WANNSTEDT’S BIGGEST GAME?
Pitt fans and local football fans who wouldn’t necessarily refer to themselves as Pitt fans yet tend to have short memories.
They don’t realize that it was not that long ago–before Walt Harris resurrected the program–when there was actually serious discussion about Pitt joining the MAC or some other lesser conference.
There may not have been any serious discussion about that coming from the athletic department or the chancellor’s office but there were lots of people in town who thought it was time for Pitt to just give up on the idea of maintaining a big time football program.
Harris was run out of town unfairly and the fans haven’t had a lot of patience for Dave Wannstedt.
His teams have lost a few games that they should have won, but he has the Pitt program in the best shape that it has been in since Foge Fazio left in the early ’80s.
I think tonight is Wannstedt’s biggest game since taking over as head coach.
That doesn’t necessarily make it a must win because winning the Big East is still the most important thing, but this is the year when Pitt is supposed to establish itself as a legitimate top 10 team.
Not top 20.
Not top 25. Top 10.
And a loss tonight will stir up all the critics and change the entire dynamic of the season.
It’s the toughest opener Pitt has had in a long, long time and it won’t be easy and Pitt is the underdog, but it’s time for a Wannstedt team to show that it has become what he promised it would become.
By the way, it occured to me the other day that I have never heard anybody say a bad word about Dave Wannstedt the person. Not one.
I’ve never heard a complaint from anybody in the media who felt he or she was mistreated and I’ve never heard stories about unhappy assistants.
That doesn’t mean that there aren’t some negative stories out there, but the fact that I’ve yet to hear one tells me what a solid guy he is.
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Date: September 2, 2010
Categories: Uncategorized