Recruiting Notebook
Thursday Pitt Recruiting Notes
Good morning, with it being the dead period in college recruiting (no face to face contact) until July 11 and with the Pitt coaching staff taking a few days of personal time before the everyday grind of the season begins, the next day or so MAY be quiet. But you never know, so that’s why we’ll continue to dig for information and interviews.
**One thing I did find out overnight was that the Pitt basketball team is still in the hunt for a very talented player. 4-star forward Aamir Simms tells me that plans on making a trip to Pittsburgh. Simms (6-8, 215) says that while he can’t make it in July, he’ll make it to Oakland in August.
Photo courtesy of Aamir Simms
Simms is rated as Rivals No. 93 player in the country. One recent basketball evaluator described Simms this way: “his body is college-ready and he is a future interior enforcer type.” The strength of his game is interior scoring and rebounding.
While Simms holds many D-1 offers, many believe that Pitt, Virginia Tech, Notre Dame, Georgetown, VCU and Iowa State are his favorites.
UPDATE (8:36 AM)-
**Unfortunately, college teams don’t have endless scholarships available and like I’ve said before, schools offers sometime come with an expiration date.
I spoke with LB Diego Fagot (Ft. Lauderdale, Florida), who told me his situation with Pitt has changed. Fagot previously had an offer from Pitt but with 3 linebackers giving the Panthers a commitment, there’s no more room.
“I was considering them until Coach Harley told me they don’t have a spot left”, said Fagot. “I was planning on visiting in two weeks and they said they have all their commits at the linebacker spot.”
UPDATE (11:25 AM)-
**This morning I’ve reached out to 30+ recruits to find out where Pitt stands with them and if they plan on visiting in July. I’ll update this post as each recruit gets back to me.
— Gabe Houy, Upper St. Clair, OT-
“I think Pitt and Maryland are my top 2 at this point. I like each school because they’re both on the rise again, with new coaches and they’re overall great schools,” said Houy.
Houy says he’s not sure of when he’ll make his next college visit but expects to visit at least one of them (Pitt or Maryland) in July.
“I’ve been talking to most of the coaching staff at Pitt. They all keep in contact with me and tell me how important of a key I am for them,” said Houy.
Houy tells me depending on how things go, he might make his decision in July.
Photo courtesy of Gabe Houy
UPDATE (2:10 PM)-
— Connor Robbins (6-8, 290), OT, St. Augustine, Florida.
“I wont be able to make it up in July but this fall yes, I’ll be there,” said Robbins. “I know Pitt is a great school with a lot of great history and that’s what mostly interests me about Pitt.”
Robbins lists Alabama, Memphis, Central Florida, Georgia Southern, Iowa State, Missouri, Miami Fla, Maryland as other schools that interest him (no order).
— Devin Darrington, RB, Bel Air, Maryland.
Darrington tells me that Pitt is “extremely high” on his list and that he plans on visiting the schools after the dead period is over. Unless another back commits first and no RB scholarships are available, I like Pitt’s chances of landing Darrington.
Darrington wants to visit Indiana, Virginia Tech and Penn State.
UPDATE (3:32 PM)-
— Michigan native Jordan Reid made this announcement on Twitter.
Reid is a big offensive line product from Cass Tech School in Michigan. Reid (6-4, 280) did visit Pitt with some of his high school approximately a month ago. This announcement will come between July 7-10.
UPDATE (8:22 PM)-
— Clairton 5-star cornerback Lamont Wade says that he’ll be visiting Georgia on July 17th.
UPDATE (9:31 PM)-
— Noah Curtis (6-5, 220), Athlete, West Palm Beach, Florida
Curtis tells me that the plan is for him and his parents to visit after the “Dead Period” is over. Curtis says that he’s anxious to see the city after seeing so many pictures of it.
Pitt is recruiting Curtis to play defensive end but “I’m willing to help my team at any position needed.”
Curtis holds offers from Arkansas, Iowa State, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, NC State, South Florida and West Virginia.
