I watched Pitt's introduction of its new head football coach, Todd Graham, on Tuesday afternoon on the Pitt Panther website.
Graham handled himself well and showed poise gained from five years as a head coach, one at Rice and four at Tulsa.
I admittedly was rooting for Tom Bradley to get the job because I know him, and I feel his western Pennsylv-ania roots would have made him an excellent fit - longterm - for the Panthers.
But despite having a second interview that included Pitt Chancellor Mark Nordenberg, Bradley apparently did not bowl over the committee enough to be offered the job.
Maybe Pitt balked because of Bradley's Penn State roots as it's the only place he's ever been. Maybe because he hasn't had very many interviews that it's not his specialty.
Maybe Pitt preferred someone married. Even though the New York Times recently documented examples of bachelor coaches having success, naming Wisconsin's Bret Bielema and Oregon's Chip Kelly, the vast majority of head coaches in BCS conferences are married.
I reached out to Bradley on his disappointment, and he declined an interview request at this time. I do know he did not interview at UConn, and it's my sense that he really didn't want the Temple job, though he was a finalist there.
This all probably puts him back at Penn State, which may be good for PSU and Joe Paterno and the stability of the Nittany Lion staff, but it's not good for Bradley in the long run.
I credit him for going hard after a job that he truly wanted, where he's built many friendships and recruiting relationships, and enduring this public process.
At the same time, though he's been under fire, I have to admire the courage that beleaguered Pitt Athletic Director Steve Pederson has shown in not bowing to public pressure.
It will take at least a couple of years to find out if Pederson has the right man in Graham, who had a 10-year contract but was also interested in the Minnesota and Indiana jobs and seemed ready to leave Tulsa, and how long he'll stay.
And it will take even longer than that for Bradley to get over losing out on, other than a PSU throne he wasn't going to inherit, what I think was his dream job.
Neil Rudel can be reached at 946-7527 or at nrudel@altoonamirror.com
