Pitt tandem choose wrestling over basketball, become championsVideo
When he was 14 at McCluer High School in Florissant, Mo., Pitt wrestler Demetrius Thomas thought he wanted to play basketball. Lucky for him, two McCluer coaches conspired to make sure that didn’t happen. Years earlier, Micky Phillippi — just like any 6-year-old would do — dutifully followed his father...
Pitt will open 2019-20 ACC schedule Nov. 6 against Florida State at the Pete
The ACC’s move from an 18- to a 20-game conference schedule means games that matter most occur sooner next season, and that includes Pitt’s 2019-2020 opener Nov. 6 against Florida State at Petersen Events Center. The date is nearly two months earlier than the opening to the 2019 conference schedule...
Dick Groat’s hunch about Jeff Capel comes true for Pitt
When Duke visited the Petersen Events Center last year to play Pitt, Jeff Capel couldn’t wait to get there. Then a Duke assistant and now the head coach at Pitt, Capel carried with him a bag of Duke gear he wanted to give to Dick Groat, one of the greatest...
Pitt hires new marketing firm for its 19 sports
In a move intended to help grow Pitt’s brand among its 19 sports in terms of what matters in big-time college athletics — corporate sponsorships and multimedia rights — the university’s athletic department signed a long-term deal Thursday with JMI Sports, a collegiate marketing firm. The new agreement is set...
Pitt basketball gets its 3rd verbal commitment
There’s an empty spot on the wall in Edwin Gonzalez’s office at Bishop Loughlin High School in Brooklyn, N.Y. Next to it is a photo of former Pitt guard Ronald Ramon. If Gonzalez has his way, Justin Champagnie, the most recent member of Pitt’s 2019 recruiting class, will be joining...
Pitt has no answer for Buddy Boeheim in ACC Tournament loss to Syracuse
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Buddy Boeheim had a career-high 20 points, and Syracuse defeated Pitt, 73-59, on Wednesday night in the second round of the ACC Tournament despite playing without leading scorer Tyus Battle. Elijah Hughes and Frank Howard scored 18 points each for the Orange, who will face No. 5...
In 40th and final year, Dick Groat reflects on broadcasting Pitt basketball
When Dick Groat got the news not long ago that this will be his last season offering analysis of Pitt basketball games on the radio, he didn’t immediately think about what he was losing. His thoughts first turned to his broadcast partner of 40 years, Bill Hillgrove. The two comprise...
Why Pitt’s 36-21 halftime lead in ACC Tournament win brought back memories
Did anyone notice the halftime score Tuesday night when Pitt defeated Boston College, 80-70, in the first round of the ACC Tournament? Boston College scored the first seven points of the game, but Pitt was dominant for the remainder of the first half and went to the locker room at...
Freshman duo combines for 49 points as Pitt tops Boston College in ACC tourney
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Pitt coach Jeff Capel gave his freshman backcourt simple instructions Tuesday night: Attack the hole. The strategy worked as Trey McGowens scored 26 points, Xavier Johnson added 23 and the Panthers defeated Boston College, 80-70, in the first round of the ACC Tournament. Pitt faces Syracuse on...
Boston College staggers into ACC Tournament date with Pitt
Pitt players, coaches and fans won’t offer Boston College sympathy, but perhaps there’s another team in worse shape than the Panthers heading into the first round of the ACC Tournament. Pitt already shoved Notre Dame into last place with a 56-53 victory Saturday at Petersen Events Center. Next up is...
3 reasons Pitt might be fun to watch in ACC Tournament
The ACC is loaded with talented teams, with five of them ranked among the top 15 in the Associated Press poll and three — Virginia, North Carolina and Duke — legit Final Four hopefuls. Guess what? Pitt won’t meet any of those five if it’s fortunate enough to play two...
Kevin Gorman: Pitt’s Jared Wilson-Frame puts punctuation on final game at PeteVideo
Jeff Capel wanted Pitt to punctuate its ACC regular-season finale by stopping its 13-game losing streak, and the first-year coach likened it to putting a period at the end of a paragraph. For Jared Wilson-Frame, it was an exclamation point. The Pitt senior got to walk off the floor at...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Pitt snaps losing streak by beating Notre Dame in home finale
Pitt needed a victory against Notre Dame on Saturday at Petersen Events Center, not just because it was the final home game for three seniors. The Panthers needed a big win so they wouldn’t be the biggest losers. A loss would have secured back-to-back 20-loss seasons for the first time...
Freshman Trey McGowens snaps slump; Pitt beats Notre Dame to end skid
Jeff Capel had several reasons to smile Saturday. The final score, obviously, felt good for Pitt’s first-year coach. Pitt stopped a 13-game, nearly two-month losing streak with a 56-53 victory against Notre Dame at Petersen Events Center, escaping last place in the ACC. Now, the Panthers (13-18, 3-15) enter the...
Pitt’s Rashad Weaver motivated by 9-year-old cancer survivorVideo
Rashad Weaver didn’t have a long speech prepared Friday for his Pitt teammates before the second day of spring drills. He only wanted a few seconds of their time. But, to him, what he had to say mattered as much as anything he’ll do this season. Weaver, a rising junior...
Pitt’s Jared Wilson-Frame wouldn’t mind turning back time
Many seniors who reach the end of their careers might wistfully ponder what it would be like to play one more season in college. Don’t include Pitt’s Jared Wilson-Frame in that group. He’s actually thinking bigger than that. He would gladly turn back the calendar and re-live all four of...
Pitt’s hope for Notre Dame game: Escape last place in the ACC
Pitt is on its way to a third consecutive losing season for the first time since 2000, but there is still an important matter to resolve Saturday. The Panthers (12-18, 2-15) can escape last place in the ACC by defeating Notre Dame (13-17, 3-14) at Petersen Events Center. A victory...
Former Pitt kicker Chris Blewitt joins Bears
Chris Blewitt, who is Pitt’s all-time leader in kicking points with 363, signed a free-agent contract with the Chicago Bears on Wednesday. He will compete for the job vacated when the Bears released Cody Parkey, who missed eight attempts last season, including a 43-yarder that bounced off the left upright...
Change coming to Pitt offense, but Pat Narduzzi keeps details to himselfVideo
Kenny Pickett calls it an offense with “different wrinkles.” “That’s really all I’ll say. You’ll see,” Pitt’s rising junior quarterback said Wednesday at the end of the first day of spring football drills. Pat Narduzzi was equally secretive. “You’ll see it in the spring game,” the coach said of changes...
Pitt’s Paris Ford growing up, finding comfort level at safety
At another time, in another venue, perhaps when the weather’s warmer, Pat Narduzzi will worry about Paris Ford’s interception total, pass breakups and sacks off a safety blitz. But on the first day of spring drills Wednesday on the South Side, Pitt’s coach was more interested in the two extra...
Frigid temperatures chase Pitt inside for start of spring drillsVideo
Temperatures were in the teens and the last game of 2018 was only about two months ago, but football season began Wednesday morning on the South Side with the first day of Pitt’s spring drills. The 88-man team moved inside, of course, where players went through basic drills, many without...
Pitt loses 13th straight, assured of being alone in last place in ACC
CORAL GABLES, Fla. — After the best game of his career, Miami Hurricanes senior Anthony Lawrence said the moment he will remember most occurred during pregame introductions. “Walking out with my parents, I’m not that emotional, and I wasn’t about to cry but I felt it,” he said. Instead of...
Pitt’s Pat Narduzzi starts over with his players in 5th spring
From the day he stood up at his first news conference, rocking back and forth with nervous energy while laying out his plan for Pitt football, Pat Narduzzi has left his imprint on the program. Players, assistant coaches and staff members from the equipment room to the recruiting office have...
Pitt wrestler Micky Phillippi gets top seed at 133 pounds in ACC Tournament
Pitt redshirt freshman Micky Phillippi (Derry) will be the No. 1 seed at 133 pounds at the ACC Wrestling Championship on Saturday in Blacksburg, Va. Phillippi follows former Pitt wrestler Dom Forys, who also held the top seed at 133 in 2017 and 2018. Ranked No. 5 in the nation...
NCAA announces allocation list for wrestling nationals
The NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship is less than three weeks away the allocations for each league were recently released. Pitt is hosting to the 2019 tournament March 21-23 at PPG Paints Arena. There will be two sessions each day as 330 college wrestlers will come to the city looking...
