ohio University game this weekend.
Pitt has a number of scholarship offers out for wide receivers. If they strike out with that group they may take another look at EJ Morton-Green out of Cincinnati Princeton or Keith Massey out of Columbus Brookhaven.
A sure verbal for West Virginia?
A “birdie” stopped by to say that some schools were continuing to recruit running back Jason Gwaltney (6’ 0” 234). Gwaltney committed to West Virginia earlier this year and was in Morgantown this past weekend to watch the Mountaineers blowout East Carolina. We spoke to Gwaltney this week and he told the Pantherlair that he still hopes to take “official visits” to Pittsburgh, West Virginia and Michigan State. He said he might visit Michigan State next weekend but still had to talk to his high school coach. Gwaltney is a 4 star player and is ranked by Rivals.com as one of their Top 100 prospects in the country. He has already visited West Virginia four times and plans to go back for a 5th visit so I would still look at them as the leader. We will follow up to see if he carries through with his plans to Pittsburgh and East Lansing. Gwaltney told the Pantherlair those were the only three schools he is still considering.
This post was edited on 9/10 7:36 AM by Jim Pantherlair
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