The Sports Monitor

OK, Pitt football fans, you have to admit, this was fun to watch. The West Virginia football program tried to clean up its coaching mess Friday when Bill Stewart resigned and Dana Holgorsen took over. Holgorsen, AD Oliver Luck's coach-in-waiting, doesn't have to wait any longer to be the man. The man I find partly responsible is Luck himself. Luck's hiring of Holgorsen and refusal to fire Stewart cultivated the troubles that led to Friday's events. It was supposed to be a smooth transition. It turned out to be anything but smooth. Stewart and Holgorsen didn't like each other. You can't blame them, but you could expect them to act like adults. Holgorsen allegedly got unruly at a casino and had to be removed. Then, the allegations got interesting. Stewart reportedly tried to dig up dirt on Holgorsen. Maybe Stewart thought that he could survive if more reports surfaced about Holgorsen. Instead, when that news broke, it hastened Stewart's departu...

One of the big risks when firing a coach is the ability to get a better one. By many accounts, Pitt AD Steve Pederson lost two picks as the replacement for Dave Wannstedt. Al Golden went to the University of Miami while Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen went to rival West Virginia. If either were Pederson's top pick, he blew it by waiting too long. If Pederson still needed approval to make a hire, then there's too much red tape at the university to be efficient. Leave it to WVU to trump Pitt and get Holgorsen.  There's still time to make a good hire, but time is of the essence. A new coach needs to be in place to lock up the players that committed to Pitt. And the new coach will have to hit the recruiting trail to build his incoming class. My hope still is for an offensive-minded coach, one that doesn't play the conservative game that was a Wannstedt hallmark. I'm still waiting for Rich Rodriguez to get canned at Michigan in time for ...