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PrintSigning day has come and gone and, as expected, the Panthers did very well. They had two late additions -- defensive linemen Wayne Jones (from Johnstown) and Jabaal Sheard (Hollywood Hills, Fla.) and one late subtraction, tailback Xavier Stinson (from Hollywood, Fla.) -- and none of those were tremendous surprises.
Stinson is headed for either Florida Atlantic or prep school, Jones is a candidate for a gray shirt and it was fairly evident Sheard was headed Pitt's way last week.
So all in all it was a very successful season of recruiting for Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt, who held onto all of his early commitments -- despite a disappointing season -- and closed strong as well.
That being said, all of it -- the rankings, the stars, the names -- is fiction at this point and none of it will matter if Pitt -- or any other of the "winners" yesterday doesn't win games with these new players.
The only thing that is real to me is what happens on Saturdays in the fall. Signing day is a nice day to give some publicity to football programs but last time I checked, not a single game has been won the first week of February.
So I tip my hat to Dave Wannstedt for bringing in what appears to be the best class in the Big East and for having another successful signing day. That being said, now is when the real work begins and believe me, there is a lot of work that needs to be done.
I will wrap up the recruiting period today and then the Q&A will take a few weeks off until mid-March when spring football begins. So keep your great questions rolling in and we'll chat again soon.
Q: Pitt is starting to develop some nice depth at the skill positions so it should be fun to see how things work out. My question is -- where do you see Dorin Dickerson fitting in?
Jon Knobloch, Johnstown
ZEISE: That is a great question. I think he's either going to have to play a receiver position, perhaps an H-back type of hybrid position or move to defense because the backfield just got awfully crowded. I know he has bulked up some so defense isn't out of the question, but I think he fits in best on offense and I know coaches feel that way as well. Spring ball should be a lot of fun because there are a lot of these questions that need to be answered and the only way to answer them is on the field.
Q: I believe coach Wannstedt has put together another formidable class, what do you think?
Dave Yochum, Severn, Md.
ZEISE: I think I said in the opening that I believe this is a very good class -- on paper. It is good now but like I cautioned last year when some people thought Pitt was going to win a national title fueled by the greatest freshman class ever, once August comes and it is time to put the pads on, all of that star ranking stuff is meaningless. It appears as if Pitt has addressed its needs and put itself in position to continue to reload and move forward in the Big East, but we won't know for a few years.
Q: It is insulting what you said about Pitt script in last week's column. It seems like you are just taking the administration's side in this because you want to keep in their good graces. How can you discount what so many fans want when it comes to our tradition and colors?
John L., Oakland
ZEISE: Why does this continue to be an issue with some of you? Unfortunately, it is, and based on the many responses I got this past week -- including a few e-mails from people I'd like to recommend anger management sessions for -- because of my comment about the Pitt Script ( I believe I said something like "let this script silliness go") most of you clearly misunderstood what I said. Let me cla
I have been on the record many times saying the script Pitt is a wonderful tradition, I love the mark, wish the school would adopt it again and think that the only time Pitt has actually looked like Pitt since I covered them was two years ago on throwback day against Youngstown State. So I agree, it is a much better look than the "shriveled up chipmunk" helmets or this ridiculous block letter look.
Last week I was not insulting the actual script Pitt or fans of it for that matter. I simply meant it is time to let this script thing go because IT ISN'T GOING TO HAPPEN as long as Jeff Long is running the show up on the hill and even likely beyond. He's made it clear. His marketing people have made it clear. Pitt's corporate apparel partners have made it clear also.
So just let it go and you will all live a much happier life. Just enjoy rooting for your team and stop being so angry all the time about something as -- in the grand scheme of things -- meaningless as uniform colors.
Seriously, you should be getting angry about a defense that hasn't been able to stop anyone for years. You should be angry about a team that blows leads against teams like Connecticut or can't beat a team like Ohio U. You should be angry that your team has been blown out by your biggest rivals the last two years and that you have had to sit at home during the holidays the past two years while teams like Middle Tennessee, Tulsa and Rice have gone to bowl games.
Those things are what matter. Frankly I think if Pitt went 10-2 a few years in a row nobody would talk about script Pitt any more. Believe me, I was not trying to insult the hallowed script Pitt. Now let's get back to football.
Q: What is LeSean McCoy's eligibility for the fall?
Tim Geary, Tampa
ZEISE: He is not quite eligible yet but provided he finishes his class work this spring he will be eligible. His prep school coach and Pitt's coaches are very confident he will be ready to go in the fall. He is clearly on track, he just needs to stay the course and finish this school year.
Q: In light of Buddy Morris's less than favorable assessment of the shape Pitt's players are in -- Do you think that the team's sluggish look near the end of the season had more to do with conditioning than talent?
Wendell Yoder, Charleroi
ZEISE: Here is another one of my pet peeves -- any time something has gone wrong with Pitt it is automatically their conditioning and the strength coach who is the culprit and the next guy will save the day and make Pitt stronger and tougher. Look, I'm not saying Buddy Morris won't turn this offensive line into the Redskins Hogs, but I've become worn down with this whole strength and conditioning coach thing. First it was Dave Kennedy that was going to save the Panthers, then when Pitt began to fall it was his fault and Mike Kent was brought in and his program was much better for Pitt and they even went to a Fiesta Bowl with him. Then Pitt began to fall again and now it is Buddy Morris to the rescue.
At some point, you have to ask yourself -- how much of a difference does a strength and conditioning coach really make? I'm sure there are great ones and their are awful ones, but I bet like any position coach -- the great ones have a lot better athletes to work with. My point is this: Perhaps a new voice in the weight room is a good thing but you don't give up 641 yards in a game or let D.J. Hernandez do a Michael Vick impression against you simply because you aren't in shape. You do that because you aren't very good, period.
Case in point? Buddy Morris is considered a great strength and conditioning coach and is given credit for doing some great things at Pitt during some of their best seasons. But don't forget, he was also the strength and conditioning coach in 1984, 85, 86, 90, 98 and 99 -- and those years were pretty lean. He also was the Browns strength coach under Butch Davis, who, if I'm not mistaken, is now at North Carolina because he didn't win in Cleveland.
My point? Strength and conditioning is an easy target when things go bad, but I'd be willing to bet most strength and conditioning coaches are roughly the same and their success or failure is almost always commensurate with the talent they have to work with.
Q: Can you give me the full information on Maurice Williams? I think he is a star in the making. I think he has the potential for a built-in headline like "Zodiac" as in Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs!
Bruce Lindquist, Savannah, Ga.
ZEISE: Well, I suppose if he doesn't succeed at Pitt you will have "lost that loving feeling" for him but if he does succeed you'll just have to "twist and shout"... OK, that was bad, but I appreciate good music from the 1960's as much as anyone.
As for Maurice "Mo" Williams, the new Pitt player, he is a 6-foot, 185-pound receiver/defensive back from Erie Strong Vincent that is considered one of the best athletes in the state of Pennsylvania. He is one of the big names in Pitt's class and a player I'd expect will make his way on to the field this year, likely at receiver. He was a huge recruiting victory for Pitt because he also considered offers from the Panthers' top rivals, Penn State and West Virginia. He also comes from a fairly athletic family as his sister, Mashea, is a sophomore basketball player at Penn State and starts for the Lady Lions.
Q: Why won't Dave Wannstedt recruit kids with some size across the defense? I understand he likes speed but don't you need size also?
John Baxter, Bradford, Pa.
ZEISE: He has always liked the undersized players with speed. That's just what he has done his whole career and his defenses have always been good. I do think he got some bulk in Wayne Jones (6-2, 315) and Tommie Duhart (6-2, 275), but for the most part he likes those 240-pound defensive ends and linebackers that can fly around the field and make plays.
Q: Why did Pitt not offer Charles Deas?
Phil Brown, Bethel Park
ZEISE: He apparently is not going to be eligible this year and Pitt needed linemen who could help them right away.
Q: Do you think this class could consist of the next Marino, Dorsett and Hugh Green all at once? I'm very excited about this class!
Paul Smith, Jefferson Hills
ZEISE: Well, you've just asked me to try and compare Pat Bostick, LeSean McCoy and I'm assuming either Jabaal Sheard or Tony Tucker to three of the best players in college football history. Two of them are in the pro football hall of fame and the other and likely would have had his career not been short-circuited with injuries. In other words, relax a little.
Remember last year when Dorin Dickerson was going to carry Pitt to great heights? How did that work out? I'm not saying it won't happen eventually -- Dorin is immensely talented -- but the expectations heaped on him were unfair. It is hard to play college football as a freshman and be a star.
I agree that Bostick and McCoy are probably the keys to this recruiting class, but let's let them at least win a starting job before we starting making them into something they are not and may never be.
Q: Is there a bias against Big East recruiting by these "expert" scouting services?
Mark Schilajew, Huntingdon, Pa.
ZEISE: Every one of those services has a bias based on where they get their information. In general, those scouting services are meaningless and in fact, I'd love to know exactly who decides that these people are "experts" and what their credentials actually are. There are a few credible ones, but far too many people get wrapped up in all of this star-ranking nonsense instead of understanding that coaches are going to recruit players who fit into what they do. Rich Rodriguez said it best Wednesday when he said "I'd have given Dan Mozes four or five stars, I'd have given Steve Slaton five stars and I'd have given Pat White five stars. I know what we are looking for and what I see on tape and that's all that matters."
So in short, in the end, who really cares what the scouting services have to say if your team is coming off back-to-back New Year's Day games. The teams and fan bases that seem to get most wrapped up in that ranking stuff are the ones who don't have much to get excited about come the fall.
Q: Can you please explain what a gray shirt is?
Jim Bowser, Freeport
ZEISE: A player has five years to play four seasons and his clock starts the day he enrolls. Some players may need a little more physical maturing or are at a position that is jam-packed or are injured, so coaches ask them to take a gray shirt, which means, wait until January to enroll as opposed to enrolling in September with the rest of the class. By doing this, a kid gets an extra year to work out, rehab an injury or even get a head start on some academic work. It also gives a kid an extra spring, so in essence you are getting six years instead of only five to play four. Justin Hargrove is one of these examples from Pitt -- he had a severe injury as a senior so rather than have him enroll in September and waste a year when he had no chance of playing because he wasn't healthy, he enrolled in January and now can still redshirt a year and have four years of eligibility beyond that. It makes a lot of sense in some cases.
Q: Do you think Pat Bostick would be OK with the idea of redshirtting next year?
Kerry Bowser, Pittsburgh
ZEISE: I don't see why not. I know he'll be given a fair shot to win the starting job but if he doesn't, it would probably be to his advantage to redshirt.
Q: Why doesn't Pitt try and recruit the Cincinnati area harder? And for that matter all of Ohio?
John Cocola, Cincinnati
ZEISE: Pitt has gotten some nice players from Cincinnati (Eric Thatcher comes to mind) but much like Florida, Ohio is one of those states where you have to be careful because you are likely fighting for the second-tier kids. Ohio State is going to get just about every Ohio kid they want and Pitt has been burned by taking too many second-tier Ohio kids in the past. I know the state is still important to Pitt and it always will be, but again, Wannstedt believes Pitt can compete for the top kids in Pennsylvania, in Maryland, in D.C. and in Virginia so that's where the primary focus will be.
Q: Are all of the running backs in this class a sign that Dave Wannstedt was unhappy with last year's running backs? Do any of these running backs come in projected to move elsewhere?
Ian Leyda, East Liberty
ZEISE: It is clear Dave Wannstedt is trying to create competition. When you build a program, that's what you do. Kevin Collier is not out of the picture just because some new guys are coming in. The stakes are just higher now. I do think finding that "franchise" running back has been a priority for Wannstedt since he arrived and they are hoping this class will bring that player in. And yes, the good thing about many running backs is they make good defensive backs and/or linebackers if things don't work out so I would expect a few of the incoming players that don't pan out at running back to surface elsewhere. Remember, this is a team devoid of linebackers, so that position can use all the help it can get.
