Who will be the teams starting running back in the fall? I'm not a big believer in Kirkley. I was just wondering if you think any of the frosh will step in and take over the roll, if they haven't already. Also what can you tell me about Conredge Collins and Rashad Jennings.

Thanks

its actually looking like jennings will be the tb this year. he had a monster spring. and a huge spring game. so look for jennings to be the tb

CuseChick Wrote:Who will be the teams starting running back in the fall? I'm not a big believer in Kirkley. I was just wondering if you think any of the frosh will step in and take over the roll, if they haven't already. Also what can you tell me about Conredge Collins and Rashad Jennings.

Thanks

Collins is a 4-star guy from Florida who had great interest from other big-time schools, however they wanted him to play FB. Pitt offered him a chance to try the RB instead and I think that sparked his interest along with Wannstedt's/Cavanaugh's ball control offensive approach and Florida connection. I was not at our Blue/Gold Spring Game, but everyone I spoke with said that Jennings is really good and should be very productive this year. We will see soon enough. I wouldn't give up on Kirkley as of yet. Walt Harris's offensive philosophy never subscibed to establishing the run. He would say he wanted to run the ball every week, but he always had a "love-affair" with the forward pass! No running back short of Dorsett would be able to thrive in that environment!


"HAIL TO PITT"

goldenpanther Wrote:

CuseChick Wrote:Who will be the teams starting running back in the fall?  I'm not a big believer in Kirkley.  I was just wondering if you think any of the frosh will step in and take over the roll, if they haven't already.  Also what can you tell me about Conredge Collins and Rashad Jennings.

Thanks

Collins is a 4-star guy from Florida who had great interest from other big-time schools, however they wanted him to play FB. Pitt offered him a chance to try the RB instead and I think that sparked his interest along with Wannstedt's/Cavanaugh's ball control offensive approach and Florida connection. I was not at our Blue/Gold Spring Game, but everyone I spoke with said that Jennings is really good and should be very productive this year. We will see soon enough. I wouldn't give up on Kirkley as of yet. Walt Harris's offensive philosophy never subscibed to establishing the run. He would say he wanted to run the ball every week, but he always had a "love-affair" with the forward pass! No running back short of Dorsett would be able to thrive in that environment!


"HAIL TO PITT"

Thanks, I'm in a college fantasy football league and I'm looking for a young stud RB to take (all the incoming 5 start frosh are gone), someone recomended Collins to me, but then i saw Jennings stats from the spring game and was curious to see if maybe he beat Kirkley out for the starting TB spot.

Pitt actually will have 3 frosh rb's who might be good. The third is Shane Brooks. However, neither Brooks nor Collins were at the spring training while Jennings was.

I look for Jennings to be in the starting backfield. If Wanny gives Collins a shot at tailback, Jennings could play fb.

There are 3 returning backs. The 2 big guys, Kirkley and Murphy, haven't really shown me much. Furman, the speedy guy, missed most of spring practice. All 3 have had injury problems. Here's what CFN says about Pitt's backs:

Projected Starters
- Raymond Kirkley, Sr. - Kirkley is a solid, but unspectacular veteran who led the team with 560 yards and six touchdowns despite missing the final two games with a wrist injury. With the new emphasis on the running game under head coach Dave Wannstedt, the 225-pound senior should be in for a strong year if he can hold off Rashad Jennings for the job.
- Fullback Tim Murphy, Sr. - The 235-pound veteran does a little of everything well finishing second on the team with 334 yards and a touchdown and catching 13 passes for 118 yards. He can be a tailback if needed, but he'll mostly be used as an occasional power runner as well as a blocker. He has had problems staying 100% with an ankle injury last year and a knee issue this spring.

Top Backups
- Rashad Jennings, Fr. - While Raymond Kirkley will be the starter, don't be shocked if he top freshman quickly takes over. He's a big, powerful 235-pound back with surprising 4.5 speed and moves. He enrolled in school early and was one of the stars of spring ball.
- Brandon Mason, Soph. - Mason saw a good amount of time as a true freshman rushing for 40 yards in five games. He's a big back with good between-the-tackles power, but he'll need to show some flash to get playing time ahead of the other big runners.
- Marcus Furman, Sr. - Furman adds some necessary speed to the mix, but he has to get healthy after missing almost all of spring ball. He only ran for 116 yards last year, but he finished third in receiving with 27 catches for 243 yards and a touchdown.
- Fullback Kellen Campbell, Sr. - The walk-on is a pure blocker who stepped in over the second half of last year and was solid fill-in when injuries hit. He finished with six rushing yards and four catches for 34 yards, but he'll have a hard time seeing the ball this year.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Once again, we haven't seen Collins or Brooks yet. Regardless of who gets the call, the Panthers will run a lot more this year. The spring game saw an almost perfect balance of run and pass plays.

Jim

JIM15068 Wrote:Pitt actually will have 3 frosh rb's who might be good. The third is Shane Brooks. However, neither Brooks nor Collins were at the spring training while Jennings was.

I look for Jennings to be in the starting backfield. If Wanny gives Collins a shot at tailback, Jennings could play fb.

There are 3 returning backs. The 2 big guys, Kirkley and Murphy, haven't really shown me much. Furman, the speedy guy, missed most of spring practice. All 3 have had injury problems. Here's what CFN says about Pitt's backs:

Projected Starters
- Raymond Kirkley, Sr. - Kirkley is a solid, but unspectacular veteran who led the team with 560 yards and six touchdowns despite missing the final two games with a wrist injury. With the new emphasis on the running game under head coach Dave Wannstedt, the 225-pound senior should be in for a strong year if he can hold off Rashad Jennings for the job.
- Fullback Tim Murphy, Sr. - The 235-pound veteran does a little of everything well finishing second on the team with 334 yards and a touchdown and catching 13 passes for 118 yards. He can be a tailback if needed, but he'll mostly be used as an occasional power runner as well as a blocker. He has had problems staying 100% with an ankle injury last year and a knee issue this spring.

Top Backups
- Rashad Jennings, Fr. - While Raymond Kirkley will be the starter, don't be shocked if he top freshman quickly takes over. He's a big, powerful 235-pound back with surprising 4.5 speed and moves. He enrolled in school early and was one of the stars of spring ball.
- Brandon Mason, Soph. - Mason saw a good amount of time as a true freshman rushing for 40 yards in five games. He's a big back with good between-the-tackles power, but he'll need to show some flash to get playing time ahead of the other big runners.
- Marcus Furman, Sr. - Furman adds some necessary speed to the mix, but he has to get healthy after missing almost all of spring ball. He only ran for 116 yards last year, but he finished third in receiving with 27 catches for 243 yards and a touchdown.
- Fullback Kellen Campbell, Sr. - The walk-on is a pure blocker who stepped in over the second half of last year and was solid fill-in when injuries hit. He finished with six rushing yards and four catches for 34 yards, but he'll have a hard time seeing the ball this year.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Once again, we haven't seen Collins or Brooks yet. Regardless of who gets the call, the Panthers will run a lot more this year. The spring game saw an almost perfect balance of run and pass plays.

Jim

Thanks!!