This and That

Well now, it looks like the football team is setting some lofty goals:

"I remember when we all came in for visits and [in] our freshman season and we all said we need to be the class to put Pitt back on top," said senior tight end Nate Byham.

He was one of the top prospects in the country coming out of high school and chose the Panthers over USC, Michigan, Penn State and Miami.

"We got halfway there last year, winning nine games and all, but we were very disappointed. But we didn't set out to achieve a nine-win season -- we wanted a Big East championship and a BCS bowl game and we feel like we should have went undefeated last year, so that left a bitter taste in our mouth.

"We have the talent, we have the team, we have to go out now and every week take care of business with no letdowns. And we're focused on finishing the job -- if we go 11-1 and don't win the Big East, it won't be a success in my mind, it will be a disappointment."


With football season less than a month away, the Trib-Review spotlights a few players including defensive standout Greg Romeus and his prospects to potentially leave for the NFL after this year.

Despite mock drafts that project the redshirt junior as a potential first-round pick, Romeus said he is doing his best to remain grounded and ignore talk of entering the NFL Draft next spring with one year of eligibility remaining.

"I still have two years left. I play for Pitt. I'm not worried about that stuff. If I'm blessed, that stuff will come later," Romeus said. "That's not a distraction for me. I know where I started. Three years ago, I wasn't a big-name player. I was inexperienced. I'll always stay humble about that fact. I can't worry about the future. I have to stay with the present."

Mock drafts already projecting him as a possible first-rounder? Wow. That's a bit much for me - there's a long time in between now and the end of the year.


Meanwhile, some good news for folks with Comcast. The company forwarded me a press release with the news that ESPNU and ESPN360.com are now both available to Comcast users as part of a digital package.