5AF's 2018-19 Premier Pittsburgh Super Panthers Football Thread (and Basketball)

shafnutz05
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Postby shafnutz05 » Tue Sep 25, 2018 2:21 pm

I am actually a little surprised at the recruiting criticism of Narduzzi. He is already fighting a major uphill battle being sandwiched between two behemoths. I actually thought being in the mid-30s or so was a fairly respectable showing <shrug>

I mean...how high do you realistically expect him to be able to carry that ranking? There is a ceiling there IMO.
Wannstadt was regularly in the low to mid-20s. That's probably their general ceiling. Win one more of the top-end local recruits they missed out on in the last couple years -- whether to ND, OSU, or UPS -- and he probably has a couple rankings in the 20s.
Yeah, I agree with you there. I also think if you are recruiting for a school like Pitt, has KtK said, you need to find those diamonds in the rough that perhaps some of the big boys miss on. It's an unenviable job and one I would never want. Essentially high pressure sales.

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Postby slappybrown » Tue Sep 25, 2018 2:24 pm

I am actually a little surprised at the recruiting criticism of Narduzzi. He is already fighting a major uphill battle being sandwiched between two behemoths. I actually thought being in the mid-30s or so was a fairly respectable showing <shrug>

I mean...how high do you realistically expect him to be able to carry that ranking? There is a ceiling there IMO.
Wannstadt was regularly in the low to mid-20s. That's probably their general ceiling. Win one more of the top-end local recruits they missed out on in the last couple years -- whether to ND, OSU, or UPS -- and he probably has a couple rankings in the 20s.
Yeah, I agree with you there. I also think if you are recruiting for a school like Pitt, has KtK said, you need to find those diamonds in the rough that perhaps some of the big boys miss on. It's an unenviable job and one I would never want. Essentially high pressure sales.
Its no different than recruiting at OK State, or Michigan State, or even Wisconsin. None of those schools are putting up recruiting classes in the top ten, yet they have mastered the art of developing systems that work and finding players that meet those specific needs and developing them. I dont buy it as an excuse for Pitt.

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Postby MrKennethTKangaroo » Tue Sep 25, 2018 2:31 pm

it is not an excuse, especially when pitt's REAL competition (i.e. the teams that they play every year) are Syracuse, UVA, VT, Miami, Duke, Georgia Tech and UNC. I don't care if ohio state and ups get every blue chip from the WPIAL if pitt can contend for the coastal every year

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Postby Freddy Rumsen » Tue Sep 25, 2018 2:32 pm

The Coastal Division is hot garbage, weaker than the Big 10 West, and there is zero reason why Pitt should not win it every year, imo.

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Postby robbiestoupe » Tue Sep 25, 2018 2:37 pm

The issue with Narduzzi is he isn't hitting the home runs on defense as we suspected. Walt Harris crushed it recruiting nondescript wide receivers out of Florida and quarterbacks who could at least wing the ball to the receivers. I could live with some flaws on offense, but Nard dog was supposed to be a defensive whiz.

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Postby slappybrown » Tue Sep 25, 2018 2:42 pm

The Coastal Division is hot garbage, weaker than the Big 10 West, and there is zero reason why Pitt should not win it every year, imo.
Miami and VaTech are better programs. They "should" win the division more often than Pitt. But Pitt certainly should be in the mix more often than the rest of the Coastal.

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Postby Stoosh » Tue Sep 25, 2018 4:36 pm

I don't have as big an issue with the players that Narduzzi has recruited/is recruiting. It's been documented here and on other previous Pitt FB-related threads; they're bringing in more players with more collective P5 offers than the previous regimes were bringing in. There's no way to really predict what recruits pan out and what ones don't, and players like Aaron Donald and Dion Lewis proved that even "number of P5 offers" only goes so far. But in terms of trying to quantify the "quality" of a roster, I think there's some value in seeing players who were drawing significant interest from several similar-tier/higher-tier programs.

I think the biggest problem is that Narduzzi seems to have developed an issue when it comes to trusting certain players...especially younger players that he recruited. It's ridiculous how some of these players are being deployed, especially on defense. I hate to pick on individual players but again, this is the coach throwing them out there.

Briggs (class of 2014) has been starting for the better part of a full season now, ahead of Jazzee Stocker and Phil Campbell. Briggs literally had one other offer - Toledo. Stocker was a 2015 commit with 14 offers from P5 schools. Campbell was a 2016 commit with five. Briggs is a captain and everyone loves him but he's the Coty Sensabaugh of this defensive backfield. He's the guy who plays because he supposedly knows where he needs to be, but he just struggles to get there as quickly as he needs to most of the time.

Shane Roy. Class of 2014, supposedly funny guy, recruited as a TE & had three P5 offers. He's been starting at NT now for more than a year. His backup - Rashad Wheeler - had offers from UPS, Tennessee, Maryland, BC, etc. but doesn't seem the field as much and it's not because Roy is playing like Aaron Donald. He has 9 tackles (4 solo) in 4 games, one of which was against GT, a team that builds its playbook around a f'ing FB dive.

Even worse, Narduzzi has somehow managed to create a three-player logjam at DT with Keyshon Camp, Amir Watts and Jaylen Twyman. Camp was a USC de-commit in 2016 with offers from Bama, Ohio State, Florida, Michigan, etc., and he's been playing like it. He's been starting and has been the most disruptive DL on the team this year. The problem is that this effectively limits Watts (4-star DT, offers from UPS, Nebraska, Iowa State) and Twyman (class of '17, with 13 P5 offers) because for whatever reason, they can't play NT ahead of the fifth-year senior with 9 tackles in four f'ing games.

Chase Pine. 11 P5 offers, including Georgia & VT. Bud Foster was recruiting him right up to the 59th second of the 59th minute of the 11th hour. Yet here, he couldn't crack the two-deep ahead of Elijah Zeise & Sean Idowu last year. Narduzzi said they moved him to DE in camp this year as a way to get him on the field, only he never got on the field despite starter Dwayne Hendrix and 5th year senior James Folston bringing absolutely nothing there. Now he's back at MLB backing up Wirginis.

All this is going on while Zeise and Sean Idowu - two more 5th year seniors - get the lions' share of reps at OLB. Zeise has been victimized by the same long seam route at least two or three times for TDs this year but he still gets trotted out there. Meanwhile, Saleem Brightwell - who has actually made plays dating back to the Clemson win in 2016 - gets limited reps along with Anthony McKee (finally healthy), Cam Bright and the aforementioned Pine.

It's ridiculous. I don't get it. Maybe it's a reflection on the way the younger guys are practicing, but it can't be with all of them. And if so, what does that say about the coaching? This has gone on for a year and a half with some of these guys.

I could see if Briggs, Roy, Hendrix, Folston and to a lesser extent Zeise were regularly producing results but they're not. I have a bad feeling Narduzzi won't realize it or admit it until they're 2-5 coming home from Notre Dame.
Last edited by Stoosh on Tue Sep 25, 2018 4:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Postby willeyeam » Tue Sep 25, 2018 4:40 pm

If they aren't good enough to find the field that's just as bad of an indictment on the coaching.

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Postby Nittany Ned » Wed Sep 26, 2018 12:33 pm

The Coastal Division is hot garbage, weaker than the Big 10 West, and there is zero reason why Pitt should not win it every year, imo.
Coming from an outsider fanboy of a team you all really hate, you're obviously not going to like this. But trust me on this... neutral outsiders think the same:

Why SHOULD Pitt win it every year? Almost every team in that division has better coaching, better recruiting and more recent success. This is almost as bad as when Pitt fans thought they should have won the Big East every year. I really don't think some of you know your place. All of you laughed at the idea we think we are so superior as a program... well, maybe that's not so funny now, huh?

shafnutz05
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Postby shafnutz05 » Wed Sep 26, 2018 12:46 pm

Image

Freddy Rumsen
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Postby Freddy Rumsen » Wed Sep 26, 2018 1:34 pm

ok

Stoosh
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Postby Stoosh » Wed Sep 26, 2018 2:38 pm

The Coastal Division is hot garbage, weaker than the Big 10 West, and there is zero reason why Pitt should not win it every year, imo.
Coming from an outsider fanboy of a team you all really hate, you're obviously not going to like this. But trust me on this... neutral outsiders think the same:

Why SHOULD Pitt win it every year? Almost every team in that division has better coaching, better recruiting and more recent success. This is almost as bad as when Pitt fans thought they should have won the Big East every year. I really don't think some of you know your place. All of you laughed at the idea we think we are so superior as a program... well, maybe that's not so funny now, huh?
*Eyeroll
*wanking motion

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Postby MrKennethTKangaroo » Fri Sep 28, 2018 8:28 am

so pitt plays the central florida knights tomorrow. pitt is roughly two touchdown underdogs. ucf hasn't lost a game in a bajillion years and will be out for blood against a power 5 team. my only hope for this game is that Kenneth shane pickett shows some progress and maybe the special teams are bad but no embarassing.

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Postby willeyeam » Fri Sep 28, 2018 8:33 am

Pitt's gonna win

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Postby MrKennethTKangaroo » Fri Sep 28, 2018 8:35 am

no, they are not.

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Postby Stoosh » Fri Sep 28, 2018 9:55 am

I watched some of UCF's games against UConn and FAU. They're going to get their points, largely because their offense is solid but also because Narduzzi continues to test the definition of insanity with his defensive scheme, doing the same thing over and over expecting it to click at some point.

I'm clinging to the hope that UCF's defense wasn't very impressive in their wins over UConn and FAU. UConn and FAU ran the ball on them. UConn averaged almost 5 yards per carry against UCF, and UConn is f'ing awful. FAU averaged almost 7 yards per carry with their QB leading the way. Pickett's mobility and willingness to run should help in this game.

If I'm Watson, I'm not looking to trade chances with them at all. Time-consuming drives are Pitt's friend in this one, so I'm telling Pickett to run the play clock down as much as he can between each play. I'm trying to establish the running game, which I think Pitt can do. If they start stacking 8 or 9 in the box to stop it, then start throwing and for crying out loud, use the middle of the field.

On defense, I know what I WOULD like to see - namely, lots of nickel and multiple DB sets because while UCF can and will run the ball, their longest runs from scrimmage are 32, 26 and 24 yards IF you take out the 70-yard run that their backup QB rattled off late against UConn. Even Milton's longest run from scrimmage is 14 yards.

I'd sell out to stop the pass by using multiple DB sets, but I know that's not what they're going to do. They're going to continue to try to cover receivers with Zeise & Idowu and UCF is going to pick it to absolute death. That or they'll expose the other fatal flaw with this defense; the inevitable torching that comes when matchups move Hamlin up and force Briggs to play the deep safety role. Penn State and UNC exploited this and I think Heupel will go right after it as well. I'm afraid of how many times we're going to see UCF run that deep seam, right over the head of Zeise or Idowu only to find absolutely no one there helping out.

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Postby the wicked child » Fri Sep 28, 2018 10:09 am

Flip a coin. This is either the "how the f did they win that one?" game or they are going to get trounced.

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Postby Dickie Dunn » Fri Sep 28, 2018 10:50 am

If I'm Watson, I'm not looking to trade chances with them at all. Time-consuming drives are Pitt's friend in this one, so I'm telling Pickett to run the play clock down as much as he can between each play. I'm trying to establish the running game, which I think Pitt can do. If they start stacking 8 or 9 in the box to stop it, then start throwing and for crying out loud, use the middle of the field.
If you were Watson you would continually run the same running play into the gut of the offensive line, never use the tight end, never pass toward the middle of the field, and run jet sweeps to the short side of the field.
I'd sell out to stop the pass by using multiple DB sets, but I know that's not what they're going to do. They're going to continue to try to cover receivers with Zeise & Idowu and UCF is going to pick it to absolute death. That or they'll expose the other fatal flaw with this defense; the inevitable torching that comes when matchups move Hamlin up and force Briggs to play the deep safety role. Penn State and UNC exploited this and I think Heupel will go right after it as well. I'm afraid of how many times we're going to see UCF run that deep seam, right over the head of Zeise or Idowu only to find absolutely no one there helping out.
It's like you've already watched the game.

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Postby slappybrown » Fri Sep 28, 2018 12:13 pm

I am going to watch this. Why you say? Extremely good question.

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Postby slappybrown » Fri Sep 28, 2018 12:13 pm

That said: Pitt 46 UCF 43 (2OT)

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Postby MrKennethTKangaroo » Fri Sep 28, 2018 12:26 pm

I am going to watch this. Why you say? Extremely good question.
66 degrees and no rain. Ideal for pretty much any outdoor activity. Ideal for spending time with loved ones. Not ideal for spending 3 hours watching pitt get manhandled.

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Postby slappybrown » Fri Sep 28, 2018 12:28 pm

I am going to watch this. Why you say? Extremely good question.
66 degrees and no rain. Ideal for pretty much any outdoor activity. Ideal for spending time with loved ones. Not ideal for spending 3 hours watching pitt get manhandled.
I have various yardwork and kid sports activities to do all morning and early afternoon, so I basically am looking at an initial 30-45 minute investment/respite that neatly coincides with gametime. Good chance this is an ejector seat situation by the end of the first.reverseshadjinx

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Postby meow » Fri Sep 28, 2018 12:35 pm

I am going to watch this. Why you say? Extremely good question.
66 degrees and no rain. Ideal for pretty much any outdoor activity. Ideal for spending time with loved ones. Not ideal for spending 3 hours watching pitt get manhandled.
If anyone wants to watch some manhandling, it’s slap. Amirite?

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Postby slappybrown » Fri Sep 28, 2018 12:41 pm

I am going to watch this. Why you say? Extremely good question.
66 degrees and no rain. Ideal for pretty much any outdoor activity. Ideal for spending time with loved ones. Not ideal for spending 3 hours watching pitt get manhandled.
If anyone wants to watch some manhandling, it’s slap. Amirite?
ONLY WHEN IM JETSKIING

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Postby Dickie Dunn » Fri Sep 28, 2018 12:58 pm

59-13 University of the Central Region of Florida

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