Starting off the year 1-4 is not what new Pitt head coach Dave Wannstedt expected out of his… Starting off the year 1-4 is not what new Pitt head coach Dave Wannstedt expected out of his Panther football team.

It’s not what all the supporters anticipated either, and with losses come questions – plenty of questions – from all over the place.

And for the first time, The Pitt News is here to answer the questions you have wanted to ask.

Q: How does Pitt’s slow start affect recruiting?

A: First off, the recruits that have already committed verbally and intend on coming to Pitt should still come. Their verbal commitments before or during the very beginning of the season were based on the upcoming excitement for Pitt football and what Wannstedt brought with him, and all of that is still intact.

As for the rest of the kids who have yet to decide, either of two things can happen. The worst case scenario, obviously, is that a player can see the 1-4 record and how the team struggles just to compete every week and simply not want to come and put himself in that situation.

The better scenario, if a player doesn’t think that way, is he can look at Pitt’s situation, thinking that the team needs help now, and that he can be that help. But it all comes down to the recruit’s preference, so we’ll just have to wait and see.

Q: How is Pitt a 12-point favorite against Cincinnati this weekend?

A: The game is at Heinz Field and there is no respect for the Bearcats. The fact that it’s a home game for Pitt puts things in our favor, and Cincinnati isn’t thought of as too good a team – but neither were the Ohio Bobcats.

Cincinnati does, however, have two wins on the season, which is more than what Pitt has to show, and also put up 24 points against Penn State, even though they lost 42-24.

I’d be interested to know how some betting people are looking at this game.

Q: Can Pitt actually still win the Big East and a BCS Bowl Bid?

A: Statistically, yes. Realistically, that’s hard to imagine.

It’s only one game into the Big East schedule for the Panthers, and with six games left, they can still finish 6-1 in the conference, which would probably be more than enough to secure a Big East title.

Wannstedt and his team, however, do have their work cut out for them, and obviously the odds are stacked against them.

A meeting with South Florida, a team that easily beat Louisville, is just two weeks away, and they travel to Louisville and West Virginia in November. This team can’t look ahead, though; it’s now just one game at a time.

Q: Walt Harris won with these players, so why can’t Wannstedt?

A: Well, these are Harris’ players, so I would hope he could win with them. Harris recruited most of the team with the offensive plan of a passing offense, which is what he executed while here.

He ran offenses, mixing in quarterbacks from John Turman and David Priestly to Rod Rutherford and Tyler Palko. His receivers ranged from Latef Grim to Larry Fitzgerald.

A hard-nosed running game is something that wasn’t at the top of the “Harris game plan list,” but it is on Wannstedt’s, and he’s trying to do it with a team full of Harris’ players.

Sure, in the minds of most people, there’s still no excuse for going 1-4 with the talent that Pitt still has, but give Wannstedt a year or two. Once his guys are in place, Pitt will be in great shape, rolling right along through the Big East.

Have a question for Alan? Send it to [email protected] and it may appear in next Thursday’s edition of “Q’A with Alan Smodic.”