Will Pittsburgh get Another Hero From Miami Ohio?

We Will Miss You Mustache.

Well the Dave Wannstedt era is now over, the thing I think I’ll miss the most is of course the mustache. In all seriousness though I don’t know about you, but I know I will miss him. I think the greatest thing he did during his tenure at Pitt was his wonderful recruiting.  His coaching could come into question though as it seemed like the Panthers always found a way to let us down in some capacity during Wannstedt’s years.  That’s all over now and the new Mike Haywood era begins. Right off the bat I notice one huge problem with him no beautiful mustache. I can let that go I guess, but I still make the request Mike please grow a mustache. Lets get into the seriousness business though will Coach Haywood be a good coach or more importantly in my eyes a good recruiter.  One thing that makes me think he is going to be a good recruiter is that he once held the position of recruiting coordinator so he must know a little bit about that. Another thing I like about him is the time he has spent with all  these major programs, it makes it seem as though he’ll know what winning is all about.

No Mustache, but Let's give Him a Chance

He spent 95-02 with LSU during his time there they went to six bowl games. The best part is he spent time under Coach Nick Saban who I think is an excellent coach. Then from 03-04 he was in Texas, and in both years the went to bowl games plus he coached under Mack Brown who is another superb coach. From 05-08 he was with Notre Dame as their O coordinator during his time there he coached under Charlie Weis and went to 3 bowl games. All the factors put together make me believe he has a chance to be a great coach, and I haven’t even mentioned what he did as a head coach. He was the head coach of Miami Ohio from 09-10. In 09 he led his team to only a 1-11 record, but he had really nothing to work with.  Then in 2010 he did what I think he is really capable of and took his team to the Godaddy.com Bowl with a 9-4 record. If you look at just his 2 seasons at Miami O then it is clear he did something right to take the team from a 1-11 record to a 9-4 record is a big accomplishment. Now he comes and takes over a talented yet under achieving team in the Pittsburgh Panthers. They of course finished the season with an ok yet disappointing  record of 7-5 and an appearance in the BBVA Compass Bowl. I can’t see this team having a record worse than 7-5 next year I see equaling or improving on that record under a better coach, and hopefully equally as good recruiter.  As you know the last guy Pittsburgh took from Miami Ohio has won the city two Super Bowls, hopefully we can strike gold twice and get another hero from Miami O and bring us some National Championships. All we can do is give him a chance.