The View From Scott: Pittsburgh Edition

I spent a lot of time last week bitching about the attendance. Sorry, not sorry.

But because I'm a "credit where credit is due" type of guy, I'm going to go a very different route:

Well done, students.

I gave my props during the game:

Look at all those happy students... pic.twitter.com/Ya1f6fY34F

— Tim Mulholland (@Tim_STL) October 5, 2014

But I figured it was worth calling it out again.

The students showed up very well. I couldn't see the upper deck from where I was standing (in the midst of the students) but the lower bowl sections and the hill were packed. They were loud. They weren't really in white (I noticed a good amount of white under jackets/sweatshirts, though). But they did their part.

Now if only they would 1) stay the whole game, and 2) convince the rest of the fan base to show up. Sorry, the negativity is just too strong in me...

As always, some random musings:

• A pick six for the second week in a row? Yes, please.
• Speaking of interceptions... we have eight players with interceptions this season (nine total). We only had ten interceptions total all of last season from three different players. I guess Anthony Harris learned how to share!
• I FOUND THE TURKEY LEGS. But the line was really long. I may need to hire a line-stander for me at the next game.
• I think they underestimated the amount of hot chocolate they would sell. One of the stations shut down completely just after halftime. Lots of cold folks still left in the stands...
• A 24-3 lead at halftime is nice. Being outscored 16-0 in the second half is not as nice.
• Unlike previous years, I was fairly confident we would hold on for the win. That seems to be a difference between this year and previous years. Not only do we play well in general, but even when we play poorly, we still seem to find a way to win (see: Louisville, Pitt second halves; Kent State first half)
• Was that really a touchdown at the end of the game on the pass from Chad Voytik to J.P. Holtz? The review looked... iffy. Maybe not much of an angle on the cameras, but what they showed in the stands sure looked like he landed on the white out of bounds line.
• Kevin Parks looked funny running for his 48 yard rushing TD. The twitter comment of "bowling ball with no pins" was pretty accurate. But uh... don't tell him I said he looked funny. If you see him, tell him I said he looked f'ing awesome scoring a touchdown for the 'Hoos!
• Speaking of Kevin Parks - he now has 427 yards rushing. He's a little off schedule for a 1000 yard season, but I think he can do it. Especially if we (crosses fingers, knocks on wood) make a bowl game.
• Quin Blanding already led the team in tackles. Now he leads the team in tackles by more. He has 61 tackles through 6 games after picking up 15 against Pitt.
• Last season, Henry Coley led the team with 91 tackles in 12 games. He's only slightly off that pace with 42 tackles through 6 games, but he's in 4th right now. Blanding, Harris (51) and Daquan Romero (48) are ahead of him right now.
• The Pitt quarterback looked really pissed off every time he got sacked or hit hard. After one of the last sacks I thought he was going to tear his helmet off and hit someone with it. Someone might want to check him for anger issues.
• That said, I wouldn't really want to be chased by our defense, so I guess it makes sense. Four sacks on the day, plus seven tackles for loss.
• The all-white uniforms was a good look at night.
• The black and graphite helmets? They looked sweet. I'm glad the players liked them. I'm sure the recruits did as well...
• ... but I'm still on the "those aren't our colors" train.
• Guessing the QB competition is going to be... spirited... once Greyson Lambert is healthy enough. I think Lambert keeps his starting job. But you have to give a lot of props to Matt Johns for keeping the ship afloat on offense. He has been more than serviceable so far - and it sure is fun when he takes off running.