Reviving A Rivalry

Penn State and Pittsburgh are finally going to revive a series that was last played in 2000.

It’s about time. New Pittsburgh head coach Todd Graham had said that he wanted to get the series rolling again about a month ago. Both schools announced on Tuesday that the Pitt-Penn State rivalry will be restarted with a two-game series in 2016 and 2017. The series will be a home-and-home, with the 2016 game played at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh and the 2017 game at Beaver Stadium in State College.

All parties involved seem to be express their excitement about the revival except for Penn State coach Joe Paterno. He had no statement on it as of press time, but Pittsburgh athletic director Steve Pederson believes Joe Pa signed off on the series. Keep in mind that Paterno has been thought of as the force that kept the rivalry dead since 2000.

“I know that, like Coach Graham, Coach Paterno was supportive of this, so it was good on all fronts,” Pederson said. “The first person I talked to about this was Coach Graham, and he was raring to go. And obviously they did the same thing on their end.



“This is big institutionally. You have these two great universities in this state, such an important part of the fabric of the state institutionally, and then you have the athletic component of this, and I think it’s probably a feel-good for everybody in the state of Pennsylvania.”

We’ll never know, but it’s good to see this rivalry get some new life.

Is Marvin Lewis Next In Line For The Pitt Job?

Will the Pittsburgh Panthers be reaching back into the ranks of the NFL to find their next coach. Maybe. Rumors are that Cincinnati Bengals coach Marvin Lewis might be a candidate for that job.

Of course, I can’t stand to see anyone unemployed, so I would like to see Lewis land on his feet. Because I really don’t see him staying in Cincinnati beyond this season. Michael Lombardi from the NFL Network reported that Lewis might be on the short list of cnadidates to take over for the newly departed Mike Haywood.

Lewis was asked about the position and said “he hasn’t thought about it”. Lewis also said “I don’t know what happens from here”. It’s true that Lewis probably knows he’s probably done in Cincinnati, but no one has told him where he stands so therefore he won’t speak on his job situation or anything else. Sources say that he would like to return, but that’s not guaranteed.

Haywood Era Is Over Before It Begins

If you know of Pittsburgh atheletic director Steve Pederson, you know he has a history of making bad football coaching hires. First was Bill Callahan at Nebraska, now the recently fired Mike Haywood.

Haywood was arrested about 3 p.m. Friday after a custody issue developed with a woman with whom Haywood has a child, police said. The unidentified woman told police that Haywood grabbed her by the arm and neck and pushed her as she tried to leave the home that Haywood owns in South Bend, Ind., where he once was a Notre Dame assistant.

Haywood didn’t last 2 1/2 weeks at his new job because of a domestic violence arrest in South Bend. Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg immediately dismissed Haywood and that the school was reopening the coaching search. Good luck chancellor because Dave Wannstedt was as good as it was going to get. No matter how inconsistent the team was.

“To be clear, the university’s decision is not tied to any expectation with respect to the terms on which the legal proceeding now pending in Indiana might ultimately be concluded,” Nordenberg said in the statement. “Instead, it reflects a strong belief that moving forward with Mr. Haywood as our head coach is not possible under the existing circumstances.”

Pederson, who was fired by Nebraska in 2007, might have the search taken out of his hands since his job might be on the line due to Haywood’s troubles. I would fire Pederson on the strength of his lousy track record of hiring coaches. The Haywood hire was met with much enthusiasm by fans, alumni, or boosters. I don’t think I’d be too happy with a with one winning season on his resume.

“This is a matter of real regret for the many people at Pitt who had looked forward to working with him,” Nordenberg said. “However, head coaches are among the university’s most visible representatives and are expected to maintain high standards of personal conduct and to avoid situations that might reflect negatively on the university.”

The first mistake was not identifying more candidates. Secondly, they made a quick hiring with a name that wasn’t ‘hot’ in coaching circles.

  “His history at outstanding programs with outstanding coaches gave him a rare combination of experiences and background,” Pederson said at the time. “Most importantly, Michael is a man of character and integrity and will be an inspirational leader for our football team”.

There goes Haywood’s character and integrity. Right out of a 10 story window.
Before the firing was announced on Saturday, Haywood told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, “It isn’t fair. The truth will eventually come out.”

The truth may come out but Haywood will still be out of a job.

 

Pitt’s New Coach Off To A Bad Start

New Pittsburgh head coach Mike Haywood is off to a bad start in the Steel City. The former Miami (OH) coach was arrested in South Bend on a domestic violence charge on Friday.

This isn’t what the athletic director pictured when he made this hire.

St. Joseph County Police say Haywood was arrested around 2:30 p.m. on Friday at a home in the 50000 block of Hawthorne Meadow Drive.

He has a child with the woman living there.

Police say there was a custody issue and the woman attempted to leave.

As she left, police say a physical altercation broke out.

The woman told police Haywood grabbed her by the arm and neck and pushed her.

According to the police report, the woman had red marks on her neck, arms and back.

That answers my question I had about what the hell he was doing in South Bend. Besides being the former offensive coordinator at Notre Dame during the Charlie Weis error, I mean era, you would think he would want nothing to do with that town. I know I’ve probably pissed off a lot of Domer fans and alumni, but from what I’ve heard, there’s just not much to do there.

Of course, Pittsburgh hasn’t made a statement regarding Haywood’s arrest. If Haywood is aon the wrong side of a judgement, the Panthers might be looking for a new coach a lot sooner than they wanted to.