Notebook: Murray to return Saturday

Because of a season-ending injury to Adam Gunn and a knee injury to Shane Murray, the Pitt… Because of a season-ending injury to Adam Gunn and a knee injury to Shane Murray, the Pitt football team has had to play inexperienced players at outside linebacker positions. Gunn fractured a vertebra in his neck in the Panthers’ opening game of the season, and Murray has yet to see game action after injuring his knee during training camp after colliding with fullback Conredge Collins. Filling in has been senior Austin Ransom, who was moved to linebacker just this year, though he might see less playing time this Saturday against Iowa. Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt expects Murray to play and also announced a few other changes to the linebacking core during his weekly press conference. ‘Shane Murray is back practicing now, so hopefully he’ll continue to progress throughout this week and we’ll be able to get some things out of him,’ said Wannstedt. He also said that freshmen Brandon Lindsey and Max Gruder would switch positions to middle linebacker and outside linebacker, respectively. ‘When we recruited Brandon Lindsey, we really felt like he was a middle linebacker and that would probably be his best position for this team,’ said Wannstedt. ‘With Max Gruder, he was an outside linebacker in high school, and he probably runs a little bit better.’ Wannstedt said he expects both players to see time this weekend at their new positions. ‘Looking at these two kids and anticipating that they probably will play this week, we wanted to start training them now and preparing them,’ said Wannstedt. ‘We felt now is the right time to do that.’ Offensive line still work in progress Through the first two games, the Panthers’ young offensive line has been pushed around a bit. After Pitt’s second game, a win over Buffalo, Wannstedt, tailback LeSean McCoy and quarterback Bill Stull all praised the work of the offensive line. And while they still struggled, the Panthers’ coach said he’s seen continued improvement by the line. The offensive line has quite a test this week, as Iowa features two returning starters in All-Big Ten defensive tackle Mitch King and Matt Kroul. ‘They’re very physical, and although they don’t have a ton of movement, they are difficult to block,’ said Wannstedt, adding that as the offensive line improves, so will the offense as a whole. ‘Every week is a new week and with it comes a new set of challenges. As communication and skill becomes better, so will our offense.’ The line will also need to hold if the Panthers hope to effectively run the ball against the Hawkeyes. So far this season, opponents have been playing extra men in the box to defend against the run. It’s certainly made it tough to run for McCoy, as he hasn’t eclipsed 100 yards in either game, although he scored three touchdowns against Buffalo. Iowa could opt to play a few extra men up to stop the run if it so chooses. ‘Iowa is good enough with their front seven to line up and get the job done, so I think we’ll see a little run defense,’ said Wannstedt. Utilizing the bye week A week off seems like it should help a team. The players can rest, and you have two weeks to prepare for your next opponent. But that hasn’t been the case in Wannstedt’s tenure as Pitt coach. The Panthers are 0-5 after a bye week, but the coach is hoping to change that on Saturday. ‘As we get back into our game routine this week, I believe we had a very beneficial bye week for us,’ said Wannstedt. ‘I’m curious to see how it translates on Saturday. I know that from a coaching perspective, we were able to cover a lot of situations and clean up a lot of things that needed to be addressed.’ He also said he thinks the bye week is especially beneficial for the freshmen. ‘The bye week definitely helps [the freshmen],’ said Wannstedt. ‘The more practice time they get, particularly in a game-plan situation now that we’re into the season, it really helps us. Everyone got plenty of work, and hopefully it makes them a little more confident and a little more ready come Saturday.’