Crisan: Addressing the elephant(s) in the room taken at Acrisure Stadium (Pitt)

Corey Crisan / DKPS

A photo of DKPS reporter Corey Crisan in front of a sign at Syracuse University in 2017.

Pitt

Crisan: Addressing the elephant(s) in the room

By Corey Crisan

Nov 4, 2022 • 4:01 pm

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Reporters writing stories about themselves can be a taboo task, but I'm doing it anyway.

Just this once.

Allow me to clear the air before the fumes even begin to waft through it. This is the time to set the record straight, and to align ourselves before Pitt's 3:30 p.m. kickoff against my alma mater on Saturday at Acrisure Stadium.

I make no secret about being a Syracuse University alumnus. I attended the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications in its Master's program for broadcast and digital journalism, and graduated in 2018 with my degree.

I'm damn proud of it, just as I'm sure the majority of you reading this are, regarding your respective degrees (a good number of you reading this, I assume in this space, having one from Pitt).

And, we all should be.

But make no mistake about it, when it comes to covering sports which pit my alma mater versus my beat in a worlds-collide clash, I'm strictly business about it.

Syracuse has put the best of the best into the world of sports media throughout its illustrious history.

Notable legends from the past: Marty Glickman (class of 1939), Marv Albert (1963), and Dick Stockton (1964).

Notable faces and names you read, hear, and watch today: Bob Costas (1974), Sean McDonough (1984, of ESPN), Michael Cole (1988, currently the main WWE play-by-play commentator), Mike Tirico (1988, of NBC Sports), Ian Eagle (1990, of CBS Sports), Beth Mowins (1990, the first woman to call NFL play-by-play for CBS Sports), Craig Carton (1991, of WFAN radio in New York), Dave Pasch (1994, of ESPN), Adam Schein (1999, of SiriusXM and CBS Sports), and Nick Wright (2007, of FOX Sports).

Even from classmates of mine, like Drew Carter, who won the Jim Nantz Award in 2019 as the nation's top college broadcaster. He is now kicking butt for ESPN and the ACC Network. There is also Noah Eagle, the son of Ian, who is the radio voice of the Los Angeles Clippers and was the play-by-play man for the creative and visionary NFL playoff broadcasts on Nickelodeon over the last couple of years.

There are other Newhouse alums here, in Pittsburgh, where 93.7 The Fan's Andrew Fillipponi and the Tribune Review's Tim Benz arrived via those halls.

I even got to reunite with my former professor, Brent Axe, on his "On the Block" show on ESPN Radio in Syracuse this week. You can listen to us reminisce and chat about this weekend's Syracuse-Pitt matchup at the embedded link at the bottom of this page.

The list from "Sportscaster U" goes on, and the presence within the media expands beyond just within sports.

I arrived in central New York with lofty goals in mind, and attending that school was every bit of an honor and privilege. One day, I'm hoping my name can even be considered among those greats mentioned within this industry.

I cut my teeth as a student by not only going through the program, but by putting in some extra time covering as many events as I could in order to hone my skills. I spent countless nights writing for our student blog site at Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs baseball games, and I covered Orange women's basketball for the Syracuse SB Nation website, Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician.

My first time covering a Power Five football matchup was Pitt's game at Syracuse on Oct. 7, 2017, when I wrote a recap for the Newhouse blog (the story which has since been cleared from the site for the newest class' work). My second time covering a Power Five football game was when Pitt toppled Syracuse in overtime at then-Heinz Field on Oct. 6, 2018.

I found that 2018 recap on the NunesMagician site. For fun, check it out HERE.

Talk about a full-circle moment.

I'm proud to have received that education, and I'm proud of that work I put in as a student, which helped lead me to this point in my career. I owe that university (and the numerous friends, colleagues, and mentors I met and still maintain along the way) a massive amount of credit for the growth I have experienced as a person and as a journalist.

And, now, it is my time to pay it forward. The best way to do that is by allowing business to take the spotlight over any personal interest that I may have.

That includes by providing Pitt fans and our loyal and passionate readers the best coverage of Pitt athletics that I can possibly provide. That will hold true on Saturday, just as it does on any regular day.

No bias. No ego. All business.

Now, let's get to the business of football, and address the elephants in the room from the Pitt standpoint.

Who saw this coming?

A 2021 ACC championship has been followed up by mediocrity, disappointments, and failures in spots. The follow-up to that title brought forward heightened expectations, some penciling the Panthers as repeat ACC champions and contenders for the College Football Playoff. In the preseason, I voted Pitt to retain the Coastal title and face Clemson in the ACC Championship Game.

These are out of the window, and we are miles away from turning this train around and picking them back up.

The Panthers' last two losses have stemmed from a combined 38-0 scoring deficit in the fourth quarter, led by charges from two respected ACC quarterbacks in Louisville's Malik Cunningham and North Carolina's Drake Maye. These coincide, of course, with poor performances from Pitt's offense in each late-game showing.

Though, we saw glimpses of brilliance from the Panthers in the first half against the Tar Heels. Kedon Slovis started to chuck it down the field more, Jared Wayne registered the team's first 100-yard receiving game of the season, and Israel Abanikanda continued his ascent as an All-American candidate by bounding for 127 yards and three touchdowns.

But what happened in that second half!?

First, of course, we credit Tar Heels coach Mack Brown and his coordinators for adjusting to Pitt. The Panthers ran play-action to help open the middle of the defense in the first half, but they went to that well a few-too-many times and started to become predictable. 

That falls back on Frank Cignetti Jr. and his lack of creativity to continue to open up those opportunities to continue success, and that trickles down to players executing the second-half plan to follow.

That seems to be a recurring theme this season, no? The glimpses, though few and far in between at times, are there, but it has been a long time since any consistency has been built.

Pitt has the No. 7 scoring offense in the ACC at 30.5 points per game, and its 409.5 yards per game rank eighth in the conference.

Right in the middle, just as the Panthers' record is.

Really, we have not seen this offense form any consistent stretches since Slovis sustained his concussion against Tennessee. Up until the North Carolina game, his passer rating had decreased in increments following his return against Rhode Island.

The defense doesn't get a pass here, either.

The 27.9 points allowed per game rank 11th in the ACC, and the 351.1 yards allowed per game are the seventh-most allowed within the conference. This is 100% off-brand for a typical rock-solid Pat Narduzzi defense, and aside from three starters at linebacker departing, most of that unit from the 2021 ACC Champion team returned to run it back.

Pitt needs to win two of its next four games to become bowl eligible. It begins against Syracuse, which checked in at No. 20 in the initial College Football Playoff rankings announced this week. The Orange have the No. 1 total defense in the ACC, which poses trouble for the still-struggling Panthers offense.

The silver linings: Pitt has won 17 of the past 20 matchups against Syracuse. The schools know each other well, having played in each season since 1955. Six of the last 10 games have been decided by a single-digit scoring margin.

Is it a rivalry?

"Yes, I think we all go back to the Big East days," Narduzzi said this week. "Is it one of those where we're going to go fight in the tunnel? I don't think so. But it's a rival game. I don't know if it's to that extent."

Of course, Narduzzi is referring to the Michigan State-Michigan fiasco last Saturday.

THE ESSENTIALS

• Who: No. 20 Syracuse (6-2, 3-1 ACC) at Pitt (4-4, 1-3 ACC)
• When: 3:30 p.m. Saturday
• Spread: Pitt by 3.5.
• Weather: 77°, mostly cloudy, 2% chance of rain, 15 mph. winds
• TV: ACC Network
• Radio: 93.7 The Fan, 92.1 WPTS-FM (Pitt student broadcast)
• Streaming: ESPN App
• Satellite: SiriusXM channel 194. SXM App channel 956
• Live stats
• Media notes: Syracuse / Pitt

TEN TO WATCH

• #2 Israel Abanikanda -- The Maxwell Award semifinalist is the active Football Bowl Subdivision leader in touchdowns, points, and all-purpose yards. 

• #5 Deslin Alexandre -- I wanted to use this space to note Alexandre for probably the most important award nomination out there. He is a semifinalist for the Wuerffel Trophy, awarded nationally for excellence in community service. His Fifth Down Campaign is on the road to raising $50,000 for children in his hometown of Cap-Haitian, Haiti.

"Fifth Down's going well," he said this week. "Definitely need to get some more awareness to it, have the people get it out more, so anything you guys can continue to do, I'd really appreciate that."

Journalism does not equal public relations, but I know a great cause when I see it. I hope sharing this helps.

Here is a clip of Narduzzi talking about Alexandre on Thursday:

• #5 Jared Wayne -- Pitt's top receiver notched his third-career 100-yard game last week. With Syracuse cornerback Garrett Williams out for the season with a torn ACL, that softens the Orange secondary up a bit.

• #6 Rodney Hammond -- Usually the Robin to Abanikanda's Batman, Hammond carried the ball just three times in his second game back from injury last week. Let's see if Cignetti dials more up for Hammond this week.

• #7 SirVocea Dennis -- The Panthers' defensive signal caller is opposing his hometown team for the third time. You can read more about the Syracuse native HERE.

• #8 Calijah Kancey -- This is how brilliant the Bednarik Award semifinalist Kancey has been this season, per Pro Football Focus College:

• #11 Bangally Kamara -- Narduzzi revealed that Kamara was banged up going into last week's game at North Carolina, which resulted in Tylar Wiltz earning a start at outside linebacker. He still finished with seven solo tackles, one off from Dennis and Erick Hallett II's pace.

• #14 Marquis Williams -- Pitt's top cornerback struggled with the Tar Heels' Josh Downs and Antoine Green last week. Syracuse's Oronde Gadsden II offers no rest for the weary, as he is second in the ACC with 671 receiving yards on 41 catches. His 83.9 yards per game are third in the ACC.

• #86 Gavin Bartholomew -- I'll include Pitt's top tight end in this section until I don't have to. A goose-egg last week, and 16 catches in eight games won't cut it. I'll beckon Cignetti to draw up plays for Bartholomew until I'm blue in the face.

• #90 Ben Sauls -- Pitt's place-kicker is 9-for-12 with a long make of 48 yards this season. He hasn't been placed into too many high-leverage situations quite yet, but that could change on Saturday.

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