Pat Narduzzi.
- Thread starter zwick99
- Start date
I thought Narduzzi was an outstanding hire. But why would he leave Pitt right now? Pitt has pretty decent recruiting grounds (Pennsylvania, close to Ohio, they can go to Jersey easier than most, and they are close to Maryland and even Virginia).
Unless he just doesn't like it, I don't think he is jumping to come here. Plus for all the good things about him, he really hasn't spent any time in the South.
Unless he just doesn't like it, I don't think he is jumping to come here. Plus for all the good things about him, he really hasn't spent any time in the South.
No. Pitt does not have decent recruiting grounds. OSU pretty much gets everyone to the west and PSU gets everyone to the East. Have you seen Pitt's recruiting rankings? They are fighting it out with Akron and Toledo.
The last coach, Paul Chryst could not even sign his own nephew.
Welp you look like an idiot now. Narduzzi just got a TE 5* transfer from UCLA named Chris Clark (Conn.), PITT grabbed Safety 4* Paris ford over (OSU + ND & PSU), PITT is the leading team for CB 5* Lamont Wade and CB 4* Damar Hamlin.....part of the 412Crew.
There is no doubt that Narduzzi can coach and obviously recruit. If they finish 10-3 (with a bowl win) - it's game one. You fightin' chicken get pounded each year by Clemson and you're luck you don't play PITT.
I lived in Pittsburgh for over 25 years and went to many Pitt games so I know a little about Pitt. First, Narduzzi is a very good coach and should have competitive teams in the ACC so I doubt he is looking to leave. However, Pitt has second-rate facilities to virtually any SEC program, including South Carolina so I expect he would certainly take the call if USC were interested. Pitt plays in the Steeler's stadium for a fan base that rarely exceeds 45,000 fans. Pittsburgh is a pro football town and Pitt football is never going to change that, even in the years when Pitt was winning or playing for national championships. In the last USA Today article I remember seeing about college sport revenues USC took in some $25 million per year more than Pitt and that number will only increase as our new SEC Network hits its stride.
Finally, Clemson has beaten us once in the last six years so you obviously know nothing about that rivalry. They will probably kill us this year, but hey, we beat UNC, something the mighty Panthers weren't able to do. Not looking to start a fight my friend. I truly love Pittsburgh and the people of Western PA, but you are wrong about the attractiveness of the USC job and the fertile recruiting territory where we are located. To be honest with you, the ACC has ruined most of the football teams that joined its league. The Big East was a football powerhouse back in the day when Pitt, BC, VA Tech, Syracuse and Miami were all strong programs. And Louisville was much better before it joined the ACC.
His salary at Pitt is 2 million. Offer him 4 million. What would you do?
Many of the points you identify are so true, and very difficult to overcome in this city. PITT is a third class program (behind Steelers, Penguins, and Pirates). With that said, many of the players on this current team frequently remark on the huge advantage of working out with pro's in a pro-style facility. Secondly, Narduzzi turned down many jobs because those Universities would not make the required investments for his program. All except one. PITT fired then AD Steve Pedersen, replaced him with new AD Scott Barnes. Then showing the highest commitment by replacing chancellor Mark Nordenberg with new chancellor Pat Gallagher. Immediately on the dawn of those university admin changes PITT begins the transformation for Narduzzi. http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2015/08/18/pitt-football-unveils-new-upgraded-facilities/
As season ticket holders we are not worried for any near future coaching changes as the plan is in place. Next year Narduzzi expects "booster" support to push from 2M to 3M in gross salary. I lived in Fort Mill for many years (above Rock Hill - near Carowinds), and it's so easy to be a college football nut is the south. . . .because you got nothing else to do. The weather is always warm and dry, there is no competition against any other professional sports and the SEC brainwashes its listeners. Hell they only won 7 out of 12 bowl games last year. PITT has it tough - no doubt. But rebuilding this program is not going to be easy. I mean in typical fashion you take a cheap shot at UNC beating us, but you never mention that the fightin' chicken lost to . . . .The Citadel? really?? Wow!
PITT has three losses. The combined records of the three losses are 31-2. Those teams are currently ranked 3, 4, and 11. You seriously can't call those bad losses (considering we lost 3 studs before the season even began). You do know that PITT has 9 National Championships right?
Now for your mental breakdown about where you "think" your team stands:
Alabama 850-325-43 .716 (24) 15
Tennessee 811-367-54 .680 (13) 6
LSU 762-401-47 .649 (11) 3
Georgia 778-410-54 .648 (12) 2
Auburn 742-421-47 .633 (8) 2
Florida 699-401-40 .631 (8) 3
Texas A&M 710-461-48 .602 (0) 3
Arkansas 692-479-40-.588 (0) 1
Mississippi 645-501-35 .561 (6) 3
Missouri 663-534-53 .552 (0) 0
South Carolina 584-552-44 .514 (0) 0
Vanderbilt 585-591-50 .498 (0) 0
Kentucky 588-598-44 .496 (2) 0
Miss. State 532-558-39 .488 (1) 0
This reds: All time wins - losses - ties - win percentage - conference titles - and "claimed national championships.
Your beloved USC chickens rank 11th out of 14.
Zero national championships.
Zero conference championships.
And this is a more prized program than PITT as of right now?? We can agree to disagree on that - but please also now this. All (most) of the SEC supporters "claim" to have the best of the best, but do you know which NCAA 1A college football conference had the most number 1 draft picks in the NFL 2015 draft? ((wink wink...hint hint))....it ain't the ole SEC.
Narduzzi would be better off waiting for one of the top 10 SEC schools before going to number 11 - wouldn't you agree.
I appreciate you taking the high road and not making waves, but let me ask you a question.
With absolutely zero conference championships, and absolutely zero national championships and ranking 11th in your own conference with only three worse teams in the SEC. . . .is the fact that you can sell out a game what makes you believe South Carolina is "so appealing"? I mean the harsh reality of current state of you team - has too at a minimum present some common sense right? I really do appreciate you banter back and fourth - have a great holiday season.
Wow. I hardly know where to begin, but I will start with you trying to put words in my mouth. I am not suggesting that USC has a better football tradition than Pitt. I am well aware of your national championships, even if none of them were undisputed and most happened more than 80 years ago. Nevertheless, USC has none and that speaks for itself.
The issue was where is the better job today, not 1976 - 81, the last time Pitt was relevent as a football power. Despite the fact that you think "we have nothing to do" down here, there is a reason we pack our stadium and Pitt doesn't. We generally play teams that people are interested in watching, and that have strong programs and traditions that rival Pitt at every turn. Let's look at modern history. Since 2000 USC has finished in the Top 25 six times. In 2011, 2012 and 2013 USC won 11 games each year and finished the year ranked no. 9, 8 and 4, respectively, in the country. On the other hand since 2000 Pitt has finished in the Top 25 only twice and their highest rank was no.15 in 2009. USC has clearly been a better program than Pitt since 2000, and we did it playing against SEC competition in the undisputed toughest football conference, not against Big East and ACC teams. Now the last two years Carolina has stunk up the place. We own it and have taken steps to bring this program back to where it has been. Rest assured, USC will not be calling Narduzzi to be our next head coach, but considering that he made $2 million last year and we are ready to offer our next coach $5 million, I think he might take that phone call, don't you?
You are correct that I didn't mention the Citadel loss, but only because it really didn't surprise me. It's a fact the Citadel beat our asses. They are having a great season and their kids, being military, have a sense of mission and duty and played one heck of a game. My team this year has been poorly coached, does not show a lot of heart and it is obvious that we haven't recruited well the last few years, or at least we were poor at player evaluation. But even as bad as we are, a team that lost to the Citadel as you so joyously pointed out, we were still strong enough to beat UNC, one of the mighty ACC's division champions, and a team ranked in the Top 15 in the country. Now let's discuss Pitt's record this year. As you correctly stated the teams that beat Pitt are all currently ranked and have a combined record of 31-2. All that means is you have lost to every good team you have played, whereas USC has actually beaten a Top 15 team this year. That being said, let's look at your 8 wins. Those teams have combined records of 38-50, and none has a record better than 6-5 or is ranked in the Top 25. The mighty Panthers have beaten a bunch of weak sisters this year. Good for you. Playing in the ACC you will get a chance to play weak sisters almost every week. USC doesn't get to do that too often, and yet our won-loss record since 2000 is considerably better than Pitt's despite playing in a much tougher conference. I have a good friend who is a Pitt season ticket holder and we go back and forth about the strength of ACC football teams vs. SEC teams, and this year the SEC is down across the board, except for Alabama. But here is one undeniable fact. A one loss, and perhaps a two loss, SEC team would get the playoff nod over any ACC team that isn't undefeated. That's just a fact. Everyone outside of the ACC realizes there are only two decent teams in your conference, so the odds of going undefeated are much higher and the road to the playoff is much easier. Why do you think ND jumped at the chance to play 6 ACC teams each year? I hope the ACC gets tougher. There is nothing I would like to see more than Clemson facing teams with a pulse EVERY week, but I don't see it happening.
You know how I KNOW the SEC is the best conference? First, we don't have ANY penalty for a school that wants to leave the conference, because no one would be crazy enough to do that. What does the ACC charge? I'm thinking it is $60 million, but it could be more. And even at that price Maryland couldn't wait to leave. Second, while it is true the SEC didn't play well last year in bowl games, there is a reason for that. You see, in the SEC many bowl games are a letdown. We are accustomed to playing for national championships, so you will excuse us if we don't get too excited about playing some 8-4 team from a mid-level conference, say like Pitt from the ACC. The ACC is a basketball conference and nothing more. Enjoy your slide into football obscurity. Do you think they'll get more than 30,000 fans for the ACC championship game? Well, since Clemson is in it, they probably will, for the first time in recent memory.
Meanwhile the SEC will sell out the Georgia Dome for its championship game and it will be the highest-rated televised championship game in all of football, as it is every year. So yes, I do believe the USC job opening is a MUCH better job than Pitt, and I have no doubt that if we wanted Narduzzi we could have him. Pitt can make all the changes to their facilities they want and raise your coach's salary, but at the end of the day you will still have a small, disinterested fan base, play your home games in someone else's stadium, recruit about as well as the better MAC teams, and you'll still be in that awful excuse for a football conference known-widely as the All Cupcake Conference. Happy Thanksgiving.
The issue was where is the better job today, not 1976 - 81, the last time Pitt was relevent as a football power. Despite the fact that you think "we have nothing to do" down here, there is a reason we pack our stadium and Pitt doesn't. We generally play teams that people are interested in watching, and that have strong programs and traditions that rival Pitt at every turn. Let's look at modern history. Since 2000 USC has finished in the Top 25 six times. In 2011, 2012 and 2013 USC won 11 games each year and finished the year ranked no. 9, 8 and 4, respectively, in the country. On the other hand since 2000 Pitt has finished in the Top 25 only twice and their highest rank was no.15 in 2009. USC has clearly been a better program than Pitt since 2000, and we did it playing against SEC competition in the undisputed toughest football conference, not against Big East and ACC teams. Now the last two years Carolina has stunk up the place. We own it and have taken steps to bring this program back to where it has been. Rest assured, USC will not be calling Narduzzi to be our next head coach, but considering that he made $2 million last year and we are ready to offer our next coach $5 million, I think he might take that phone call, don't you?
You are correct that I didn't mention the Citadel loss, but only because it really didn't surprise me. It's a fact the Citadel beat our asses. They are having a great season and their kids, being military, have a sense of mission and duty and played one heck of a game. My team this year has been poorly coached, does not show a lot of heart and it is obvious that we haven't recruited well the last few years, or at least we were poor at player evaluation. But even as bad as we are, a team that lost to the Citadel as you so joyously pointed out, we were still strong enough to beat UNC, one of the mighty ACC's division champions, and a team ranked in the Top 15 in the country. Now let's discuss Pitt's record this year. As you correctly stated the teams that beat Pitt are all currently ranked and have a combined record of 31-2. All that means is you have lost to every good team you have played, whereas USC has actually beaten a Top 15 team this year. That being said, let's look at your 8 wins. Those teams have combined records of 38-50, and none has a record better than 6-5 or is ranked in the Top 25. The mighty Panthers have beaten a bunch of weak sisters this year. Good for you. Playing in the ACC you will get a chance to play weak sisters almost every week. USC doesn't get to do that too often, and yet our won-loss record since 2000 is considerably better than Pitt's despite playing in a much tougher conference. I have a good friend who is a Pitt season ticket holder and we go back and forth about the strength of ACC football teams vs. SEC teams, and this year the SEC is down across the board, except for Alabama. But here is one undeniable fact. A one loss, and perhaps a two loss, SEC team would get the playoff nod over any ACC team that isn't undefeated. That's just a fact. Everyone outside of the ACC realizes there are only two decent teams in your conference, so the odds of going undefeated are much higher and the road to the playoff is much easier. Why do you think ND jumped at the chance to play 6 ACC teams each year? I hope the ACC gets tougher. There is nothing I would like to see more than Clemson facing teams with a pulse EVERY week, but I don't see it happening.
You know how I KNOW the SEC is the best conference? First, we don't have ANY penalty for a school that wants to leave the conference, because no one would be crazy enough to do that. What does the ACC charge? I'm thinking it is $60 million, but it could be more. And even at that price Maryland couldn't wait to leave. Second, while it is true the SEC didn't play well last year in bowl games, there is a reason for that. You see, in the SEC many bowl games are a letdown. We are accustomed to playing for national championships, so you will excuse us if we don't get too excited about playing some 8-4 team from a mid-level conference, say like Pitt from the ACC. The ACC is a basketball conference and nothing more. Enjoy your slide into football obscurity. Do you think they'll get more than 30,000 fans for the ACC championship game? Well, since Clemson is in it, they probably will, for the first time in recent memory.
Meanwhile the SEC will sell out the Georgia Dome for its championship game and it will be the highest-rated televised championship game in all of football, as it is every year. So yes, I do believe the USC job opening is a MUCH better job than Pitt, and I have no doubt that if we wanted Narduzzi we could have him. Pitt can make all the changes to their facilities they want and raise your coach's salary, but at the end of the day you will still have a small, disinterested fan base, play your home games in someone else's stadium, recruit about as well as the better MAC teams, and you'll still be in that awful excuse for a football conference known-widely as the All Cupcake Conference. Happy Thanksgiving.
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You guys have to get an on campus stadium. You shouldn't have to take the T to go to a game. Lived there for a bit and have family there. Western PA has produced so much talent. It is a shame what happened to the program. I was hoping Rape State would let them slip in. Still, may kids from that area want to go to Penn St. Chryst was a good one to.
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Jeesh, this has become a thread about Pitt football history? Seriously? Perhaps Narduzzi just loves Pitt. If so, then he might never leave there, despite having opportunities to go elsewhere. Sometimes that happens (Frank Beamer comes to mind). But if he's like most coaches, the opportunity to run the biggest show in town, coach an SEC program, and double his salary, are going to be difficult to pass up. Having said that, my main concerns about Narduzzi would be his recruiting contacts in the south (there aren't a lot of last names that end in "uzzi" in the south), and his lack of a record at Pitt. Yes, Pitt has a good record this year - in a conference that is absolutely horrible - but I wish he had about 3 years under his belt there rather than one.
Regardless of any history lesson, everyone knows Narduzzi would be on a greyhound bus tonight if Ray called and offered him the SC job.
