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| opponent = [[2009 West Virginia Mountaineers football team|West Virginia]]
| opponent = [[2009 West Virginia Mountaineers football team|West Virginia]]
| opprank =
| opprank =
| site_stadium = [[Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium|Milan Puskar Stadium]]
| site_stadium = [[Mountaineer Field]]
| site_cityst = [[Morgantown, West Virginia|Morgantown]], [[West Virginia|WV]]
| site_cityst = [[Morgantown, West Virginia|Morgantown]], [[West Virginia|WV]]
| gamename = [[Backyard Brawl]]
| gamename = '''''[[Backyard Brawl]]'''''
| tv = ABC or ESPN
| tv = ABC or ESPN
| score =
| score =

Revision as of 14:49, 20 April 2009

Template:Future sport

{{{year}}} [[{{{team}}} football]]
2009 Big East Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 8 Cincinnati $   7 – 0     12 – 1  
No. 25 West Virginia   5 – 2     9 – 4  
No. 15 Pittsburgh   5 – 2     10 – 3  
Rutgers   3 – 4     9 – 4  
Connecticut   3 – 4     8 – 5  
South Florida   3 – 4     8 – 5  
Louisville   1 – 6     4 – 8  
Syracuse   1 – 6     4 – 8  
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2009 Pittsburgh Panthers football team will represent the University of Pittsburgh in the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The season will be the fifth under head coach Dave Wannstedt, who is looking to build upon the success of the 2008 season, his first winning season as head coach of the Panthers football team. The 2009 season will mark the team's ninth at Heinz Field and the University's 121st season.

Preseason

On February 5, 2009, the day after National Signing Day, it was made public that offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh would be leaving the Panthers to again pursue a career in the NFL.[1][2] Cavanaugh's move to the Jets to become their new quarterbacks coach was not officially announced until February 9.[3][4] The Panthers took only two weeks to find their new offensive coordinator, Frank Cignetti, Jr.[5] Cignetti took a pay cut by accepting the offer from Pitt, but he cited the local cost of living and proximity to his own and his wife's families as major reasons for leaving California for Pitt.[6][7] Cignetti has a reputation for developing quarterbacks and will be expected to do the same at Pitt where senior Bill Stull, Pitt's returning starter, and the passing game increasingly struggled down the stretch last season.[7][8] The other primary candidates for the Panthers' offensive coordinator position were former Panthers head coach Walt Harris and New York Jets wide receivers coach Noel Mazzone.[7]

Linebacker Adam Gunn was granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA and will play in 2009, medical clearance pending.[9] He was injured in the 3rd quarter of the 2008 season opener against Bowling Green when he collided with fellow linebacker Scott McKillop.[10] Shane Murray, who was injured during the preseason in August 2008 and started at linebacker along with Gunn in 2007[11], will also be back with the Panthers in 2009.[9] The returns of Gunn and Murray from injuries and Greg Williams, who started in place of Gunn in 2008, give the Panthers a stable of experienced linebackers headed into the 2009 season.[9]

Recruiting

All listed recruits verbally committed to Pitt within the year prior to signing a binding National Letter of Intent on national signing day. Half of the Panthers new signees are from Pennsylvania, and nine of those ten players were first-team all-state selections in 2008.[12] The Panthers were expected to bring in players to add depth to the team – not necessarily an instant impact in 2009 – because the Panthers are no longer a struggling team in need of immediate performers.[13] After signing day this class was not rated as a star-studded class that would be expected to provide an instant impact, but many of the players are viewed as players able to significantly contribute in the future.[14][15] The players most expected to make an impact in the future are wide receiver Todd Thomas, tight end Brock DeCicco, running back Raymond Graham and linebackers Shane Gordon and Dan Mason.[16] As of February 5, the 2009 recruiting class was ranked as the 47th best class nationally by Rivals.com – much lower than previous Wannstedt recruiting classes[15] – and 28th best by Scout.com.[14] Dave Wannstedt dismissed the criticism of his recruiting class as the low reviews of his class were a result of the low number of scholarships that the Panthers were able to offer due to the low number of graduating Pitt seniors in 2008 as well as a down year for high school seniors in western Pennsylvania.[15]

US college sports recruiting information for 2009 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight 40‡ Commit date
Cory King
OG 		Stoneboro, Pennsylvania Lakeview HS 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 308 lb (140 kg) n/a Jun 4, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 67
Dion Lewis
RB 		Blairstown, New Jersey Blair Academy [convert: invalid number] 180 lb (82 kg) 4.43 Jun 17, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 75
Juantez Hollins
OG 		Aliquippa, Pennsylvania Aliquippa HS 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 265 lb (120 kg) n/a Jun 24, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 77
Jack Lippert
DE 		Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Central Dauphin HS [convert: invalid number] 244 lb (111 kg) 4.65 Jun 27, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 78
Devin Street
WR 		Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Liberty HS [convert: invalid number] 178 lb (81 kg) 4.59 Jun 29, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:2/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 40
Fernando Diaz
OG 		Bronx, New York Cardinal Hayes HS 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) [convert: invalid number] 5.19 Jul 21, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:2/5 stars   Rivals:2/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 40
Kevin Adams
RB 		Montvale, New Jersey Saint Joseph Regional HS 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 208 lb (94 kg) 4.66 Aug 1, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:2/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 74
Carl Fleming
S 		Reisterstown, Maryland Franklin HS 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) [convert: invalid number] 4.47 Aug 8, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:2/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 40
Tyrone Ezell
DT 		Homestead, Pennsylvania Steel Valley HS [convert: invalid number] [convert: invalid number] 4.75 Aug 9, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 77
Raymond Graham
RB 		Elizabeth, New Jersey Elizabeth HS [convert: invalid number] 176 lb (80 kg) 4.5 Aug 16, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 77
Brock DeCicco
TE 		Jefferson Hills, Pennsylvania Thomas Jefferson HS 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) [convert: invalid number] 4.69 Oct 12, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 78
Todd Thomas
WR 		Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania Beaver Falls HS [convert: invalid number] 201 lb (91 kg) 4.55 Oct 17, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 80
Jason Douglas
RB 		Weston, Florida Cypress Bay HS [convert: invalid number] [convert: invalid number] 4.44 Nov 10, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:2/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 78
Ed Tinker
WR 		Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania North Carolina Tech Prep [convert: invalid number] 215 lb (98 kg) 4.5 Dec 17, 2008 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:2/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 77
Jason Hendricks
RB 		Jersey City, New Jersey Hudson Catholic Regional HS [convert: invalid number] [convert: invalid number] 4.5 Jan 11, 2009 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:2/5 stars   Rivals:2/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 75
Kolby Gray
QB 		Houston, Texas Cypress Falls HS 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) [convert: invalid number] 4.53 Jan 11, 2009 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 76
Bernard Nunez
DE 		Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken HS 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) [convert: invalid number] 4.78 Jan 20, 2009 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 78
Dan Mason
MLB 		Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Penn Hills HS 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 219 lb (99 kg) 4.70 Jan 22, 2009 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 76
Ryan Schlieper
OT 		Wexford, Pennsylvania North Allegheny SHS [convert: invalid number] 278 lb (126 kg) 5.00 Feb 2, 2009 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 72
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • ‡ Refers to 40 yard dash
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Pittsburgh 2009 Football Commitments". Rivals.com.
  • "Scout.com Football Recruiting: Pittsburgh". Scout.com.
  • "Pittsburgh Panthers Football Recruiting 2009". ESPN.com.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com.
  • "2009 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Spring practices

Spring camp opens for the Panthers on March 19. Coach Wannstedt outlined his priorities heading into camp as determining the starters at running back and quarterback as well as the lineup at the various linebacker positions, most importantly in the middle.[17]

The annual Blue-Gold game, the final scrimmage of spring camp, will be played at Heinz Field on April 11.[17]

Award watchlists


Schedule

The official Big East schedule was released on March 6[19], and it includes five nationally televised games.[20] The Panthers' home intraconference games include Cincinnati, Connecticut, South Florida, and Syracuse; the away games include West Virginia, Louisville, and Rutgers. The Panthers nonconference games had been scheduled well in advance of the 2009 season[21], but the conference games took longer to schedule due to the difficulty some Big East teams had when trying to schedule their own nonconference opponents.[22]

09/05/2009TBAYoungstown St*

  09/12/2009TBAat Buffalo*

  09/19/2009TBANavy*

  • Heinz Field
  • Pittsburgh, PA

  09/26/2009TBAat NC State*

  10/02/20098:00 pmat Louisville

ESPN2   10/10/2009TBAConnecticut

  • Heinz Field
  • Pittsburgh, PA

  10/16/20098:00 pmat Rutgers

ESPN   10/24/2009TBASouth Florida

  • Heinz Field
  • Pittsburgh, PA

  11/07/2009TBASyracuse

  • Heinz Field
  • Pittsburgh, PA

  11/14/2009TBANotre Dame*

  • Heinz Field
  • Pittsburgh, PA

ABC, ESPN, or ESPN2   11/27/2009TBAat West Virginia

ABC or ESPN   12/05/2009TBACincinnati

ABC, ESPN or ESPN2  

Template:CFB Schedule End


See also

Template:College football portal

References

  1. ^ Zeise, Paul (2009-02-05). "Cavanaugh expected to resign". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  2. ^ Costello, Brian (2009-02-05). "Rex's staff complete?". The New York Post. Retrieved 2009-02-09.
  3. ^ "Moves for Giants and Jets". The New York Times. Reuters. 2009-02-10. p. B14. Retrieved 2009-02-10. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dateformat= ignored (help)
  4. ^ Gorman, Kevin (2009-02-10). "Cavanaugh officially leaves Pitt for Jets". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved 2009-02-10.
  5. ^ "Pittsburgh hires Cal's Cignetti as offensive coordinator". Sports Illustrated. Pittsburgh. AP. 2009-02-18. Retrieved 2009-02-19.
  6. ^ Okanes, Jonathan (2009-02-18). "Cal losing offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti". InsideBayArea.com. Bay Area News Group. Retrieved 2009-02-19.
  7. ^ a b c Gorman, Kevin (2009-02-19). "Pitt position a dream job for Cignetti". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved 2009-02-19.
  8. ^ Kawahara, Matt (2009-02-18). "Cignetti Accepts Job as Offensive Coordinator at Pitt". The Daily Californian. Retrieved 2009-02-19.
  9. ^ a b c Peak, Chris (2009-03-05). "Pitt's Gunn gets sixth year of eligibility". Rivals.com. Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2009-03-11.
  10. ^ Gorman, Kevin (2008-09-15). "Gunn undergoes neck surgery". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved 2008-10-16.
  11. ^ "Pitt LB Murray done for year due to knee surgery". ESPN. Pittsburgh. AP. 2008-10-15. Retrieved 2009-03-11.
  12. ^ Gorman, Kevin (2009-02-05). "Pitt may face offensive overhaul". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  13. ^ Bennett, Brian (2009-01-22). "Pittsburgh recruiting needs". ESPN. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  14. ^ a b "Pitt gets depth in recruiting class". The Sporting News. Pittsburgh. AP. 2009-02-04. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  15. ^ a b c Zeise, Paul (2009-02-05). "Panthers' class small but not without stars". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  16. ^ Bennett, Brian (2009-02-04). "Pitt announces signing class of 20". ESPN. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  17. ^ a b Dvorchak, Robert (2009-03-17). "Wannstedt looking for MLB, RB, expects 3-way QB battle". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2009-03-17.
  18. ^ "Three 2008 Semi-Finalists Top 2009 Preliminary Watch List" (PDF) (Press release). Rotary Club of Houston. 2009-03-03. Retrieved 2009-03-03.
  19. ^ "Big East Announces 2009 Football Schedule" (Press release). Providence, Rhode Island: Big East Conference. 2009-03-06. Retrieved 2009-03-06.
  20. ^ Gorman, Kevin (2009-03-06). "Pitt's football schedule includes five national TV games". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved 2009-03-06.
  21. ^ "Future Football Schedules". Rivals.com. 2008-09-03. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  22. ^ Bennett, Brian (2009-02-02). "Early 2009 schedule analysis: Pittsburgh". ESPN. Retrieved 2009-02-05.

External links

Template:2009–10 Big East football teams

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