2-1-17

The Pitt News

The independent student newspaper of the University of Pittsburgh | PIttnews.com | february 1,2017 | Volume 107 | Issue 113

Pitt alum Buy or boil: PWSA issues water advisory gets funds for film Andrew O’ Brien Staff Writer

Many members of the LGBTQ+ community see Trump’s presidency as an existential threat. Pitt alum Mark Janavel aims to give people are transgender a voice with an upcoming documentary about the transgender experience in Pittsburgh.

Janavel, who graduated from Pitt in 2015, wants to provide a space for transgender people who feel marginalized by the Republican-controlled government to express their fears, concerns and hopes for the future. For his documentary, tentatively titled “Transient: First 100 Days of Trump,” Janavel will interview 10 different transgender individuals from Pittsburgh, following them throughout the first 100 days of the Trump presidency.

Janavel envisions the film, which is set to be released on June 6th, as a “talking-head-style documentary” — meaning it will contain quotes from several people edited in one after another. He is filming his first interview in Pittsburgh Thursday.

Janavel secured $5,000 in funding for the film from the Sprout Fund, a Pittsburgh nonprofit that has invested millions in catalyzing change on a grassroots level. The Sprout Fund announced the grants’ recipients on January 20th.

After he posted his idea on the Sprout Fund’s website, Janavel reached out to Pitt’s Rainbow Alliance, which he was a member of during his time at Pitt, and they helped him spread the word on social media.

“I didn’t do enough with the Rainbow AlliSee 100 Days on page 4

Ashley Brown, a junior neuroscience major, reaches into a cooler to buy water for herself and her sorority sisters after a water alert was issued by the city of Pittsburgh on Tuesday evening. Stephen Caruso CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Ashwini Sivaganesh and James night after Pittsburgh Water and Sewer tles,” Sardelis said. “I ended up getting Authority issued a Precautionary Flush my water from Jimmy John’s, but they Evan Bowen-Gaddy

The Pitt News Staff First-year student Athena Sardelis, a double major in English writing and psychology, balanced several water bottles in her arm as she rushed up the Market stairs to get to her Tower B dorm room.

She was in search of water Tuesday

and Boil Water Advisory” after finding unsafe chlorine levels in one water treatment plant.

“I went to Market To-Go, CVS, Rite Aid, IGA and even the gas station [on the corner of Forbes Avenue and McKee Place], and none of them had water bot-

obviously don’t have bags.”

An estimated 100,000 Pittsburgh residents throughout eastern sections of the city were left without safe tap water on Tuesday night. PWSA released a statement on their website saying recent tests See Water on page 4

pittnews.com

February 1, 2017

2

News

sgb HOsts First Town Hall-Style Meeting

The Pitt News

Editor-in-Chief ELIZABETH LEPRO

Grant Burgman

editor@pittnews.com

For The Pitt News

Pitt Student Government Board held their first monthly town hall-style meeting Tuesday night, cutting board member reports to focus on students who wanted to voice their concerns.

Other than this change, the town hall remained mostly similar to a standard SGB meeting, featuring updates from each committee head and allocations requests.

SGB made the decision to change the format for Tuesday’s meeting to accommodate students with busy schedules who have limited time to express their concerns, according to Sydney Harper spoke at SGB’s first town SGB President Natalie Dall.

“I think a lot of students may not want to hall meeting. Kyleen Considine STAFF come to public meeting because it’s long when PHOTOGRAPHER we give all of our reports, and I think a lot of stuThe Board tabled their vote until next Tuesday’s dents don’t have the time to commit to that,” she meeting. If the vote passes and SGB receives the said. grant, they plan to hold events to educate students Vice President and Chair of Cabinet Rohit about the effects of smoking and tobacco use.

Anand said the town hall-style meeting was meant Dall also said last week the key focus of this to establish a stronger relationship with students proposed resolution was promoting smoking and and the Board and create transparency with their tobacco-use education. This resolution is distinct initiatives. from last year’s tobacco-free resolution, which “We want to make sure that students are in- would have banned tobacco-use on campus. That formed about what initiatives we’re carrying out resolution never went to vote last year, as student and have the ability to present a resolution or com- surveys indicated a near-perfect split in support. ment on what initiatives we’re working on and give Although attendance at the town hall-style us feedback,” he said. meeting was modest, two students took the opRohit said SGB plans to reach out to all of the portunity to address the Board about pressing constudent organizations on campus and market the cerns. One of the speakers, Sam Ressin, a first-year newly styled meetings on Facebook. The next student, voiced his support for the tobacco-free town hall meeting is at the end of February. initiative. Ressin said the smoke concerned him Despite the decision to strike reports from the because he struggles with asthma. He said that he meeting, Dall still had updates from the Board on currently takes a different, more complex route to the progress of the tobacco-free initiative discussed classes to avoid smokers. in last week’s meeting.

“I do worry that it could make it worse, and At this meeting, SGB introduced a new initia- I do want to speak out for those who have severe tive that would allow them to apply for a $20,000 asthma or respiratory problems,” he said. grant to educate students about tobacco use. The Dall also reminded the crowd that all students grant, from the American Cancer Society, is given who want to run for a board position next year to 20 universities in an effort to “accelerate and and already handed in SGB packets with the apexpand the adoption and implementation of 100 propriate amount of student signatures can start percent smoke- and tobacco-free campus policies,” campaigning tomorrow. according to an ACS press release.

pittnews.com

Managing Editor LAUREN ROSENBLATT manager@pittnews.com

News Editor ASHWINI SIVAGANESH

Opinions Editor AMBER MONTGOMERY

newsdesk.tpn@gmail.com

tpnopinions@pittnews.com

Sports Editor STEVE ROTSTEIN

Culture Editor EMILY BRINDLEY

tpnsports@gmail.com

aeeditors@gmail.com

Visual Editor JOHN HAMILTON

Layout Editor JORDAN MONDELL

pittnewsphoto@gmail.com

tpnlayout@gmail.com

Online Editor MATT CHOI

Copy Chief SIERRA SMITH

tpnonline@gmail.com

tpncopydesk@gmail.com

Amanda Reed | Assistant News Editor Alexandria Stryker | Assistant Copy James Evan Bowen-Gaddy | Assistant News Editor Copy Staff Henry Glitz | Assistant Opinions Editor Maria Castello Alexa Marzina Bayard Miller | Assistant Sports Editor Matthew Maelli Amanda Sobczak Meghan Sunners | Assistant Visual Editor Bridget Montgomery Mia DiFelice Michelle Reagle Corey Foreman Emily Hower | Assistant Layout Editor Rachael Crabb Kelsey Hunter Matt Moret | Online Engagement Editor Kim Rooney Kyleen Pickering

Editorial Policies

Single copies of The Pitt News are free and available at newsstands around campus. Additional copies can be purchased with permission of the editor in chief for $.50 each.

Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the students, faculty or University administration.

Opinions expressed in columns, cartoons and letters are not necessarily those of The Pitt News. Any letter in tended for publication must be addressed to the editor, be no more than 250 words and include the writer’s name, phone number and University affiliation, if any.

Letters may be sent via e-mail to letters@pittnews.com.

The Pitt News reserves the right to edit any and all letters. In the event of multiple replies to an issue, The Pitt News may print one letter that represents the majority of responses. Unsigned editorials are a majority opinion of the Editorial Board, listed to the left.

The Pitt News is an independent, student-written and

February 1, 2017

Rielly Galvin Sydney Mengel

student-managed newspaper for the Oakland campus of the University of Pittsburgh. It is pub lished Monday through Friday during the regular school year and Wednesdays during the summer.

Complaints concerning coverage by The Pitt News, after first being brought to the editors, may be referred to the Community Relations Com mittee, Pitt News Advisory Board, c/o student media adviser, 435 William Pitt Union, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15260.

The editor in chief has the final authority on editorial matters and cannot be censored, according to state and federal law. The editor in chief is selected by the Pitt News Advisory Board, which includes University staff, fac ulty and students, as well as journalism professionals. The business and edito rial offices of The Pitt News are located at 434 William Pitt Union, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15260.

Business Manager CALVIN REIF

advertising@pittnews.com

Sales Manager SEAN HENNESSY

Inside Sales Manager MARISSA ALTEMUS

Marketing Manager LARA PETORAK

Digital Manager ISAAC PROCH

Graphic Designers Taylor Trgovac Madison McClure

Marketing Assistant Katie Bozzo

Production Manager MAYA PUSKARIC Account Executives

Robert Capone Matty Houck David Barone Jill Baldauf

Inside Sales Executive Scott Elias Arianna Taddei Izzy Krempa

Marty Waters Julianne Rohac Antonio Blundo University Account Executive Isabel Scrabis David Mo Barone

3

Water, pg. 1 of the water at the Highland Park water filtration plant revealed low levels of chlorine. Since chlorine is typically used to disinfect Pittsburgh water, PWSA instructed locals to take precautionary measures until further notice. PWSA also said the lack of chlorine could cause an increase in digestive upset, vomiting and headaches, as well as other ailments.

The statement instructed residents within the affected area, including Oakland, not to use faucets or fountains for drinking water, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes or preparing food.

PWSA told residents they should let water run for at least a minute, boil it for another minute and wait for it to cool before any form of consumption.

Robert Weimar, interim director of engineering at PWSA, said they are “not sure what caused the [low chlorine] levels to occur” and that they want to exercise an “abundance of caution” by instructing customers not to drink the affected water. Weimar also said PWSA did not yet know when customers would be able to drink the water again.

“Our goal is to restore the treatment center within the next few days,” Weimar said.

The University of Pittsburgh notified all students — including those who live both on- and off-campus — around 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday to use bottled or boiled water. Panther Central sent out a separate email around 8:30 p.m., specifically to students who live on campus, saying they could obtain bottled water from the security desk at their residence hall.

Pitt Environmental Health and Safety also sent out an email encouraging

pittnews.com

all Pitt student and faculty members to bring water with them to campus until the situation is resolved.

Before these announcements, several students decided to make their way out of the dorms to find water on their own accord. Lines wound around the aisles and out the door at both 7-Eleven and Rite Aid on Forbes Avenue.

Some students even decided to make a business of selling bottled water. Ama Edusei, 18, Britney Lewis, 19, and Asia Livingston, 18, all first-year students, were sitting in Towers Lobby Tuesday night selling water bottles for a dollar apiece. Shouting into the crowded lobby, they joked about what forms of payment their business accepted.

“A dollar for water! We take Panther Funds and Venmo,” Livingston said.

Edusei said they had luckily stocked up on a case of water just the day before.

“Market To-Go is out of water bottles, and people need water,” Edusei said.

“Rite Aid, 7-Eleven — they’re all out.”

Around the same time Market To-Go ran out of water bottles, Market Central put up signs telling students not to drink water from dispensers. Instead, they started serving cups of bottled water at their Magellan’s station.

This solution, however, didn’t solve all Towers residents’ problems. Firstyear student Claudia Salvato, met Sardelis in Towers lobby after taking a shower. Realizing she’d used tap water, she was surprised to learn she couldn’t even brush her teeth with water from the faucet.

“I mean, you can’t boil water in the dorms, and you can’t have a hot plate,” Sardelis said. “My [Residential Assistant] told us we would be getting water soon, but I drink a lot of water.”

100 Days, pg. 1 ance,” Janavel said of his time at the university.

“This [documentary] could be a redemptive factor.”

Janavel’s last documentary, “It Should Feel Like Home,” released in July 2016, focused on the experiences of homeless LGBTQ+ youth. Janavel said he narrowed his focus from the entire LGBTQ+ community to only people who are transgender for this documentary because he feels they face a unique struggle.

“These are the people that, by the numbers, are statistically targeted the most with violence,” Janavel said. “I want to help the people who need it most.”

According to the National Coalition of AntiViolent Programs, 20 to 25 percent of LGBTQ+ people experience hate crimes in their lifetime.

The vast majority of the LGBTQ+ community rejected Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election — he received 14 percent of their vote. This is a historically low proportion, considering Barack Obama gathered 70 percent of the LGBTQ+ vote in 2008 and George W. Bush received 25 percent in 2000.

Though Trump hasn’t indicated that he plans to undo recent LGBTQ+ gains — when asked for his position on gay marriage on CBS, he said that the Supreme Court decision made it settled law — he hasn’t made himself a champion of LGBTQ+ rights, either. Many of Trump’s cabinet appointments are staunchly anti-LGBTQ+. Mike Pence, for instance, has said that prohibiting gay marriage is not discrimination but enforcement of “God’s idea.”

On Pitt’s campus, students have expressed their disagreement with the president’s actions with protests regarding LGBTQ+ rights, the ban on visas and the proposed wall along the Mexican border.

Maxine Taylor, a Pitt junior majoring in computer science and member of Rainbow Alliance,

February 1, 2017

said she never felt she was given the space to explore her sexuality throughout her adolescence.

She called the town of Bloomsberg where she grew up “repressed.”

Once she came to Pitt, she made the transition from cisgender male to genderqueer and finally to transgender woman.

Taylor, who does not plan to participate in the film, said “Transient” has a lot of value because the transgender perspective often goes underrepresented, and trans people desperately need a platform in light of the current federal administration.

“Trump is someone who acts as a conservative populist and really riles up people who blame minorities for their problems,” Taylor said. “With that kind of tone in place, it’s hard not to be terrified about what could be coming.”

Dylan Drobish, the co-founder of TransPride Pittsburgh, a transgender community group that plans events and provides services for transidentified Pittsburghers said in a written statement that “Transient” constitutes an effective way of fighting back against the hateful rhetoric of Trump’s campaign.

“Offering ten perspectives on the matter may help not only to shed light on how dangerous Trump’s America will continue to be for marginalized groups,” Drobin said in the statement.

“But also on the diversity of the transgender experience and the different ways in which people express their fears, anger and frustration regarding the matter.“ Janavel said the situation for students who were transgender was not ideal during his time at Pitt and cites the bad condition of some genderneutral bathrooms as an example.

“But I think Pitt is moving in the right direction,” Janavel said. “It’s hard to tell. It’s hard to talk about it, because everyone’s so afraid.”

Mark Janavel can be contacted at (484) 6433784. If readers are interested in participating in the documentary, Janavel invites them to make an inquiry at room 611 in the William Pitt Union.

4

Opinions

FROM THE EDITORIAL BOARD: Toomey’s support for Trump’s ban ignores constituency SEE ONLINE

column

Do Earth a favor and eat less meat Elise Lavallee

For The Pitt News When most people wonder why anyone would give up eating meat, they turn first to a love for animals combined with an opposition to animal cruelty.

And they’re right, these are common reasons. But there’s another reason that we can all benefit from eating a more plant-based diet: the large environmental impacts.

If the meat industry attempts to meet the demands of the world’s growing population, the environment will likely never recover from the toll. But there are things we can do as individuals, like limiting our intake of meat and other animal products, to prevent more irreversible damage to our planet.

After becoming more aware of the environmental benefits of eating less meat, I began cutting back my meat intake over the past few months. Because of this interest, I attended Pitt’s Vegan/ Vegetarian Collective on Monday evening to learn more about how Pitt and Pittsburghers are becoming more vegan and vegetarian friendly.

“Once you learn about the negatives, it isn’t hard,” said Mary Bielich, a Pitt alumna and volunteer at the Collective, when I asked her why she chose to become vegan. “It was one of the best decisions I ever made.”

The monthly Collective, organized

by Pitt Dining, aims “to give students who are vegan, vegetarian or simply prefer plant-based [food] an opportunity to express what they’d like to see on campus,” according to Cecilia Oliveros, a Sodexo Sustainability intern. The event focused on the many beneficial aspects of going vegan — from ending animal mistreatment to reducing one’s

pittnews.com

ecological imprint by switching to a plant-based diet.

The main way meat eating and environmental damage are connected is through agriculture and water usage.

The way we grow and farm animals for consumption uses a large amount of our natural resources. Agriculture uses about 80 percent of the United States’ ground and surface water. This water is

more harmful than carbon. Yet, it takes one-thirteenth of the time to cycle out of the atmosphere. Because of this, efforts to limit carbon emissions through fewer cars and more renewable energy sources will take more time to implement and see the effects.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, one cow’s annual output of methane is equal to the emis-

Raqa Sarkar SENIOR STAFF ILLUSTRATOR

used to farm and, more specifically, to grow grain that feeds animals we eventually slaughter to eat.

The United Nations reported the practice of raising animals for food — from deforestation, irrigation, animal farming and all the processing necessary to deliver food from the farm to your table — is responsible for more greenhouse gases than all of the cars and trucks in the world combined.

Methane — the most abundant greenhouse gas caused by the animal industry and the most harmful contributor to global warming — is 23 times

sions produced by a car burning 235 gallons of gasoline. By limiting your beef intake, you’re likewise reducing the demand for it, resulting in a reduction in greenhouse gases.

Research has shown that universal vegetarian- and veganism can reduce food related greenhouse gas emissions between 60 and 70 percent. Of course, this universal attainment probably isn’t plausible across the globe or even the country. But as an individual, the most impactful contribution you can make in reducing the effects of climate change is to change your diet. Eliminating meat

February 1, 2017

intake to a few days a week can help to reduce meat industry-based emissions by at least one third in 2050.

You’ve probably heard endless facts about the importance of turning off lights, carpooling, using public transportation and turning the water off while brushing your teeth. Though these are all good ideas to limit energy usage and you should be doing them, they only make up a fraction of the difference in terms of resources used.

Eating less meat doesn’t mean you have to give up your favorite restaurants or only eat salads — many places offer vegetarian options or substitutes, ones that are usually cheaper while being just as filling. And if you cook for yourself, try out more plant-based protein foods like tofu, beans or chickpeas.

“Pittsburgh is a large city that has diversity and culture. There’s plenty of places where you can buy vegan food, especially if you are okay with cooking for yourself,” said Abbigail Hensel, a representative of Vegan Pittsburgh.

You don’t have to quit meat or other animal products altogether or all at once. But without some effort on our parts, the environment will not be able to recover from the damage we’ve already done. But if we all make choices to eat less meat and animal products, our changes can help prevent further damage to our atmosphere, nature and wildlife. With global warming and other health concerns on the rise, now is the perfect time for anyone who is considering becoming a vegan or vegetarian to do so.

We all love our meat. But when making small changes can create bigger benefits, we should at least give it a try.

Write to Elise at eml94@pitt.edu.

6

pittnews.com

February 1, 2017

7

Sports

Panthers almost shock No. 12 UNC, 80-78 Bayard Miller

Assistant Sports Editor Expectations were low for the Pittsburgh Panthers coming into Tuesday night’s game against the North Carolina Tar Heels.

After losing six games in a row and falling to last place in the ACC, the Pitt men’s basketball team (12-10 overall, 1-8 ACC) was a 19-point underdog against the No. 12-ranked Tar Heels.

Ultimately, the Panthers walked away with a nailbiting, 80-78 loss to UNC (20-4 overall, 8-2 ACC), but not before putting a serious scare into one of the best teams in the country.

Sophomore Cameron Johnson led the Panthers in scoring with a career-high 24 points, 18 of which came from behind the arc. Michael Young finished with a double-double, scoring 19 points while pulling down 10 rebounds.

The Tar Heels kicked off the game’s scoring with a 3-pointer by junior Joel Berry, but Pitt redshirt senior Chris Jones quickly struck back with a driving layup to put the Panthers on the board.

column

With a 3-pointer from Johnson, Pitt went into the first media timeout down only two, 7-5.

A steal from Young led to a fast break layup by sophomore guard Damon Wilson, making it a 25-22 game with 6:35 remaining in the first period of play. A missed Wilson three led to a putback down low by Young, bringing the Panthers within one.

Young was fouled during a successful layup attempt with 1:21 left in the first. After Young completed the 3-point play, Jamel Artis nailed a three with 34 seconds left, keeping the Panthers in striking distance and narrowing UNC’s lead to four.

With a one second differential between the shot and game clock, Berry dribbled away as much time as he could, fading away from the left side of the basket for a tough 3-point attempt. He missed the shot, but North Carolina’s sophomore power forward Luke Maye came up with the offensive rebound and hit a buzzer-beater layup to take a six point lead into the intermission.

UNC’s Justin Jackson inaugurated scoring in the second half with a long two. Michael Young

was fouled hard as he went up for a layup in the paint but made both of his free throws to bring the Panthers back within six.

With 16:49 to go, Jones hit a turnaround jumper as the shot clock expired. Shortly after, the Panthers forced a turnover and capitalized on the opportunity with Johnson nailing a three, tying the score at 49 Cameron Johnson scored 24 points on six threes in a losing effort against the North Carolina Tar Heels. Evan apiece.

Meng STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Then suddenly, Pitt went cold, missing Johnson reached a career-high 21 points after three straight three point attempts and failing to a layup with 8:32 remaining, making the score 59score for the next 3:33. The drought came to an 65. After Hicks completed a three point play with end with two consecutive threes by Artis, pulling See Basketball on page 9 Pitt within five with 11:02 left in the second half.

Keep Top Recruits in Western PEnnsylvania Ryan Zimba Staff Writer

Pitt Football has improved in recent years, but the team needs to attract top WPIAL recruits to seriously compete nationally. Jeff Ahearn SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

pittnews.com

From 2011 to 2014, Pitt football muddled its way to four straight 6-6 regular seasons. In head coach Pat Narduzzi’s first two seasons, the Panthers have drastically improved and enjoyed back-to-back 8-4 campaigns.

The program’s resurgence has been felt around the country this year, as the Panthers knocked off Penn State — effectively keeping the Nittany Lions out of the playoffs — and eventual national champion Clemson.

But, even with the big wins, Pitt has not been able to make the leap into the upper echelon of college football.

The program can’t blame its secondtier status on just one factor, but a major

February 1, 2017

reason for Pitt’s exclusion from the topflight football programs becomes clear annually on National Signing Day: Pitt is unable to attract high-profile recruits from the Pittsburgh area.

This year’s class is a perfect example of this reality. The Panthers’ 2017 group of 23 verbal commitments contains just five Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League recruits, only two of whom rank inside Pennsylvania’s top 20 prospects according to 247 Sports.

Central Catholic High School, which finished the 2016 season as the second-best team in the state, is 11 minutes walking distance from the Cathedral of Learning. Despite this extreme proximity, the Panthers were unable to attract a single recruit from the nearby powerhouse.

Obviously, Pitt gets some quality players from the area, including former wide receiver Tyler Boyd and two-time All-Pro defensive lineman Aaron Donald. The team does not get enough top talent, however, to have great teams.

When one looks at the top college football programs, one thing they all do well is recruit. A common refrain from these programs is “We don’t rebuild. We reload.” Because the Panthers cannot convince the best local players to stay in Western Pennsylvania, they do not have this luxury.

Just a few hours away, one program in State College, Pennsylvania, has developed a perfect example of this model.

A few years ago, the Penn State Nittany Lions were a mediocre program See Column on page 9

8

a free throw, the Panthers went into the undereight media timeout trailing the Tar Heels by nine, 68-59.

Both teams entered a scoring lull over the next few minutes, but Young hit back to back threes, drawing the Panthers to within three with 4:48 left to go. The Tar Heels missed eight straight shots from the field and went over four minutes without a field goal. Still, North Carolina was able to maintain their lead by drawing fouls and making their free throws.

The Panthers kept battling, and Johnson continued to hit outside shots, making a contested three with 3:24 left to make it a three point game, 71-68.

North Carolina responded to the Panthers with a layup from Berry. He completed the threepoint play with a free throw, increasing the point differential to four. Artis hit a three to draw the Panthers back within one, but Jackson hit a layup to make the difference between the teams three once again.

After Artis missed a layup, North Carolina came down with the rebound and started to milk the clock. As soon as Pitt saw the UNC strategy, the team started to foul the Tar Heels. Although

North Carolina continued to hit most of its free throws, Jones made a three with 15 seconds left in the game to keep Pitt in it, making the score 78-76.

Jackson was fouled with 9.7 left and missed his first free throw shot. He made his next, but Pitt got the ball back with the possibility of taking the game into overtime on just one shot.

UNC did not want to risk a game-tying three from the Panthers and had two fouls left to give until they reached the bonus. As a result, the Tar Heels fouled Sheldon Jeter and Artis, bleeding the clock to 5.4. Artis went to the line for a one-andone and made both, drawing the Panthers within one and making the score 79-78.

The Panthers intentionally fouled UNC senior Isaiah Hicks to stop the clock with less than five seconds left. Hicks missed his first free throw but made his second, giving the ball to the Panthers, down two with less than five seconds left.

Pitt decided to put the ball in their leading scorer’s hands to end the game, but Artis’ threepoint attempt as time expired was way off the mark, sealing the win for the North Carolina Tar Heels.

The Panthers will try to stop their seven-game losing streak Feb. 4 when they take on the Duke Blue Devils at 1 p.m. in Durham, North Carolina.

The Pitt News SuDoku 2/1/17 courtesy of dailysudoku.com

pittnews.com

Column, pg. 8 struggling in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal. This year, they were Big Ten Champions and played in the Rose Bowl. How were they able to turn things around and nearly make the playoffs this season?

The answer is simple: by recruiting well in Pennsylvania.

In the past three classes, Penn State has crushed Pitt in recruiting among the top players of the state. Over that span, the Nittany Lions have pulled in 13 recruits ranked in Pennsylvania’s top 10. Meanwhile, Pitt has only received three — Paris Ford, Damar Hamlin and Jordan Whitehead.

Whether or not he is an elite coach on gameday is still up for debate, but the charismatic coach’s ability to recruit in Pennsylvania has resurrected Penn State’s program and kept Pitt out of the national conversation. If the Panthers could land more key players, they would immediately enhance their national stature.

Since 1981, the Panthers have only one 10win season: a 10-3 season under Dave Wannstedt in 2009. Other than that, the program has been stuck in mediocrity ever since Dan Marino graduated and went to the NFL in 1983. Pitt has

earned the reputation of being a lower-tier Power Five program.

But the thing that hurts Pitt more than this reputation in gaining recruits is the atmosphere at games.

For years, the attendance at Pitt home games has been terrible –– the empty yellow seats of Heinz Field have become as much of a gameday tradition as “Sweet Caroline.” When potential future players travel to Pittsburgh, what they see at home games has to be a wake-up call. They look at the empty seats and the lackluster student support and wonder why they would choose to come to Pitt over offers from any other of the dozens of schools that sell out their games every week.

For Pitt’s football program to finally turn the corner, one of two things has to change — either the attendance or the on-field product.

The team has been on an upward trajectory since Narduzzi came on board, but apparently, an 8-4 record and a win over the team’s in-state rival is insufficient for sellouts.

For the program to take the next step, it must learn how to keep top talent in Western Pennsylvania by better marketing the team. Otherwise, the Panthers will continue losing out on the WPIAL’s best.

The Pitt news crossword 2/1/17

Basketball, pg. 8

February 1, 2017

9