Mike, you pretty conveniently left out a comment to that post you cited. It was my reply to Rex after his bout of name calling.  Not all PITT fans are as immature, or as hateful, as you make them out to be.  Just as there are some reasonable, and some rabid, PITT fans, the same goes for PSU fans.  I've read some pretty raw, and actually racist, comments on websites describing PITT,its fans and it's environs. All in all its too bad, because each school is unique and very well regarded as institutes of higher learning - and each is worthy of pride in itself and each other.

This just might be my opinion, but it seems that the virulent displays of insults toward each team is a rather new phenomenon. There was always a sort of dislike towards each other, but now with the Internet it's given the crazies a venue to spout from a position of anonymity - and too bad I say.

If by "in the running for the BCS every two or three years," you mean you've made 1 BCS bowl game EVER, then yes, you are in the running.  Every 2-3 years would mean you've been in 3 to 5 by now.  I'm sure math is not a strong suit for you.

Also, lets not kid anymore about PSU being an "elite program."  How many elite programs have had losing seasons 4 out of the last 7 (while that terrible Pitt program has had 1)?  You can check your schedule out here: http://www.psu.edu/sports/football/history/ - oh, wait, it's broke, your computer science department seems to be doing as good a job as the math department.

Let's review:  Pitt has had a better record since 2000, gone to the same amount of BCS bowls, had 3 fewer losing seasons.  If your team didn't mail it in more often than not, you might have an argument.  

"Pitt on the other hand refuses to admit they are not on Penn State's level football-wise."
All anyone at PSU can talk about is the record before 2000.  The series stopped in 2000, and to say that Pitt can't field a "competitive team" must mean that you don't realize you've had a better record that us in 2 - yes, 2, of the last 7 years.  Your football program is a shell of what it used to be.  Get over it.

So, until you actually win a game against us this decade IN ANY SPORT, remember you are winless against Pitt and will be for the forseeable future.

I guess the reason I am most angry we don't play you is it would have been fun to shell your mediocre program these last few years - but instead, you've run and hid.

Hail to Pitt.

...you all seem to confuse having over twice the enrollment every year for the past who-knows-how-many-years to draw your fan base from (and consequently more fans) as having a "better program."  But I wouldn't expect you to know the difference.  "Large school" does not equal "elite program."  Look at your record in football and basketball over the last 7 years to see what I mean.  To say you want to play the other largest universities in the country (because of fan numbers) makes sense, to schedule programs even worse than yours this decade for the non-conference does not.

It's already been noted in the post and comments that the two fundamental problems with setting up a PSU-UP series are that Pitt doesn't understand their place in the college football pecking order and that Pitt needs a paycheck game against PSU far more than PSU needs an easy win, so I won't beat a dead horse.

But speaking of dead horses (Mustangs, to be specific), the last time this was brought up I said that nationally, Pitt is viewed in comparison to Penn State much the same way SMU is viewed in comparison to Texas, just to give those in Western PA a little perspective, since many, even PSU fans, in Western PA have a much inflated view of Pitt's stature as a football program.  It turns out I may have shortchanged SMU with the comparison:

SMU has had 4 10-win seasons since 1981 compared to Texas' 9, or 44% as often as Texas.  During the same time span, Pitt has had 1, PSU has had 10, or 10% as often.

During that same period, SMU has had one January bowl win (over none other than the Pittsburgh Panthers!) compared to Texas' 5, or 20% as often.  Pitt has also had one, whereas PSU has had 11, or 9.1% has often.

Over the same time span, neither SMU nor Pittsburgh has won a National Championship. Texas has won 1, Penn State has won either 2 or 3, depending on if you're willing to take the objective, unbiased calculations of every computer in the known universe over the likes of your moron local columnists.  So if we pretend for a second that Hell freezes over and the next two National Championships are won by SMU and Pitt, SMU is far ahead of Pitt in keeping up with the premier in-state program.

Not to mention the fact that SMU has their own stadium (in an NFL city) and a very high graduation rate, while Pitt...not so much.

So the next time any of you think that PSU is avoiding Pitt, ask yourself if Texas is avoiding SMU first (the last time they played was 1995). Then ask yourself if instead of avoiding the program, that maybe Texas just doesn't think it's worthwhile to play SMU. Subtract some relative credibility from SMU and you have the Pitt-PSU scenario.  So why would PSU feel that it's worthwhile to play Pitt, let alone give them a home and home?

I love how you keep reciting stats from a different century because you people can't understand your program, in the current day, isn't very good.

"Pitt doesn't understand their place in the college football pecking order..."

I understand Pitt is a smaller school, you seem to equate that with "more people" means "elite program" for PSU - once again, CHECK YOUR RECORD SINCE 2000.  Not very good at all.  You're below us in the record category, so if we're going by wins/loses, PSU doesn't understand their place in the pecking order.  "Winning season" isn't a term used half of the time this decade to describe PSU...in either sport.

"...and that Pitt needs a paycheck game against PSU..."

We don't need a "paycheck" game, we just understand that rivalries are more interesting to watch than non-conference games against meaningless/useless opponents.  You don't see us running and hiding when we have a down season.  It would have been fun to even up the series these last few years.  Obviously our attendance is down - but it isn't like we didn't want this series a few years ago when the attendance was better and we were having better seasons.  We won't back out of wanting to play you if your program picks back up again and you start to sustain a decent program in the future.  We just want the chance to shell you.

Pitt is high enough in the "pecking order" to get a real opponent like ND, yet will still settle for a next-tier opponent like PSU.  What some of you don't understand is that its all about the rivalry.  We don't care how poor you've been this decade or how good you think your program is.  We just want to settle this on the field, year-in and year-out.

I missed from the original post about the "9 out of 10 times" recruits choose PSU - still made about that one, huh?  You guys don't sound jealous at all.  Good luck next year.  Joe Pa will continue to reach todays "student-atheletes"...or something like that...

It just would be nice to have the two biggest public universities in Pennsylvania keep a tradition that was almost a hundred years old going. The fact that it isn't can be attributed to basically one thing - Joe Paterno.  All the other reasons aside, economics, "relevancy' (whatever that means) and won/lost records, this was a series that all college football fans in PA looked forward to.

Insular school pride not withstanding - lots of people from both PITT and PSU want to see it renewed - including every former PSU player that took part in it.

Really, it's just kind of sad that it isn't played anymore - even if you kicked our asses more often than not, and even if you'd do it again.

...that PSU isn't ducking PITT. That is a reach anyway you look at it. However, I do think there are other reasons Paterno won't renew the series other than economics or "giving the alumni a chance to see us play in the eastern part of PA" by scheduling Temple.

I guess he thinks it's a no win situation - if he wins he is expected to, if he loses it could impact recruiting...  I'm not sure, but Paterno has been pretty vocal and honest about things in the past, and I get the feeling we aren't going to ever hear the real reason he won't renew the series until he retires.

I live in Maryland and there are a lot of PSU fans down here (those damn paw print stickers are everywhere) and I always introduce myself as a PITT fan and talk football. When I ask about renewing the series everyone states they would like to see it happen - haven't heard one person not want it, and I've asked a lot.

Hey, at the very least it would give us a chance to ruin a season for you like you guys did for us in 1981.

Why does the this site have the basketball season ending on Feb 10th, did they forfeit the rest of the season or did it just seem that way.  We need to get away from scheduling schools like Stony Brook.  Is it a rule you can't play a team more than once?  Let's play Juniata and Clarion three or four times each.  By the way, it is just ignorant all the homophobic comments about the fencing team picture.  Remember,you should never judge a book by its cover