Big Lead Sports Bar

11/15/2009

OFF TO A GOOD START



The sports extravaganza/traffic nightmare dubbed "Homecoming Weekend" has so far resulted in a Pitt basketball win in their home opener, a Penguin win in overtime, and a Pitt win over Notre Dame in front of a national audience. You're up, Steelers.

We'll start with the Penguins, who eeked out a 6-5 overtime winner against Boston which featured the following improbabilities: two goals from Pascal Dupuis, a goal from Jay McKee, a goal from Mark Eaton, and a game-tying goal from Bill Guerin with less than a second remaining. Hey, it's only fair given everything the team's been through over the past couple of weeks. But it sure was sweet.



With all due respect to the dramatic ending at Mellon Arena, the bigger story, at least on this night, was the Pitt Panthers' 27-22 win over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Heinz Field in front of 65,000+, a prime-time ABC audience spanning 83% of the country, and more than 100 recruits.

The Panthers atoned for virtually ignoring Jonathan Baldwin against Syracuse (1 catch, 5 yards) and unleashed the future pro on the Irish secondary to the tune of 142 yards on five catches, with one touchdown and two plays for the highlight reels. RBs Dion Lewis and Ray Graham each reeled off runs of 50+ yards en route to a 193-66 rushing edge for the Panthers. QB Bill Stull continued to play efficient football, with 236 yards passing and a touchdown. And the defense...well, they were just a treat to watch, especially the much-heralded defensive line of Greg Romeus, Jabaal Sheard, Gus Mustakas and Mick Williams.

The D only started to struggle once DBs Aaron Berry and Ricky Gary went down in short order to injuries in the fourth quarter. A seasoned QB like Jimmy Clausen predictably exploited that deficiency, as did his talented receivers. But the 9-1 Panthers would ultimately hold off the Irish with the help of a crucial and controversial Clausen fumble late in the final minutes.

The Panthers' next two games both fall under the category of must-see TV: the Backyard Brawl on November 27 (the day after Thanksgiving) and the de facto Big East Championship against Cincinnati on December 5. What is it about Pittsburgh against Cincinnati in big divisional football games this year?

And finally, speaking of TV, a huge thumbs-down to ABC last night for interviewing Charlie Weis and not Dave Wannstedt after the Pitt win last night. Weis now has the same winning percentage as Ty Willingham and Bob Davie - so if it's any consolation, it's probably one of the last interviews he'll be giving as the head coach of Notre Dame.

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27 comments:

Real McCoy said...

Great Pitt win last night. Their down field blocking is tremendous and I think a big factor in breaking some of those long runs. The fighting Staches came through.

Louis Lipps is my homeboy said...

Cue Adam to poo poo on the Pitt win in 3.... 2.... 1.....

Adam said...

I mean, there's nothing to poop on, but let's not get ahead of ourselves here.

I think art said it best above. It was a "great" win, not a big win. Let's not forget we're talking about a 6-4 football team that just happens to wear a golden helmet. If it's anyone else (say an 8-2 Temple team, or 7-4 Northwestern team), no one cares.

The win last night was an illusion of a big win, and I'd be surprised if any true Pitt fans (not the ones running to Dick's for a t-shirt to wear to work Friday) are punching their tickets to Glendale or Miami just yet.

Don't get me wrong. It was a great night for Pitt. Hell, it was a great night for America, (Penn State fans included) watching that turkey dance, but there's a reason Lisa Salters wanted to talk to Chuckles and not Dave. Notre Dame sucks, and heads are about to roll, so let's not make them more than they are.

frank said...

pitt sucks they think just cuz they are ranked higher that makes them better. psu is were its at! we get, like, a million times more fans show up to games than pitt. dave wannstache needs to be investigated no recruit in his right mind would choose pitt over psu. let's see: do you want to play in front of 100,000 screaming fans or 65,000 yellow seats? dave is obviously bribing these big recruits he gets from pa. also, pitt plays in the big east which sucks (just like pitt!) if they played in the big ten they would win like zero games a year (unless the refs gave them games like they did for iowa and osu against us). pretty soon pitt, their gay uniforms, and both of their fans will be back were they belong: the bottom!
WE ARE PENN STATE!!!!!!!

BURGH08 said...

Nobody denies that the name "Notre Dame" isn't what it used to be.

What's interesting is that Adam doesn't mention that that "8-2 Temple team" he/she attempts to compare it to lost to I-AA Villanova.

Or that the "7-4 Northwestern" team lost to Syracuse.

I do enjoy the "attention smack" from the PSU guys here which is more on what the sideline reporter wants to interview or frank going with the 'attendance angle'.

I heard a lot of that from the Irish fans last night, which means that is the only well they had to go to.

Again, maybe it's a college thing, or a 'non Pittsburgh' thing. I never thought about ripping the Bengals fans on the way out today because Steeler fans take over their stadium. Or that Steeler fans have sold out TRS/Heinz for decades.

It's fun to read though. :)

BURGH08 said...

By the way, kudos to Louis on calling Adam to get his typing frenzy on.

I was surprised it took him less than three hours though. Maybe his parents were at school this weekend and held him back.

Adam said...

Alrite BURGH, just kiss my ass. I gave you credit, I just asked for a little in return, but you're incapable so whatever.

frank said...

the reason no one makes a big deal about steelers atendance is cuz they only seat 65,000. penn state seats 100,000 and give the lions a real home field advantadge not like pitiful pitt. pitt sucks every year they will choke penn state can still make a bcs bowl cuz were top 14 now. maybe the reason no one goes to pitt games is their unis they change them like every year and they put up stuff about how they won titles in like the 30s big deal only old people can remember that anyway. penn state has the best unis in the country and our coach has 2 national titles how may does dave have?? oh yeah thats right he has zero cuz he went to pitt and therefore sucks as a coach. once the ncaa finds out how he bribes recruites it will be all over for spitt and they will lose more games then they win. oh yeah one more thing why r u pitt fans so obsesed with us we have moved onto to bigger rivals like msu and osu and michigan i guess when your football team sucks you have to lach onto one of the top 3 programs in college football and say they r your rival.
WE ARE PENN STATE!!!!!

Adam said...

I have a feeling Frank is being sarcastic.

WKC said...

Never got your email.

Puss.

BurressWithButterflywings said...

Good win for Pitt. Still have the 2 toughest tests of the season left. Put up or shut up time. I think Pitt has a pretty solid shot to win the next 2, but having been a Pitt fan since I can remember I still remain skeptical.

Did anyone else notice Herbstreit lobbying for Weis the entire game?

Pens game was awesome, up and down the ice the entire night with some great saves and goals.

@Adam, I think you are right r/e heads about to roll. But she wanted to talk to Cheeseburger Charlie because the media is always up ND's @$$. The way they promoted that game you would have thought ND was 10-0 looking for a National Title bid.

NickDawg said...

Frank you are a douche, you must be adams sister...Pitt is ranked ahead of penn st in all pools...marinate in that, facts are facts

the nigerian nightmare said...

The best part about this is that there's still a very likely scenario of a Pitt/PSU BCS bowl.

nuthinhere said...

Geez, there is no Pitt/PSU rivalry anymore. They don't play each other, so why all the fuss? PSU is not going to a BCS bowl. I don't think any Big 10/11 team should go to a BCS bowl. Its a lousy football conference (though the ACC is worse). OSU is going to get pummeled by whoever wins the Pac 10(Stanford? really?). As for Pitt, there only BCSing if they win the Big East, which I don't think they will. I don't follow Pitt that closely but I don't thing they've played the UofCinc Bearcats yet, so don't get cocky Panther fans. Congrats for beating a mediocre Notre Dame team. I was wishing for a beat down of ND. For at least one night I was a huge Pitt fan. C'mon, ND sucks, you all should have killed them. For the record I'm a huge Penn State fan, just a realistic one. They are an average team at best right now, playing in a crap football conference. Right now PSU is playing for one of those Florida bowls (Outback or Citrus). I'm not sure where Pitt will wind up, but it won't be in a BCS bowl. I do wish PSU/Pitt still played each other. I miss hating Pitt. :-)

Anonymous said...

Nuthinhere, what you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.


You posted a comment about Pitt and you don't even know if they played Cincy yet. It's coming up and 2 weeks and its going to be the conference championship game. Cincy will be favored but Pitt has a great shot at a BCS bowl. No Pitt fan is looking past that game.

Also saying PSU is an average team is just dumb. They are a good team, just not a great team this season. 15th in country is right about where they deserve to be. As long as they beat MSU, they have a great shot at going to a BCS (I wish we wouldn't because I don't think we deserve it but it's probably going to happen).

Louis Lipps is my homeboy said...

So when Pitt goes 9-1, they didn't play anybody, Notre Dame's mediocre, etc etc etc.

But when Penn State plays less than nobody in the non-con and rips through a VERY mediocre Big Ten last year with 1-loss (to a team Pitt had beaten), they were great national title contenders.

Can you say "Double standard" boys and girls?

Pitt hasn't played the toughest schedule this year, and I'm not declaring them national title contenders. But they've played a lot of teams with winning records, and they're 9-1. Which makes, like PSU last year, a pretty good team.

I hope Frank, with lack of punctuation and all, is just being sarcastic and clowning on Penn State. Because, if not, it appears not even Adam wants that buffoon on his side!

Louis Lipps is my homeboy said...

BTW, Miami, the most successfull college football program of the last 25 or so years, can barely draw 40,000 to their games. Not having 100,000 people at their stadium every week hasn't hurt them.


It's because their school is in an actual city (more stuff to do than in most rural college towns), has a smaller alumni base, and there is actual competition for the sports dollar from pro teams.


Sounds similar to Pitt's situation in Pittsburgh.

BURGH08 said...

The infighting betweeen Penn State fans is interesting, which means Adam's job is done.

Big points to Clint though for the Billy Madison reference though.

the nigerian nightmare said...

I am a PSU fan, and by no means think they DESERVE to be in a BCS bowl, but saying they have no chance of making one is asanine. If they beat MSU, it'll be a coin toss between Iowa and PSU on who gets an at-large bid. Don't think because Iowa beat PSU that they'll choose Iowa. As much as all the Pitt fans love to hate the "we sell out all our games" argument, that's the one thing the BCS doesn't look past when it comes to these at-large bids. If PSU beats MSU, I will go out on a limb and say without a doubt they get a BCS bowl. Quote me (although remember the IF they beat MSU part......they're no slouches). Also, like I said, I don't think PSU deserves a BCS bowl, they're not an elite team this year....and I'd rather not see them get smoked in a BCS bowl again....unless of course that BCS bowl is against Pitt, which would be a cakewalk :)

Adam said...

I completely agree with NN. We don't deserve a BCS game, but that doesn't mean we won't get one.

And...I'm not saying out schedule is good. I never did. And when I pointed out Temple and Northwestern, it wasn't to say that they're that good, but that ND is that bad. You'd EXPECT us to beat those teams, and the same is true of Pitt.

NickDawg said...

nigerian nutbag - I hope Penn st get into a bowl game too against PITT so we can whoop that a$$ all over the field. If not im sure stanford or oregon or any other pac 10 team will blow them out as standard protocol

Adam said...

Hey Pitt fans, I think NickDawg is your version of frank, no?

BURGH08 said...

It actually reads like Adam with more slang. Not as much with team affiliation.

As for Notre Dame, I think it's laughable they are compared to Northwestern and/or Temple on 'teams you should beat'.

I would think an unranked (at the time) Iowa at home would be a team to beat.

It's all a matter of perspective, but maybe that is blurred by being a lifetime student.

the nigerian nightmare said...

Pretty sure Oregon or Stanford would blow out Pitt as well.....I mean their offenses are no Buffalo or NC State, but still pretty good.

nuthinhere said...

Clint Pitts,

Your reading comprehension is stellar. Ah, the internet, home of the keyboard Rambo's!! Rave on brother!!!

Adam said...

Pretty sure Iowa is ranked now though.

Just sayin'.

Anonymous said...

@nuthinhere

Actually my reading comprehension is average. I'm better than about 50% of people and I'm worse than about 50% of people. The definition of average. You described PSU's football team as average, meaning you think they are about the 60th best team in the country. That is retarded. Also your ability to understand BCS bowl selection would be classified as below average. However your ability to comment on things you don't qute understand while admitting you don't quite understand them, well that my friend is stellar.