Football, free food bring students to outdoor watch party at Pete

With the lawn of the Petersen Events Center entirely covered in Pitt students, the football team…With the lawn of the Petersen Events Center entirely covered in Pitt students, the football team had plenty of support prior to kickoff for the Panthers’ Big East opener Thursday night.

But it wouldn’t last.

After Cincinnati scored on its first play of the game with a stunning 58-yard touchdown run during which Pitt didn’t get a single hand on the rusher, anxiety filled the crowd watching the game on a large screen set up for the event, leaving the atmosphere uncomfortably reminiscent of Saturday’s mood during the Panthers’ 31-17 loss to Youngstown State at Heinz Field.

Student reasons for coming to the screening of the game in the first place varied greatly.

Senior Jordan Walker spoke candidly about his reason for attending the event.

“Baconators and Frostys,” Walker said, referencing the free food the local Wendy’s restaurant provided for Pitt student viewers at the event.

Walker also wasn’t optimistic about Pitt’s chances before the game — a premonition that proved accurate.

“I don’t have high hopes, but I don’t think the rest of the Big East is very good,” Walker said.

The massive line of students waiting for the complimentary food snaked across the Pete Lawn more than an hour before the game began.

Much as did the student support against Youngstown State, the turnout for the game watch put on by the Pitt athletic department for Thursday’s game had mixed results.

The Pitt band and cheer team both made appearances on Thursday, with the band’s playing the alma mater resulting in an awkward scene as some students struggled with the tune.

Many students watched the game intently, but others, such as junior Jared Culbreath, also mentioned the refreshments as a key to their attendance.

“It has free food and free drink. I mean, I’m going to stay, but I’ll probably leave halfway through,” Culbreath said.

Students’ faith in the team to turn its fortunes around also differed, and Culbreath was noncommittal in his appraisal of the Panthers.

“They’re kind of iffy,” he said. “It just depends on how they look at the beginning of the game, and you can kind of judge how they’re going to play the rest of the game.”

Sophomores Katie Zeis and Janki Boghara, who planned to watch the game back at their apartment with friends, said the giveaways played a big part in their stopping by the Pete.

“Free food. Free stuff. School spirit,” Zeis said.

The two also haven’t lost confidence in the team yet.

“They can come back from it. They’re our team. It’s only one game,” Zeis said.

The second Cincinnati touchdown resulted in a large number of students beginning to leave — a pattern that slowly continued for the remainder of the night. By halftime, with Pitt down 17-0, few remained to watch the lopsided contest.

Freshman Natalie Kindiy agreed that the atmosphere on Thursday night closely mirrored the environment of the Panther Pitt student section last Saturday.

“It was really rowdy. People were excited. We were all spirited, and then we started losing,” Kindiy said.

She lacked the cynicism that has become normal for Pitt football fans when predicting how the game would turn out before kickoff.

“Well, considering that a lot of players didn’t play last game, I think that we can actually turn it around and maybe do a little better this time,” Kindiy said.

That Pitt’s best chance for a touchdown in the opening half — a vintage Ray Graham run — didn’t hold up because of a penalty seemed like a cruel joke. And those still in attendance seemed resigned to the fate that the night would end in another defeat for the Panthers.

With a group of friends, sophomore Sam Talman claimed that, despite the team’s poor start, he still has optimism about the future of the Pitt football program.

“[I’m] cautiously optimistic. Paul Chryst has a good track record, so we’re hoping he can turn the program around, especially after last season,” Talman said.

But later in the night, that kind of optimism was nowhere to be found as the 34-10 loss wound down for the Panthers, and the live telecast echoed through an otherwise silent, downtrodden upper campus.