Football: Season in review

High octane. The phrase was used to increase the anticipation of an uptempo, powerful, new style… High octane. The phrase was used to increase the anticipation of an uptempo, powerful, new style of offensive strategies built by head coach Todd Graham. But today, the phrase is used sarcastically to describe the Pitt football season’s disappointments and mediocrity.

The season finally came to a close Saturday afternoon after Pitt’s 28-6 loss to Southern Methodist University in the BBVA Compass Bowl. The game highlighted one of the Panthers’ biggest problems over the course of the season: a weak offensive line. Pitt let up seven sacks against SMU last weekend, which makes 63 sacks for the entire season.

Quarterback Tino Sunseri — who was sacked more times than any other quarterback in the NCAA — looked uncomfortable throughout the entire season. With 11 picks to 10 touchdowns, Sunseri’s season provided much controversy and dispute. His overall performance did not satisfy Pittsburgh fans, and the coaching staff began to mishandle his playing time.

Coach Graham had Sunseri in a whirlwind. First, he would say that he had total confidence in his quarterback who possessed “the best chance of winning.” But then, inexplicably, during the game, Sunseri would be pulled for true freshman Trey Anderson to attempt to get the offense moving. When Sunseri had a strong outing — 419 yards, two touchdowns — against Connecticut on Oct. 26th, Graham described the performance as “average”. Without a doubt, Sunseri felt the pressure on the field from the defense and on the sidelines from his coach. The outcome was erratic play and mixed results over the course of 13 games.

Sunseri wasn’t the only one guilty of inconsistency. As a team, the Panthers’ fourth quarter performances fluctuated like the stock market. Of Pitt’s seven losses, four were determined in the final fifteen minutes of play.

Losses to teams like Notre Dame and West Virginia, despite Pitt leads late in the game, really changed the outcome of the season. Pitt could have had control of the Big East, but instead lost to Cincinnati in the final minutes on a field goal. Then there was the embarrassing 17-point collapse against Iowa in the third game of the season.

Pitt was always close but was also always unable to finish the tight games. With the exception of an upset victory over then-No. 16 South Florida and a strong outing against UConn, the offensive attack never shined under what Graham promised to be “high-octane” play.

Of course, Graham decided to bolt to Arizona State after not even completing his first year for the Panthers, leaving his players with nothing but a broken-down offense and a text message. The team did not take the news well at all, expressing their frustration on Twitter with angry remarks about their former coach.

After that, the Panthers had difficulty moving forward to close the season. Interim coach Keith Patterson — Pitt’s fifth coach in only 13 months — noticed that the distractions hit the players hard.

“The one thing I kept challenging everybody on the team to do is to finish,” Patterson said after Saturday’s loss to SMU. “They represented as well as they possibly could.”

But now that this season of mediocrity is over, Pitt has to look forward to what lies ahead.

With Wisconsin’s Paul Chryst coming in to take over head coaching duties, Pitt is hoping that Chryst can be the long-term solution to a position that has seen disappointment and uncertainty in the past year. Chryst is excited to move away from all the distractions and bring new qualities to the team.

Chryst expressed that he had “a lot of appreciation for how they’re finishing things out” from what was a crazy season. He already has some ideas to bring the players to the success they want.

“[Pitt will be] a balanced offense,” Chryst said during halftime in Saturday’s bowl game. Balance was unattainable in the contest against SMU, as Pitt only acquired 7 rushing yards.

Chryst and Panther fans should look forward to the personnel surrounding the running back positions. Pitt — known for producing strong running backs in the last five years — may have a three-headed monster going into next season.

First, Ray Graham, who suffered a season-ending knee injury against UConn, should be back next year to light up Heinz Field in his senior season. With 2,229 rushing yards and 21 scores in his career, Graham will undoubtedly be a huge help to the Panthers.

Isaac Bennett — the true freshman who came up after many injuries to Pitt running backs — showed signs that he can carry the load. With 325 total yards and 3 total touchdowns in five games, Bennett has the ability the break free from the defense.

Then there is Rushel Shell — one of the top running back recruits in the nation — Pittsburgh local who attended Hopewell High School. Shell holds the Pennsylvania high school record of 39 consecutive 100-yard games.

Maybe 2012 will bring the offensive excitement that Pittsburgh had anticipated. But one thing is for sure — the phrase “high octane” will never be used again to promise offensive success in the city of champions.