Pitt Names Football Team Captains

Oct. 26, 2006

PITTSBURGH--University of Pittsburgh football coach Dave Wannstedt announced today the selection of Pitt's 2006 team captains.

The Panthers' captains were selected by a vote of team members and include senior linebacker H.B. Blades, senior tight end Steve Buches, senior punter Adam Graessle, senior quarterback Tyler Palko and senior linebacker Clint Session.

Blades (Plantation, Fla./Plantation) was elected a captain for the second consecutive year. He is in his third season as a starting linebacker. A first-team All-Big East selection in 2004 and '05, Blades is a viable All-America candidate this year and currently ranks third in the country with 12.13 tackles per game.

Buches (Pittsburgh, Pa./Pittsburgh Central Catholic) has been a prominent contributor at tight end the last three seasons and has played in 41 career games. He is Pitt's third-leading pass catcher this year with 16 receptions for 186 yards and two TDs.

A past All-Big East honoree, Graessle (Dublin, Ohio/Dublin Coffman) is in his third season as Pitt's starting punter. A Ray Guy Award candidate, he currently ranks second in the Big East and 26^th nationally with a 41.9-yard average. Graessle has additionally handled Pitt's kickoffs the last four years.

One of the nation's elite signal-callers, Palko (Imperial, Pa./West Allegheny) was elected a team captain for the third consecutive season. A three-year starter at quarterback, he ranks third all-time at Pitt with 7,302 career passing yards and 59 touchdown passes. Palko is fourth in school annals with 7,396 yards in total offense. His pass efficiency rating this season is the nation's second highest (180.3) and he additionally ranks among the national leaders in four additional categories.

Session (Pompano Beach, Fla./Blanche Ely) has been a fixture at linebacker for the Pitt defense each of the last four seasons. This year he is the Panthers' second-leading tackler with 59 total stops. Among all Big East defenders he ranks fourth with an average of 7.4 tackles per game.

The Panthers are idle this week before playing at South Florida for a key Big East matchup on November 4. The game will be televised by ESPN Regional as part of its Big East Game of the Week package and shown locally on WTAE-TV, channel 4.

University of Pittsburgh Athletics

Pitt Names Football Team Captains

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Players Mentioned

H.B. Blades

Steve Buches

Adam Graessle

Tyler Palko

Clint Session

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