Pitt coach Josh Conklin sends warning to suspended Jordan Whitehead
Any coach who is thinking clearly and trusting his eyes would tell you Jordan Whitehead is the most talented safety in Pitt's secondary.
Pitt defensive coordinator Josh Conklin thinks clearly and has good eyesight, but he sent a message — a warning, perhaps? — to Whitehead that his job won't necessarily be waiting for him when he returns from his three-game suspension.
“We all sit here and grant Jordan a pass that he's going to be an automatic starter,” Conklin said Wednesday after practice. “When Jordan comes back, it's not just going to be handed to him.
“He made some choices. We live with those choices. You feel bad as a coach, just as you would as a parent because you want to change behavior. It hurts you.
“But we have guys we have to get ready, and we have to go win football games with the guys that are on the field.
“I know he's taken a lot of reps and he's been very productive and he's got all the media accolades, but we feel like some guys are closing distance.”
Conklin was lighting a fire under Whitehead, who missed his second consecutive day of practice Wednesday. He attends meetings with his teammates, but coach Pat Narduzzi said Whitehead will be “in and out” of practice for an extended time this month.
Left unsaid by the coaches while Whitehead's punishment for unspecified violations continues is that Pitt will miss the former ACC rookie of the year's athleticism and knowledge of the defense. That may become especially apparent during Weeks 2 and 3 against Penn State and Oklahoma State.
Whitehead, named second-team All-ACC last year, is moving from strong to free safety in hopes of improving a pass defense that finished 127th (next-to-last) in the nation last year (333.2 yards per game).
Barring any unforeseen developments before the fourth game Sept. 23 at Georgia Tech, Whitehead will return to the field and begin contributing. How much he plays at that point is yet to be determined. But Conklin said Whitehead will get enough reps — mental and physical — during training camp so he's ready when his suspension ends.
“We have to make sure that we do a good job of getting him in there enough that he can stay in tune,” he said. Competition for Whitehead and senior linebacker Quintin Wirginis (also suspended for three games) will come from free safeties Jazzee Stocker and Bricen Garner and linebacker Saleem Brightwell.
“I'd be a little more concerned if we didn't have a guy like Saleem Brightwell,” Conklin said.
Brightwell played in 12 games last year, starting two, and followed that up with productive work in the spring and summer, according to coaches' consensus opinion. Conklin said Brightwell would have been good competition for Wirginis, even if he hadn't been suspended.
Brightwell's 70-yard interception return against Clemson reversed the momentum of that game and led Pitt to an upset victory of the eventual national champion.
At strong safety — a position held by Whitehead the past two years — Dennis Briggs, Phil Campbell and Henry Miller are competing. Briggs has played in all 26 games the past two seasons, mainly as a nickel back, recording 25 tackles and two forced fumbles.
Each position requires a special skill set — the free safety has more coverage responsibilities while the strong safety is expected to cover the run.
“It's going to come down to our best two back there,” Conklin said. “But I like what Jay and Bricen have shown in two days, if you can tell anything in two days.
“They have to embrace (the next-man-up) mentality, and we have to step it up as coaches, too, and coach them hard.”
In addition, freshman safety Paris Ford missed practice for the second consecutive day Wednesday, and there is no timetable for his return while he deals with academic issues.
“It puts him behind, for sure,” Conklin said. “We'll have to get him caught up as fast as we can.”
He said Ford's initial duties will be on third down.
Jerry DiPaola is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at jdipaola@tribweb.com or via Twitter @JDiPaola_Trib.
