Dave Wannstedt is out as Pitt football coach following a disappointing season in which the Panthers were big favorites to win a weak Big East Conference, only to finish 7-5 and qualify for a minor bowl. Wannstedt resigned under pressure Tuesday, three days after Pitt (7-5) salvaged its regular season by beating Cincinnati 28-10. The former Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins coach, highly respected by Pitt's administration, will remain at the school as a special assistant to athletic director Steve Pederson. Pitt apparently chose to change coaches now, rather than after the Jan. 8 Compass Bowl in Birmingham, Ala., because most top candidates would have been hired by then. Also, the national letter-of-intent signing day would be less than a month away. Wannstedt gave no signs Sunday after Pitt accepted a Compass Bowl bid that he was considering resigning, and he said he was looking forward to recruiting. But after Wannstedt met Tuesday with Pederson, Pitt held a hastily called news conference to announce that Wannstedt would not return next season. Read more: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5896191
