That was ridiculous! McCoy had been running all over Navy most of the game but Wannstedt decides to put the game in the hands of Bostick, throwing, on third and fourth down in overtime? He should have had Collins running on third down and McCoy running on fourth down with the game - and the tone for the rest of the season - on the line. Absolutely pathetic!

Cavanaugh's offense was good tonight. If you score 45 points and lose the game, I think the offense is the least of your worries. Anytime you score 45 points you should win with even a passable defense. His calls at the end defy logic for sure. That would have been a terrific place to break out the wildcat offense.

knight_01 Wrote:Hey at least Wanny showed some balls.

There is a fine line between showing some balls and making stupid calls.

FWIW there should have been pass interference called on that play. Not that it excuses the awful play calling at the end or the abysmal defensive effort all night long. Cincy is going to destroy us.

Shannon Panther Wrote:FWIW there should have been pass interference called on that play. Not that it excuses the awful play calling at the end or the abysmal defensive effort all night long. Cincy is going to destroy us.

I agree but refs don't usually throw the Flag there. McCoy wide left was your play.

This is extremely frustrating time to be a Pitt fan. Has to be the most overpaid staff in the nation. I mean, if Pitt only wins 2 this year, that's only about $1-$1.25 million PER win!

Have those Dolphins fans sold someone the website yet?

Wannstedt hard to figure in Pitt loss
By Joe Starkey | TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, October 11, 2007

Well, at least Pitt tried to win in the second overtime.

I loved coach Dave Wannstedt's decision to go for it on 4th-and-goal from the 2, even if a Pat Bostick pass to Darrell Strong fell incomplete to seal a 48-45 loss to Navy.

Question is, why didn't Wannstedt have the same mentality at the end of regulation?

He did, actually, but not for long.

With the score tied, 38-38, Wannstedt went for it on 4th-and-1 from the Pitt 27 with 3:19 left. Hooray for that. College football is about taking chances and scoring as many points as possible, especially when the other team is playing XBox 360 against your defense.

Pitt converted, but Wannstedt soon lost his nerve. He ordered a punt on the same drive, on 4th-and-2 from the Pitt 47 with 1:33 left.

Wannstedt said it was actually closer to 4th-and-4 and that going for it again would have constituted "going to the well too many times."

Sorry, but when your defense is on pace to give up 500 yards -- and the other defense might be worse -- you have to go for it there.

When your defense already permitted Navy to drive 65 yards in 37 seconds at the end of the first half to get into field-goal range, you have to go for it there.

Instead, Wannstedt reverted to his NFL, field-position, play-for-the-tie mentality.

To no one's surprise, Navy moved from its 16 to the Pitt 31 before an incomplete pass forced kicker Joey Bullen to try a 48-yard field goal that would have won the game.

He missed, which merely postponed Pitt's torture. Navy handed the Panthers their ninth loss in their past 10 games against Division I-A opponents.

The Midshipmen probably would have won in the first overtime if they didn't jump offside on a Pitt field-goal attempt.

And remember, Navy isn't very good.

It lost to Ball State, couldn't put away Temple until the final minute and needed a dramatic rally to beat dreadful Duke on the final play of the game.

Duke had snapped a pesky, 23-game losing streak a week earlier.

There were at least three pieces of good news for Pitt fans:

1. Bostick (20 for 28, 191 yards, one touchdown, one interception) appears to be improving, even if Navy's pass defense has more holes than Oakmont Country Club.

2. Somebody decided to dust off junior fullback Conredge Collins (nine carries, 52 yards), whom Mel Kiper Jr. has rated as the nation's top NFL fullback prospect among juniors. Apparently, no one had informed Pitt offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh of this until last night.

3. Freshman tailback LeSean "Shady" McCoy (32 carries, 169 yards, three touchdowns) showed an ESPN television audience why he is being mentioned in the same breath with Pitt greats Tony Dorsett and Curtis Martin, both of whom attended the game at Heinz Field (they didn't have much company).

Wannstedt, meanwhile, spent part of his news conference this week praising his defense, which was ranked ninth in the country coming into the game.

It won't be ranked ninth anymore.

"We're still in the top 10 in the country in total defense," Wannstedt said Monday, "and when you look at the last three games, you say, 'Well, how can that be?' "

Here's how: Pitt opened the season with Eastern Michigan and Grambling. People overrated the defense's performance against Michigan State, which was banged up along the line and has since lost to Northwestern.

In its next two games, Pitt allowed 71 points.

In came Navy, which was ranked 119th in the country in passing offense -- that wouldn't be so bad, except that only 119 teams exist -- and promptly passed for 49 yards on its first play from scrimmage.

The Midshipmen spent the rest of the first half torturing Pitt with its triple-option. Pitt's defensive linemen wore shin guards in practice to prepare for Navy's cut-blocking. Maybe they should have worn chest protectors, because Navy's fullbacks spent the better part of the evening stomping over them for big gains.

Didn't that fullback dive play show up on film study?

Navy quarterback Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada (spell check just exploded) also had more yards passing in the first half (96) than he'd had totaled in three of his first five games.

Not that any of this was particularly surprising. The Panthers haven't stopped an option attack of any kind in years.

This article appeared in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on Thursday, October 11, 2007.

Wannstedt's got to show some gonads on his coaching decisions. He's going to lose them otherwise. His job is on the line.

The problem is, he never should have gotten the job in the first place. That's why the play didn't work.

Great game for Navy.:boat:

Bad result for Pitt.:titanic:

If the kid catches the ball he and Wanny are heros.:uberbow:

If Pitt wins this thread doesn't happen.:python:

Sports you gotta love'm.:rocker::patriot:

panite Wrote:Great game for Navy.:boat:

Bad result for Pitt.:titanic:

If the kid catches the ball he and Wanny are heros.:uberbow:

If Pitt wins this thread doesn't happen.:python:

Sports you gotta love'm.:rocker::patriot:

This thread was going on during the game. It just resulted in this tyraid after the game was over. Pitt should have run the ball up the gut two times and the game might still be going on.

Like I said Wednesday night; I don't know why coaches or coordinators make play calls like they did, but you see it happen all the time. Guess that is why I am not a coach.