Posted on September 11th, 2009 by Admin

When Dave Wannstedt took over the reins of the Pitt program from Walt Harris, he made it a priority to make the Panthers a more physical football team on both sides of the line of scrimmage.

Five years later, the Panthers calling card can now be described as being a tough, strong squad, not the aerial circus Harris constructed that at times could be construed as soft.

It is obvious that the days of watching Rod Rutherford and Tyler Palko firing 40 plus passes a game is long gone. As entertaining as the 2000-06 Panthers were to their fans, they lacked a physicality that could close games out in the fourth quarter (see the 2006 Connecticut contest, a heartbreaking 46-45 loss in double overtime).

The growing pains endured by the program have been evident as Wannstedt worked to transform the Panthers into a strong and physical outfit. Offenses such as Notre Dame, West Virginia, Louisville and Michigan State routinely rolled up 250 plus yards rushing against the Panthers defense in 2005 and 2006.

But the talent Wannstedt recruited along the defensive and offensive fronts began to bear fruit. Pitt’s defensive line began to take control of games in 2007 and throughout 2008.  Players such as Jabaal Sheard and Greg Romeus were pillaging pass pockets from their defensive end positions while tackles Rashaad Duncan, Mick Williams and Gus Mustakas stood firm against the run.

Offensive linemen such as Jeff Otah, Jason Pinkston and John Malecki paved the way for a strong ground game and helped make running back LeSean McCoy a high draft pick with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Playing solid defense and using a punishing ground game is now the Panthers recipe for success. That formula helped spring back-to-back wins over the rival Mountaineers and victories over South Florida, Connecticut and Notre Dame last season.

Yes, many believe Pitt’s offense may be too vanilla and the defense does not blitz enough to the liking of some. But controlling the clock on offense and pressuring the passer with only your four down linemen is how Wannstedt wants to win. It worked last year to the tune of a 1,488 yards rushing, 21 touchdown season, 33 sacks by the defense and most importantly, nine wins.

More is expected this season, even with the losses of McCoy and All-American Linebacker Scott McKillop to the NFL. The culture has been established with strong fronts on both sides of the ball. Freshman running back Dion Lewis ran for 129 yards, two scores in last week’s 38-3 win over Youngstown State; has the look of a performer who can carry the load on his muscular 5-foot 8, 195 pound frame. The defense garnered six sacks and appears ready to live up to preseason expectations.

Pitt RB Dion Lewis

The formula that Wannstedt and his staff developed has a proven track record. His Miami Dolphins won 30 games between 2000 and 2003 using a Ricky Williams-led offense and punishing defense.

Other college teams rode the running game/defense formula to national prominence. The 1986 Penn State Nittany Lions, 1992 Alabama Crimson Tide and more recently, 2002 Ohio State Buckeyes all had great running games and rock-hard defenses. Each won national titles using this recipe against the more flashy Miami Hurricanes.

There is precedent for the Panthers to follow. The transformation appears close to completion and for coach Wannstedt, the table appears to be set.