Pitt Football... We're Back Baby

The Pittsburgh Panthers finished their season at 10-3 on the year, with a victory in the Meineke Car Care Bowl over the North Carolina Tar Heels. A Panthers 33 yard field goal with 52 seconds left gave Pitt the 19-17 lead. Pitt came into this this game ranked 17th in the nation, and will finish right around there, maybe move up a couple spots.

The game was played in Charlotte, which created somewhat of a home atmosphere for UNC, but I was surprised and pleased with how many Pitt fans were at the game. It was close the whole game, and both teams made at least 1 costly mistake. Dion Lewis, the Panthers star freshman running back rushed for 159 yards in this game and a TD. He finished the season with 1,799 rushing yards, breaking the Pitt records this season of Ironhead Heyward, LeSean McCoy, Curtis Martin, and Tony Dorsett. Not a bad list. I was very concerned coming into this season, as I figured we would miss Shady McCoy a lot, as McCoy was basically the only weapon on offense the past 2 years.

It was a very successful season for Pitt, and Dave Wannstedt is finally putting his stamp on this team, and bringing Pitt back into national prominence. Wannstedt said after the game when asked why a 10 win season is important that everyone knows that Pitt football is back. Dion Lewis agreed, "It's back," Lewis said regarding Pitt football. We're not satisfied with just 10 wins. We want to get more next year." Lewis was named game MVP. This Panthers team is stacked with solid freshman and sophomores, including Lewis, Raymond Graham, Jonathan Baldwin, Dan Mason, and Mike Shanahan to name a few.

As far as the actual game goes, the Panthers had a tough time getting into the end zone, and settled for 4 field goals, the final one being the difference. The Panthers also missed a field goal, and missed a touchdown opportunity, when Lewis was trying to reach for the end zone, fumbled, and the ball went out of bounds in the end zone, giving the ball to UNC for a touchback. UNC also had some costly mistakes, throwing an interception inside the Pitt 5 yard line, and also going offsides on the final drive, as Pitt was going to attempt a 47 yard field goal.

The final Pitt Panthers drive was very impressive, and was exactly how Pitt wants to play offensively. Anyone who is a fan of running the ball had to appreciate the last drive. The drive started at the Panthers own 5 yard line, and went to the UNC 16. The drive took 8:47 off the clock, lasted 17 plays, which included 14 Dion Lewis runs, 1 Bill Stull run, and 2 pass attempts. It resulted in the game winning field goal.

Obviously, Pitt would have liked to be in a better Bowl game, and I am not trying to say that a bowl win over UNC is anything real special, but it was still a positive note to go into next season on. This was important, considering the way Pitt ended the season with 2 straight heartbreaking losses to West Virginia and Cincinnati. A 10-3 season is successful, and Pitt should be ranked very high going into next season.

Pitt Panthers Looking Ahead After Big Win

The Pitt Panthers have yet to get caught looking ahead, and that trend will need to continue when we face off against West Virginia the Friday after Thanksgiving for the Backyard Brawl.

The Panthers got a late bye this season, which meant they started the season playing 8 games in a row with no bye. Coming out of the bye with a 7-1 record and a #13 national ranking, the Panthers were looking at what looked like an easy, but trap game against Syracuse, and then their 3 toughest games of the season against Notre Dame, West Virginia, and Cincinnati.

The Syracuse game seemed easy, but Pitt could have easily gotten caught looking ahead. However, Pitt came out and stomped the Orange 37-10. Next up, the Fighting Irish. Again, Pitt could have been caught looking ahead of this game. Not because Notre Dame isn’t a good team, but because the game was essentially meaningless in terms of the Big East and Big East standings. Also, Pitt had their rivalry game to look forward to against West Virginia. Kotite’s Corner was live in Pittsburgh for this prime time game, and the game did not disappoint. Neither did the tailgating, which was one of the best tailgates I’ve ever been too. A prime time game, tailgating from 3:00-8:00 in weather that seemed more like a June baseball game all led to an unbelievable atmosphere for the game. As for the game itself, Pitt almost let a large 4th quarter lead slip away, but was able to come out on top 27-22.

This leaves the Panthers at 9-1, and #9 in the nation going into their 2nd bye this weekend, before their final 2 games of the season, which include the Backyard Brawl, and the final game at home against #5 Cincinnati, which is for the Big East championship, no matter what the outcome of the West Virginia game is.

This Pitt team has a lot of weapons. Dion Lewis is probably the best freshman in the nation, and already one of the top RB’s in the nation. His backup, Ray Graham is as solid a backup running back as you are going to find, and he is also a freshman. These 2 guys have made the transition moving on from Shady McCoy seamless. Pitt also has stars at wide receiver, and tight end. Jonathan Baldwin, sophomore, is becoming one of the best wide receivers in the nation, and had a coming out party against Notre Dame, where he made a couple highlight reel catches, including a very Larry Fitzgerald-like diving touchdown reception. At tight end, Dorin Dickerson has been a great surprise. Dickerson is one of the 8 finalists for the Mackey Award, given to the nation’s best tight end. At quarterback, Bill Stull have overcome a season’s worth of bad play to put together a tremendous senior season. Without Stull’s solid play, this team would not be in the position they are right now.

Pitt had put together a very solid season, but they need to continue to focus on each game, and it starts on Black Friday with West Virginia.

Pitt Starts Season Off With Win

The Pitt Panthers won the first game of the season 38-3 over Division 1-AA opponent Youngstown State. It was a good win for the Panthers, even though it was against a clearly inferior opponent. The Panthers may have found their next start in true freshman Dion Lewis, who ran for 129 yards and 2 TD's, and also had a receiving touchdown. Lewis had over 100 rushing yards in the first half alone. Jonathan Baldwin led all Pitt receivers with 70 receiving yards.

The quarterback situation, which seems to be one of the few weak spots on this Pitt team was alright. Bill Stull was boo'ed heavily in the first half, and ended the game 11 for 16 for 123 yards, 2 TD's and 1 INT. Backup Tino Sunseri, who is a redshirt freshman also saw time and went 5 for 8 for 80 yards and 1 TD. If Stull struggles at all, look for Sunseri to play a lot this season, as it looks like Pat Bostick will be redshirted.

On defense, Pitt played well, and picked off 2 passes, and had 6 sacks. New starting middle linebacker Adam Gunn had 8 tackles and 2 sacks for the Panthers. Pitt faces a much tougher game next weekend when to go to Buffalo, who has one of the best young coaches in the nation, and also played Pitt tough last year in Pittsburgh.

Other thoughts from the opening weekend of college football--

The Big East has some good receivers - Mike Williams of Syracuse, Mardy Gilyard on Cincinnati, and Pitt's Jonathan Baldwin. Give credit to Oklahoma State, Georgia, Alabama, Virginia Tech, BYU, and Oklahoma, because most big teams just schedule cupcakes the first weekend of college football, and it would have been some boring football without those teams scheduling some tough games in week 1. Penn State plays 4 non-conference games, all at home against Akron, Eastern Illinois, Temple, and Syracuse. Jimmy Clausen is an official Heisman candidate. Dion Lewis - Remember the name. College football is so exciting, but then disappointing when you remember that there is no playoff system. This still sucks, and a college football playoff would be unreal. Luckily, we do our own here at Kotite's Corner, check out our 2008 college football playoff.

Pitt Panthers 2009 Season Preview

College football officially starts tonight, and the Pittsburgh Panthers open the 2009 campaign this Saturday at home against the Youngstown State Penguins, Ron Jaworski's alma mater. Pitt starts the season just outside the Top 25, ranked #28 in the AP Poll.

Pitt basically loses its top offensive player from last season in LeSean "Shady" McCoy, now a Philadelphia Eagle, and the top defensive player in Scott McKillop, who was drafted by the 49ers. Pitt will also have to replace their backup running back LaRod Stephens-Howling, and leading receiver, Derek Kinder, both of whom were 7th round draft picks.

When you look at this 2009 Pitt team, you see a very good defense and a lot of question marks on the offensive side of the ball. The main question mark starts with the quarterback position. Pitt has really struggled to find solid quarterback play since Tyler Palko left the team. Bill Stull, the starter going into this season, Kevan Smith, and Pat Bostick have all gotten starts the past couple season, and all have looked flat out bad. Bill Stull, a senior, will be the starter to start this season off. He has not been good in past years as the starter, and there is no indication he will be any better this season. All indications are that Pat Bostick may redshirt this season, which would give him 2 years after this season in order to start. This means that redshirt freshman Tino Sunseri will be the main backup. There is a lot of talk of Sunseri getting into some games, and playing some this season. Sunseri may be the starter by the end of the season if Stull struggles.

At running back, there are also some question marks. True freshman Dion Lewis may be the starter in Week 1. The Panthers backfield also features redshirt freshman Chris Burns, and redshirt sophomore Shariff Harris. These three guys will have to replace the production of LeSean McCoy, who was top 10 in college football last season in rushing yards and touchdowns. Even though this group is very inexperienced, all indications are that they can all play. Pitt will need to have a solid rushing attack if they cannot get much from the passing game.

At wide receiver, look for Jonathan Baldwin to have a breakout season. As a freshman last year, Baldwin had a good season, and caught a lot of deep balls. Baldwin can go deep, go over the middle, and has the size to go up and get the high ball in the end zone. Senior Oderick Turner is also a solid wide receiver on the other side. Pitt also features a very good tight end in senior Nate Byham. Byham has always been solid, but never really had a breakout season. If Byham is used correctly, he could be one of the best tight ends in college football this season.

While Pitt has many question marks on offense, the defense should be one of the best in the country. The defensive line is excellent, led by junior defensive end Greg Romeus. Romeus is a typical pass rushing defensive end, who will get his fair share of sacks this season. Jabaal Sheard, and Mick Williams are also very good players on the defensive line. The linebacking corps may not be as strong as last season, with McKillop gone, as McKillop led the team in tackles the last two seasons, and was among college football's leaders in tackles. Sophomore Greg Williams and senior Adam Gunn should be able to have success behind a good defensive line. Freshman linebacker Dan Mason should be one of the true freshman who will contribute immediately. The secondary is also very good, and led Pitt with 16 interceptions last season. Senior Aaron Berry leads the group, and is one of the better cornerbacks in the nation. Jovani Chappel, and Dom DeCicco also should be strong contributors.

It will be an interesting season for the Panthers, and I could essentially see Pitt finishing poorly around .500, or winning the Big East, and going to a BCS Bowl. Pitt will play NC State and Notre Dame in the non-conference, and gets South Florida, and Cincinnati at home this season. Pitt can put itself in a very good position going into their final three games of the season which are against Notre Dame, West Virginia, and Cincinnati. The final two should go a long way in determining the winner of the Big East. Even though the Big East does not feature any Top 25 teams in the preseason, there are a bunch of teams right outside the top 25, led by Pitt at #28, and also Rutgers, Cincinnati, and West Virginia are right there.

Hopefully this is the year that Wannstedt finally puts his solid recruiting to good use on the field, and gets Pitt a Big East championship and BCS bowl berth.