Spring Football: Pitt

Pitt fans congregated for the first time in Pittsburgh since the 13-9 defeat of WVU last December, which was like the Super Bowl, BCS Championship, Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny all wrapped up into one. This year’s game was held at Heinz Field, as opposed to, say, a high school stadium in Monroeville. Using the same bizarre scoring system employed by WVU and Louisville, Pitt’s offense defeated the defense by a 60-25 margin.

Pitt is a sexy pick in the Big East and even a top ten or fifteen finish. I think a bowl game appearance would be a nice first step for the Panthers. Pitt’s defensive coordinator, Paul Rhoads, left for Auburn, but with seven starters back on defense nobody seems to be at all concerned. All the spring hype was around the offense and returning QB Bill Stull, who seems to have won the starting job for the time-being over Pat Bostick, who started the lion’s share of games last season as a true freshman. Certainly most of the focus in the Pittsburgh papers is on the offense, the QB battle, and question marks on the OL, with nary a mention of the defense.

Fortunately, we get some very nice analysis and tempered enthusiasm from both Panther Prowl and Pitt Blather.

Attendance for Pitt’s Blue-Gold Game: 7,549 plus a television audience for those lucky enough to subscribe to NFL Network.

Tags: Bill Stull, offense, Pat Bostick, Pitt, spring football