9-28-17

The Pitt News

Prediction: Pitt vs. Rice Pg.8

The independent student newspaper of the University of Pittsburgh | PIttnews.com | September 28, 2017 | Volume 108 | Issue 34

CHANCELLOR

SEE REVISITING HISTORY PG.2

PRESENTS ANNUAL REPORT TO BOARD

Rachel Glasser News Editor

Former President of the Woodville Plantation Preservation, Rob Windhorst, educated the History of Black Pittsburgh class about the Neville House and its residents. Issi Glatts | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Pitt invites input for master plan Madeline Gavatorta Staff Writer Jim Wehner started his first architectural internship focused on improving Pitt’s campus 25 years ago.

Wehner, an architect specializing in institutional facilities and campus design at J-Way Architectural and father of two Pitt students, said this is Pitt’s first actual attempt to renovate the entire campus in several decades. “[I’m] here tonight listening to conversations about the future development of the campus that first interested me so many years ago,” Wehner said.

Pitt is developing its own Campus Master Plan 2018 in collaboration with Ayers Saint Gross, an architecture firm

specializing in higher education institutions. Pitt and Ayers Saint Gross held a focus group meeting last night in the University Club Conference Room A at 6 p.m. The meeting was opened up to all members of the Pittsburgh community in an effort to better understand residents’ concerns — about 40 attended.

Dana Perzynski, a senior associate at ASG, began the meeting with a presentation which provided an overview of what the firm intends to do over the next year.

“We are engaging internal and external stakeholders, we are spending time on the ground just getting a feel for campus [...] This is our first time back now that it’s in session and it’s a different place,” Perzynski said during the presen-

tation.

Those in attendance raised concerns about accessibility for the disabled and all Pittsburgh residents in general, the need for a grocery store and the limited number of student residence halls, among other issues.

Mary Fletcher, a representative of the Bellefield Area Citizens Association — a group of residents looking to improve the North Oakland neighborhood — asked several questions concerning safety and accessibility for people with disabilities following the presentation. “[I’m] making sure accessibility issues are not overlooked in this master plan,” Fletcher said. “There are still buildings See Master Plan on page 3

Pitt’s board of trustees meeting Wednesday began with an interruption.

As Chairperson Eva Tansky Blum began her opening remarks, a protester stood in the William Pitt Union assembly room, shouting, “Shame on Pitt, stop cruel mouse testing.” The individual was immediately escorted out of the room, and the board returned to the meeting agenda.

After the interruption, Chancellor Patrick Gallagher presented the University of Pittsburgh’s annual report. The report — which touched on research and innovation at Pitt, University demographics and Pitt’s economic impact on the region — mostly highlighted University accomplishments and milestones over the past year.

Gallagher announced that the Henry L. Hillman Foundation will commit $30 million dollars to continued support for cancer research on top of a $20 million contribution made in 2004. The grant, which will be distributed over the course of 10 years, will support Pitt and UPMC cancer researchers through the Hillman Fellows for Innovative Cancer Research Program.

“This new investment by the Hillman Foundation extends that life-changing commitment to innovate and be at the forefront of cancer care,” Gallagher said. “It’s also a shining example of Henry and Elsie Hillman’s legacy here.”

Gallagher also addressed Pitt’s demographics in his report, saying that two out of three students at Pitt are permanent Pennsylvania residents. This comes a few months after Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene Depasquale criticized Penn State for not accepting enough in-state students.

See Board Meeting on page 3

News

REVISITING HISTORY:

students travel to slave plantation Sid Lingala For The Pitt News According to Rob Windhorst, the colonial kitchen at the Woodville Plantation was “one of the most disgusting” locations in the house.

Windhorst, a tour guide at the restored plantation, said the head chef was a slave who was expected to work long hours in the cramped space, cook large meals for the family and sleep in a small space in the roof of the kitchen.

Laurence Glasco, a history professor at Pitt, and students in his History of Black Pittsburgh class traveled to the Woodville Plantation Wednesday evening and listened to Windhorst detail the lives of Western Pennsylvania slaves.

Glasco takes his class to this plantation — which had the most slaves in Western Pennsylvania — every semester in order to expose them to black history in Pittsburgh that most people are not aware of.

“This trip tries to make the point that blacks were here from the very beginning of the city.

They were here even before there was a city,” Glasco said.

Glasco explained how the history of the Woodville Plantation — located in Heidelberg, just outside of Pittsburgh — often debunks ideas students have about slavery in Pennsylvania.

“Usually when we talk about slavery, my students are really blown away that there was slavery in the Pittsburgh area. Students would say, ‘I’ve never heard of this. I thought slavery was down south. We never were taught that,’” he said.

The Woodville Plantation — also known as the Neville Plantation — and its original owner, John Neville, both have extensive histories. John Neville was a wealthy land speculator and slave owner from Winchester, Virginia, who came to Pennsylvania with his son Presley Neville to fight in the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. Before fighting in the Revolutionary War, John Neville decided to settle down in Pennsylvania, and built two plantations between 1775 and 1780. He built one big plantation on Bower Hill

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Although the plantation is more than 200 years old, the Neville House is filled with original furniture and items.

Isabelle Glatts| STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER — where John and his family lived and where the majority of the field work was done — and the smaller Woodville Plantation, where Presley and his family lived and where service work was done.

After the Revolutionary War, John was appointed by the government as a tax collector for whiskey. Many poor farmers were not happy with being taxed on their whiskey and stormed the Bower Hill Plantation in an effort to have the tax repealed, resulting in the famous July 1794 Whiskey Rebellion.

Glasco said one of the most interesting parts of the rebellion was that the slaves on the plantation took up arms to defend the plantation from the revolting farmers.

“A slave is somebody you don’t give a gun to because it’s dangerous,” Glasco said. “In fact, in most places, slaves with a gun would be hung.

But they were armed and fought off the farmers on the first day.”

On the second day of the Rebellion, a group

of 500 farmers returned and burned down the Bower Hill Plantation while John Neville escaped to the Woodville Plantation.

The Woodville Plantation still remains, and much of the colonial culture and information about the Presley slaves’ lives were preserved. Despite being more than 200 years old, the house is filled with original furniture and everyday items.

Windhorst said the house is “90 percent original” with just a few reconstructions — new coats of paint and added clothing — made to the house.

Maura Kay, a senior majoring in urban studies, said the restoration work on the house made it look very real and thought that it maintained the presence of slavery.

“It made slavery close to home, almost as if it’s in my backyard. It was really eerie,” she said.

Windhorst said, aside from displaying the high social status and immense wealth of the Presley family, the house also illustrated the tough lives of the 28 slaves living on the plantations. He said it was also believed that many of

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the slaves were artisans and talented craftsmen in fields such as woodworking, cooking, distillation and blacksmithing. As a result, John often hired out many of his slaves and made a large sum of money from their contracted labor.

Monet Stanley, a nontraditional student, was taken aback by this fact and other tales of the harrowing conditions slaves endured.

“I didn’t realize he made so much money with the small number of slaves he had,” Stanley said.

“It was sad that slaves had to work in uncomfortable areas and owners ordered them to cook for long hours and live upstairs.”

When Glasco recalled visiting the Neville Plantation for the first time, the trip seemed to make the history very real and concrete.

“You can stand there and close your eyes and kind of see through your mind’s eye, people walking around, and the tasks they were doing, and how they were living,” Glasco said. “It made it really come alive in ways that just reading about doesn’t.”

2

Board Meeting, pg. 1

Mary Fletcher asks ASG about future safety procedures for the University.

Elise Lavallee | CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Master Plan, pg. 1

today that are not adequately, or even at all, accessible on campus.”

Marshall Goodwin — a resident of Oakland for the last 50 years — expressed concern for the amount of student living facilities and a lack of housing for other residents.

“I’m very concerned that we are losing any opportunities for faculty or anyone that works in the institutions to actually live in Oakland and be able to

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walk to work because the encroachment of student housing is not controlled,” Goodwin said.

Both project team members and community members who attended the meeting mentioned several times that a change in the location of Pitt’s football field could be a part of the master plan.

Many believe that Heinz Field’s distance from campus deters students from attending games.

See Master Plan on page 7

“In a state that doesn’t have any more college-age students than it did a while ago, we’re still bringing the same number here,” Gallagher said in an interview following the meeting. “I think that’s a great sign that we’re continuing to meet that need even though the levels of state support have not been as strong as they have been before.”

While the percentage of in-state students at Pitt has decreased because of a rise in the number of out-of-state students and international students, Gallagher said the number of in-state students has remained fairly constant over the years.

“Pitt doesn’t have the size to educate every Pennsylvania student,” Gallagher said. “The better way to look at it is Pitt is there to be leveraged and used by the state and the way you do that is you give in-state students, you make it more affordable for them.”

While tuition rates for students continue to rise, the University received more money than ever last year for research expenditures, hitting a new record of $764.5 million — $97 million in nonfederal expenditures and $667.5 million from federal agencies,

September 28. 2017

according to Gallagher. He also said these numbers are striking because the amount of federal funding available is declining.

“What’s happening here is we are outcompeting our peers, not that our pie is getting bigger, but our share of the pie is getting bigger,” Gallagher said. “It means because of the way these grants are awarded through competitive peer review, it means that we are the best of the best when securing these funds.”

Of all the information included in the annual report, Gallagher said the ways in which Pitt touches the outside world — including its impacts on the Pittsburgh region and the economy — have gotten the most attention.

Gallagher said for every dollar the commonwealth invests in Pitt, there is an economic return of $26. All five Pitt campuses had a combined economic impact of $3.95 billion, and nearly 30,000 jobs throughout Pennsylvania are directly or indirectly supported by Pitt.

“This region believes correctly that we’ve been reinvented because the University is here, and they want us to do more,” Gallagher said. “And that’s an exciting opportunity for us.”

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Opinions from the editorial board

Trump’s revisionist history lacks integrity Presidential endorsements of Senate hopefuls can often make the difference between a candidate winning and losing the election — though that wasn’t the case in Alabama this week.

President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence publicly supported Republican Sen. Luther Strange in Alabama’s Senate runoff over the past few weeks, and campaigned on Luther’s behalf. But when Strange lost the election, all evidence of this vanished.

The New York Times reported that Trump deleted at least three tweets offering support for Strange after his rival, Roy Moore, won the Senate GOP runoff.

The race in Alabama didn’t seem like it would be politically important, but the candidates represent a larger schism in modern GOP politics. Strange started his term as senator by filling the vacant seat left by Jeff Sessions’ appointment to attorney general. Trump and Strange had a close relationship, and the president even called him “Big Luther.”

Big Luther was the GOP-favored candidate in Alabama, a red state that usually voted along party lines while Sessions was senator. The Senate Leadership Fund super PAC, or political action committee, aligned with GOP majority leader Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., spent over $700,000 to support Luther.

But Moore, the eventual victor, is an anti-establishment, evangelical Christian candidate who faced over $2.5 million in negative ads aired by the Senate Leadership Fund super PAC. Moore was dismissed from the Alabama Supreme Court for famously refusing to remove the Ten Commandments from a court-

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house, and in 2015 still believed that former President Obama is “secret Muslim.”

Luther’s loss isn’t just a loss for himself — it’s a serious loss for Trump and McConnell as well. The GOP, in essence, lost to their voting base, and the division between the two has never been more apparent.

Trump, who ran as an outsider himself, publicly supported an establishment candidate. McConnell, the face of the GOP, supported the same candidate.

The people of Alabama, however, voted for the outsider — and this rejection of establishment Republican candidates may happen all across the country in the upcoming midterm elections.

Beside the political implications of Moore’s victory, Trump’s decision to distance himself from the loser is cause for concern. Some think that deleting tweets could be a violation of the Presidential Records Act, which was passed after the Watergate scandal to ensure all communications to and from the President and their staff is archived.

Not only may this be illegal, but Trump’s revisionist history is morally problematic. Our president can make no claim to authority if he continues to destroy his own integrity — which he does with each tweet he deletes and each campaign promise he fails to fulfill.

As part of The Pitt News’ commitment to journalistic integrity, we file corrections and admit when we’re wrong — not erase all evidence of our blunder. But in this case, we think Trump should be held to an even higher standard of presidential integrity.

column

ENDING WHITEWASHING IS SIMPLE: JUST LOOK AT ED SKREIN

Thomas Wick Staff Writer

Hollywood has a complicated relationship with racial injustice in America, and for good reason — minority actors still struggle for representation in the industry. But when I heard controversy brewing about whitewashing yet again, I couldn’t believe that our nation hasn’t made more progress.

I spoke against whitewashing in February, in response to the movie “Ghost in the Shell.” In that film, Scarlett Johansson portrayed the main character Major Kusanagi, a Japanese character in the original manga series. Some may argue that this made sense for Hollywood — “Ghost in the Shell” is unknown to most Americans, so the producers might’ve wanted to cast a well-known actress for marketing purposes. But considering how much of a flop “Ghost in the Shell” was at the box office, that didn’t work well for the studio.

Whitewashing is when casting directors select white actors to play characters of color, and it’s historically been a problem in Hollywood. From older films, such as “The Ten Commandments” or “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” to newer releases such as “Death Note,” white actors are frequently cast to play non-white characters. Whitewashing regularly makes headline news — but one actor recently decided to take action.

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For the upcoming “Hellboy” reboot, white actor Ed Skrein was set to play Ben Daimio, who is Japanese in the original comics. When Skrein found out that Daimio was a Japanese character, he took to Twitter to announce his resignation from the role.

“It is our responsibility to make moral decisions in difficult times and to give voice to inclusivity. It is my hope that one day ... we can help make equal representation in the Arts a reality,” he wrote.

“I am sad to leave Hellboy but if this decision brings us closer to that day, it is worth it. I hope it makes a difference.”

Daniel Dae Kim, famous for shows including “Lost” and “Hawaii Five-O,” was cast in his stead. Kim and Skrein formed a new Hollywood bromance after Kim instagrammed a picture of them together. He thanked Skrein for taking a stand against Hollywood whitewashing.

And it wasn’t just Kim who thanked Skrein. Chloe Bennet from “Agents of Shield” said she hoped Skrein’s actions would inspire other actors to do the same. Riz Ahmed from “Rogue One: a Star Wars Story” said awareness is the first step toward change, and John Cho from the “Star Trek” movie applauded Skrein’s effort to stand up against whitewashing.

Whether or not this bold move will inspire other actors to do the same is See Wick on page 5

4

Wick, pg. 4 unknown. If it does, they could cause serious change — but if not, Skrein’s actions alone won’t solve whitewashing. It falls on everyone involved in the filmmaking process to give minorities more of a voice in the arts — especially if it’s a story about their identity.

But this argument still has its critics, and many just dismiss the problem altogether. Elise Lavallee of The Pitt News explained how such a simple argument can be ignored.

“If someone can simply ignore the effects of discrimination, it’s likely that it doesn’t affect them personally,” she said. “ ... ignorance of privilege provides a climate desirable for racism to breed in.”

For example, in response to my column back in February, The Pitt News received a letter to the editor. The author argued casting is about skill, not skin color, so minorities just need to try harder.

But that’s misguided. Hollywood is simply more comfortable discriminating and casting well-known white actors instead, despite the fact that there are plenty of non-white actors in the industry. According to the 2015 census, 25.4 percent of actors in the United States aren’t white — and while it may not seem like much, that’s still over seven thousand professionals to choose from.

Those seven thousand professionals

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aren’t the ones that need to try harder — it’s the producers, directors and casting agents that must.

Not actresses like Bennet, who says she had to change her last name from Wang simply because it made studios uncomfortable. Not actors like Idris Elba, who wanted to be James Bond but was criticized for being “too street.” And certainly not the diverse cast of “Star Trek: Discovery,” who received death threats from racist critics who thought there weren’t enough white people in the cast.

America is a nation that prides itself on diversity, and that diversity should be reflected in the films we make. Actors, producers, directors and writers alike must take a stand for what is right, rather than just considering fame, money or popularity.

Skrein saved Hollywood some valuable reputation points — but it won’t be the last time whitewashing happens.

If more people in the industry see the example set by Skrein and take action, it’s possible for whitewashing to disappear. And if we as the audience demand change, it won’t be a tough decision for the industry to make.

Thomas primarily writes about visual media and gaming for The Pitt News.

Write to Thomas at tmw79@pitt.edu.

The Pitt news crossword 9/28/17

Liam McFadden | STAFF ILLUSTRATOR

September 28. 2017

5

Culture

Talk Amharic to me:

PITT OFFERS NEW LANGUAGE

Raka Sarkar | STAFF ILLUSTRATOR

Salina Pressimone Staff Writer

“Kä, ku, ki. Rä, ru, ri. Tä, tu, ti.”

Junior Ruth Dereje sounds out each letter as she transcribes the intricate Amharic symbols on the chalkboard inside the Irish Room with precise delineations of each of their most minute but crucial features. Behind her, professor Waganesh Zeleke expands and shapes her mouth to emphasize the slight differences in sounds.

While there are only two students currently enrolled in Pitt’s inaugural Amharic course, the intimate classroom setting provides for an efficient and productive meeting time. The class convenes twice per week, and one session involves a slate of oral, listening, reading and writing activities.

“Mäskäräm, t’ik’imt, hïdar, tahsas, t’ir,” Zeleke sounds out a few of the

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months of Ethiopia’s thirteen-month year — providing explanation for the country’s last one that consists of just five or six days.

“That’s a short month,” Dereje responds.

The three relay discussions in Amharic about traditional and modern clothing in Ethiopia, how Ethiopians rely on natural sunlight for telling time and which dash separates a “ha” sound from a “hu” sound.

More than 25 million people worldwide speak Amharic — the official language of Ethiopia — as their native language. It is the second most commonly spoken Semitic language after Arabic, and according to Zeleke who teaches the course, it is becoming highly popular in major U.S. cities. And the Ethiopian population in the United States has risen about 25 percent since 1980, making it the second-largest African immigrant group in the country according to the Migration Policy Institute.

Now Ethiopia’s influence has spread to Pitt as a way to further develop the Africana studies program at the University.

“For me, language is part of identity,” Zeleke, a native speaker of Amharic who was born in Ethiopia, said. “So it’s not only language as a tool to share information or to exchange, but it’s also part of your culture, it’s part of the identity for someone who speaks it.”

Zeleke, an assistant professor in the Department of Counseling, Psychology and Special Education at Duquesne, typically starts class next to her students as a tutor might, engaging them with passages on a laptop screen or textbook activities in “Let’s Speak Amharic,” or “Colloquial Amharic.” She also makes it a point to provide useful feedback to the students throughout the class session.

“Stop thinking in English,” Zeleke said to Dereje one class. “You’re doing really well, but feel comfortable saying it.”

Amharic uses a consonant-based syllabary adapted from the extinct classical language of Ethiopia, Ge’ez. Its complex writing system consists of more than 33 consonants that take seven slightly different forms depending on which vowel is used with each.

Dereje said she often practices the different symbols repeatedly whenever she feels it’s time for a break from other academic obligations — especially calculus.

The variations in form take time to get down before even being able to read or speak the language. Dereje has been exposed to the language at home her whole life and has always been able to understand it, but still struggles to converse confidently.

September 28. 2017

While she is studying computer science at Pitt, Dereje saw the course offering as an opportunity to explore her own Ethiopian heritage and salvage the Amharic speaking skills she grew up with.

“I just want to reclaim my lost language and be able to communicate with some of my family who doesn’t speak English,” Dereje said.

Dereje was born in Silver Springs, Maryland, but her parents are from Ethiopia. Dereje still has a good amount of family there and plans on visiting them in the future, which is why both she and her sister both jumped at the chance to pursue Amharic.

“It’s part of our culture — we need to know how to speak it, too, if we are going to go back to Ethiopia,” Dereje said.

The other student enrolled in the course, Jawanza Rand, is a Ph.D. student in urban education from Brooklyn who is conducting a comparative study between U.S. and Ethiopian school systems.

Learning Amharic will provide him with an edge, as he plans on returning to Ethiopia for an extended period of time to further his research.

“I really enjoy visiting Ethiopia and interacting with Ethiopian people, and so learning Amharic is a natural next step to take towards being able to fulfill both of those things,” Rand said.

Pitt offers a range of African languages intermittently, including the Nigerian language Yoruba and the South African language Xhosa, but only when they are able to find instructors for them. Swahili is currently the only permanently standing African language with a full-time professor in the University Center for See Amharic on page 7

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Amharic, pg. 6 International Studies.

Macrina Lelei, the acting director of the Africana studies program, wrote a proposal last year to fund another African language in an effort to expand the Africana Studies program at Pitt. She suggested funding Amharic after struggling to find an instructor for Zulu and by chance meeting a native Amharic speaker and professor at Duquesne.

Zeleke will now teach Amharic 1 this term and Amharic 2 next term. Despite never having taught a language before, Zeleke jumped at the opportunity to teach Amharic when she discovered that the Less Commonly Taught Languages Center lacked African languages.

“Part of growing the program is [offering] more African languages if we can,” Lelei said. “There are other languages out there that you can learn, and they might be useful for something.”

Zeleke said in addition to educational and research purposes, there are a range of career routes that will make learning Amharic an especially vital tool for

global competency and career advancement in the near future.

“I think there is plenty opportunity with this language for students who learn Amharic,” Zeleke said. “Learning Amharic will open up more opportunity for those people who are interested in intercultural communication, journalism or just helping.”

Today, the U.S. Commercial Service Ethiopia Office is currently the leading U.S. export trade agency for the U.S. government. The country’s GDP growth has also remained between 8-12 percent over the past 10 years as well, making it a highly appealing investment opportunity for major U.S. companies like American Plastic Technologies and Acrow Bridge. Amharic will likely be a job asset in the coming years.

But most of all, Zeleke and Lelei emphasized the importance of Amharic in broadening students’ cultural horizons and acceptance of different peoples.

“People start to see things in a different light, in a more positive and a more accepting way,” Lelei said. “It gives them a chance to learn that there’s another world out there.”

Master Plan, pg. 3 One member of the audience interjected that if students are forced to take a bus, even home games feel like away games.

Canard S. Grigsby, Pitt’s Department of Facilities Management’s project manager for planning and design, is a key figure in building the University’s vision for how the master plan will go.

“What we intend to do is in the master plan process design facilities that work into the urban fabric and then become destinations or features people can recognize similar to the Cathedral. They won’t be as iconic as the Cathedral obviously [...] but have that same type of gravitas,” Grigsby said.

Another main condition for the master plan, Grigsby said, was adaptability — being able to edit the completed plan if problems arise. He compared it to being rerouted when using a GPS. “But to create literally a GPS that when I get started on my travel if I get a detour, hit a detour, I can take that detour and the GPS can reroute me and get

me back on track again once I navigate and negotiate that detour,” Grigsby said.

A focus group geared toward Pitt students will be held this Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the University Club Ballroom B. Perzynski said community input is important and ASG wants to make sure that every voice is heard.

While Wehner said it’s too early to tell whether any changes will be beneficial, he said the people behind the plan are still learning.

“As an architect, and a person with a passion for campus design, this University has a lot of history and potential that has not been tapped,” Wehner said.

The Pitt News SuDoku 9/28/17 courtesy of dailysudoku.com

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September 28. 2017

7

Sports

NARDUZZI’S RADIO SHOW REVIEW Grant Burgman

Side. The show’s format is standard for a sports radio show, featuring game reviews and previews sprinkled with a few It’s easy to wonder if Pitt’s adminisinterviews in between. tration has to ask Bill Hillgrove his opinHillgrove guides the conversation ion before they hire a coach, because and lobs questions at Narduzzi. The more times than not they’re also hiring football coach then has the chance to his cohost. talk at length about the previous week’s Hillgrove, the play-by-play man for game, the upcoming game or anything the Pitt men’s basketball and football else relevant to the team. teams, has hosted radio programs with Every show features a guest from the former Pitt men’s basketball coach Jamie football team. Recent guests include redDixon and current head coach Kevin shirt senior offensive lineman Alex OfStallings. Hillgrove added “The Pat Narficer and redshirt senior punter Ryan duzzi Show” with Pitt head coach Pat Winslow, both of whom shared stories Narduzzi to his list of hosting commitabout their journey at Pitt. ments last year.

Wednesday night’s show featured The show airs every Wednesday durappearances by junior wide receiver ing the football season at 6 p.m. and is recorded live at Cupka’s Cafe 2 in South See Radio Review on page 9

Staff Writer

‘The Pat Narduzzi Show’ airs every Wednesday during football season at 6 p.m. Anna Bongardino | ASSISTANT VISUAL EDITOR

prediction

PANTHERS’

IMPROVEMENTS COULD INSPIRE VICTORY

Abbot Zuk Staff Writer

The Pitt Panthers will face off against the Rice Owls for the first time since 1951 in Pitt’s final non-conference game of the 2017 season on Saturday.

Already four games into the season, the Panthers and the Owls are both struggling to find their groove. Each team is entering Saturday’s game with a 1-3 record, and to make matters worse, Pitt dropped its last three games — the team’s worst losing streak under head coach Pat Narduzzi’s reign.

Pitt’s most recent loss was to Georgia Tech — a game in which the Panthers surrendered 484 yards of total offense to the Yellow Jackets.

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Of those yards, 436 were a product of the Yellow Jacket’s rushing attack alone.

As usual, Narduzzi chose to turn his full attention to Rice rather than focus on the Georgia Tech game. Even though the Panthers haven’t played the Owls for 66 years, the last game ended with a 21-13 loss for Pitt.

This year, though, the Owls dropped their season-opener to Stanford, 62-7, their last two matchups to the University of Houston, 38-3, and to Florida International University, 13-7.

In the Owls’ three losses, they have been dominated by a combined score of 113-17. Rice surrendered more than 35 points in two separate games. The Owls’ lone victory this season was the 31-14 defeat of the University of Texas at El Paso.

Quarterback Ben DiNucci scrambles in the second half during the game against Oklahoma State University. Kyleen Considine | VISUAL EDITOR One of the team’s major downfalls is its inability to defend the pass. This season, the Owls have allowed 895 total yards through the air. They also allowed opposing quarterbacks to complete an average of 70 percent of their passes in those games.

If the Panthers intend to get the win, they’ll

September 28. 2017

need to exploit these weaknesses.

Unfortunately for Pitt, the team’s starting quarterback is once again its best-kept secret.

After Saturday’s game, the only thing Panthers fans do know is that there is still a competition between redshirt sophomore Ben DiNucci and See Prediction on page 10

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Radio Review, pg. 8 Quadree Henderson and redshirt junior linebacker Oluwaseun Idowu. Despite the current three-game losing streak Pitt finds itself in, Narduzzi was still complimentary of his team, saying he “couldn’t ask for a better group of guys.”

The players usually get five to 10 minutes to answer questions from Hillgrove. These conversations are less football-oriented and offer fans a detailed look at the players’ personalities, something they don’t usually see on the field.

Hillgrove captains the ship well, which is to be expected from a professional with his experience. His passion and vast knowledge of both the team and its history illuminate the show. Hillgrove occasionally tells stories and name drops former Panthers such as Curtis Martin and Bill Fralic.

For Narduzzi, the radio show is an extension of his press conferences. He answers Hillgrove’s questions but never reveals too much about the team. Hillgrove and Narduzzi even seem to have developed a running bit about how Nar-

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duzzi doesn’t “do injury reports” — Narduzzi refuses to disclose information about any player injuries.

Even though fans won’t hear about injuries, they can hear valuable insight on upcoming games. Narduzzi often points out specific players the team is anticipating as threats. He singled out Penn State tight end Mike Gesicki before week two and recently focused on Rice redshirt senior defensive end Brian Womac.

For fans looking to learn more beyond what they see at games, the player interviews are the best parts of the show.

These mini profiles are a change of pace from the constant focus on the team’s games. On a recent episode, redshirt senior defensive lineman Allen Edwards recounted a story from when he was 8 or 9 years old in which he was hit by two cars.

Moments like these reveal the players’ relationships with Narduzzi, as he will sometimes chime in on the stories or offer compliments about the player joining him and Hillgrove.

Aside from some interesting anecdotes from the players, the show doesn’t

offer much to anyone who isn’t a Pitt football die-hard — but that’s kind of the point.

Local radio shows about local teams aren’t supposed to offer overly critical analysis, they’re supposed to make you feel OK about rooting for your team. After Pitt’s 59-21 loss to Oklahoma State, Narduzzi — half jokingly — pushed aside conversations about the game, saying “what last week?” and feigning ignorance.

The playful joking has become more common as Hillgrove and Narduzzi are developing chemistry with each other.

While he may not reveal much, Narduzzi does speak passionately and often glowingly about his players. That complements Hillgrove’s own passion for the team. The two remain the ultimate optimists, which may bother some disgruntled Pitt fans, but is only a product of trying to appeal to a local audience.

These coach-hosted radio shows are meant to promote the team and give the coach a platform for optimism even during the worst of times. That’s exactly what this one does.

Narduzzi isn’t trying to be Howard

September 28. 2017

Stern and push the boundaries of radio.

He’s trying to promote a football team and give fans a chance to feel as though they’re getting a personal look at the program.

The Pitt-centric conversations are by — and for — people immersed in Pitt culture. You won’t find any useful criticism or many keen observations about the team at large. But what can you expect from a show hosted by the team’s coach and loyal commentator?

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Prediction pg. 8 redshirt senior Max Browne.

“You don’t want to go through the twoquarterback system,” Narduzzi said in his weekly press conference. “It’s kind of like we did my first year with Chad [Voytik] and Nathan [Peterman] until it kind of washed out. But we tried not to do that, but we’re still [at that] same point right now — ‘Who’s that guy going to be?’ — and that’s just kind of the situation we’re in right now, unfortunately.”

Regardless of who starts in Saturday’s game, the Panthers could find success with either of

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their quarterbacks.

DiNucci proved Saturday he is capable of leading the offense on elongated scoring drives and extending plays with his running ability.

And when Browne entered the game, he was confident in the pocket and delivered 10 completions on 15 attempts for 88-yards.

The Owls are also facing their own quarterback controversy. Quarterback Sam Glaesmann injured his shoulder in the team’s game against Houston Sept 16.

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Jackson Tyner — Glaesmann’s replacement — only entered the games against Stanford and Houston

when Rice was down by more than 30 points and had yet to score a touchdown. He played all four quarters in the team’s 13-7 loss to Florida International University. Tyner completed 50 percent of his 48 attempts and threw for one interception and no touchdowns.

The Owls’ biggest threat to the Panthers stems from junior running back Samuel Stewart.

He leads the team with 44 carries, 191 rushing yards and 10 receptions. Pitt’s defense could find themselves chasing Stewart all around the field Saturday, but if the Panthers can pull out a strong performance from their young team, they stand to secure a win.

September 28. 2017

Prediction: Look for either DiNucci or Browne — or both — to have monster games Saturday. Regardless of who starts at quarterback, Pitt will be able to amass a large enough lead to allow the other quarterback an opportunity to see the field when the game is far out of Rice’s reach.

Expect to see improvement throughout the Panthers’ defense compared to their performance last week. While Pitt may be able to force multiple turnovers, if the Owls do finally crack the end zone against Pitt’s defense, it will be a fruitless score.

Pitt 31, Rice 9.

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I N D E X

Rentals & Sublet • NORTH OAKLAND • SOUTH OAKLAND • SHADYSIDE • SQUIRREL HILL • SOUTHSIDE • NORTHSIDE • BLOOMFIELD • ROOMMATES • OTHER

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For Rent

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1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 Bedrooom Houses.

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2-3-4-5-6-7 bedroom apartments and houses available in May and August 2018. Nice, clean, free laundry, includes exterior maintenance, new appliances, spacious, located on Meyran, Bates, Oakland, Semple, Wellsford, Dawson, Juliet.

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3,4,6 houses available now. Lawn St. Ward St. Call 412-287-5712.

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Available October 5. $850+ utilities. CALL 412-606-8052.

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Rental Other 1,2,3,4 BR. Apartments, prices range from $450-$750 per person. Some include utilities, some you have to pay. Call Jarrad 814-403-2798 3 bedroom house 3 miles from campus. $1000. 412-225-8723.

Employment Volunteering Interns/ Volunteers wanted to help on local campaign for the November election. Looking for strategic thinkiers, not envelope stuffers.

Interested? Email kerestus@gmail.com to seup an appointment.

Employment Other College or graduate school students needed to work with elementary school children in a fun, structured after school program in the South Hills. $11.50-$13.50 per hour, flexible

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• AUTO • BIKES • BOOKS • MERCHANDISE • FURNITURE • REAL ESTATE • PETS

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services

• EDUCATIONAL • TRAVEL • HEALTH • PARKING • INSURANCE

hours, must have own transportation. Email resume or letter of interest to jhroberts66@comcast. net

SOUTH FAYETTE TWP. SCHOOL DISTRICT: Substitute Teacher positions, substitute Nurse positions, substitute Para-educator positions.

Positions available for all grade levels and areas of content.

We encourage upcoming graduates and retirees (on emergency basis) to apply.

Complete job descriptions are available at: www.southfayette.org South Fayette Twp. School District, 3680 Old Oakdale Rd. McDonald, PA 15057 EOE

• ADOPTION • EVENTS • LOST AND FOUND • STUDENT GROUPS • WANTED • OTHER

R A T E S

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Two business days prior by 3pm | Email: advertising@pittnews.com | Phone: 412.648.7978

Services

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Educational

Events

Seeking sophomores for Professional Coaching Services Trial in the Fall 2017 Semester. The service is designed to improve student performance.

We are looking for 5-7 students to participate in a semester long free trial, a value of $4,500. Our goal is to help students having difficulty with time management and GPA improve through our coaching. Call 724-544-1490 for more information.

Dr. Morris E. Turner Medical Scholarship For Minority Students $1,500. Deadline date for submission: October 15, 2017.

Sponsored by the Highland Park Tennis Club (HPTC).

Please go to www. hptc.info, look under “Events” for details.

Services Other Astrology, Tartot, I Ching readings by appointment.

412-290-5331

For Sale For Sale Other Instant cash paid for: baseball cards, sports cards. Game used sports items.

Bats. Gloves. Jerseys.

Goudey sports cards.

Antiques. Gold. Silver. Coins. Diamonds.

Watches. Paper money. Old toys.

Trains. Comic books.

Huge collections.

Entire estates. We will pick up and pay CASH! Call Scott at (513) 295-5634.

Flowers are stress relief and smiles. www. alexsflowers.com/ www.alexseastendfloral.com in Shadyside. 412-661-6071 Delivery. Send a smile.

WOMEN – Improve your safety, strength and confidence!

Self-Defense class October 1-22 (four Sundays) 10am – noon at Falk School. $120, financial assistance available.

Registration limited.

LionessMartialArts. com or 412-241-6519

September 28, 2017

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September 28. 2017

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