Pitt DL Coach Charlie Partridge Prepares For Difficult Task of Saying Goodbye to Seniors
PITTSBURGH -- Charlie Partridge made his return to Pittsburgh and the Pitt Panthers at a good time. As he was reprising an assistant coaching role in the Steel City, one of the most productive defensive line classes of this era within the program was also stepping on campus for the first time as well.
This group, one that Partridge and the rest of the program honored on senior day last week, is preparing for their final regular season game at Pitt, much to the chagrin of their position coach.
Habakkuk Baldonado, John Morgan, Deslin Alexandre and Chris Maloney have been fixtures of that room since Partridge came back in 2016 and life without them is tough to envision.
“It’s really hard to imagine walking into a room without those guys in the room," Partridge said. "I arrived when Deslin arrived. When I came back to Pittsburgh, Deslin and I arrived at the same time. He was an early grad. This is our sixth season together and he has seen the room grow the entire time."
He has an emotional attachment to these players he recruited, developed and won with in significant ways. Now he's preparing to see them off to the next stage of their lives while left with the task of bringing that next generation up to speed. Partridge said his job was made easier by their experience, leadership abilities and trust in one another.
“I think it’s been great because there are times where you have to turn up the heat and times where you back off and when I turn the heat up, they understand exactly why and where I’m coming from," Partridge said. "It’s just the standard of the room. There’s a quote out there that goes ‘The standard is not what you teach. It’s what you’re willing to tolerate,’ and what they understand is when something starts to slip, we’re not going to tolerate it and they all have my back which is great.”
For as much as he looks back on his time with them fondly, he knows there are still memories to make. Pitt still has to topple Miami and win a bowl game if they hope to finish off the year right. So while Partridge and his group still take some time to relive the glory days, they're most focused on the Hurricanes and closing these decorated careers strong.
“There’s certainly times that we’ll relive a memory before a meeting here or there but we have a tremendous challenge ahead of us ... We have a challenging task ahead of us and that’s where all our focus is.”
Partridge is comforted by the fact that he will cross paths with these men again. He is not the type of coach to let go easily and will still be a part of their lives after they leave the facility for the final time.
"I’m going to miss them all dearly but whether they like it or not, they’re stuck with me for life," Partridge said. "This is not ‘goodbye’, it’s ‘talk to you soon’.”
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