Pitt is potent
Similiar to Michigan State, the Pitt Panthers are anxious to make a statement on the national stage. Last season they went 5-6 including a loss to a MAC team. So far they’re 2-0 and if they get past MSU, they have the always cushy Big East left between them and a bowl game.
Joe Rexrode of the Lansing State Journal reports that Dave Wannstedt’s 2006 recruiting class has added speed and athleticism to the Panthers team. It was rated the top class in the Big East and the #11 class in the nation according to some services.
Don’t forget, before last season’s struggles under first-year coach Dave Wannstedt, Pitt averaged eight wins, went to five straight bowl games and saw 14 players drafted by the NFL from 2000 to 2004.
Factor in Wannstedt’s celebrated 2006 recruiting class and you have some serious material. This team has been, is and will be talented.
“Athletes - lots of athletes,” MSU bandit SirDarean Adams said when asked for a brief assessment of Pitt (2-0), which hosts MSU (2-0) on Saturday.
Or, as MSU coach John L. Smith likes to say, “real guys.”
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In this week’s scouting report from MSU’s two coordinators, offensive coordinator Dave Baldwin also seems impressed by Pitt’s speed on the defensive side of the ball.
What impresses you the most when you watch Pitt’s defense on film?
“I’m impressed with Pitt’s overall team speed. I think they run well at every position, and they all run to the ball. The defensive ends are fast, and the linebackers run extremely well. One of the linebackers played in the secondary last year. They’re taking guys and moving them down because of speed, not because they’re huge or big, but because they run really well.”