"Dave Wannstedt is the right guy for the right job at absolutely the right time. Pitt is on the cusp of becoming a perennial Top 10 team. All the needed state-of-the-art facilities are in place, and Dave is the element that will take the program to another level."

Those words were spoken by former Pitt All-American and current ESPN analyst Mark May in December 2004 when Wannstedt was hired as Pitt's coach and they were echoed by just about every former Panthers legend who had an opinion.

But Pitt has not exactly taken the world by storm in the three seasons since Wannstedt was hired. The Panthers are 16-19, have yet to have a winning season or play in a bowl game and are coming off a disappointing 5-7 season that was salvaged only by their stunning, season-ending 13-9 upset of West Virginia.

Despite those numbers, Wannstedt was given a contract extension and has received a public vote of confidence from his boss, athletic director Steve Pederson.

As for May, he still stands by his original thoughts.

"I think it is very clear this program is on the rise and Dave has it headed in the right direction," May said. "I am very happy the administration stuck by him and has shown some patience because more often than not, that isn't the case. Coaches who come in usually have a mess to clean up and by the time they are done straightening it out, they've had a few losing seasons and they are fired.

"But if you look at this situation, Dave has recruited extremely well, he's built a great base of talent, that talent is starting to mature and, more importantly, he is bringing in the right kinds of players. Kids that work hard, are good students and don't embarrass the university. This thing is being built for the long haul."

May, who played at Pitt from 1977-80, is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame and the Panthers only Outland Trophy winner. He was selected as the keynote speaker for this year's kickoff luncheon Aug. 29, the day before the Panthers opener against Bowling Green.

He said his decision to come back to speak at the luncheon was as a no-brainer even though it comes at the busiest time of the year for him, given his duties as college football analyst.

"I consider it an honor," May said. "Look at how many guys with much bigger names than me, guys like [Mike] Ditka, [Dan] Marino, [Tony] Dorsett, that they could have chosen to do this and they asked me. So there was no way I could pass up this opportunity."

May is as excited about this season as a lot of Pitt fans are because he believes that the team is talented enough not just to win, but win big.

He pointed to four things: The success in recruiting is ready to pay off (18 of the 22 players projected as starters are Wannstedt's recruits), the schedule is manageable, the quarterback situation is more stable than it was last year and the defense should be one of the best in the nation.

"I thought for sure they'd be in everybody's top 25 but, unfortunately, that hasn't been the case," May said. "But I do think as the season goes forward they will be because I look at the talent they have coming back, the talent they've added and the teams on their schedule -- almost all of their tough games are at home -- and it I think that it isn't unrealistic to expect them to win the Big East and get to a BCS bowl."