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Stephen Thompson's Pitt sports chat: 12.16.25
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Stephen Thompson
1:00
Good afternoon and welcome to another Pitt sports chat. Happy to have you here. Let's get started.
Paul
1:00
Have Capel and his staff been saved my next year’s elite recruiting class? Otherwise, would he currently be on the hot seat? Should he be anyways?
Stephen Thompson
1:03
While I am inclined to say the elite recruiting class and institutional investment those additions reflect means Capel will return to coach Pitt in 2026, that is no guarantee, especially if this team has another loss to a mid-major in store. Capel is definitely already on the hot seat and 2026 will be a make-or-break season for him should he be retained.
Paul
1:03
With the three recruiting coming in next season, what should the expectations be for the basketball program next season? Tournament or bust?
Stephen Thompson
1:07
I don't know about "tournament or bust". Whether Capel is retained past 2026-27 or not probably has more to do with what the outlook on the future is like by the time the 2026-27 season ends. Do the talented freshmen develop? Will they stay for another season? How does general manager Jay Kuntz navigate the transfer portal? Is there a foundation of something bigger being laid?

My first instinct is to say Pitt needs to make the NCAA Tournament to keep this current regime in place, but 20 wins or more and landing on the bubble might be enough too. That way Pitt could save some of the money which would otherwise go to a coaching buyout and invest in the roster.
Sunner in Orlando from Lebo
1:07
Good afternoon, Stephen! Very disappointed in Pitt's bball team. They are much worse than last year, and I think they will finish below 500 this year. Will Capel survive if the team goes belly up this year or will they give him extra leash because of his top ten recruiting class next year?
Stephen Thompson
1:11
It depends what "belly up" means here. In my mind, Capel's job security doesn't come down to raw wins and losses, but rather how this team finishes the year and whether the youth develops into winning players.

He has more leash given the recruiting class, but if this season starts to spiral out of control and nothing currently here seems salvageable, don't be surprised if Pitt decides to hit reset sooner rather than later.
Mr Ed
1:11
Does Jeff Capel deserve a little bit of a pass on the team’s performance to date considering the absence of Dishon Jackson? Capel’s  idea was to focus on tougher defense and rebounding and that has left big hole in those two areas. I think they would have a couple more wins if Jackson was healthy.
Stephen Thompson
1:16
It's fair to acknowledge Capel was dealt a poor hand when Jackson was ruled out indefinitely for a medical issue. And you're right, Pitt would be a dramatically better team with Jackson in the fold.

But at the same time, Jackson's condition, which he's spoken openly about before, wasn't a secret. He played more than 60 games over the past two seasons but there was always risk involved and Pitt clearly did not have contingency plans for if Jackson's condition flared up again. That's where the notion of giving Capel a "pass" falls flat to me.
Will
1:16
Stephen, Are any of the Pitt guys opting out of the bowl game? Also, any noise regarding guys entering the portal or turning pro?
Stephen Thompson
1:20
So far, wide receiver Zion Fowler-El has announced he'll enter the transfer portal and offensive lineman Jackson Brown is no longer listed on the roster, which indicates he will transfer too. But that is all which has been made public at this time.

I do not have a good sense of what Kyle Louis and Rasheem Biles will do. If they do want to turn pro this spring, I can't imagine there's much for either to gain in the Military Bowl.

But there aren't many other surefire NFL draft picks on this team and players can't officially transfer until after the start of the new year. So I expect the Panthers to be largely whole when they visit Annapolis, Md. on Dec. 27.
JuniataKid
1:20
I saw on the interwebs that Fowler-El announced for the transfer portal. How big of a loss is this for Pitt football 2026? Was he expected to be more of a target?
Stephen Thompson
1:21
Fowler-El was an intriguing player. He was gifted with fabulous athleticism and I expected that to translate well to Kade Bell's pace and space system. But he rarely saw the field and caught nine passes for 69 yards and a touchdown over three years, so it's hard to call this a major loss even if I liked the potential.
Erryg
1:21
Hi Stephen, What has become of Amdy Ndiaye? As things currently stand, he appears to be one of four players who are injured or otherwise unavailable.  No wonder that the starters continue to log significant minutes!
Stephen Thompson
1:23
I wouldn't count on seeing Ndiaye on the floor anytime soon. He's athletic but not quite skilled enough to be a difference maker. It's telling that Kieran Mullen, who was a redshirt candidate six short weeks ago, has been the backup to Cam Corhen with Papa Kante sidelined.
H2P RI
1:23
It appears to be a train wreck of a season for Pitt basketball, but a great recruiting class is signed for next year. How do you balance firing Capel versus giving him 1 more year with the new class? He undoubtedly deserves to be fired, but that means blowing up the program, including the new recruits.
Stephen Thompson
1:29
Think of it this way: the money you use to fire a coach is money you can't spend on the roster.

I would also be remiss if I didn't point out that Capel's tenure at Pitt isn't completely devoid of success. The Panthers have the third most ACC wins of any team in the league since 2022 and Capel has authored scouting and development success stories like Bub Carrington, Blake Hinson, Justin Champagnie and others.

For those reasons, I'm interested to see what he can do with an influx of blue-chip talent and whatever arrives via the transfer portal with a general manager in place. I would bet on Capel getting one more year. Though it's got to be more than righting the ship if he's going to stay on past next season. He'll need to show he's laid the foundation for something actually sustainable.
Fran
1:29
We are now in the 10th year since Dixon left, and have virtually nothing to show for it, other than 1 NCAA tournament appearance.  This program is nearly dead, and needs a major overhaul.  Is AD Greene capable of making that happen, financially speaking?
Stephen Thompson
1:33
I have not seen Pitt athletics' books but at any power conference school, if the will exists to fire a coach, they will make the money work. It could take some financial maneuvering, negotiations over the contract terms or direct institutional support, but if it's a move Pitt feels is best, money won't be an issue.
Bruce
1:34
Hi Stephen. I guess the big Pitt story this week is volleyball! I have been reading that Nebraska was the perfect volleyball team and was virtually unbeatable. Now that Texas A&M has pulled off the impossible, we probably have the best opportunity we have had to get to the mountaintop!
Stephen Thompson
1:35
The NCAA timed up this championship weekend well for Pitt fans. And the Nebraska loss turned a title window into a wide open door for any of the remaining teams, but it's hard not to like a team with Pitt's starpower and experience on this stage.
Mr Ed
1:36
I know it’s fashionable now for people to poke fun at minor bowl games and say they are meaningless, and I know East Carolina is decent team, but if a largely intact Pitt team loses that game, should it be brushed off with a “who cares” or viewed as somewhat tarnishing the 8-4 season?
Stephen Thompson
1:39
At this point, with all of the personnel losses East Carolina has suffered and Pitt's roster looking largely whole, I would see a loss in the Military Bowl as an extremely disappointing end to the 2025 season. Barring some kind of massive player exodus this week (which I don't anticipate at all) Pitt should win this game pretty handily.

I wouldn't go so far as to say it has any kind of impact on 2026 or tarnishes the 2025 season as a whole, but it would be a sour note for the Panthers to close an otherwise strong season on.
JuniataKid
1:43
Any word on when Papa Kante is expected to be back in the lineup?
Stephen Thompson
1:44
Jeff Capel said Saturday he'll be out for "a while." There's no timetable for Kante's return yet but it's not expected to be a season-ending injury at this time.
Bruce
1:45
There has been a bit of social media talk about Olivia Babcock being the greatest athlete in Pitt history. I am old enough to have seen Tony Dorsett play at Pitt and I put them alone at the top. Both totally dominate their sport and both are Pitt's most decorated athletes. Nobody else is even close.
Stephen Thompson
1:48
Dorsett and Babcock exist on similar planes in my mind because they were both dominant as soon as they arrived at Pitt as freshmen and maintained that excellence through the duration of their Pitt career.

For now, Dorsett's national title gives him a clear edge in this conversation, but Babcock can close the gap if she wins one of her own this season.

It's a question I think most fans have a tough time squaring in their minds because of the vast difference in popularity between football and volleyball. But if you look solely at performance, Babcock is right there with Dorsett.
1:57
That's all I've got for this live chat. Thanks for joining me and I'll see you next time! Stay warm and I hope your street got plowed.
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