Sharpsburg (MD) St. James School forward Bryce Golden visited Pitt for a second time on Tuesday. The 6-foot-8, 220-pound prospect previously visited Pitt in January when the Panthers played the Syracuse Orange. From all indication, his second visit was outstanding.
“I came up there in January for the Syracuse game, and it’s pretty cold during that time of the year, so I never really saw much of the campus or outside the gym,” said Golden. “This trip, the second one, was to see more of the campus and stuff like that, see how I fit in, if I like the city. That’s what the trip was all about. I got to meet some of the new players and coaches as well. It was a great experience.”
“I’ve been talking to Coach (Sam) Ferry a lot since he’s been at Pitt. He’s been recruiting me a little bit, and I met Coach (Matt) Woodley literally for the first time since he’s been there. Coach Ferry was a really cool guy. He’s kind of that younger experience to the staff, so someone I can relate to a little bit more than other ones, definitely. Coach Wood, he’s a great natural mind. He kind of broke down my game a little bit. We discussed stuff I’m good at and stuff I need to work on, and how I fit into the program and stuff like that. It’s an experience I never really got on an official visit which was good. I like hearing the information they had to say.”
Pitt envisions the 2018 prospect as a stretch-four that can cause a number of match up issues. Golden has received scholarship offers from Penn State, Princeton, George Washington, Maryland, N.C. State, Richmond and Temple. Kevin Stallings and staff have made the Team Takeover product a priority.
“Pitt sees me as an impact player from day one if I decide to go there which gets me excited,” he said. “With the ACC conference, there are no easy games so that’s what I’m looking to play, for sure.”
“It was great meeting the new players. I think personality wise, it was a good match and you see the positions they’re bringing in, a lot of point guards and wings. Players that will play around me. Players I can help out and then vice versa. To have good teammates I can see is making that run in the ACC for sure.”
Competition for Golden’s services will be stiff but the Panthers appear to be in very strong position to land a commitment from the skilled forward.
“Pitt is a program that has been with me since pretty much day one when my recruiting kicked off. … The summer of my sophomore year, so it doesn’t matter what comes around through July or something like that. Pitt’s going to be at the top for sure.”
