Never heard of the school and they're airing the Pitt I'm familiar with.

Not sure how the ACCN can mess this up, but well done.

What if Pitt didn't blow up their football stadium, but renovated/rebuilt it? Would they still be a power?

They could have played hoops at the off campus Paintbucket like a good little Big East program.

Kenny Pickett Day!

(07-15-2022 08:38 AM)esayem Wrote:  What if Pitt didn't blow up their football stadium, but renovated/rebuilt it? Would they still be a power?

They could have played hoops at the off campus Paintbucket like a good little Big East program.

I'd argue Pitt football is in better shape today than it was the 90s. It wasn't a national power the last ten years of Pitt Stadiums life. Perhaps more nationally respected then.

(07-15-2022 10:27 AM)ClairtonPanther Wrote:  

(07-15-2022 08:38 AM)esayem Wrote:  What if Pitt didn't blow up their football stadium, but renovated/rebuilt it? Would they still be a power?

They could have played hoops at the off campus Paintbucket like a good little Big East program.

I'd argue Pitt football is in better shape today than it was the 90s. It wasn't a national power the last ten years of Pitt Stadiums life. Perhaps more nationally respected then.

...but would they still drop the "h" in Pittsburgh?

(07-15-2022 10:36 AM)Hokie Mark Wrote:  

(07-15-2022 10:27 AM)ClairtonPanther Wrote:  

(07-15-2022 08:38 AM)esayem Wrote:  What if Pitt didn't blow up their football stadium, but renovated/rebuilt it? Would they still be a power?

They could have played hoops at the off campus Paintbucket like a good little Big East program.

I'd argue Pitt football is in better shape today than it was the 90s. It wasn't a national power the last ten years of Pitt Stadiums life. Perhaps more nationally respected then.

...but would they still drop the "h" in Pittsburgh?

Probably not GenX'ers on an internship were smarter than today's generation.

(07-15-2022 10:27 AM)ClairtonPanther Wrote:  

(07-15-2022 08:38 AM)esayem Wrote:  What if Pitt didn't blow up their football stadium, but renovated/rebuilt it? Would they still be a power?

They could have played hoops at the off campus Paintbucket like a good little Big East program.

I'd argue Pitt football is in better shape today than it was the 90s. It wasn't a national power the last ten years of Pitt Stadiums life. Perhaps more nationally respected then.

There's no question it is. You just won a conference championship and had to win a CCG to get there. Pitt football hasn't been in this good a shape since the 1980's.

(07-15-2022 08:38 AM)esayem Wrote:  What if Pitt didn't blow up their football stadium, but renovated/rebuilt it? Would they still be a power?

They could have played hoops at the off campus Paintbucket like a good little Big East program.

Pitt sabotaged its own program in the 1980s, starting with letting Jackie Sherrill walk which was followed by a disaster of a hire. After that, with Mike Gottfried at the helm, Pitt was returning to mega recruiting classes and national rankings when, when in the late 1980s, the school raised athletic admission standards beyond the NCAA minimum and sacked Mike Gottfried (who had been give a "life time" contract) when he pushed back. That was followed by a string of terrible hires and atrocious teams until the late 90s/early 2000s. This was accompanied by a chronic underfunding of the football program and lack of facilities investment and failed stadium renovation fundraising campaigns, not to mention a squandered state construction grant. No point going into more details here, but Pitt was an absolute mess in the 90s, and not just on the football side.

All of that did Pitt in. And it was a repeat performance of when the university sabotaged what was one of the top powerhouse programs in the country in the 1910s-30s by instituting "purity" rules at the end of the 30s. In other words, Pitt has shot itself in the foot multiple times. And because of that, Pitt's history has some unbelievable highs followed by equally astounding lows.

Moving from Pitt Stadium didn't affect Pitt one iota. Just like Cal playing in Memorial Stadium (which was very similar to Pitt Stadium) hasn't helped them become a power. Pitt Stadium needed millions and renovations that the university wasn't going to be able to finance in the 90s. Whether moving to Heinz, essentially getting a new stadium for free, and freeing up money for other purposes, like the Petersen Events Center (prior to which Pitt had been playing in something equivalent to a run down 1950s version of Cameron), is still hotly debated in Pitt circles, because Pitt will likely never be able to move football back on campus.

(07-15-2022 05:03 PM)CrazyPaco Wrote:  

(07-15-2022 08:38 AM)esayem Wrote:  What if Pitt didn't blow up their football stadium, but renovated/rebuilt it? Would they still be a power?

They could have played hoops at the off campus Paintbucket like a good little Big East program.

Pitt sabotaged its own program in the 1980s, starting with letting Jackie Sherrill walk which was followed by a disaster of a hire. After that, with Mike Gottfried at the helm, Pitt was returning to mega recruiting classes and national rankings when, when in the late 1980s, the school raised athletic admission standards beyond the NCAA minimum and sacked Mike Gottfried (who had been give a "life time" contract) when he pushed back. That was followed by a string of terrible hires and atrocious teams until the late 90s/early 2000s. This was accompanied by a chronic underfunding of the football program and lack of facilities investment and failed stadium renovation fundraising campaigns, not to mention a squandered state construction grant. No point going into more details here, but Pitt was an absolute mess in the 90s, and not just on the football side.

All of that did Pitt in. And it was a repeat performance of when the university sabotaged what was one of the top powerhouse programs in the country in the 1910s-30s by instituting "purity" rules at the end of the 30s. In other words, Pitt has shot itself in the foot multiple times. And because of that, Pitt's history has some unbelievable highs followed by equally astounding lows.

Moving from Pitt Stadium didn't affect Pitt one iota. Just like Cal playing in Memorial Stadium (which was very similar to Pitt Stadium) hasn't helped them become a power. Pitt Stadium needed millions and renovations that the university wasn't going to be able to finance in the 90s. Whether moving to Heinz, essentially getting a new stadium for free, and freeing up money for other purposes, like the Petersen Events Center (prior to which Pitt had been playing in something equivalent to a run down 1950s version of Cameron), is still hotly debated in Pitt circles, because Pitt will likely never be able to move football back on campus.

Thanks for the info.

What was the old stadium atmosphere like vs Heinz?

(07-16-2022 08:33 AM)esayem Wrote:  

(07-15-2022 05:03 PM)CrazyPaco Wrote:  

(07-15-2022 08:38 AM)esayem Wrote:  What if Pitt didn't blow up their football stadium, but renovated/rebuilt it? Would they still be a power?

They could have played hoops at the off campus Paintbucket like a good little Big East program.

Pitt sabotaged its own program in the 1980s, starting with letting Jackie Sherrill walk which was followed by a disaster of a hire. After that, with Mike Gottfried at the helm, Pitt was returning to mega recruiting classes and national rankings when, when in the late 1980s, the school raised athletic admission standards beyond the NCAA minimum and sacked Mike Gottfried (who had been give a "life time" contract) when he pushed back. That was followed by a string of terrible hires and atrocious teams until the late 90s/early 2000s. This was accompanied by a chronic underfunding of the football program and lack of facilities investment and failed stadium renovation fundraising campaigns, not to mention a squandered state construction grant. No point going into more details here, but Pitt was an absolute mess in the 90s, and not just on the football side.

All of that did Pitt in. And it was a repeat performance of when the university sabotaged what was one of the top powerhouse programs in the country in the 1910s-30s by instituting "purity" rules at the end of the 30s. In other words, Pitt has shot itself in the foot multiple times. And because of that, Pitt's history has some unbelievable highs followed by equally astounding lows.

Moving from Pitt Stadium didn't affect Pitt one iota. Just like Cal playing in Memorial Stadium (which was very similar to Pitt Stadium) hasn't helped them become a power. Pitt Stadium needed millions and renovations that the university wasn't going to be able to finance in the 90s. Whether moving to Heinz, essentially getting a new stadium for free, and freeing up money for other purposes, like the Petersen Events Center (prior to which Pitt had been playing in something equivalent to a run down 1950s version of Cameron), is still hotly debated in Pitt circles, because Pitt will likely never be able to move football back on campus.

Thanks for the info.

What was the old stadium atmosphere like vs Heinz?

If I'm honest, better in some ways, worse in others. Keep in mind that Pitt's campus is very urban...integrated into the city grid not just a walled off part of a city.

Pitt Stadium had much less immediate tailgating around it but it spilled into the college neighborhood and bars so the surrounding environment had more of the collegiate party atmosphere on game day but actual car tailgating was very limited. There were more game-day college traditions; specifically more Greek involvement with games. It felt more collegiate, more accessible, more of a college energy, but less polished, and was absolutely outdated. Amenities were bare bones to non-existent. Press boxes would be most equivalent to those found at a high school stadium not located in Texas. All seating was metal bleachers, and while there wasn't a bad seat in the bowl, it wasn't exactly close to the field either because there was a track around the field. When Pitt wasn't winning big, as in the 90s, crowds weren't great, so the atmosphere wasn't great during these periods either. Atmosphere was highly dependent on the product on the field, like most other places.

Heinz has a much better overall tailgate scene due to the much greater amount of surface lots around the stadium. The stadium itself is, well, an NFL caliber professional stadium, so its amenities and features blow away any other college-specific stadium I've been too (and I've been to quite a few). When Pitt is doing well and there are big games, it's atmosphere is very good, and although more polished, it feels a little more sterile due to having less of a collegiate feel, which to be honest, often means older, more cramped facilities. Particularly, my interpretation is that the students and fans mix feels more segregated inside and outside of the stadium which contributes some.

The closest thing that I've ever seen to Pitt Stadium is Cal's Memorial Stadium. Very, very similar, even how it is set as a bowl built into the side of a hill, and you can swap out Sather Tower in the distance peeking over the top of the rim to how the Cathedral of Learning poked out over the top of Pitt Stadium's walls if you were on the home side. I've always said if they film a movie about Bobbie Grier or Tony Dorsett or Dan Marino, they'll film the Pitt scenes in Memorial Stadium.

With all of that said, part of my impressions may be due to the primary location of the seats I've had in Pitt Stadium vs Heinz Field.

Pitt Stadium circa late 1990s:


Pitt Stadium was nestled between the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) campus and the upper university campus. It is the exact location where the Petersen Events Center now stands, and you walk up this hill (Cardiac Hill) from the lower campus into the main gate of the Pete too.


and this is what is there today:


And here's Heinz Fie..., errr Acrisure Stadium: