Pitt Lands a Recruit in the Midst of a Slow Start

Even a recent solid get by the team can't quench the feeling of a slow recruiting season thus far. Wannstedt, though, seemed quick to squash the talk about a down period:

"Wannstedt said he's confident the Panthers will have a great recruiting class by February. This week, the Panthers will hold two more prospect camps and he expects the total number of players to come through to be about 650, which is far more than they have had in the past.

"If you think about, we had about 50 or 60 kids at our prospect camps," Wannstedt said.

"So we're making a lot of progress in that area. And at this point, we are way ahead in recruiting than we have been -- at this point the last few years there were probably 40 kids I was comfortable offering a scholarship to -- right now, I'd say we are at about 75.

"We are further ahead with quality names at every position and more players come through here than at any point since I have been here. We're banging heads with the top programs for kids and there will be some wins and losses. We believe we have the best program in the country, but it may not be for everyone.

"But we're going to get our share of guys, and they are going to be great players who are going to be excited about winning and being a part of Pitt football."

I'm not buying that talk so quickly. It may be early, but other teams have managed to beat us out of not only some good talent, but talent that was expected to come here. Pitt still has a lot of work to do.

Getting Knox when he had offers from a host of teams including PSU and Michigan was a huge get...especially after the other losses a few weeks ago.

Ralph is Back in Black...and Red

Now here's something you don't see everyday - a head coach leaving to become an assistant willingly...albeit at a bigger school.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Ralph Willard was named associate head coach at Louisville on Wednesday after he resigned as the head coach at Holy Cross, both universities announced.

"I've been pursuing Ralph for the last 10 years," Louisville coach Rick Pitino said in a statement. "I can't tell you how excited we are that he has joined our staff and we are back together again. Ralph is truly one of the best minds in our game."

Yes, Ralph is back in the Big East. It'd be more fun, and interesting, if he were a head coach.

More Lowballing

Doug Gottlieb apparently still has some sort of grudge against Pitt - either that or he really just likes playing 'the bad guy.'

While I think it's true Blair could slip, I've seen no one project him out of the first round - something that would happen if Gottlieb were apparently drafting.

Now I should point out that this is Gottlieb's top 30 players - not necessarily who will be drafted where. Still, it's kind of a head-scratcher that he's not in that list.

And in a smaller snub, Gottlieb didn't list Dante Taylor among his top ten freshmen he can't wait to see next year.

Talk about a grouch.

Recruiting Woes

Pitt's recruiting woes continued in a big way when offensive linemen Miles Dieffenbach of Fox Chapel and Tom Ricketts of North Allegheny BOTH committed to Penn State.

For those who know, this was extremely disappointing because both had Pitt ties. Dieffenbach's father is a tennis coach at Pitt and Ricketts' played football here (his mother was also a swimmer). Both were considered top recruits.

Earlier this week, Smizik in his PG blog noted, correctly, that Wannstedt has to do a better job of protecting the Western PA area. Bob, also correctly points out that any criticism these kids are getting is unfair. They have to do what they feel is best for them.

That said, for Pitt to lose one of these guys is unexpected - to lose both is borderline inexcusable. 3-0 bowl losses can help prevent these types of things...not to sound bitter.

Wannstedt has, overall, done a solid job recruiting. However, positives such as nine-win seasons seem to be negated by things such as the Sun Bowl debacle. Wannstedt wants to be the guy to take Pitt to the next level, but you have to wonder if he's the guy who can do it. I've said it before and I'll say it again - he is a better recruiter and 'seller' of the university than he is a head coach (in my opinion).

A Slimmer Version

Word out of the NBA Draft camps is that DeJuan Blair has shed 30 pounds.

Thanks to the regimented workout schedule and a strict diet, Blair sweated away more than 30 pounds. His new and improved body (he now weighs in at 275 pounds) and his impressive workouts for NBA scouts have solidified his position as a first-round selection in the NBA draft June 25, and he is on the cusp of being a lottery pick.

Blair has rocketed up draft boards after spending a month in Florida, where he proved that he can be disciplined with his diet and demonstrated a tremendous desire to compete.

"It's been all work down here," Blair said by telephone from Florida this week. "There were days when I didn't want to get up, but I had to. I had to grind it out. It's all paying off. I hope to be in the lottery and do something people told me I couldn't do."

According to the article from Fitipaldo in the PG, Blair has hopes of landing in the lottery. Right now, it seems like a mystery where he'll end up. I wouldn't be surprised to see him go anywhere from the end of the lottery to the end of the first round.

Women's 2009-10 Basketball Opponents Released

The Pitt women's basketball opponents for 2009-2010 have been released.

The highlight of the home schedule is the UCONN game. Dates/times will be out later.