Pittsburgh Panthers Coach Dave Wannstedt has had a rather up and down college football season so far. His Pitt team has looked pretty mediocre; due to a lot of injuries to key guys, but they still have future NFL talent aplenty, especially at the skill positions.
This gives them an advantage in the Big East Conference race, a derby that is pretty wide open because the BE isn’t exactly the strongest at this point.
Leading the way for the Panthers on offense is junior wide receiver Jon Baldwin and sophomore tailback Dion Lewis. I spoke with both following Pitt’s loss at Notre Dame.
By Paul M. Banks
Baldwin, is a tall, big, ultra-quick receiver who has cracked the top 15 on Pitt’s all-time receiving list. That list includes big names like Antonio Bryant and Larry Fitzgerald, the man ex-Minnesota Golden Gophers Head Coach Tim Brewster dedicated half of his long rambling Big Ten Media Days opening statement to, for some reason.
When you inspire someone like that, who coaches at a different program in a different conference than your own, you’re pretty good. And Baldwin is good enough to pass him (and all other Pitt receivers) if he optimizes his remaining year and a half of eligibility.
“It always feels good to catch the ball and we’re going to keep making strides,” Baldwin said about his development.
Baldwin had another big 100 yard receiving day at Notre Dame, but the Panthers still lost. And it’s wins, not stats that are a big deal in his world.
“That’s not even really a concern because we lost the game,” he said.
Last season Dion Lewis ran for the fourth most yardage all-time by a freshman, accruing almost 1,800 yards and 17 TDs. He shattered Pitt’s freshman rushing record set by the legendary Tony Dorsett in 1973. Lewis is already in the top ten in Pitt history in rushing, and he’s eying some of LeSean McCoy’s record this season. The only Pitt player to ever run for more yards than Lewis in a season was Dorsett, in his Heisman winning campaign on 1976.
“Just got to keep moving, stay focused, stay hungry,” that’s Lewis says has been the key to his success in his brief college career.
But the Pitt offense needs to be revved up, they need to overcome their red zone inefficiencies.
“Gotta finish, and get a sense of urgency to want touchdowns and not to settle for anything else,” Lewis said.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net , a Midwest webzine. He is also a regular contributor to the Chicago Tribune’s Chicago Now network, Walter Football.com, the Washington Times Communities, Yardbarker Network, and Fox Sports.com
You can follow him on Twitter @thesportsbank