It has been quite some time since we've had a Pitt football Q&A, but that other football team in town had a lot of us occupied as has the fine Panthers basketball team.

But signing day was just a couple of weeks ago and spring football is right around the corner so it is time to get down to business and talk Pitt football. So start the questions rolling in as I'll have a weekly Q&A starting the first week of March and running all the way through spring football.

My general thoughts on recruiting are this -- it was an excellent class, not just because of how it started, but more importantly how it finished. I think it is amazing that, despite having three of the four BCS game winners within three hours of campus, Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt was not only able to hold on to every significant player in his class but he added some great players late and beat some big time schools in doing so.

Looking ahead -- spring should be very interesting because the Panthers are going to be extremely young in a number of key areas and a lot of guys on the team that are veterans are going to have to really push hard in order to win jobs at open positions. Even so, this is one year that the real competition for jobs won't begin until the fall when this class arrives.

There are 26 recruits and I expect about 19 of them to have a legitimate chance to make the two-deep and maybe about half of that number to have a legitimate shot at a starting job. So this team is going to be an extremely fun offseason because the team that lines up to play Virginia may be completely different than it is right now.

Q: Dave Wannstedt recently said this team would have only eight seniors (excluding kickers) but the current roster shows 13. Are some of these players not returning?

Gary Vaughn, Greensburg

Zeise: I think he also added "excluding walk-ons" which also trims the number that you see on the roster by a couple. The scholarship non-kickers who are seniors on the upcoming team are John Simonitis, Clint Session, H.B. Blades, Tyler Palko, Charles Sallet, Joe Villani, Joe DelSardo, Reggie Carter, Steve Buches, Sam Bryant, Vernon Botts and Brian Bennett. That's 12, but technically Villani and DelSardo were walk-ons who later earned scholarships, so the real number is 10. Of that group of 10 only four are definite starters -- Palko, Blades, Simonitis and Buches. Four others -- Sallet, Session, Bryant and Bennett -- could earn starting jobs but will have to beat out serious competition from younger players in order to do so.

In other words, the talk of this being an extremely young team is justified and legitimate because there could be more freshmen in the starting line up than seniors.

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Q: How long will they give Dave Wannstedt if he doesn't turn it around? And how many players will the Panthers have drafted this year?

Sean Rorke, Schuylkill Haven, Pa.

Zeise: Walt Harris apologists point to his last season but they fail to acknowledge that he didn't leave the cupboard full and his last three recruiting classes were very spotty at best. He left very few offensive linemen and even fewer defensive linemen. Consider this: there are only two upperclassmen (juniors or seniors) defensive linemen -- Chris McKillop and Charles Sallet -- and neither were recruited to play their current position. You can't win consistently in football without the horses up front on both sides of the ball and you can't win when your depth chart at defensive tackle has a bunch of true freshmen battling second-year players for starting jobs. It is going to take a year or two to stockpile these players and get them ready -- i.e. mature enough, strong enough and experienced enough -- to play at a high level. That's reality.

I like Harris, he did an excellent job, he was the right man at the right time but his recruiting efforts slipped badly in the final few years and the Panthers are paying the price for that. I think 2007 is the first season you can make a fair assessment of the direction of this program.

As for which Panthers will get drafted -- I'd say Greg Lee, Erik Gill, Charles Spencer (whose stock is soaring right now), Josh Lay and perhaps Thomas Smith will get drafted. At the very least, Smith along with J.J. Horne and Josh Cummings will find their way into someone's camp.

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Q: Are the Panthers counting on Jeff Otah making an immediate contribution on the offensive line?

Mark Schilajew, Huntingdon, Pa.

Zeise: You don't ever like to put pressure on a recruit, even if he is coming from a junior college, but I'll say this -- if Otah isn't ready to play the Panthers are in big trouble this year. He is penciled in as the starting left tackle and one of the reasons he was such a priority is that he appears to be good enough to step right into the starting lineup and solidify the offensive line. If he bombs, I'm not sure what the alternative would be. You might have to consider moving McGlynn to left tackle and hope John Bachman steps up in a big way. The same can be said for the incoming freshman from Cleveland, Joe Thomas. He might not have as much pressure on him to start because the Panthers do have a few alternatives at guard, but he'd better be ready to play because offensive line depth is a big problem with this team.

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Q: Can you tell us about the non-Western Pa. recruits and which ones you expect to make an impact this year or at least get some playing time?

Maher S. Hoque, Elizabeth

Zeise: Well, Kevin Collier (Syracuse, N.Y.) is going to have every opportunity to win the starting tailback job and coaches are hoping he is as good as advertised.

If he is, that solidifies that position for the next four years. He is quick, explosive to the hole and has breakaway speed so every time he touches it he could go the distance.

Defensive end McKenzie Mathews (Syracuse, N.Y.) is athletic, explosive and is the kind of pass rushing defensive end that Wannstedt loves. He worked hard to hold off schools like Michigan, Ohio State and Florida to get Mathews into the mix, so I'm guessing he's a legitimate player and given the defensive end situation, I'm guessing he gets on the field from day one -- perhaps even earns a starting job.

Like I said before, Joe Thomas should make an immediate impact on the offensive line. Two kids that I'm interested in are Lowell Robinson, a defensive back from Erie Community College, and a defensive end from Florida, Greg Romeus. Neither is rated very high, but both are raw talents that the coaches believe have big potential, particularly Romeus, who has played only two years of football.

Cornerback Aaron Berry from Harrisburg I think is another kid who could step right into the starting line up (in Josh Lay's spot) and Florida receiver/defensive back Tamarcus Porter is too good of an athlete to not find some spot to help the team right away.

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Q: Do you see a potential problem at QB after Palko graduates?

Vinnie Woodbine, Philadelphia

Zeise: Potentially yes -- but that's why the number one priority in recruiting for next year's class is quarterback. And the Panthers number one priority in that department is the kid from Manheim Central, Pat Bostick. But that's another year away and a lot can happen. I think Bill Stull has some talent and who knows what will happen with the two incoming freshmen. So worry about that one next year.

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Q: What do you think about the Panthers schedule for next season?

Tony Cancilla, Huntsville, Ala.

Zeise: I think it is tough, particularly for a team that is going to have so many inexperienced players at key positions. Virginia and Michigan State will be improved next year, Central Florida and Toledo were both in bowl games last year and both will provide a real challenge to the Panthers and I think the Big East is going to be much improved. In fact, the only team in the Big East that might not be better than they were last year is Rutgers, because they graduate a lot of key players. The other seven teams all should be better this season -- and that includes West Virginia -- if you look at what they have returning.

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Q: Will Pitt ever bring back the old classic uniforms with the script Pitt helmets?

Rich Matrazzo, North Braddock

Zeise: I'm not sure. Really, a few years ago I'd have said no, absolutely not. But this coach already wields a pretty big stick around the athletic department and if he has the kind of success many people believe he's headed for, perhaps he'll gain the kind of power that many of the big name coaches have and get to call his shot on this issue. And I know if he had his preference, they'd already be wearing them.

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Q: Are the Panthers planning on having their annual spring game at a high school and if so, what high schools are being considered?

Larry Joseph, Mt. Lebanon

Zeise: As it stands right now, the game will be played at Heinz Field, but that could change.

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Q: If an athlete signs a letter of intent with a team, why isn't he held to their decision?

Mike Kosuda, Mesa, Arizona

Zeise: I think that you are confused -- if they sign, they are held to it and if they back out of it they forfeit a year of eligibility. If they just make a verbal commitment, it is not binding and they can change their mind at any time until they sign.

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Q: Did Pitt recruit Travis McBride from McKeesport, who ended up at Penn State?

Richard Pelesky, Virginia Beach, Va.

Zeise: No, they had only mild interest him to begin with and once Kevin Collier committed they had no real interest in any other running backs. They did not offer him a scholarship.