Pitt puts on pads, produces two long scoring plays in spring drillsVideo
Real football returned to the South Side on Friday. On the third day of Pitt’s spring drills, the team strapped on pads and started hitting each other on the indoor practice field at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. The team also lined up in regular offensive and defensive formations and...
Pitt women’s ACC tourney run ends in 2nd round with loss to Georgia TechVideo
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Francesca Pan scored 12 of her 26 points in the fourth quarter, and seventh-seeded Georgia Tech pulled away from 15th-seeded Pitt on Thursday night for a 68-58 win in the second round of the ACC tournament. Dayshanette Harris scored 21 points for Pitt (5-26), which was coming...
U mad, bro? Readers blast Big Ben, Bud, Benz. Jeff Capel and the NFL, too.
It may be March. But it’s a football-heavy “U mad, bro?” this week. Readers throw elbows at Ben Roethlisberger and his… well… throwing elbow. I take one in the chops, too, for questioning how well Roethlisberger’s recovery will go. Bud Dupree, Jeff Capel and the entire NFL machine get roasted...
Pitt stretches losing streak to 7 with defeat vs. Georgia Tech
ATLANTA — Jose Alvarado scored 23 points, Michael Devoe added 13 and Georgia Tech won its third straight game with a 73-57 victory over Pitt on Wednesday night. Eric Hamilton finished with 12 points to pace Pitt (15-16, 6-14 ACC). Xavier Johnson connected from 3, and Hamilton hit two free...
Pitt women’s basketball upsets Notre Dame in ACC TournamentVideo
Lance White’s second season as Pitt’s women’s basketball coach has been a tough one. Junior guard Kyla Nelson missed all but four games because of a bout with cancer, and the Panthers suffered through a 1-17 mark in the ACC (4-25 overall). The team had something to celebrate Wednesday. Dayshanette...
New Castle native Lorri Johnson, leading scorer in Pitt basketball history, dies
Lorri Johnson, who scored more points than any male or female basketball player in Pitt history, has died, the school confirmed. She was 51. Johnson scored 2,312 points (20.5 per game) and recorded 908 rebounds while playing in 113 games from 1987-1991. Kirk Bruce, who was Johnson’s coach at Pitt,...
Pitt’s Narduzzi rips NCAA transfer portal, hopes players use it properlyVideo
Pat Narduzzi again raised objections to the NCAA transfer portal Wednesday after the second day of Pitt’s spring drills. On Monday, he said, “The portal’s a bad thing, in my opinion, as far as how people are using it. Kids need to have their options, but you hope the options...
Pitt’s Tre Tipton granted 6th year of eligibilityVideo
When Tre Tipton came to Pat Narduzzi to talk about playing a sixth season at wide receiver, Pitt’s coach was honest about the future. “We had long talks,” Narduzzi said. “I just told him when you become 40 years old, and you can’t kneel down to play with the kids,...
Pitt, Georgia Tech trending in opposite directions
Even on the day Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner’s program withdrew its appeal of NCAA penalties that assured it won’t be playing beyond this week, he was in a gregarious mood Monday. During the final weekly ACC coaches conference call of the season, Pastner cracked jokes, complimented inquiring reporters and...
3 Pitt wrestlers earn No. 1 seeds for ACC Tournament
Pitt wrestlers Micky Phillippi (133 pounds), Gregg Harvey (174) and Demetrius Thomas (285) are seeded No. 1 in their weight classes for the ACC Wrestling Championships that begin at 11 a.m. Sunday at Petersen Events Center. This season marks the first time since 2015 that three Pitt wrestlers earned top...
Jeff Capel, other ACC coaches defend conference from detractors
Via the RPI or the NET, the ACC’s ranking among conferences is sixth. Only four of its teams are projected to earn NCAA Tournament berths. By most measures, it is a down year for the ACC, but several conference coaches are coming to the league’s defense in emphatic fashion. “It’s...
Former Pitt tight ends Grant Carrigan, Jason Collier improve depth on offensive line
Pitt bolstered its numbers on the offensive line on the first day of spring drills Monday when two growing men, Grant Carrigan and Jason Collier, shifted from tight end. “Grant came to me (about making the shift),” coach Pat Narduzzi said. “It was like, `Hey, I’m a blocking tight end....
Pitt’s Kenny Pickett approaches senior season with confidence
His eyes never dropped. His chin remained elevated. His words were direct and confident. If Kenny Pickett is feeling pressure as he approaches the last of his three seasons as Pitt’s starting quarterback, he wasn’t showing it Monday after the first day of spring drills. With seven starters returning on...
Kevin Gorman: Pitt safeties Paris Ford, Damar Hamlin return to finish businessVideo
Paris Ford and Damar Hamlin left their television on the NFL Network all week, watching the scouting combine without wondering whether they should have been in Indianapolis. It’s no coincidence Pitt’s starting safeties bypassed the opportunity to turn pro, so Ford and Hamlin were all smiles Monday that they are...
Pitt finds ‘winning is hard’ as it heads into regular-season finale on 6-game skid
Before he fielded a question Monday during the final weekly ACC men’s basketball coaches teleconference of the season, Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner praised Pitt’s effort and energy level. “I’m a big fan of Pitt’s team,” said Pastner, whose Yellow Jackets host the Panthers on Wednesday for Pitt’s regular-season finale....
It’s still winter, but Pat Narduzzi opens spring drills at PittVideo
Three weeks before the end of winter, Pat Narduzzi opened spring drills Monday morning at Pitt, only 67 days after the last game of 2019. With the outdoor fields on the South Side still wet from winter, drills were held at the indoor facility at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex....
Pitt drops 6th straight in loss to N.C. State
RALEIGH, N.C. — Facing the prospect of a loss that would severely damage its NCAA Tournament hopes, N.C. State tightened up its defense late and got a big scoring boost from reserve forward Jericole Hellems to bounce back for a 77-73 win over Pitt on Saturday. Coach Kevin Keatts admitted...
Pitt’s Pat Narduzzi tries to put puzzle together as spring practice opensVideo
When Pat Narduzzi stands in front of his team Monday for the first of 15 spring practice sessions, he won’t let anyone see it, nor will he readily acknowledge what everyone is thinking. Yet, the heavy weight of expectations will be on his shoulders. He has won 36 games, a...
Pitt seeks reversal of fortune after another 2-8 slump
Pitt’s current stretch of two victories in its past 10 games is all too familiar to players, fans, even coach Jeff Capel. The Panthers have had 2-8 stretches in four consecutive seasons — every year since former coach Jamie Dixon left for TCU in 2016. In the 2016-2017 season, Pitt...
Blueberry pancakes, dedication keys to success for No. 8 Pitt wrestling
Micky Phillippi and Nino Bonaccorsi have followed a strict regimen while helping Pitt ascend to No. 8 in the national wrestling rankings: • Focus at practice for the entire two hours; • Get to bed by 9 p.m., asleep by 10. • And don’t forget Phillippi’s blueberry pancakes for breakfast....
Tim Benz: Championship coaches encourage Pitt’s Jeff Capel to stay the course
Can you blame him for being frustrated? Five straight losses. By blowouts. By nail biters. Down to 6-12 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. Pitt basketball coach Jeff Capel was decidedly frustrated after his team’s 72-49 loss to Syracuse at home Wednesday night. “We have guys who are taking playing here...
U mad, bro? Readers vent about Penguins trades, Pitt coverage, potential Antonio Brown return
This week’s “U mad, bro?” is really rough on Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford. It’s also unkind to former Steeler Antonio Brown. And I didn’t come off very well either. John emailed me about the Penguins trades in recent weeks. He’s not thrilled with general manager Jim Rutherford dealing Dominik...
Pitt walk-on Anthony Starzynski enjoys his spotlight moment
Anthony Starzynski won four letters at Baldwin, scoring an average of 10, 15 and 21 points during his sophomore, junior and senior seasons. But in three seasons as a walk-on at Pitt, he’s played 41 minutes in bits of 17 games, scoring five baskets (all 3-pointers). And he’s OK with...
Pitt coach Jeff Capel questions team’s effort after lopsided loss to SyracuseVideo
No one should be surprised when the basketball doesn’t go through the net after a Pitt player attempts a shot. Many of them are not natural scorers. And, sometimes, their instincts backfire, and the ball deflects out of bounds or into the hands of an opponent. It happens to the...
First Call: Steelers talk with WR; Le’Veon Bell staying with Jets?; Zamboni goalie honoredVideo
Wednesday’s “First Call” is packed. The Steelers talked with a high-profile wide receiver at the NFL Scouting Combine. A radio host in Cleveland got suspended for ripping Baker Mayfield. “Zamboni Goalie” David Ayers was honored in Carolina. Le’Veon Bell may be staying in New York after all. And all of...
