Pitt Opens Up -5 VS Penn State!
- Thread starter Blitz Pakage
- Start date
I didn't watch Kent State vs Penn State, so difficult to tell where either program is.....Pitt playing Villanova is not exactly a way to tell how good they are.
-5 seems very high in my opinion.....but also shows how far PSU has fallen in recent years.
-5 seems very high in my opinion.....but also shows how far PSU has fallen in recent years.
Said no one ever
Or how good Pitt has gotten. They have a stud group of OL some will be allACC, one of the top RBs in the nation, and a great HC. Their recruiting classes the last two years have been way better than ours
Hey, you put your money where your mouth is.
I admire that no matter how it looks in retrospect.
This line actually opened at Pitt -9 a few months back and came down to -5. I saw it at -6 earlier today.
Franklin won more games his first two years at PSU with sanction recruits than Harbaugh at Stanford or SAban at MSU.
Here is a quick synopsis for you:
Should be a good game.
- PITT is supposed to have a very good running game with Conner and Ollison at RB and an OL anchored by Dorian Johnson and Adam Bisnowaty on the left side (both should be drafted high). That being said 2.5 YPC on Saturday.
- WRs are a big ?. Boyd was everything to them last year and he's gone.
- QB is average and serviceable.
- Defense up front is a huge ? and their LBs would be considered average at best. One walk-on starting there. I believe Whitehead (DB) was their leading tackler last season. Don't know much about their other DBs.
- PSU's OL looks better but that is probably a result of easier blocking scheme and a QB who can actually run the read option and keep the defense on their heels. Vanilla blitzes from KSU. I'd expect a heavy dosage of blitzes from PITT.
- PSU's WRs are legit. Not a lot of separation though.
- PSU's QB is not a great passer and his deep ball wasn't good at all. WRs helped him out a bit on a few. Good hands.
- PSU's DL is suspect but deep. Played better as game went on Saturday.
- PSU LBs were a disappointment on Saturday. DBs are above average, particularly corners.
- WE HAVE A PUNTER!!!!! True FR who averaged almost 50 yards per on Saturday.
Should be a good game.
I wouldn't bet on this game.. no value here... both teams are average and a rivalry game in the heat its hard to predict one way or the other.. It will come down in my opinion to splash plays... PSU will need a couple. I think pitt is more capable of long time consuming drives.. I dont think either team looked real good last week but coaches may have been holding back a bit...Game is important for both teams.. not so much bragging rights but for the seasons.. If pitt loses they are looking at 1-3 with upcoming games at OSU and NC (both better than PSU)... If PSU loses the game with Temple is critical...lose that and head into Big ten with a ton of heat and negative pub on coaching staff... BTW nobody beats FSU this season..
Glad to see someone out their slurping the cool aid. I hope he stays there forever. He's a Ron Zook, a Muschamp, Brady Hoke, etc.
You guys have very good WR's. Even an average DL is such a drop off from last year it has to effect the rest of the D (LB's?). Barkley is a beast. OL is still suspect until they do it against a team with a pulse. QB is TBD.
Pretty much agree about Pitt other than I think their running game will be fine.
It should be a hell of a no holds barred game.
Based on what? Weren't you the guy saying Black coaches don't get to learn on the job?
Why because I said Franklin is underrated. . . I honestly believe it.
and yes, the NCAA has a dearth of Black Coaches. I wonder why?
Btw, I can't stand PSU, but their Coach hasn't lost to Rutgers yet.
If Coach Ash beats PSU and Maryland, than he's alright in my book.
The DL may actually be deeper though. Definitely doesn't have the same top end talent.
The LBs last year were terrible. It was the first time I can remember that the DL would do their job and leave it for the LBs to clean it up but the LBs were nowhere to be found.
OL looked much better IMO. McSorley was barely touched all day while throwing the ball and he actually had some time. Run blocking was a little disappointing but I also thought McSorley wasn't selfish enough on the read a lot. They were keyed on Barkley.
Will be interesting to see if PITT's D is as good as Kent's was. Some on our board who actually know what they are talking about said that Kent's D was better than some B1G teams we will face this year.
I was trying to be a wiseguy a bit. KSU did have an ok defense despite going 2-10 or whatever last year.
Just looked at their next 3 games....NC A&T, MONMOUTH, then some school down south. Oh yeah, ALABAMA!!! Talk about one extreme to the other.
Yeah, that's rough. I'm in Ohio and the MAC is obviously big over here. So many good HS players in Ohio that there are a lot who just miss the big offers for one reason or another and they find a nice home at Akron, Toledo, Kent State or Miami. I believe the Mr. Ohio from a few year's back ago at Willoughby South had a PITT offer but ended up at Toledo and has been a very good player. Neighbor from across the street has a grandson who was on a State Championship team, camped at Penn State and really wanted either PSU or NW to offer...but they didn't. We took Zayd Isaah instead (what a waste) and the kid ended up at Miami U of Ohio. Great school and the kid is a 4.0 so he'll get a $50,000/yr education for free.
What is the second tier conference for NJ kids?
PITT will cover! Ped St fans will leave early as they did the last time we played them. 12-0 last meeting
I believe the only FCS teams are Monmouth and Princeton. Monmouth plays in the Big South. Usually has a few former Rutgers players. Small school in size but big dreams in sports. Someone will correct me but I believe after that it's all Div 3.
I believe a lot of NJ kids end up in the Patriot League and Yankee Conf.
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I forgot about Mt. Union over here as well...30 miles from my house. I have a few friends who played D3 and they said that some kids will go to Mount over a D1 school because the various body testing isn't as strict and they have a better chance to actually contribute. No idea if true but the one guy was all-state here in Ohio and doesn't embellish.
I went to a D2 school in Missouri 40+ years ago and the best lineman on the team was from NJ. Can't swing a dead cat anywhere in CFB without hitting a Jersey football player.
Hope you guys enjoyed getting your shots in at Franklin while you could. We're finally on even scholarship footing, the scandal classes will be graduating out shortly, and his classes are already making an impact (with 3-5 more years to get bigger/faster stronger).
Relax, man. I just thought it was a funny response. Franklin doesn't move the needle for me one way or the other. We have our own business to handle on The Banks.
Totally agree. As easy as it is to root against them, part of me wants them to be just good enough for the next few years so that they keep him around. Let them reset again in three years when they realize he's mediocre at best.
The reasons I pick Pitt to cover in this game are 1) They have a better coach and 2) they are at home. It's actually great to see this rivalry again which should have never been stopped in the first place! It's great for college football!
I'm curious to see how Pitt's players and especially Narduzzi, in by far his biggest game as a head coach to date, handle this one. Assuming they come out with tons of energy, can they sustain it or will they be flat come the second quarter or second half? Or do they come out tight with Narduzzi stressing the importance of this one, shutting down interviews and media access this week, etc. It'll be a stressful watch for sure.
Last thing we need is a Pitt victory.
We don't need a strong Pitt, Syracuse or Maryland.
Especially given the fact that it's looking like Coach Ash is gonna need 5 years to figure this thing out.
We don't need a strong Pitt, Syracuse or Maryland.
Especially given the fact that it's looking like Coach Ash is gonna need 5 years to figure this thing out.
I have a feeling Heinz field will be very PSU friendly.
In other words...for Pitt this game is very much like our 2014 PSU game. Will they wilt late like we did?
In other words...for Pitt this game is very much like our 2014 PSU game. Will they wilt late like we did?
I think the result certainly means more to Pitt and its fans than it did to Rutgers, and it's a more important game for PSU than Rutgers '14 was, but I think the comparison in terms of how the PSU opponents approach the game is pretty fair.
