Despite Tino Sunseri's improvement, Pitt still needs 'an upgrade' according to ESPN

Tino Sunseri's had an up and down career, no doubt. After having a decent year in 2010 for a first-year starter, he took a step back in 2011 in Todd Graham's quirky offense. But in 2012, he rebounded to have one of the best seasons ever for a Pitt quarterback. Still, though - that apparently wasn't enough for some who say that Pitt still needs an upgrade at the position.

ESPN's Andrea Adelson says that despite some improvement, the Panthers are one of four teams in the Big East that need an upgrade at quarterback. That's right - Sunseri, who completed 66% of his passes for more than 3,100 yards wasn't good enough. The same quarterback with one of the best touchdown to interception ratios in the nation (19:2) needs to be replaced by a 'better' player.

I had no problem with the criticism Sunseri endured in 2011 when he was taking sacks and unable to lead the Panthers to many points. But if we're being fair, there's no logical reason to lump Pitt among the teams that didn't have good quarterback play. Sunseri was one of the best quarterbacks in the Big East this past year and while I can understand the frustrations of fans about his inability to complete deep passes (or at times, even miss wide open receivers on shorter routes), there's simply no logical rationale to suggest that he didn't have an excellent season.

Further, while looking ahead can be fun, I have little doubt that no matter who the quarterback is next season (be it Tom Savage, Chad Voytik, Trey Anderson, or Tra'Von Chapman), he won't have as remarkable a season that Sunseri had. I don't think Savage or Anderson is capable of those types of numbers and while Voytik or Chapman may be someday, I'd be surprised if it happened right away for them.

Sorry, AA - you've missed the boat on this one.