DontTaseMeBro: After watching the MSU game, I thought the D-Line was making progress. After watching the O-line of Navy just blow Pitt off the ball, Im starting to think the MSU game was a fluke. Im having a hard time thinking navys players are superior physically so Im thinking this falls on coaching. Is this coaching or just people playing out of position?

Paul Zeise: Well -- the one constant on this defense since 2003 hasn't been the players -- so you tell me.

PittAT: Paul, Do you expect anyone from this coaching staff to be back next year?

Paul Zeise: I would expect the head coach to be back regardless of what happens. After that, who knows what will happen.

B_Dubb: I suppose coach will say our defense is young but why won't he allow these boys to attack? Mark May even said all they do is run into their blockers. They don't try to fill gaps or make plays. This is all coaching. They want to bend don't break but da-it all we do is break. It is not working. Try something else. Their stubborness drives me insane

Paul Zeise: I know, I can already tell this is going to be a venting session for frustrated fans who can't figure out how a defense can be this bad year after year after year and nothing is adjusted or changed. If you want to see a defense play the way it is supposed to play -- like its hair is on fire -- go to the next home game and watch Cincy's guys fly around the field and make plays. They are aggressive, they fly to the ball, they mix it up and there is nobody who will ever be able to convince me they can do that because they have better players than Pitt does on that side of the ball because they don't.

itsonlyagame: In rebuilding a program you need to show some improvement. How will this consistent losing effect recruiting?

Paul Zeise: I think there are a lot of recruits who were on the fence about Pitt and waiting to see what was going to happen with this season. I'd say there is likely a lot less of them who will be considering matriculating in Oakland next August.......

mc1400: Is there any talk of an ultimatum for Wannstedt?

Paul Zeise: Ultimatum? From whom? There isn't an athletic director in place and the school doesn't seem like it is in a hurry to find one. I'm sure at some point there will be some pressure from above to take the first step -- make some staff changes -- but that would have to come from the chancellor at this point.

DontTaseMeBro: After year 3, Pitt really cant keep Wannstedt after a 2-9 season can they? If you were in charge would you give Wannstedt another year if they finish 2-9?

Paul Zeise: Luckily I don't get paid to make those decisions. And like I said, the first step down the road of firing a coach is usually forcing some staff changes so I think that is a more likely scenario than firing the head coach.

McCoy-HeismanWinner09: I know its only Navy but I think Bostick played really well. He seems to be a smart player and will improve every week as he gets more experience. Im not so sure we will see Bill Stull starting again. What are your thoughts?

Paul Zeise: I agree. His balls float a little bit, but he seems to get it to where it is supposed to go and he makes good decisions and he is tougher than I thought he was as he took some big hits again and kept getting up. He has played well enough thus far to make you wonder about the future of Stull, but a lot can happen in the next six games given some of the defenses they are going to play.

itsonlyagame: Does the Pitt defense miss Gus Mustakas that much? I thought the defensive line was going to be positive not a weakness this year?

Paul Zeise: They could have had Bryan Knight, Tyre Young, Claude Harriott and Sean Gilbert and it wouldn't have made a bit of difference given the scheme they drew up to try and stop the option and the fact that they didn't make one significant adjustment to it even when it was clear they had no chance to stop Navy. That's not only my words or thoughts, that's basically what guys like Mark Mary, Lou Holtz and several other coaches I spoke with in the press box at half-time.

Douglas_John: Why is Paul Rhoades still Pitt's defensive coordinator?

Paul Zeise: next question

DontTaseMeBro: Assuming Rhodes is gone after this year...who do you think are good candidates for the job?

Paul Zeise: Well, that's a great question. I think from within, Greg Gattuso would be a good candidate because he's an agressive coach by nature and I think a lot of the things that are being done now would be scrapped, though the head coach would still be Dave Wannstedt, and his philosophies about defense are more passive and more about trying to win one-on-one matchups up front (which Pitt doesn't, nor will they ever, have the horses to do.)

homeequity: Paul, I have to believe that the coaching staff is terrible and most should be let go after this year. Rhodes time is up as the defense has not been able to stop the run in years. Offensive line not getting it done which means Dunn is done. I've never been a Cavanaugh fan, I think he's too conservative for college. As for DW- he's a great recruiter but he looks lost on game day. Your thoughts?

Paul Zeise: I think Dave could benefit from a quality control coach but unfortunately this is not the NFL where you can have a limitless amount of assistant coaches. The time-out right near the end of regulation -- and right before you are going to punt the ball to the other team -- was a real head scratcher and critical things like that can be the difference between winning and losing. As for the rest of the staff - like I have said -- thankfully it is not my call ...

Blahovec: What was Rod Rutherford doing on the sidelines last night? Is he part of the staff now and does he have any eligibility?

Paul Zeise: He is some kind of an intern or graduate assistant. And no, he doesn't have any eligibility......

BuseysTwoMeatballSubs: Tell me Paul you overheard Nordy tell Cochran that Death-Spiral Dave won't be back in 2008? The program is heading back, at least on the field, to the mid-90s.

Paul Zeise: No, I haven't but if the thing is out of control and spiraling downward fast, like I said before, there is nobody sitting in the seat to put a stop to it right now.

Blahovec: Can Shady go pro after next season?

Paul Zeise: Good question. Based on what happened with Larry Fitzgerald there is some precedent for it but if I am not mistaken, LeSean McCoy actually graduated from prep school as a high school senior while Fitzgerald had already graduated from high school before he got to prep school -- the rule states three seasons must pass after you graduate from high school, so it all depends on what McCoy's status was at prep school -- was he a post-high school student or a guy finishing his high school degree.

BuseysTwoMeatballSubs: Is it sickening that McCoy didn't have two chances to dive over the top to reach paydirt in overtime? Two passes? What in the name of Paul Hackett is going on here?

Paul Zeise: Oh I know, this was frustrating to a lot of people. You have to ride the horses that got you there on the brink of victory. That's just the way it has to be. Two jump balls -- I'm not sure you could draw up worse plays for that situation.

Ghost_of_Staubach: This should be an entertaining and hate filed chat.

Paul Zeise: Entertaining? Yes, but I'm a lover, not a hater.....

Blahovec: Let the bashing begin... a fade route to Darrell Strong? Are you kidding me? That is your 2 point conversion bread and butter? Please.

Paul Zeise: Thanks for not using expletives in this description of the last two plays --- as you might imagine, I've read a lot of colorful language this morning in my e-mails....

apanther_in_memphis: During the 2nd overtime, if Pitt knew they were going to go for it on 4th down, why didn't they just run the ball. If they can't gain 2 yards on 2 running plays then they deserved to lose the game anyway.

Paul Zeise: My thoughts exactly.

JohnnyDollar: Towards the end of regulation and in the first OT, you could see McCoy was tired, no leg drive. Why not use Howling more?

Paul Zeise: They used Howling some in the first overtime and if you remember in the second overtime, McCoy took the Panthers from the 9 to the 2. He had enough left to run twice more and get two yards.

itsonlyagame: When they were interviewing Tony Dorsett during pre-game it sounded like he wants to get more involved in Pitt football through recruiting. Is that possible?

Paul Zeise: I don't know what the rules are but he is an alumnus so I am sure there are very strict guidelines as to what kind of contact he can have with recruits, if any. And while I think the guy was a great player, and I say this with all due respect, he is yesterday's news. Most kids who are 15, 16, 17, even ones from Western Pennsylvania, have very little knowledge about him or care what he did in 1976. And therein lies the problem, this program seems to be stuck in the 1970's and trying to play 1970's football and that just isn't going to work in the year 2007.

BuseysTwoMeatballSubs: Why do I think if the Navy coach was at Pitt, he'd be winning more games and getting the most out of the players?

Paul Zeise: Great point about Navy's coach. That guy gets every ounce of talent from every one of his players and they play hard, they play with an edge, they play without fear -- that's a fun team to watch.

Blahovec: Do they have a stat for how many times Chris McKillop is laying on his back?

Paul Zeise: No, but he's been a warrior and keeps getting up which is more than you can say for at least a few of them.

thePaulsmustgo: So when do the 2 Paul's get canned, as in Rhodes & Dunn ?

Paul Zeise: Again, not my call but I would think both are at the very least starting to feel the seat underneath them get warm.

ticktockman: What role does Jerry Cochran play in this program? We've sucked through various AD's and Coaches, but he has been a constant it seems.

Paul Zeise: I'm not sure how much he has to do with the program. I know his first choice for the head coach the last time was Bo Pelini and he was obviously over ruled, so while he has some say, he clearly doesn't have the final authority to do anything.

Blahovec: Do you think Wanny even knows what the overtime rules are? I seriously doubted that watching the game last night... you have to tell your freshman QB that he has a timeout to use if the play clock is running down. That would have saved the 3rd down play in OT when they got the procedure penalty and wouldn't have had to rushed. Pathetic.

Paul Zeise: I didn't understand why they didn't use a time-out there either, but I don't think it was for lack of knowing the rules.

where_s_joe_conlin_: Is Paul Rhoads officially the worst d-coordinator that money can buy?

Paul Zeise: next question......

thePaulsmustgo: Rhodes never seems to make ANY halftime adjustments. Navy continually ran the fullback dive in the 2nd half. Are halftime adjustments beyond Rhodes?

Paul Zeise: The defense is sound, everyone must do their assignments and execute.......

neednewcoach: Do you know why Pitt wouldnt line up anyone over Navy's center all game. Wouldnt that have helped to stop the fullback up the middle? The center was able to dictate whoever he wanted to block rather than Pitt forcing him to block somebody.

Paul Zeise: Wait a minute -- you mean, oh I don't know, going to a five man line with a nose guard lined up over the center blowing up the middle on every play? No that wouldn't work, you see, because they'd just run around the end......

edjomu: Isn't it time for the administration to pull the coaching staff in for a little "heart-to-heart"? I think they should be given one more year with the understanding they must get to a bowl game or look for new jobs. Extreme but it might wake them up. What potential recruit would want to consider Pitt? Any edge they might have had is gone.

Paul Zeise: From what I understand the administration had a heart-to-heart with Wannstedt last week. And like I said, I would expect that there will be some major changes on both sides of the ball at year's end.

Tim: Anyone notice Pitt's last possession of regulation, when Pitt called a timeout with 20 seconds left on the play clock only to then punt the ball to Navy? Our boy Wanny nearly giftwrapped a win for Navy right then and there. When timeout was called I thought it had to be Navy calling that, by doing that with a minute and 20 seconds to go in the game he saved them 20 seconds! His on field decisions are mind boggling! I'll drive him to the airport if he needs a ride.

Paul Zeise: I think I addressed this already but you are right, I didn't understand this at all. Let the 20 seconds tick off OR make Navy use one of its time-outs, but don't stop the clock then give the ball back to a team you haven't stopped all night.

Dan_Hawkins: Are the players starting get as frustrated with the coaching staff as we fans are becoming?

Paul Zeise: Yes -- on the record they are saying the right things but there is no question this thing is going to boil over soon.

BringBackWalt: Do you think Hillgrove and Fralic had a few in the booth last night watching that debacle?

Paul Zeise: I have no idea what you mean. If you mean "did they have a few drinks" I'd say this -- they should have given how many of these debacles they have had to sit through and try and put a rosy spin on in recent years....

Dan_Hawkins: Paul do you see any other games Pitt can win?

Paul Zeise: Syracuse, perhaps, if Pitt can score enough because I bet they'll throw the ball all over Pitt's bend-don''t-break, let's play so far off the ball we couldn't make a stop behind the line if we wanted to, defense.

Mike_K: Can any of Pitt's problems be blamed on a young team that may still mature into a top 25 type team in the next year or two? Give me some hope!

Paul Zeise: Very few. The team will improve as the players get more experience but some of the problems are just fundamental.

neednewcoach: I agree that Pitt didnt seem to try anything different all game on defense. Did you happen to hear Wannstedt's comments after the game? He said that he thought that Pitt contained Navy's run pretty well. Last time I checked, they ran for over 300 yds and scored 48 pts. Doesnt sound like it to me. Was Wannstedt watching a different game than I was?

Paul Zeise: I was in the press conference and he was basically saying that he expected Navy to run the ball well but what really killed Pitt was Navy's passing. I think the two are probably connected but I could be wrong.

philb7: Any chance of Pitt running some variation of the wishbone until Bostick is more capable in this offense? It seem to work well for Navy!

Paul Zeise: I don't think Pat Bostick is the problem with the offense.

ThePanicButton: There are a ton of problem with this team right now. Is there any one problem that you see that can easily fixed in the short term?

Paul Zeise: I think some of the problems on offense have been solved. I think the defense could be fixed with a few adjustments to the philosophy and style that is played but not this deep into the season.

PITT2-10: Paul, When are Pitt's safeties going to make a play?

Paul Zeise: Well, I think Eric Thatcher made a few last night and according to the coaches, Mike Phillips has been one of the best players on the defense.

PaJ: The defense actually played well enough for us to win. Don't laugh -- they got stops at the right time. Is the triple option just so hard to deal with that we never had a chance, or have we regressed THAT much since the Michigan State game?

Paul Zeise: I will grant you this -- Pitt had the ball with a chance to win the game at the end and couldn't score. The defense, however, did not play well by any measure or stretch of the imagination. The bottom line is, while the triple-option is tough to stop -- it ain't THAT tough. Just ask Temple and Ball State, too juggernauts, I know, whose defenses solved that offense at least to some degree.

Blahovec: Why would any top notch recruit even entertain the idea of going to Pitt?

Paul Zeise: You can indeed get to the NFL from Pitt and there are still a lot of great things about the program. It is just struggling right now.

Fralic_Rules: Any chance Wannstedt takes over as his own D coordinator next year? Is Pete Carroll the only college coach that does this?

Paul Zeise: No, Greg Schiano was one step from being fired a few years back and fired his defensive coordinator and took over the defense himself and saved his job. It isn't that crazy of an idea.

thePaulsmustgo: Do you think Wannstedt can reverse this, like Ron Zook has at Illinois, who like Wanny can recruit but had nothing but losing years until the breakthrough this year? Or is this wishful thinking?

Paul Zeise: A lot can happen in six games.

where_s_joe_conlin_: Does Pitt teach tackling fundamentals? Over the past 7-8 years they have been an awful tackling team. Do they just assume that these recruits come in knowing form and technique? Or do they teach them to tackle as poorly as they do?

Paul Zeise: I think they work a lot on tackling. But like an old coach told me --- "practice doesn't make perfect, perfect practice makes perfect" -- in other words, you can practice and teach something all day long but if it isn't the right way to do it you are wasting your time. Not saying they aren't teaching it right but results ...

philb7: Do you think Foge Fazio would be a good fit for defensive coordinator. I know he still lives locally and I do not believe he is working right now?

Paul Zeise: I know for sure Foge Fazio has no interest in getting back into the grind of coaching college football. He is a good defensive coach and he has a lot of insight into what makes defenses tick but again, this team needs to move out of the 1970's, not continue to go back to them (unless of course they want to bring back some of that great disco music ...)

ThePanicButton: In my opinion, Walt's fate was sealed when the Pitt fans and the media lost faith in him. I think its fair to say fans have lost faith in Wanny and company. Can he do anything to restore faith? And I'd like to add that I'm getting worn out these past few weeks.

Paul Zeise: Win. Win. Win. That's all it takes, just win some games and show you can win and the faith will return.

Blahovec: No offense to Bostick, but there is no way that kid was the best player in PA his senior year of high school.

Paul Zeise: And you know this how?

BringBackWalt: Paul, did you get to talk to Tony D on what he thought about Shady either prior to or after the game?

Paul Zeise: No, I didn't get a chance to talk to him but I'd be interested to know because he obviously knows great running backs.

wannyforprez: Will Pitt change it's thought process on D after this game? (If not WVU might score 80 on us.)

Paul Zeise: No, the defense is sound based on sound principles. The players just need to execute.

duke_football: Can we hire Paul Johnson as our coach?

Paul Zeise: You laugh, but the guy can coach. And he is obviously a master of getting the absolute most out of inferior talent and taking it and teaching it to beat teams with superior talent.

Mike_K: Shane Murray looked pretty good last night. Is Dickerson making any progress at LB?

Paul Zeise: Both kids have played well considering how new they are to playing linebacker. I thought Murray might have had his best game. Dickerson is a little slower in his development, but he is coming along.

Shady_DeCoy: With no one around to fire him, is there a chance that Dave would actually resign should this turn into a 2-10 or 3-9 season?

Paul Zeise: I suppose anything is possible but I don't think so. I think he wants to have next year because he believes it will all be in place for a break out season.

PITT2-10: Lets extend Dave W. contract, so he can land another top recruiting class and we can go 5-7 next year.

Paul Zeise: Think of it this way, if nothing else the next coach will have some good players to work with.

Dan_Hawkins: Paul who would you like to see replace Cavanaugh as OC?

Paul Zeise: I didn't realize he was fired or that he resigned...

PantherRantsRanter: Paul, I know he's a PSU guy...but what are the chances that Pitt eventually makes overtures to Tom Bradley for head coach?

Paul Zeise: They did last time and I'm sure they would again this time. My only concern with a guy like that -- a career assistant who has never really been anywhere else but one program - is this -- will he bring the kind of excitement and energy to a new program, and one that needs it as bad as this one?

PittGradCaveSpring: Do you think Wanny will ever start Bill Stull considering how well Bostick played yesterday? He showed a lot of potential and I am excited to see how much better he is going to get.

Paul Zeise: Great question, but one that is probably moot because i don't think Stull will be ready until late in the season if he even gets back at all

apanther_in_memphis: How many winnable games do you see left on Pitt's schedule?

Paul Zeise: Syracuse

Fralic_Rules: Was Cavanaugh down on the sidelines last night, or up in the coaches booth? During the TV coverage, I never saw him with Bostick? Is this a change from previous games?

Paul Zeise: I didn't see him on the sidelines so he must have been in the box, which he has been doing over the past few weeks.

Mike_K: Is there any chance for progress next year? McCoy and Bostick in their second year in the program, injured guys returning, Fields hopefully being eligible. Something.

Paul Zeise: You would think but again, something has to change from within because something is missing.

PaJ: Paul, I know you've said on numerous occasions that you're unbiased, but it sounds like you're getting a little frustrated.

Paul Zeise: Not frustrated, but it seems like groundhog day with this defense and there are only so many ways you can write "they aren't very good" before it seems like you are banging your head against a wall. And that usually leads to a head-ache, which is no fun for anyone involved ... And on that note, I must say good-bye. Thanks for all the great questions and we will do it again next week, same time, same channel ...