SHADY GOT PAID

Lesean "Shady" McCoy officially got his NFL payday, signing a four-year deal with the Philadelphia Eagles. Terms were not yet released, but if past history is any indication, it will be in the $2.95 million range, with a signing bonus of around $1.245 million. That isn't as big of a payday as he originally anticipated when bolting Pitt, but is much, much more than the $0 he earned last year. So congrats to him. He's in a good situation and looks to have a bright future ahead in Philly.

---

In other signing news, the Steelers officially inked 6'5", 328-pound guard Kraig Urbik, the first of their three third-round picks. Terms were not disclosed on that contract either. He's expected to be tossed into the mix at right guard along with vets Darnell Stapleton and Trai Essex once camp is in session. His signing leaves 1st rounder Ziggy Hood as the lone unsigned Steeler draft pick.

Former Pitt star McCoy signs with Eagles [PG]

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REVISED LIST OF PITT PANTHERS IN NFL CAMPS

Per KDKA, here is a revised list of 11 Pitt Panthers that will be incoming to NFL camps this summer, and how they were acquired. Needless to say, this makes for one happy Wannstache, who can tout this to high school juniors and seniors on his never-ending tour of area high schools.

P Dave Brytus: Baltimore (free agent)
RB Conredge Collins: Tampa Bay (free agent)
OG C.J. Davis: Carolina (free agent)
DT Rashaad Duncan: Tampa Bay (free agent)
P Adam Graessle: Green Bay (free agent)
WR Derek Kinder: Chicago (7th round pick)
K Conor Lee: St. Louis (free agent)
RB LeSean McCoy: Philadelphia (2nd round pick)
LB Scott McKillop: San Francisco (5th round pick)
RB LaRod Stephens-Howlings: Arizona (7th round pick)
S Eric Thatcher: Cincinnati (free agent)

PITT 2009 ROOKIE CLASS IN NFL CAMPS [KDKA/PSI]

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SHADY MCCOY IS AN EAGLE

The city of Philadelphia isn't exactly on our Christmas card list right now, but they do have one more bright spot than they did yesterday: the Eagles are getting a top-flight running back in the form of Pitt's Shady McCoy, who they selected with their second-round pick, 53rd overall.

ESPN had McCoy ranked 37th overall, which means he fell below his projected spot. I would agree that 53 seemed later than anyone could've anticipated when he originally announced his intentions for the draft. He was the fourth running back taken, behind Georgia's Knowshon Moreno (Denver, 12th overall), UConn's Donald Brown (Indianapolis, 27th), and Ohio State's Beanie Wells (Arizona, 31st). He was taken ahead of well-known backs such as Iowa's Shonn Greene and Michigan State's Javon Ringer.

Luckily for Shady, he hit the jackpot in terms of a fit for his skills and a depth chart that offers little outside of Brian Westbrook. He has the opportunity to do very well as an Eagle, and it's not too far from his hometown of Harrisburg, which he probably views as another plus. And he's already been tagged as a "must-handcuff" for all you fantasy nerds out there (myself included).

Ironically, last year's 53rd overall pick is a guy who's been discussed at great length on this site, one Limas Sweed. Sweed signed a four-year contract with the Steelers that included a signing bonus of $1,560,000 and rookie-minimum salaries of $295,000 in 2008, $380,000 in 2009, $470,000 in 2010 and $595,000 in 2011. So while McCoy may not be making the same kind of scratch as Moreno will this season, it will be a pretty significant raise from the $0 he made playing football last season.

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WEEKEND UPDATE

A few things to put a nice bow on the weekend...

--The Pens took one step forward and one backwards this weekend, beating Philly on Saturday and dropping a Sunday matchup with Washington. Looks like getting rid of Michel Therrien was not the cure-all that some thought it might be. [PG]

--What went wrong with the 2008-09 Pens, you ask? Luckily, Dave Molinari has all the answers. [PG]

--ESPN's Pennsylvania Mt. Rushmore of Sports is Joe Paterno, Mario Lemieux, Wilt Chamberlain, and Roberto Clemente. Sadly, there was no room for Big Ben's melon (or any other Steeler's, for that matter). [ESPN]

--Sounds a lot like Nate Washington has played his last game with the Steelers. Luckily, we already have another receiver on the roster that's adept at dropping passes, so there should be no drop-off. [Trib]

--Pat White ran a 4.49 40 at the combine, and he'll work out as a WR at his Pro Day next month. Just call him Randle-El 2.0. [PFT]

--ESPN 1250 is kicking off their Lunch with a Legend series on Tuesday, which means you can hang with Andy Russell and Mike Wagner while dining at Morton's. Sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me. [ESPN 1250]

--Batch or Leftwich? That's the question facing the 2009 Steelers. [PG]

--Shady McCoy, currently slotted to go to the Cardinals in four mock drafts, picked a really bad time to get sick. [PG]

--Troy Polamalu has been visiting a 10-year-old girl who has Ewing's Sarcoma, playing Guitar Hero and bringing her chocolates. See, the NFL does have some very kind souls. [PB&G]

--John Russell lost 95 games as manager of the Buccos in 2008 and got a one-year extension out of the deal. Yes, I'm still trying to figure it out, too. [Trib]

--Previewing your 2009 Pittsburgh Pirates... [We Should Be GMs]

--The Texas Rangers signed Anna Benson and her husband Kris to a minor-league deal. I'm sure he'll win at least 20 or 25 games at the bare minimum and contend for the Cy Young. [Trib]

--Nittany Lions players think JoePa will be "buried on the field". That's a nice visual. [SPORTSbyBROOKS]

--Monday brings round two of the Pittsburgh Bloggers bracket. Vote responsibly. [Sean's Ramblings]

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SHADY'S OFFICIALLY GONE

After months of a back-and-forth, Shady McCoy has made it official: he's going to enter the NFL draft. He had this to say as per a statement released by Pitt:

"During my two years at Pitt, I have received an overwhelming amount of love and acceptance, starting from my first visit to the university all the way through the end of this season. I have been treated with respect, class and consideration. For that I am incredibly grateful.

"I will always cherish the opportunity Pitt has given me. I wore number 25 with pride and tried to represent my coaches, teammates, staff and Panther fans with class. I would like to thank everyone involved with the Pitt football program for a wonderful two years in Pittsburgh."

It was a huge decision with literally millions of dollars on the line, and I hope for his sake that LeSean has made the right one. While I wished he would've stayed for purely selfish reasons, I'll be rooting for him in the pros.

Pitt's McCoy will go to NFL draft [PG]

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UPDATED: SHADY IS UNDECIDED

In case you've forgotten, there's more going on in the Pittsburgh sports scene beyond our beloved Steelers. And one of the ongoing storylines of the past week continues to steam ahead, as Shady McCoy remains undecided about where he will play football next year:

It is the second time in four days that McCoy has delayed his decision and that has given the coaching staff at least a glimmer of hope that he is legitimately having second thoughts and might stay in school. According to a source close to the situation, McCoy is struggling with his decision because he is being pulled in a lot of different directions by many different people with conflicting agendas.

We've discussed this ad nauseam over the past few days, but it's clear that the lure of having a lot more money in his bank account this spring is dancing in his head. On the other hand, the bank account could potentially grow even bigger should he defer his decision to leave for one more year. Then again, something could happen during the course of the season (such as an injury) to make the payday shrink from where it's at right now.

It's a high-stakes decision, and there are a lot of people in this guy's ear: agents, advisors, coaches, teammates, and most of all, family. Shady needs to think about what's going to make him the happiest, because sometimes the obvious answer (money, money, mo-ney.....money!) isn't so obvious.

McCoy Again Weighing Options [PG]

Update:

A new report from KDKA based on sources close to McCoy say that Shady wants to stay, loves Pitt, and loves college life, but is being pressured to turn pro. The report describes McCoy as "an emotional wreck". Unfortunately, the situation sounds as tense and dramatic as I feared, given all the back-and-forth we've seen.

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SHADY'S CONFUSED

Just as I came to grips with the fact that Shady McCoy would be moving on to the NFL, word has spread that he hasn't yet decided to go anywhere. Says the Trib's Kevin Gorman:

After what was described as an emotional meeting with Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt Friday, Panthers star tailback LeSean McCoy is delaying his decision on whether to declare for the NFL Draft.

McCoy's parents, Ron and Daphne, and brother, LeRon, accompanied him to the meeting at Pitt's Duratz Athletic Complex on the South Side. Afterward, LeRon McCoy said his brother was overwhelmed by the gravity of the decision and will wait until next week to make up his mind.

Before people start jumping on him for being a little Favreish in his thinking, consider the factors at play here. As we've already discussed, there is no shortage of running backs available, including Knowshon Moreno, Beanie Wells, Javon Ringer, Donald Brown, PJ Hill, Rashad Jennings, and just announced, Alabama's Glen Coffee. And those are just the running backs. For the big money, he's going to compete against all position players. So every time a Jeremy Maclin or Michael Crabtree decides they're jumping in the pool, that's two more notches that a Shady McCoy will fall. And every notch equals lost income.

Second, there's the wear and tear on his body that another season will surely provide. He's toted the rock 276 times in 2007 and 308 in 2008. That's almost 600 carries in two years, putting him on pace for around 900 if he stays. Plus, there's always the threat of a serious injury looming. And for a guy that's already suffered through one such incident in high school, that's a concern.

Those are the negatives, and they are big. But there has to be positives to come from staying at Pitt, and at the top of the list would be the opportunity to drive his stock up in the 2009 season. With McCoy in the mix, as well as an improved offensive line, a tough defense, a stud WR (Jonathan Baldwin) and (hopefully) some better play at the QB position, Pitt would have to be considered a favorite to win the conference and subsequently play in a BCS bowl. Granted, there are a lot of factors at play when considering team results; but should things fall into place, that's a lot of exposure to potentially vault McCoy near the top of next year's available running backs. And that means a bigger pile of money when an NFL team eventually calls his name.

Whatever his decision may be, I would understand. This is a young guy that's given Pitt fans a lot to cheer about in a short period of time, and he really doesn't owe anybody anything. It's selfish reasoning to want him back, but I don't know any fan who wouldn't want to have a Shady McCoy on their side, given the choice.

Pitt's McCoy Puts Decision To Go Pro On Hold [Trib]

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WEEKLY ESPN PODCAST: PLAYOFF EDITION

Dave Dameshek and I had lots of ground (and I mean LOTS of ground) to cover on this week's edition of the podcast, including ample Steeler and NFL talk, thoughts on what the heck is going on at the Igloo, and well wishes for Shady McCoy as he makes the jump to the next level. Plus, in contrast to last week, a discussion on what Pittsburgh jerseys not to wear (hint: one of them rhymes with Jordell). It's as action-packed as a podcast could be. And if listening to me doesn't float your boat, maybe you'll enjoy Dave's interview with one Casey Hampton as a change of pace?

To listen, visit the link below:

Mondesi's House/Dave Dameshek ESPN.com podcast 1/9/09

While you're there, be sure to get the story behind this photo, recently unearthed from the Dameshek Vault, featuring a young Dave with a fresh-faced quarterback that used to call Pittsburgh home:

*One last thing - keep those motivational videos coming, and check back very soon for the entire collection as submitted by you!

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SHADY'S COMING BACK

I can't believe the news either, but it sounds like superstar Pitt RB Lesean "Shady" McCoy is returning for a junior season:

"Everyone keeps trying to push that idea, that this is my last game at Heinz Field. I'm not going anywhere," McCoy said. "There is a lot of stuff I have to prove and the thing is, I don't think I've done enough here at this university and there is a lot of stuff I have to achieve here."

Hmmm....could he perhaps be referring to "ideas" such as this article by Ron Cook?

And while it's usually known that a player ready to go to the NFL early is good for the Pitt program, I'm willing to bet that The Wannstache won't complain if he has to take McCoy back for a third season.

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NEWS AND NOTES

--Friday's Backyard Brawl will probably be your last chance to watch Shady McCoy play at Heinz Field (for Pitt, that is). [PG]

--Congrats to my W&J Presidents, 35-21 winners in their first-round playoff game against Christopher Newport, which is either a school or one singular guy who somehow made it into the D-3 playoffs. [Washjeff.edu]

--Here's the highly-anticipated Ryan Malone song, sung by a guy who is really bitter towards Ryan Malone. [The PensBlog]

--Big Ben brings his mouth to a gunfight...and wins. What can't he do? [SPORTSbyBROOKS]

--Ben Roethlisberger=Guy Fieri. You'll just have to click the link to see how it relates. [Hugging Harold Reynolds]

--The Phil Savage email fiasco is detailed at length by Joe Bendel, with photos. A definite candidate for story of the year. [Fox 970]

--Loyal Notre Dame fans spent Saturday hurling snowballs at their own team during the Syracuse game. Yeah, that Charlie Weis hire is really working out well. [AOL Fanhouse]

--Looks like Pitt inked a top-25 recruiting class for hoops. Some have it 9th, some have it 24th. [PG]

--The Pens get high marks from Scott Burnside in his quarter-season report. [ESPN]

--PacMan Jones' next misstep will probably be the end of his NFL career. Can we start calling him "Morris the Cat" at this point? [ESPN]

--Anyone curious to see what Macho Man Randy Savage looks like these days? [Zimbio]

--A simply unreal Barry Bonds tattoo. That is all. [Mouthpiece Sports]

--Is it me, or does this recap of the Bengal-Steeler game sound a little overly-optimistic? [Cincinnati.com]

--Is the world aware that there's an ongoing lawsuit between Taco Bell and 50 Cent over their offer to give $10,000 to charity if he changed his name to 79, 89, or 99 Cent? [TMZ]

--I know this is from last week, but I didn't get a chance to mention it: how stupid were the auto manufacturer CEOs who flew private jets to ask the government for money? [ABC News]

--The word 'meh', thought of to be introduced to the world in a 2001 episode of The Simpsons, makes the cut for this year's Collins Dictionary. [Wall Street Fighter]

--There are 34 bowl games this year, meaning that 68 teams will be playing in the postseason. That's bigger than March Madness. [Wall St. Journal]

--OK know-it-alls: here's 5 things you didn't know about the NFL. [Ask Men]

--Why are America's worst hamburgers all so tasty? [Men's Health]

--Want to lose some fat from eating all of those bad hamburgers? Read this first. [Ask Men]

--Check out this video of young Adam Bender, the boy who plays little league with one leg. [YouTube]

--It's a sad days for Dancing with the Stars fans: Julianne Hough has called it quits, ending her Steeler-like dynasty. [Yahoo!] TV

--Twilight took in over $70 million this weekend, probably because there was no Steeler game to distract the country. [LA Times]

--Here are the 25 worst-selling #1 albums of all time. If you're wondering, the Ron Artest album doesn't qualify, since it never reached #1. [Yahoo!]

--The follow-up to Superbad has a trailer, and it looks promising. [FilmDrunk]

--Here's a list of the 10 Most Memorable Posthumous Performances. Wonder if Heath Ledger made the cut? [Yahoo! Movies]

--The child of Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz has a name: Bronx Mowgli. Seriously. [WWTDD]

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PITT IS BCS RANKED

Thanks to yet another strong performance on Saturday, the 5-1 Pitt Panthers sit at #17 in the initial BCS rankings. The Panthers are also #17 in the AP poll, up from #23 a week ago. And the hot seat gets a little cooler under Dave Wannstedt.

Someone must've spiked the Panthers' Wannstedt-flavored Kool-Aid with offensive consistency, because they were scoring often in Saturday's 42-21 romp against the Naval Academy. Pitt scored five touchdowns in the first half alone and would have probably scored six if not for a Bill Stull interception deep in Navy territory that was returned 91 yards to set up a Navy touchdown.

Shady McCoy led the way with 156 yards and three touchdowns on just 18 carries for an average of almost nine yards per carry. He's run for 447 yards and five touchdowns in his last three games. Stull threw for 255 yards, including three passes of 24 yards or more. All in all, the Panthers had five plays on 24+ yards on the afternoon. This came in front of a record Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium crowd of 37,790.

The Pitt win avenged a disappointing 48-45 double-OT loss to Navy last season. Pitt resumes play next week against 2-5 Rutgers at Heinz Field. Rutgers is coming off of a 12-10 win against UConn on Saturday. Until then, we can all debate about the decision to burn Pat Bostick's redshirt in garbage time.

THE PITT ROLLER COASTER CONTINUES

PITT (4-1) 26

10- SOUTH FLORIDA (5-1) 21

STULL 16-27, 228, 1 TD

MCCOY 28-142, 2 TD

TURNER 3-60

Well, I guess I'm happy to report that 64.3% of you were wrong in this week's poll question about who would win the Pitt-USF game last night. Of course, I couldn't blame any of you for voting that way, because as I mused last week, my feelings on Pitt seemed to change with each drive this season.

But it's sure hard to find too many complaints about what happened in Tampa last night. Sure, it wasn't a perfect game: there was a blocked punt returned for a TD, there were mental errors, there was that fake punt debacle, there was another Shady McCoy fumble...but there were a lot of positives, too. We saw the re-emergence of McCoy, who has been truly dominant in Pitt's last two upsets of top-10 teams; we saw gutsy play-calling from Matt Cavanaugh, who was being praised by the ESPN announcers throughout the game (and yes, I thought I was in Bizarro World all the while); we saw big plays from young WR Jonathan Baldwin, who was a matchup disaster for USF; we saw the continued maturation of Bill Stull, who thew for 228 yards and a touchdown; and we saw the defense step up when they needed to on numerous occasions.

So where does that leave us, as Pitt fans? Should our expectations be raised back to their preseason levels? Sure, I'll have another tall glass of my favorite drink, Wannstache Fruit Punch.

I think we can take from the first five games that Pitt's conditioning is excellent, due greatly to the presence of strength & conditioning coach Buddy Morris. They're outlasting teams in the fourth quarter, and they're finishing strong. This is not a coincidence. Last night makes three consecutive games that they've won while trailing at some point in the fourth.

Last night's game was kind of like a microcosm of Pitt's season. It starts bad (Bowling Green) and gradually gets better. Unfortunately, football fans are about as impatient as a group of people that you'll ever meet in a lifetime, and are willing to write off a season after one bad game.

Fortunately, Dave Wannstedt, his coaches, and his players don't subscribe to that theory.

Game Notes:

--Tampa Rays rookie hero Evan Longoria and his female "friend" were at the game last night, much to the enjoyment of the announcers.

--Pitt is off until October 18, when they play at Navy, followed by Rutgers at Heinz Field on the 25th.

--The Great Greg Cross Experiment netted two carries for eight yards last night. OK, it's a work in progress.

--Don't look now, but Conor Lee is becoming as consistent as Skippy Reed. Wanny has too feel very confident in his kicking game.

--Many of you probably missed at least parts of the VP debate last night due to the Pitt game, but I'm guessing Tina Fey will fill you in tomorrow night on SNL. If I may inject some opinion, that skit was really funny for the season premiere, but if they go to the well too many times, it will become about as fresh as a Najeh Davenport poop joke.

NEWS AND NOTES

Emailer Scott theorized that Cubs pitcher Jeff Samardzija was the first person to compete at both Heinz Field (as a Notre Dame WR against Pitt in 2005) and last night against the Pirates. I'm pretty sure he's right, although he should leave the two-sport picture to Bo.

On to the news...

--About that game...the Pirates lost yet again, this time by a 14-9 count. Geovany Soto had seven runs batted in for Chicago, who has the league's best record at 82-50. The Pirates stand at 57-75, still nine games out of the overall basement, currently occupied by Washington. But look on the bright side: seven more losses to make history! [Trib]

--After a 2 1/2-hour meeting, there's no resolution yet in the Steelers ownership situation. When you're talking millions, there's no easy answer. [KDKA]

--Controversial columnist/ESPN personality Jay Mariotti resigned from the Chicago Sun-Times. By the way, did you know Mariotti attended Trinity High in Washington, PA? Did you care? [The Big Lead]

--ESPN seems to have forgotten Shady McCoy on their list of Heisman Hopefuls. Hey, mistakes happen. [ESPN.com]

--Sounds like pitcher Craig Hansen was a bit unpleasant in a post-game exchange with Dejan Kovacevic. [PBC Blog]

--Looks like King Pryor is going to get some game action on Saturday against Youngstown State. [Trib]

--Here's the best and worst players this year and all-time from every NFL team. That's one ambitious blogger. [Bush League]

--Forbes ranks Pittsburgh as the 10th-worst city to be a sports fan. [Forbes.com]

--And in more depressing news, Pittsburgh residents have the fifth-lowest median household income among residents of larger cities around the country, at $32,363. [PG]

--Add Ravens QB Kyle Boller to the list of players who might miss the 2008 season. Thankfully, the Ravens have two other quarterbacks perfectly capable of taking a beating at the hands of the Steelers. [PFT]

--Here's the 9 Worst Recent Fashion Trends for Douchebags. [The Comedy Feed]

Got news? Email it to mondesishouse@gmail.com and win stuff! New contest starts tonight, and congrats to last week's winner STEVE M. who gets a Rings N'at t-shirt courtesy of www.burghshirts.com.

THE 2009 NFL MOCK DRAFT IS OUT

With the 2008 draft finishing just days ago, ESPN and Todd McShay are already at work on the 2009 version. What did I learn by reading their first mock draft?

--The Patriots will beat the Cowboys in the Super Bowl based on their projected draft positions. This will require A. Tony Romo to win a playoff game for the first time in his career and B. The Patriots to win a game without video assistance. In short, this already compromises this mock draft on a serious level.

--The Steelers will choose LSU DE Tyson Jackson with the 25th pick, meaning we can't even get the opportunity to experience another AFC Championship Game loss.

--Pitt RB Shady McCoy will join Ken Whisenhunt, Anthony Morelli, Larry Fitzgerald and about 15 other former Steelers when he's chosen 16th by the Arizona Cardinals. It was a nice career while it lasted.

--The top five picks, in order, will be Atlanta, Detroit, Kansas City, Miami, and Cincinnati, which means those teams are predicted to stink, which in reality means one of these teams will probably make the playoffs.

Defenders earn four of top five spots in first 2009 mock draft [ESPN] (and click it soon, because it's Insider and will be locked up in the not-too-distant future)

The News

--Sidney Crosby and Agnus Berenato were the big winners at the Dapper Dan awards. Where does he put all these trophies?

--Mike Tomlin has a staff member check eBay to see if any old Steelers playbooks are on sale. Does he mean like from the Chuck Noll era, or more of a Cowher vintage? Who knew he was a collector?

--Bill Mazeroski's home run was picked as the greatest moment in Pittsburgh sports history. Take that, Franco.

--Former Pitt star Tony Dorsett says LeSean McCoy is the first Panthers running back that reminds him of himself. Which means LeSean can look forward to a career of fame and riches in Dallas, Texas.

--Barack Obama promises to bring hoops to the White House. But I doubt he's planning on doing much bowling should he win the job.

--Jay-Z and Beyonce are getting married. What kind of wedding gift do you buy for the rap impresario who has it all?

--A group of third-graders planned to attack their teacher, bringing a broken steak knife, handcuffs, duct tape and other items for the job. Is this one of those schools that needs yesterday's "rock star" superintendent?

--National City bank confirms it's for sale, and hints that a deal is near. Yep, it's a great time to be in finance.

--Pitt and Duquesne are disappointed with U.S. News and World Report's law school rankings. Let's just say they're not as high as Pitt's RPI rankings.

A LIST OF TODAY'S TOP LISTS

The Most Overexposed Celebrities

10 "Greatest" Celebrity Renditions Of "Take Me Out To The Ballgame"

The 5 Most Ridiculous Lies You Were Taught In History Class

The Mosh Pitt: A Blueprint for Success

by Patrick Sehn

psehn29@yahoo.com

Welcome back to the Mosh Pitt, where we don’t have mid-season slumps.

Is the men’s basketball season is over?

I hope this group finds a way to gel and become a complete team in the waning days of the regular season, because right now they are certainly missing something. They found a way to come together in the wake of losing Levance Fields and Mike Cook in back to back games, so who’s to say Pitt can’t find a way to overcome adversity once again? I applaud Jamie Dixon and this coaching staff for finding a way to make this team competitive in a very difficult Big East, but let’s face it: the way they’re playing, Pitt won’t be a contender this March.

Turn this around, Pitt. I’ll even give you a simple blueprint on how to do it:

Step 1. Protect the defensive boards. Dejuan Blair and his 7 ft. wing span has been relatively consistent as far as rebounding goes, but it pretty much stops with him. During the last four games, including Wednesday night's win over Cincy, Pitt's been a train wreck under the basket. Players are finding themselves out of position when shots go up, often leaving opponents unchecked and open for rebounds. Pitt has not out-rebounded another team in over two weeks.

Step 2. Either limit the number of threes you take, or, well, make them. I have no idea why Sam Young leads the team in three point percentage, but he does. Something is wrong when your #3 guy is leading in that statistical department. Ronald Ramon is shooting just over 35% from behind the arc, and it’s not for a lack of open looks. Fields, Benjamin and Brown have been just shy of awful in this category as well, going 27%, 38% and 24% respectively. Shooting their way out of this slump isn’t going to work; driving and pulling up from shorter range might. Pitt needs to find a way to draw big men off the blocks and free up the front-court from the constant double teams they’re running into. Missing threes isn’t getting that done.

Step 3. Light a fire under Sam Young when the game is on the line. Granted, the Notre Dame game was probably already over when he missed that dunk and then took a blatant dive on an ensuing defensive possession, but has anyone else noticed he disappears or plays worse when the outcome is yet to be decided? As Lee’s Tunnel Vision pointed out a few weeks ago, and I have recently started to notice, Young is a very unemotional player.

Step 4. Keep the turnovers down. This is one area where Pitt hasn’t struggled, especially lately. Sam Young leads the team with 63 TOs, but he touches the ball on almost every Pitt possession. Ramon has turned the ball over less, which was inevitable with the return of Levance Fields. It’s encouraging to see these numbers stay low; they trail only WVU and DePaul in the Big East in that category.

Step 5. Did I mention the need to start making shots? The low amount of turnovers means you’re obviously getting some shots. Blair is as good as it gets under the boards, but he leads the league in offensive rebounds because he gets so many chances. That’s not necessarily a good thing.

Step 6. What happened to the defense? Marquette made Pitt’s defense look silly, Notre Dame put up over 50 points in one half and Cincy hit shots at a 48% clip. Only one time since Janurary has Pitt held an opponent to under 60 points, a number Pitt opponents reached with much less consistency over the last 7 years. Easier said than done, but step up on D.

None of this is groundbreaking, and most of it is fundamental. Find a way to make these things happen, and you’ll find you’ve got a pretty solid foundation to contend in March.

Football schedule released

The Panthers' 2008 football schedule was released this week. Some highlights:

--Pitt plays Notre Dame again this year in November. Here’s hoping that, unlike Tyler Palko, Pat Bostick can mind his manners during post game interviews when Pitt pulls off the win.

--I’ve been a proponent of NOT playing the Backyard Brawl over Thanksgiving weekend, and was happy to see them get away from doing that recently. Apparently, actually having students at the game didn’t appeal to Pitt or the Big East. What a joke.

--Finishing out the season with UConn is just as ridiculous. Why is the WVU game not that weekend?

--Everyone needs a cupcake or two at the beginning of the year, (except for Michigan. Zing.) and a good non-conference game or two, but Iowa? Really? If we’re gong to play a Big 10 team, let’s stop playing Michigan State and give the Iowa rivalry a rest and get a governor to force Penn State to play us, a la WVU/Marshall. Is that a viable way to renew the rivalry? Is JoePa old and senile enough that someone could trick him into scheduling Pitt? Why haven’t we tried this?

Head over to pittblather.com to get some more insight into this. They’re a great resource for all things Panther.

Who else can’t wait to see McCoy back in action next year?

OK, folks. I’m out of here. Send me some emails. Let me know how I’m doing. Until next time, Hail to Pitt.

I Don't Want to Say I Called It, But...

PITT (5-7) 13

WVU (10-2) 9

Mondesi's House, 11/28/07: "The PG takes a memorable look back at Pitt's 41-38, 3 OT upset of the Mountaineers in 1997. I can't wait for 2017, when the PG looks back at the 2007 Pitt upset of the national championship-bound WVU."

Mondesi's House, 11/26/07: "Other than myself and Dave Wannstedt, who else out there thinks Pitt's going to upset WVU?"

So thank you to the newly-extended Wannstache, thank you to Shady McCoy, and thank you to the Pitt Panthers. You made one of my extremely rare forays into prognostication a successful one. I'll be looking for that Paul Zeise article in '17.

Yes, some thought I was drunk at the keyboard by saying that Pitt could beat the Mountaineers. But the way this college season has gone, starting with Appalachian State and ending with the Brawl, didn't it just seem like the natural choice?

Let's face it...everything lined up for the Panthers to win this game. First of all, the line (28 points the last time I heard) was rather high, especially for a rivalry game. That was motivation factor #1 for the Fighting Staches. Second, I'm sure there was a speech along the lines of "You have a chance to shock the world tonight"...you know, for all of those fans in Bangladesh and Kazakhstan who didn't give Pitt a chance. And finally, Sir Limps a Lot got extended prior to the game, and his players surely wanted to show that the school made the right move. Plus, Pitt's bus got hit with rocks on the way to the stadium, which Shady McCoy pointed out to the team before the game by saying, "Hey, it's just like the movies."

I'd say that this was the most memorable Pitt game I've ever witnessed in my life. As far as a springboard into the offseason, there could be no better script. Momentum is fully on the Panthers' side. They just completed a compelling three-hour commercial for their program with the whole nation watching. They have an NFL-caliber tailback. They have a gaggle of injured, big-time players due back next season. And they have an extremely young team who surely believes in the system, a system now locked in through 2012.

I was on the edge of my seat the entire evening. Knowing how quick WVU's offense could strike, and knowing that Pitt was capable of giving up lots of points/yards lingered in the back of my mind until the clock hit 0:00. But it never happened. Despite the best efforts of the officials to keep the Mountaineers in the title game and the Big East in the National Championship, the Panthers somehow overcame that huge obstacle as well. They simply would not be denied.

When McCoy's touchdown came off the board and Conor Lee subsequently missed a field goal, I thought that would be the momentum-changer I feared. Wrong. When Noel Devine's long return set up the 'Eers in Pitt territory, with an emotional lift from the return of Pat White, I thought surely that would awaken West Virginia. But again I was incorrect. In fact, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Pitt's Paul Rhoads defense, which has been run over back to the days of Julius Jones and Kevin Jones, was not giving an inch. That 13-7 score kept looming/scaring me; with every bad call I envisioned this game ending up as a 14-13 heartbreaker. But that moment simply never arrived.

Pat White had 14 carries for 41 yards; Slaton totalled 11 yards on just nine carries; phenom Devine also ran for only 11 on seven carries. As a team, WVU ran 41 times for 104 yards, a whopping 2.5 yards per attempt. Were we watching an episode of The Twilight Zone? No, it was just the blueprint of Dave Wannstedt football finally coming to fruition.

Predictably, West Virginia was classless from all angles on Saturday. Starting with the rock shower of Pitt's bus and ending with Coach Rodriguez (of the Brian Billick Honorary Offensive Genius Category) blaming the loss on his team's failure to execute. No, Pitt's suffocating play had nothing to do with it. But I really enjoyed hearing Pitt's players celebrate in the background while you grasped for words at the podium. I presume no couches were harmed in the process.

To the Pitt players and to the much-maligned coaching staff, relish the attention. You deserve all of it. You've suffered through a number of embarrassing and tough moments the past few years. It's always exciting to turn the tables, especially on your arch rival.

Game notes:

--Everyone who's blaming the WVU loss on Pat White's injury...save it. Have some class and give credit where it is due, especially since White generated zero offense when he was healthy.

Pitt has played without their original starting quarterback the entire season. Heck, they're still so conservative with the kid that the run/pass ratio was 52 runs to 19 throws. But he made plays when he had to.

--Your heart had to go out to poor Oderick Turner, who was unfairly flagged not once, but twice on crucial plays. Phantom holding calls on the receiver wiped out McCoy's touchdown as well as a huge third-down conversion down the stretch. For Turner's mental health alone, it was an important win for Pitt.

--Who else enjoyed the VERY audible Dave Wannstedt saying, "That's a bulls***" call on national TV?

--Every ESPN announcer I heard, from the game to SportsCenter to their college wrapup show, was very critical of the officiating. Nice to know we're not imagining things.

--Did anyone catch Lou Holtz' motivational speech to the Panthers on ESPN earlier in the week? Was that the spark that put the Panthers over the top? Of course not, but it's always funny to see Holtz get worked up.

Links you should read:

On-field and Locker Room Celebrations [Pitt Blather]

Screenshot Happiness [Pitt Blather]

Pitt scripts one last outrageous twist to crazy '07 season (with video) [ESPN/Pat Forde]

Pitt brawls its way to victory on the strength of its defense [Post Gazette/Paul Zeise]

Pitt shatters WVU's national title hopes [Trib/Rick Starr]

The Breaking Point for Panther Fans?

From reader Brad comes this email on the state of the Pitt Panthers and their current perception among at least a portion of Panther Nation:

"Apparently Pitt students and alumni have reached some form of a breaking point with regards to the football program. With homecoming coming up this weekend, I know of a lot of kids I graduated with and are still going to school there planning on heading over to the North Shore. Here is where it gets interesting: not a single one has a ticket or any intention of getting one. That's right, people are coming back to Pittsburgh from as far as Phoenix (that I know anyway) to get drunk before 10 AM on a saturday morning with no plans to head into the game. Welcome to the Dave Wannstedt era! At least Walt Harris got them in the gate for a half before catching a bus back to Oakland to pass out. Scalpers may take even more of a hit on Pitt games than usual this weekend. (And for a frame of reference, there may be 25-35 thousand in attendance on Sat. That compares with the close-to-45 they got for the Rutgers game last year.) "

What say you, Panther fans? Have you already written off the Wannstache and his vision as a lost cause? Or does the young nucleus of Shady McCoy, Pat Bostick, et al., and the players returning from injuries give you hope for the future?

Letdown Wednesday

Wednesday was an all-around lousy night for Pittsburgh sports. That's never fun to revisit. But I'll try. And in honor of ESPN naming everything, I'll call it "Letdown Wednesday". Ramon Mondesi has been kind enough to create a logo for the occasion.

We'll start with Pitt, who is now sitting at 2-4 and facing a remaining schedule that features South Florida, WVU, Cincinnati, Rutgers, and Louisville. The only game that is potentially competitive looks to be a matchup with Syracuse on November 3.

The Panthers lost a 48-45 double-OT contest to Navy last night in front of Tony Dorsett, Curtis Martin, Roger Staubach and 30,103 others who couldn't get tickets to the Penguin game. Since the game was nationally televised, we were treated to nearly four hours of Lou Holtz, Mark May, and the obligatory Primanti's/Peppi's references. Remember, Pittsburghers only eat heaping, fatty sandwiches, and they only eat them at these two restaurants. By the way, the Heisman committee should be expecting Holtz's vote for Pat Bostick today.

It's hard to take many positives from last night's nationally-televised defeat, other than the fact that their head coach didn't have a recent road rage incident. But Joe Starkey manages to find a few in today's column, "Wannstedt hard to figure in Pitt loss":

There were at least three pieces of good news for Pitt fans:
1. Bostick (20 for 28, 191 yards, one touchdown, one interception) appears to be improving, even if Navy's pass defense has more holes than Oakmont Country Club.
2. Somebody decided to dust off junior fullback Conredge Collins (nine carries, 52 yards), whom Mel Kiper Jr. has rated as the nation's top NFL fullback prospect among juniors. Apparently, no one had informed Pitt offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh of this until last night.
3. Freshman tailback LeSean "Shady" McCoy (32 carries, 169 yards, three touchdowns) showed an ESPN television audience why he is being mentioned in the same breath with Pitt greats Tony Dorsett and Curtis Martin, both of whom attended the game at Heinz Field (they didn't have much company).

Don't take that the wrong way, though. Starkey's column was plenty negative (hence the aforementioned "Wannstedt Hard to Figure" name). As he pointed out:

And remember, Navy isn't very good.
It lost to Ball State, couldn't put away Temple until the final minute and needed a dramatic rally to beat dreadful Duke on the final play of the game.

Duke had snapped a pesky, 23-game losing streak a week earlier.

And the email has been very anti-Wannstache this morning. Among the early reactions, here's three questions/comments from a very intelligent reader:

1. Who would have thought that Walt Harris' C-plus tenure would be the high point of Pitt football in the last 15 years?

2. Jimmy Johnson could be the luckiest former coach in football history. He was able to have Norv Turner and Dave Wannstedt as coaches and still found ways to win games.

3. Wasn't Matt Cavanaugh supposed to be some "great" offensive mind? And how does Paul Rhoads still have a job? Wasn't the Rhoads to Ruin supposed to be an 'up-and-comer?"

Good points all around, but that's about all the Pitt talk I can stomach this morning. Let's talk about a team that actually has a chance to do something this year. It's the NHL's traveling, ticket-selling road show, the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Ice Bowl contestant is going to be packed up and shipped to Prague, Czech Republic, to open the 2008-09 season.

That's fantastic for all of the Czech Penguin fans out there, but it had no bearing on the 3-2 loss last night against Montreal.

Montreal goalie Carey Price played a solid 60 minutes, but the Penguins were giving the "we beat ourselves" excuse, which is never a good thing to hear. Mental mistakes, long shifts, bad penalties, and a general lack of consistency contributed to their second loss of the early season.

"We don't have the fire in our eyes like we did last year," Therrien said. "We need more desperation in our game, because we're not going to win many games with no desperation.

"It's pretty simple. We can do the pompons. We can have the fans cheering. It's got to start with these guys. Right now, I don't think we have the desperation."

Regardless of their skill level, the Penguins are still a very young team, and young teams in any sport can suffer from a lack of focus/maturity. That's called growing pains, and you can expect to see them from time to time. We'd all rather see them sitting at 3-0 or 2-1, but let's not hit the panic button and fire up "firemicheltherrien.com" just yet. Things will get better for the Penguins. That's more than a Pitt fan can say today.

Pitt Wins in Hoops and Recruiting, Anna Benson vs. PETA

--Big win for the Pitt Panthers in West Virginny on Wednesday night. Pitt is 21-3 with seven games left on the slate.

--The Wannstache has another top-25 recruiting class coming to Pitt. Just a few of the MANY highlights of the incoming freshmen:

-RB LeSean McCoy (who we have all come to know), 5'11"/204, 4.4 40 time, former Miami commit who spent a year at prep school

-QB Pat Bostick (#5 rated QB), 6"3"/220

-DT Tommie Duhart, 6"2"/275, chose Pitt over Florida and Kansas State

-OL Chris Jacobson, 6"3"/284, 9th rated OL, chose Pitt over PSU and WVU

-DE Tony Tucker, 6'2"/225, 10th rated DE, chose Pitt over 5 ACC schools

-DE Jabaal Sheard, 6'4"/240, chose Pitt over Miami, Auburn, Rutgers

-FB Henry Hynoski, 6'/234, 7th ranked FB, chose Pitt over Ohio State, Iowa, Rutgers

-WR Aundre Wright, 5'11/185, 4.4 40 time, chose Pitt over WVU

-WR Maurice Williams, 6'/184, 4.47 40 time, chose Pitt over PSU, WVU, Michigan State

-LB Brandon Lindsey, 6'2"/220, chose Pitt over Ohio State, WVU, Boston College

-RB Greg Williams, 6'2"/205, chose Pitt over WVU, Nebraska, Minnesota

-OL Dan Matha, 6'6"/311, chose Pitt over WVU, Michigan State, Maryland

-CB Sherod Murdock, 5'11"/165, chose Pitt over Alabama, South Carolina

-RB Sharif Harris, 6'1"/190, 4.4 40, chose Pitt over WVU, Rutgers, Maryland

Well done, Wanny. Well done.

--Pitt had a great class, but ESPN says that USC pulled in the top three players in the country. They can live together in Reggie Bush's house.

--Don Banks thinks that Norv Turner will be the next Cowboy coach. Hopefully Tony Romo won't drop any snaps under his regime.

--Everyone's favorite former Pirate wife, Anna Benson, goes to war with PETA. She's the anti-Pam Anderson.

--Who knew that Harold Reynolds had a contract worth nearly $5 million with ESPN?

--Everyone's favorite wrist-slapper, the ESPN Ombudsman, is back with thoughts on black coaches and MJ's kids

--If the NBA Draft were to go down today, Aaron Gray would be the successor to Shaq in Miami. Of course, this was the same site that said Chris Taft would be drafted #2 overall in 2005, so take the prediction for what it's worth.

--Keeping with mock drafts, this NFL mock draft says the Steelers will take Florida DE Jarvis Moss at #15. Let's hope he turns out better than the last Florida Gator the Steelers snagged in round one.