Pitt Football: Todd Graham’s Act Beginning to Wear Thin
By Matt Shetler
It was fun at the beginning.
Now it’s almost borderline irritating.
By it, I mean the act of Pitt head coach Todd Graham.
He said all the right things after being named the new Panthers head man in January. He preached “speed, speed, speed,” and used terms like “high octane,” to get people excited.
And it worked.
People were talking Pitt football at times during the winter when people never talk football. Heck, he had me convinced as well.
For now though, I don’t want to hear it.
The smart thing for Graham to do would be to take his foot off the pedal and realize what his team is and what his team isn’t in 2011 and quit preaching to the media.
More and more every day, Graham seems more like a used car salesman than a football coach. We don’t need to be sold on anything. we believe what we see, not what we hear.
I was a big supporter of Graham in the winter and I still am. I really feel that this isn’t the team for what he’s trying to accomplish x’s and o’s wise, but eventually he will get his type of athletes.
However in the meantime, the wise thing for Graham to do would be quit talking and let winning do the talking for him.
He also should look in the mirror and accept some responsibility.
The finger can be pointed at Graham as much as it can the players in the Panthers past two losses to Iowa and Notre Dame. His in game strategy should come into question. For instance why in the world didn’t he slow the game down in Iowa? a good coach swallows his pride in the fourth quarter when they are up three possessions and attempts to burn the clock. There is a time for “speed, speed, speed,” and there is a time for smart football.
But even though that didn’t happen, the one thing he should have done was look at every television camera and said two simple words. My fault.
What kind of coach throws his players under the bus two weeks in a row? The smart thing to do would have been to take the pressure off of his team and put it squarely on his shoulders. Graham did just the opposite. Two weeks in a row.
That act will wear thin really quick and have an impact in many areas.
First of all, Pitt fans really don’t care about schemes. They care more about wins. A bad showing against South Florida and Pitt may lose the little fans that are currently attending home games.
Secondly, it will impact recruiting. No kid wants to play for a guy that will continue to not have his back when the chips are down.
Finally, and most importantly, he will lose his locker room. Too much more of this and the guys currently putting on that uniform are not going to want to play for him. it would be a shame to lose a team only a handful games into the season.
While Graham did retract his statements and take some of the blame, it sounded more like a forced apology.
Facts are facts, the Panthers need to get their act together. The same goes for their head coach.
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