How Pitt tight ends coach Tim Salem deals with players who drop passes
Tim Salem has been around football for most of his 58 years.
Pitt’s tight ends coach played quarterback at a high level as a prep star at St. Thomas Academy in Minneapolis. At Minnesota in 1980, he set the Big Ten record for consecutive completions.
He also is the son of a coach and has been a college assistant every year since 1985.
It makes sense, then, that he knows a little something about handling young men.
So when he sees his tight ends dropping passes — as they have tended to do occasionally this season — he immediately does something about it.
He ignores it.
He still pushes regulars Nakia Griffin-Stewart and Will Gragg at practice.
“We catch a lot of balls,” he said.
But he doesn’t emphasize the drops as much as reporters did with Salem on Tuesday.
“If I start making an issue of it, you start writing in the newspaper. The kids start reading it. I got a problem,” said Salem, whose high energy level has earned him the neickname “Turbo.”
“Now, we’re talking negative. You’re thinking negative. I’m thinking negative. You’re writing negative. That kid’s reading negative. Negative. That’s the way it is in life.
“How about some damn compliments and positive stuff and just build on that and everything else feels good? That’s how I’m looking at it.
“If I start making it a problem, it is a problem.”
If it sounds like he is not concerned with the drops, that’s the wrong impression.
“Whether you drop one pass, two passes or 100 passes, you can’t let plays get away from you,” he said. “That’s just so many yards you could have gained.”
While Pitt is hoping to rebound from the Miami loss, Salem is trying to do what he can to ensure no one walks around with his head down.
“I would say since a couple weeks ago — through our head coach right on down — it’s very positive, very full-speed, let’s stay focused on the moment,” he said. “Something screws up, just keep going.
“We went to practice (Tuesday), and there was a lot of juice and energy, which is nice. Coaching is fun. So good. We’ll get it figured out.”
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Jerry DiPaola is a TribLive reporter covering Pitt athletics since 2011. A Pittsburgh native, he joined the Trib in 1993, first as a copy editor and page designer in the sports department and later as the Pittsburgh Steelers reporter from 1994-2004. He can be reached at jdipaola@triblive.com.
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