Pitt FB Recruiting
Talent Is Talent, Regardless Of Where It’s From
Over the last few months, a lot has been made of Pitt’s lack of recruiting success in Western Pennsylvania for the last two recruiting classes.
Local players like Phil Jurkovec (Notre Dame), David Adams (Notre Dame), Donovan Jeter (Michigan), Josh Lugg (Notre Dame), Kurt Hinish (Notre Dame), C.J. Thorpe (Penn State), Miles Sanders (Penn State) bypassed Pitt and decided to commit elsewhere.
Is that a good look for Pitt? Of course not, but by no means is it the end of the world either.
(Photo credit: David Hague)
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. One thing that I will never worry about is Pat Narduzzi and his staff’s ability to bring in quality recruits.
Like former Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt, it’s very apparent that Narduzzi has the ability to recruit and to recruit very well. Nearly every recruit I speak to brings up how much they’re drawn to Pitt because of Narduzzi.
Another thing that’s becoming clear is that if Pennsylvania is Pitt’s top state to recruit then Ohio is a close second on that list.
Ruben Flowers (11) Coraopolis, PA (Photo credit: David Hague)
Today, the Pitt program beat out a number of top programs like Alabama, Penn State, Michigan, Wisconsin, etc. to land Steubenville, Ohio tight end Charles Reeves.
Reeves is now the 4th player from Ohio in Pitt’s Class of 2017 joining RB Todd Sibley (Akron), Carson Van Lynn (Worthington) and Kyle Nunn (Findlay). Last year, Narduzzi got commitments in Ohio from Bryce Hargrove (Akron), Ruben Flowers (Lima), Chawntez Moss (Bedford) and Thomas MacVittie (Cincinnati).
TE Charles Reeves (Photo credit: Mike Vukovcan)
How’s this potential 2017 offensive lineup from Ohio look?
Quarterback: Thomas MacVittie (4-star)
Running Backs: Todd Sibley (4-star), Chawntez Moss, Darrin Hall (4-star)
Wide Receiver: Ruben Flowers (4-star)
Tight End: Charles Reeves (4-star)
The Pitt staff is also pursuing high level Ohio recruits in the Class of 2017 and 2018 such as OT Thayer Munford, WR Joseph Scates, TE Trent Gillson, OG Blaine Scott, DE Aeneas Hawkins, DE Malik Vann, DE Alex Reigelsperger, CB Michael Dowell and DE Tyreke Smith.
Thomas MacVittie drops back to pass during the first practice of the season (Photo credit: David Hague)
How about what Pitt has done in the state of New Jersey over the last two years?
2016/2017 commitments include S Phil Campbell, WR Maurice Ffrench, OL Carter Warren, OL Owen Drexel, and QB Kenny Pickett.
New Pitt recruit Kenny Pickett
The point I’m trying to make is that talent is talent, regardless of what state you get it from. Way too much is made of landing local recruits. WAY TOO MUCH.
Trust me, Pitt is going to land their fair share of recruits from Western Pennsylvania. Over the last 2 years, Pitt has received commitments from WPIAL players like Paris Ford, Jordan Whitehead, Damar Hamlin, Kaezon Pugh, Therran Coleman, Rashad Wheeler and Aaron Mathews.
Photo Courtesy of Damar Hamlin
It’s not possible to land every single top player from the area. The sooner fans accept this and don’t act like it’s the end of the world when they lose one, the better off everything will be.
