Pitt Back On Track

Pitt, as expected, won today's game against New Hampshire.  The game finished fairly close to what I predicted over at SB Nation Pittsburgh (actual score was 38-16 and my prediction was 30-13).  I expected Pitt to have little trouble with this matchup and that's basically how it played out.

Tino Sunseri came out and posted better numbers than his first start. Obviously, playing an FCS school at home should help with that. All in all, I think he looked fairly good again.  He seemed to be a little more comfortable and his final stats (24-34 for 275 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT) were solid.  In actuality, he very well could have ended up with two interceptions as one of his passes was thrown right to a defender who dropped it.  There were also a few instances of him simply making poor throws that should have resulted in completions.  But again, for only his second start, I think he's progressing nicely.

Pitt's defense played fairly well despite the absence of starters Greg Romeus and Dom DeCicco. I honestly don't know what to make of the whole Greg Romeus thing.  He sat out all of camp, even with Dave Wannstedt appearing as if the injury was nothing more than stiffness/soreness. Then he played in the first game last week, but clearly wasn't himself.  So he sits out again today, presumably to try to get him healthy for the Miami game.  Sitting him for this game was obviously the right move as Pitt didn't need him, but it'd be nice to know what his status really is...especially in light of the fact that Pitt has apparently decided it will not be complying with that whole Big East injury report thing.  This has been going on since the beginning of camp and at this point, it's easy to wonder if this is going to be a season-long thing.

At any rate, New Hampshire's star running back, Dontra Peters, who rushed for nearly 200 yards the week before had a long day, going for only 15 yards on 11 carries.

And speaking of star running backs not having great days, that takes us to the story of the day - Dion Lewis.  Lewis again struggled to find rushing room, finishing for a career-worst 27 yards on only ten carries. To his credit and something I didn't hear mentioned on the post-game radio show during my drive home (not to say it wasn't...just not while I was listening), he did have five receptions out of the backfield for 52 yards. 

I'm not ready to panic on Lewis yet.  While I expected him to have a big day, I also didn't expect the coaches only to give him ten rushing attempts.  I think Wannstedt wanted to get Ray Graham some work after missing last week's game and some time at camp.  I expect that he believes he might need both backs against Miami and really needed to try to get Graham up to speed.

So no, I'm not jumping on the 'running back controversy' thing, which is surely to get rolling next week.  Lewis struggled a bit, Wannstedt needed a spark and also to get Graham some time.  And once Graham got going, why would you take him out?  I had no problem with Wannstedt's use of Graham today because, well, you know, it worked.

But one thing I will say is that without a miraculous comeback, the Dion Lewis for Heisman talk is officially dead.  He was going to have a tough time as it was convincing voters that he's the man for the award.  Now, after two subpar games, including one against an FCS foe, he's got no shot.  Want me to put it in perspective? Even if he averages 150 yards per game over ten more regular season games and a bowl game, he still will finish short of his 2009 total of 1,799 yards...a total, by the way, that garnered him virtually no Heisman consideration at all.  So, yeah, I'd say it's safe to call it a wrap.

That doesn't mean he can't have a productive season and I still expect that to happen.  But any chance of repeating his incredible freshman season seems lost.

Pitt now gets a bye week to prepare for a home game against Miami on the following Thursday night.  I would have gladly taken 2-1 after the first three games and if Pitt is able to do that with this schedule, I'd qualify that as a very good start to the season.

Jason Pinkston and Greg Romeus Up For Rotary Lombardi Award

OL Jason Pinkston and DE Greg Romeus have both been named to the 2010 watch list for the Rotary Lombardi Award. The award is given annually to college football's top down lineman or linebacker.

Last year Ndamukong Suh won the award.

To view the entire 87-man 2010 watch list, click here.

Dion Lewis Highlights Doak Walker List

To the surprise of no one, Dion Lewis made the cut for the Doak Walker Award watch list.  The full list has 49 candidates and the winner will be selected on December 9th.

Click here for the full list.

Dan Hutchins Up For Lou Groza Award

Pitt Kicker Dan Hutchins is a finalist for the Lou Groza Award given to the nation's best kicker.

Hutchins led the Big East in field goals made last year with 23. He also broke the school record for points last season with 115.

There are 30 kickers on the complete list.

Greg Romeus News

Greg Romeus was out of practice for a third straight day today.  Dave Wannstedt is still claiming its nothing serious:

“He’s fine. He’s just stiff. Hopefully tomorrow he’ll start doing something."

I don't know - the longer this goes on, the longer I question if it's only stiffness.  I'm not sure it's a major injury, but it is a bit strange that only stiffness would sideline someone so long.

And another day...heck, another hour, another award watch list. This time, it's Greg Romeus up for the Ted Hendricks Award Watch List:

Considered one of the most disruptive defenders in all of college football, Pitt senior defensive end Greg Romeus continued to receive more recognition today when he was named a preseason candidate for the Ted Hendricks Defensive End of the Year Award.

Romeus was up for the award this year, but should have a better shot at landing it this season.  He's also up for several other awards including the Bednarik Award, the Nagurski Award, the Lott Award, and the Lombardi Award.

Jonathan Baldwin Makes 2010 Biletnikoff Watch List

Jonathan Baldwin, unsurprisingly, was named to the watch list for the 2010 Biletnikoff Award, given to the nation's best receiver each season.  A total of 51 receivers were on the list for the award.

Pitt, of course, has some history with the award:

The Panthers have been blessed with some exceptional talent at receiver this decade, including a pair of former Biletnikoff Award winners in Larry Fitzgerald (2003) and Antonio Bryant (2000). Baldwin (Aliquippa, Pa./Aliquippa) continues the Panthers' strong tradition at wideout, and appears poised for a decorated 2010 season.

Here is the full 2010 Biletnikoff Award watch list.

Maxwell and Bednarik Award Watchlists

A few Pitt players made their way onto the Maxwell and Bednarik award watchlists. It was again the usual suspects.

Dion Lewis and Jonathan Baldwin were named to the watch list for the Maxwell Award, given annually to the nation's top college football player. I know, that's supposed to be the Heisman, right? Work with me, people.

Meanwhile, DE Greg Romeus was named to the watchlist for the Bednarik Award, given to the nation's best defensive player.

Stop The Madness

This time of year is admittedly slow.  There's always the usual Heisman hype in the Summer and there's been some pushes to find the next Ndamukong Su.  CBSSports.com thinks Greg Romeus may be said person:

Greg Romeus, Pittsburgh: With the Panthers projected to be a force in the Big East, look for the senior to improve on his numbers from last season. Romeus racked up a team-high eight sacks and 11.5 tackles for a loss. The first-team All-Big East performer and Hendricks finalist just might be able to garner some votes if the Panthers are near the Top 15 most of the year. Keep an eye on how Romeus does in the team's biggest games -- at Utah (Sept. 6), Miami (Sept. 23), West Virginia (Nov. 26) and at Cincinnati (Dec. 4).

CBSSports.com isn't the only one out there looking for defensive players who can make a push for the award.  According to the Detroit Free Press, Sports Illustrated is also in search of some and apparently mentions Romeus:

The other seven defensive players SI mentioned for the Heisman were Adrian Clayborn (Iowa), Jared Crick (Nebraska), Von Miller (Texas A&M), Greg Romeus (Pittsburgh), Patrick Peterson (Louisiana State), Rahim Moore (UCLA) and Greg Reid (Florida State).

Not to be outdone, Bleacher Report lists Romeus as one of their defensive favorites to have a chance at the Heisman:

Now Romeus, a 2010 "Lott watch list" candidate, will attempt to cap off a stellar Panther career as he matriculates his way to the NFL.

And perhaps thrust himself into the Heisman conversation along the way.

Frankly, I don't see it. First, for any Pitt player to be in contention for the award, the team would need to have a pretty good year. If they do, the team is going to need an offensive star and it's much more likely a candidate like Dion Lewis or even Jonathan Baldwin would be pushed.  Su was a rare case on a team that didn't have an offensive star large enough to chase the Heisman.

Continuing with Su...It's true that he did finish fourth in the voting last year.  But fourth is a long way from first.  Further, he was a distant fourth, despite being one of the most impressive defensive players I've watched in recent memory.

If a defensive player does happen to make it to New York this season, I don't think it will be Romeus.

Football News and Notes

To start, I've seen the report out there about Greg Romeus possibly attending the famed Frank Gore party. I've waited on commenting on it because it seems as if it's a while away before any actual news breaks on it.  It's not confirmed that he was there, and it's certainly not confirmed that the party was paid for by agents or what kind of 'perks' there may have been. For now, I don't think it warrants much other than a brief mention.  We'll see.

But speaking about Romeus, he was named to the AFCA / All-State Good Works Team watch list. From the 100+ nominees, 22 will be selected (11 Division I-A and 11 from other divisions).  Players will be selected based on community work and academics.

Yes, seriously, there's a watch list for this.

And speaking of parties, Tino Sunseri, Joe Trebitz, and Hubie Graham visited one in NE Pennsylvania.  Okay, well, it wasn't a party - just a gathering at a bar.  Yes, news in Scranton is slow.

Here's a reasonably decent Pitt preview from a betting site and another betting site thinks Pitt will fall just short in the Big East to WVU.

News and Notes 7/22

Pitt comes in at #5 in Dennis Dodd's top five schools for football and basketball. This is a slight surprise to me - not that they don't belong there, but Pitt never seems to get the credit they deserve for having a top basketball and football program. It's not yet been sustained as they had some down football seasons this decade, but the school's teams have had quite a bit of success.  The best part, though, is that it doesn't look like it's slowing down anytime soon.  Both programs have recruited extraordinarily well and could be successful for quite a while.

My bets for the others? If we're talking about the past 2-3 years, let's go with Texas, Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Florida not in that order. Pitt fans might not be happy with it, but you could also make the case for WVU even instead of the Panthers.  But his article seems to indicate Pitt made it instead of WVU.

I normally don't mention Bleacher Report too much on here, but a writer for the site believes that Mark Myers can seriously contend for the backup QB job.  I don't see how that's even a remote possibility - especially in a year when they are starting a new quarterback.  No way Wannstedt doesn't use Pat Bostick as his safety net if Sunseri struggles.

Another gambling site predicts big things for the Panthers, calling them a darkhorse to win the whole shootin' match.

And Panther baseball coach Joe Jordana wins the ABCA East Region Coach of the Year Award.

Dion Lewis Named As A Preseason Favorite For Doak Walker Award

Pitt Associate AD EJ Borghetti has the news that the Sporting News has named Mark Ingram and Dion Lewis as its first two picks for the Doak Walker Award, presented to the nation's top running back.

Not a big surprise here as Lewis is the nation's top returning rusher and Ingram won the Heisman last year.  Still, Devine has been gaining some steam lately in preseason articles and could be a threat to Lewis in the Big East.  I wasn't able to find the news on their website, so I'm guessing this may have been (or is due to be) released in the print version.

News and Notes 7/5

After three non-stop days of grilling, finally getting to some links from the holiday weekend and a few random ones over last week.

Chevy Troutman is having a fine career in Italy and the Post-Gazette catches up with him while he's in town for the Greentree Summer League.  He still may play a few games in the league and while he's had offers to play in the NBA's Summer League, he's turned them down:

Troutman receives offers to play in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, but he has declined those offers in recent years because he has been under contract in Europe. He makes a six-figure salary and feels comfortable with his situation.

"For my size and the way I was being promoted, it was better for me to go over there than anything else," he said. "I realized that early. I said, 'Let me just start my career off as a pro over there and see how it goes.

"Now I'm very successful over there. I'm known in basketball. I don't think I'll ever have a problem having a job the rest of my career. I actually thought about coming back over here [to give the NBA a try], but for me it's probably not worth it.

"It's kind of difficult to get your foot in the door. They have to show the initiative."

Unfortunately, the most alarming part of the article is his new fashion:

Troutman, the former Pitt star, is no longer playing basketball in this country, and his appearance is proof positive. There was a certain European flair to Troutman last week when he strolled into the Greentree SportsPlex in shorts, T-shirt, sandals and a fanny pack to watch some Pitt players compete in the Pittsburgh Basketball Club Pro-Am.

 A fanny pack?  Really?  I think even senior citizens have moved on from those things.

Andy Katz of ESPN writes a little more about Pitt's trip to Ireland and has a good point about how this glut of forwards and big men will need to figure itself out.

ESPN.com's Brian Bennett looks at revenues of the Big East compared to other BCS conferences.  No, it's not pretty, but we already knew that.  According to the numbers, put together by a writer from Fanhouse, Pitt falls somewhere in the middle of Division I programs.

If you're into video games, NCAA Football '11 has some screenshots out for each of the Top 25 teams.  Pitt is ranked #16 in their game.

And former Pitt baseball star Joe Leonard was named to another All-American team. This time, the ABCA/Rawlings All-American First Team.

Pinkston and Romeus Added to Watch Lists

Pitt football players Jason Pinkston and Greg Romeus have been added to watch lists for the 2010 season.

Pinkston has been added to the watch list for the Outland Trophy, presented to the top interior lineman in college football. The list includes 63 players right now and only three are from the Big East. Romeus was added to the list for the Nagurski Trophy, given to the nation's best defensive player. That list includes 74 players including five in the Big East.

Joe Leonard Named Player of the Year

Former Pitt standout and recent MLB third-round draft pick, Joe Leonard, was named as the NCBWA (National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association) District 1 Player of the Year. 

District 1 includes Pennsylvania, Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island.

In 2010, Leonard broke single-season school records for saves, hits, RBI, and doubles.

Joe Leonard - The All-American American

Sorry, pro wrestling flash.

Pitt has its second Baseball All-American in as many years with the news of Joe Leonard being named to Louisville Slugger's All-American team. He made the third team.

That seems a little low for someone who was the Big East Player of the Year and is a semi-finalist for the Dick Howser award - an award for the nation's best player. But then again I know next to nothing about college baseball.

Last season, Chris Sedon made the team. Pitt has four in the past decade alone.

Pitt Baseball on the Ropes

In a week that saw star player Joe Leonard named the Big East Player of the Year, Pitt was dealt an opening loss in the Big East Tournament, losing to Rutgers today 9-5:

"We just have to turn the page and forget about today," said Baker (11-3), who had matched a season high with 12 hits allowed in his first meeting with Rutgers, a 9-8 loss on April 1. "We lose again, we're done, so we can't linger on today and let it affect us."

With innings at a premium on the mound, facing a potential six games in five days, Jordano stuck with Baker for six innings and a season-high 130 pitches. He gave up 16 hits, matching a 16-year-old Big East record.

The baseball fan in me immediately was drawn to the 130 pitches. Holy crap. Even Dusty Baker thinks this kid might be overworked.

Seriously, I know little about pitch counts in college baseball. But minor league teams reguarly limit young pitchers to under 100 pitches, so that seemed a bit high to me.

Anyway, so Pitt is now one loss away from being out of the Big East Tournament. There's a general consensus that 40 wins will get you into the NCAA Tournament most of the time. Pitt is still four away from that number and is now in danger of missing the tournament.

Joe Leonard up for Another Award

Pitt baseball star Joe Leonard is up for another award - the Dick Howser Award, given to collegiate baseball's best player.

Leonard is one of 25 semifinalists for the award.

With its regular season now concluded, Pitt will look to the the Big East Championships which begin Wednesday.

All-American Accolades for Lewis and Romeus

Brian Bennett of ESPN.com had the notice out that Dion Lewis and Greg Romeus made the Lindy's First-Team All-American list.

I dug around a little and was able to find the complete list. Pitt's two players were tied for the most on the list.

Joe Leonard Gets A Nomination

Pitt baseball standout Joe Leonard picked up an award nomination - the John Olerud two-way Player of the Year Award. Not only have I never heard of this award, I never knew John Olerud was a pitcher. Leonard is continuing a pretty good year:

On the year, Leonard holds a .452 batting average in a 186 at-bats. He has accumulated 57 RBI’s, seven home runs and 20 doubles, along with a 3.60 ERA and seven saves.

I'm sorry, but everytime I hear John Olerud's name, the first thing I think of is the old Rickey Henderson story. It may not be true, but I still laugh out loud every time I hear it.

Dion Vs. Jonathan

So Pitt has one of those 'good' problems on their hands - who to promote for the Heisman? Dion Lewis or Jonathan Baldwin? Personally, I expect them to start off promoting both. Lewis appears to be the clear true candidate, but Pitt won't want to have egg on its face by only promoting him if Lewis would go down with an injury or if Baldwin should step up and really become a viable contender.

Frankly, I don't believe Baldwin is really the candidate some may make him out to be. He had 57 catches, 1,111 receiving yards and eight TDs last year. Good, but not great. Heck, Fitz couldn't get the Heisman with numbers that dwarfed Baldwin's (92, 1,672, and 22 TDs).

Being a wideout puts him at a huge disadvantage. There have only been four wideouts that won the Heisman in the award's 75-year history. The biggest thing of note is that they've all played other positions as well. Charles Woodson was also a DB and Tim Brown, Desmond Howard, and Johnny Rodgers were also kickoff and punt return specialists. To win as strictly a wideout, you'd need to put up incredible numbers or at the very least, put up great numbers on an incredible team.

Let's break down the numbers of the two players a bit. Baldwin's 1,111 yards were only good for 19th in the country and because his numbers are dependent on the quarterback's ability to get him the ball, is prone to having games with low outputs. He had only 44 yards against Buffalo, 17 against Rutgers, and 5 yards against Syracuse. In most years, Heisman winners can't have large lapses in production like that.

Now look at the other player. Dion Lewis is a running back - a position which has won the Heisman more than 50% of the time in the award's history. He's coming off a year with 1,799 yards and was an All-American. He finished a close third in the nation in rushing yards and the two players ahead of him are now in the NFL. Perhaps even more important, he had huge games of 150+ yards in more than half of the games he played in. Plus, he's not dependent on the quarterback getting him the ball as a WR is. Finally, his 17 TDs beat Baldwin's last year and I'd expect him to top him again this year.

Dion Lewis is not only Pitt's best candidate, he's the school's only realistic candidate for the Heisman. I say promote him, and promote him alone.