Frank Cignetti Jr. might have the best intentions in the entire world when it comes to his players at Pitt, but that — unfortunately for him — will likely not be enough.
Cignetti has made many stops on his collegiate and professional coaching journey, often pointing out that he’s worked alongside — and with — some of the greatest names in the game. He’s an overwhelmingly positive presence who, by all accounts, wants the absolute best for his players on and off the field.
“We got an unbelievable group of players in this football program,” Cignetti said Wednesday after practice. “Coach Narduzzi’s done an unbelievable job building this culture, not only Christian and Phil in this situation, but our guys give us everything they have. And when you’ve gotta make a tough decision like that, what you love as a coach is that this team loves each other and they compete with each other and they root for each other.”
That’s great. It’s great to love and respect the guys in his room, to come to work every day with a smile and the desire to make a difference on his players, but now more than ever, college football is a business.
When Cignetti got his start, working under his father as an offensive assistant at Indiana (Pa.), he said he used to be consumed by the idea of schemes and fundamentals and techniques and all the details of really making an offense hum. By his own admission, he prioritizes more than just what occurs on the field these days.
“As I’ve gotten older, and obviously through experience I understand those aspects better, I think more about the leadership,” Cignetti said. “Every day I drive in here, I think about how can I stand in front of this team or this offense and make a difference as a positive leader because it’s our job to inspire, it’s our job to teach, it’s our job to really put these young men in a position to be successful on and off the field.
“So, as a coordinator, I love the leadership aspect of it, trying to inspire these young men and really these teaching moments that we have right now, hey, we’re going through adverse times right now, but we’re gonna learn how to fight through adverse times by believing in yourself, believing in our teammates and staying positive and working hard.”
If Cignetti wants to mold his players into outstanding young men who persevere in the face of pressure, it better pay off on the football field, too. And it just hasn’t. If anything, Pitt has regressed offensively this season.
He preached the importance of continuity after practice Wednesday, especially when it comes to Christian Veilleux and the quarterbacks, but it it’s a ‘what have you done for me lately’ kind of environment now. And it’s not as if there’s been any sort of consistency established over the last two seasons now.
You don’t have three years in college football anymore. You’re lucky to get one. And when Cignetti claims that it all starts with coaching, himself and the offensive staff, but execution still isn’t where it needs to be, that’s an indictment on either the players brought in or the system itself. And with the way Cignetti lavished praise on his players, that leaves himself in the crosshairs.
Pitt is on its third quarterback of the Frank Cignetti Jr. era, and it’s just not working. The Panthers are way, way down in scoring, racking up fewer yards than ever (especially on the ground) and there hasn’t been any level of consistency. It’s not unfair to say it’s one of the worst offenses in college football — certainly in the ACC.
“It’s hard, whether you’re in the NFL, college football, high school, getting the execution, it’s not easy. But every day we go out there and strive to do it better,” Cignetti said.
The effort is admirable and the love is commendable, but it has to result in something positive.
It’s not as if the Pitt players are without fault this season, but I think it’s pretty clear that — while Cignetti may be instilling knowledge and wisdom in his players — the system isn’t conducive to success on the field for a variety of reasons. And that success, especially on the heels of the most successful two-season stretch in decades, should be paramount.
Anyone who follows this program knows Cignetti was a terrible hire. His resume and length of time in all his stops on the coaching trail are very short EXCEPT working for his dad. Narduzzi will NOT be let go because : 1) our AD is loyal…just look at Coach Capel being retained 2) Narduzzi buyout is way more that Pitt wants to spend to get rid of him and 3) Narduzzi was actually on the AD search committee when Lyke was hired (trust me a friendship was built). IF our AD gets the Ohio State AD job Narduzzi better be… Read more »
Great analysis Don. Each of your points reinforce the sense that Narduzzi will be around. I believe he has defined and implemented his defensive scheme and recruited to meet his style. We can’t say the same offensively. Consider this … Narduzzi’s original staff Jim Chaney (OC) 2015 offseason Jim Chaney -> Matt Canada 2016 offseason Matt Canada -> Shawn Watson 2018 offseason Shawn Watson -> Mark Whipple 2022 offseason Mark Whipple -> Frank Cignetti Not to advocate a continuation of the revolving door of offensive coordinators but I think Pitt should pull out all stops and pursue Chris Beatty. He… Read more »
It’s not just the lack of points and lack of yards. Look at offensive penalties. False starts. Turnovers. Not one part of Cignetti’s offense works.
And while he might say, “ “It’s hard, whether you’re in the NFL, college football, high school, getting the execution, it’s not easy.”, other programs ARE doing it, and Pitt WAS doing it until he arrived.
Launch that clown into the sun. He’s robbing Pitt athletics at this point.
Need to move on Cignetti on Sunday after Florida State. Then we may have a chance to keep recruits, Bartholomew, Hammond, Johnson, Zion and Yarnell.
Zero targets for Gavin.
Five Carrie’s for Rodney.
Enough said?
Also, I don’t think Cignetti ever played college football. Maytnot even varsity football. Just got the coaching jobs from his daddy.
If you were a young player, would you put your career in Cignetti’s hands???