Pitt assistant coach says he spent 48 straight hours at work after embarrassing loss to Penn State

Any reasonable coach will take a loss to a rival team hard, but it looks like one assistant coach at Pitt is responding to the Panthers’ blowout loss to Penn State by refusing to leave the team’s football facility.

In an interview reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Craig Meyer, Pitt tight ends coach Tim Salem claims to have spent at least 48 straight hours, starting the Sunday morning following the team’s 51-6 loss on Saturday, at the team’s football facility.

Apparently, Salem worked an 18-hour day on Monday and slept in the building on Sunday and Monday night. At first, he says the unusual workload is because he doesn’t want to lose any valuable preparation time wallowing in the loss. While some might call that a disproportionate response to a loss in a football game, that line of thinking at least seems to fit in the sometimes-unhealthy culture of 100-percent commitment in college football today.

However, that justification is somewhat undermined by Salem’s answer to a follow-up question. Asked if he would do the same thing in the event of a win over Penn State, Salem says yes, because apparently 18-hour workdays and sleeping on a couch are nothing compared to … changing a lightbulb?

Salem may have just been making an odd, tongue-in-cheek joke. At least we hope so. If not, there will be plenty of chores – and perhaps an irritated spouse – waiting for him when he finally does go home.

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