The football season may have just ended, but it's already time to start thinking about the 2017 NFL Draft. (No rest for the weary.) And the first step for many of those college players who hope to make their pro football dreams come true? The NFL Combine. Six Pitt Panthers and two Penn State Nittany Lions were invited to this year's NFL Combine, a group headlined by Panthers running back James Conner and quarterback Nate Peterman and Nittany Lions defensive end Garrett Sickles. Here all ... Read More
Pitt RB James Conner declares for 2017 NFL Draft
Pitt Panthers running back James Conner will declare for the 2017 NFL draft, the redshirt junior announced on Twitter on Saturday. Forever Grateful. pic.twitter.com/B8wXA9ABZz — James Conner (@JamesConner_) December 10, 2016 The text reads: “Blessed to have been given the opportunity to play at this great university. I have given it everything I got and will do it one more time in New York City for my brothers at Pitt. When they talk about someone who made a positive impact on the ... Read More
James Conner deserves the Heisman Trophy
“The Heisman Memorial Trophy annually recognizes the outstanding college football player whose performance best exhibits the pursuit of excellence with integrity. The winners of the trophy epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard work.” If you were curious or confused, those two sentences are used to define the qualities and characteristics a player is expected to possess and display if he wants to win what is arguably the most famous trophy in sports: the ... Read More
James Conner awarded Disney Spirit Award
With the intensity of sports, it's often easy to forget that these athletes who we all look up to and consider to be almost untouchable are, in fact, human, too. One of the most inspirational stories in sports is Pitt Panthers running back James Conner, who was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in late November 2015 before beating the cancer and leading his team back onto the field at the start of the 2016 season. Despite undergoing chemotherapy, the redshirt junior never let his diagnosis ... Read More
Pitt powers to 7-4 record behind 56-14 blowout of Duke
Possessing a dynamic offense has rarely — if ever — been a problem for the Pitt Panthers (7-4) this season. And Saturday, Pitt rang up 56 points in a thorough 56-14 waxing of the Duke Blue Devils (4-7) in a game that, for once, didn’t come down to the wire. A week after a huge upset of the then-No. 2 Clemson Tigers, the Panthers' defense came out the chute with decidedly more bite than usual. On the second play from scrimmage, linebacker Oluwaseun Idowu punched the ball out of running ... Read More
What does Pitt’s upset of Clemson mean for rest of season?
One snap. One final play. And the fate of the game between the Pitt Panthers and Clemson Tigers rested directly on the foot of Panthers kicker Chris Blewitt. Despite having an earlier kick blocked and missing an extra point, he wouldn't be deterred. Blewitt’s final try from 48 yards sailed just inside the left upright and through the posts into Pitt history. 43-42, Panthers. While this year’s Clemson squad hasn’t had quite the same overwhelming presence as last year’s final-4 team that ... Read More
Panthers stun No. 2 Clemson, 43-42
When the kicker has the last name of “Blewitt,” you’d be forgiven for not having much faith in him to hit a long, game-winning field goal with time expiring, especially after he missed an extra point in Saturday’s game. But, Saturday, Pitt's Chris Blewitt didn't blow it when it mattered most, nailing a booming 48-yard field goal with six seconds left to give the Panthers (6-4, 3-3 ACC) the shocking 43-42 win over the No. 2 Clemson Tigers (9-1, 6-1) — perhaps the season’s biggest upset. “I ... Read More