Pitt Panther Prowl

PITT FOOTBALL SPRING CAMP - WRs & TEs

Assuming that PITT finds a competent and consistent passer for 2008, we should be able to utilize what appears to be a strong fleet of receivers. We say ‘appears to be’ because it was hard to gauge just how well our receivers who return this season played last year due to our QB problems, and the ensuing reliance on compacting the offensive game plan to play the safest offense possible.  Our main RB got a lot of work in that shortened offense, but it can be realistically said that our receivers did not get a chance to shine last year because of it.

This year should be different, and maybe even quite different depending on certain things. One very good thing for us fans is the return of Derek Kinder (rsSR), whose had a big year in 2006 with 57 receptions for 847 yards (14.9 ypc) and 6 TDs.  Kinder,  who had redshirted last season due to an early knee injury, brings a deep passing threat along with his good hands. It was his pre-season injury that pretty much set the tone for what we’d see for the rest of the year, knowing that whoever was at QB was going to be inexperienced and would not have a veteran possession receiver like Kinder to depend on.  Skip forward a year and Kinder will fill the same role in 2008 - being a target that knows how to get open, hold onto the ball and make decent yards after the catch with his legs.  It’s safe to say that going into Spring Camp Kinder will fill a starting WR spot as long as his leg is 100%.

On the other end of the offensive formation the WR spot might not be as secure, although we have some very good players that will be trying to separate themselves from the pack in camp. This is where it will get interesting, and where we will see how much stock DW continues to put into his past policies of playing upperclassmen as starters.  The situation going into each off season camp will be ones of newcomers who are so talented they might be impossible to keep off the field - We are speaking of Maurice (Mo) Williams (SO) in the Spring and Jonathan Baldwin (FR), a 4* (who should have been rated a 5*), 6′6″, highly recruited speed burner who, suffice to say, we will be discussing a lot during Summer Camp. So we’ll hold off talking about him for later.

Mo Williams is as an impressive a WR as we have seen at PITT in a while, even though he didn’t get much playing time as a true freshman due to our strict possession and short passing game for damage control. Williams had only 5 catches for 100 (20.0 ypc) and 1 TD in his limited time on the field.  What is interesting, and foreshadows his future, is if we take away his 37 yard TD reception he still led the team in average yards per catch with 4 for 15.7 yards on average. Not too shabby as a first year guy. We think he’ll be right in the mix competing for the other WR starting spot, and we feel he could make major contributions to the offense with big plays - look for us practicing the deep ball to him in camp. If we have a QB that can throw an accurate deep pass Williams might have a breakout year.

Rounding out the WR corps is Oderick Turner, (rsJR), who had 36 receptions for 496 yards (13.8 ypc) and 5 TDs, to lead the team in reception yardage and TDs last season. Normally one would think that alone would make a returning player a lock to be starting but Turner also had some dropped passes in the most inopportune times. He wasn’t a consistent receiver and we question whether his past play is enough to keep him from getting overtaken by the younger WRs.  TJ Porter (JR) is returning also. Porter was used mostly in the slot last season and was serviceable by catching 37 balls for 329 yards (8.9 ypc) and no TDs. Honestly, it was hard to tell if he lived up to his potential or not (as can be said about all the WRs last year) due to our poor passing.  Cedric McGee (rsJR) will have to show great improvement to get up near the top of the WR list. He had 8 catches for 49 yards (6.1 ypc) and no TDs. His involvement in the offense was minimal, and we feel it will stay that way in camp.

An interesting statistic to note here is that our third most productive receiver last year was running back LeSean McCoy out of the backfield with 33 catches for 244 yards (7.4 ypc) and one TD. That was a direct result of our shortened and safe passing game. Should we be able to cut his receptions in 2008 and distribute them to downfield receivers we’ll be in much better shape as a balanced offense.

The other aspect of an offense’s passing attack, in addition to the WRs, is the Tight Ends.  Here we have some familiar and good talent in Nate Byham (JR) who had 15 catches for 210 yards (14.0 ypc) and one TD, and John Pelusi (rsJR) 5 receptions for 46 yards (9.2 ypc) and no TDs. All eyes in the Spring Camp will be on Nate Byham for various reasons. First, he is coming off a major knee injury which forced him to miss the end of the season and secondly there is a consensus among PITT fans that he had been under utilized in 2007. This kid is a major talent and was a highly recruited 5* HS player. He was forced to block more often than catch last year, and he did so without complaint. But he has shown flashes of real brilliance as a receiver and must be incorporated into our downfield passing game. He runs very well after the catch and has to get the ball more. Plus, we really like his Grandfather who raised him as Nate was growing up. For that alone he deserves more passes his way.  Watch this spring for how well Byham runs in coming back after his injury - of which the reports have been very positive.

John Pelusi is a different type of TE than Byham. His main role has been almost a pure blocking TE and he’s done very well at that. We see him continuing in that role with the occasional ball thrown his way.  Should he start getting a lot of passes in practices during camp we feel that it would mean that something has gone wrong somewhere. That might be a strange attitude to take but it also brings us to “DW’s Grand Experiment” (ever heard that phrase somewhere before?) with our newest TE.

This season DW has made another position switch to best utilize a talented player on his roster, and every PITT fan is waiting to see how it’s going to turn out. We are referring to Dorin Dickerson, and his pursuit in getting substantial playing time. Dickerson was moved to the defensive side of the ball last season, after trying to break into the offense at RB and WR as a true freshman in 2006. Neither of these moves was particularly successful, although Dickerson did what he was asked and contributed as a part timer at the OLB position. Partly because we are deeper at LB this year, and partly because Dickerson was an 5* offensive player in HS, DW and Cavanaugh have announced that he will be tried back on offense at the H Back / TE position for 2008. This could be a very good move, but again it depends on if we have a QB with enough passing accomplishment to effectively use him in that role or not. Also at question is how well Dickerson will be able to block in his new role - Pitt uses their TEs often in blocking roles and for Dickerson to be considered one of the top two TEs he’ll have to be successful in this phase of the game. Dickerson’s move will be a major Spring Camp story, and will be followed very closely. For someone that has very little playing time Dickerson seems to be a fan favorite, and we are hoping he finds a home where he can contribute in the way he should be capable of. Watch where he lines up the most in practices - PITT does not usually use a H-Back so we might see a new aspect of the offense altogether.

We realize Spring ball is not going to tell us if our passing game has improved or not, but our WRs should not be a worry going into camp. We have good, deep talent in this position and should be OK in that respect. TE is a different story. We will watch for how well Byham has recovered, how smoothly Dickerson has adapted to his new role and hope for no injuries to any of our guys in this position. We are thin going into the practices, but do have talented TEs to put on the field.