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This wasn’t the way David Istanich was supposed to return to Pennsylvania.
The Greater Johnstown graduate, who is a sophomore offensive lineman with FIU, was understandably excited about the Golden Panthers’ game vs. Pitt at Heinz Field at 3:30 this afternoon.
It was a chance to return to his roots, play against some familiar faces and showcase his skills in front of plenty of friends and family in attendance.
But Istanich came down with mononucleosis before FIU’s first game of the season and won’t be able to play today.
“I’d like to play in the hometown, but everything happens for a reason,” Istanich said in a telephone interview from Miami this week. “(I was) definitely looking forward to it. I have some teammates at Pitt, and it would have been a great game, but like I said, everything happens for a reason.”
Istanich, who is 6-foot-4 and weighs
285 pounds, first started noticing something was wrong the first week of September, when the Golden Panthers were on a bye week. He was diagnosed with mono and missed the team’s 19-14 home loss to Rutgers in the opener as well as the 27-20 defeat at Texas A&M and last week’s 42-28 loss at Maryland.
“It’s just a minor setback,” Istanich said.
Istanich had a very productive freshman season, playing in 10 games – starting six of them – while bouncing between right tackle, right guard and left guard. This season he was in line to start at right guard before getting sick.
He expects to return to action next week when FIU – which stands for Florida International University – opens Sun Belt Conference play by hosting Western Kentucky. Whether or not he starts immediately has not yet been determined by his coaches.
“We'll see what happens,” he said. “I haven't talked to them about that, but I’ll work hard and hopefully earn it back.”
Istanich said he prefers to play guard as opposed to tackle.
“I like where I’m at now,” he said. “You get a lot of double teams and get to manhandle the defensive tackle.”
Even without Istanich in the lineup, the Golden Panthers have been competitive in losing to three teams from conferences with ties to the BCS.
“I’ve been real proud of the O line,” he said. “Everybody’s been doing a good job. It’s rough, but we’re coming along. We’re showing some great steps.
“We’re one step closer each game.”
Istanich said that coach Mario Cristobal and the Golden Panthers have loaded up the out-of-conference schedule with big names in an effort to bolster the program’s reputation.
“That's what we’re trying to do,” said Istanich, who didn’t get to play against eventual national champion Alabama last year but did play against another SEC power in Florida.
“We had Alabama, the whole first half, on the ropes. They pulled ahead a little bit. This year, we’re one step closer.
“Every game has been down to the fourth quarter.
“We’re ready to shock the nation,” he said.
With the way Pitt looked in last week’s 31-3 loss to Miami (Fla.), that could happen today, but Istanich wasn’t ready to write off the home team just because of last week’s performance.
“Pitt’s a tough team,” he said.
“They had a rough week last week. Every game is winnable (for FIU) if we do what we need to do and execute. We’re just looking to have a good game.”
Istanich, who is majoring in dietetics and nutrition with a minor in sports fitness, said he’s enjoying his time in Miami.
“It’s a lot a different than where I’m from,” he said. “It’s been fun. It’s been a good year in football and academics.”
Istanich said Greater Johnstown gave him a good foundation to play at the collegiate level.
“My whole varsity career at Johnstown, we had a great weight training program,” he said. “It got me strong, and we ran a lot. I was very flexible and I could play more than one position.”
Sports
Related Photos
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David Istanich (66), a Greater Johnstown graduate, played in 10 games last year as a freshman at FIU. Richard Lewis/For The Tribune-Democrat
Discussion
Despite missing today’s game, Istanich excited about season
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