Pitt FB Recruiting
New Jersey DE Brian Ugwu Impressed With Pitt
New Jersey 2019 defensive end Brian Ugwu is someone that’s been on Pitt’s radar for quite some time and it appears now that the interest is mutual.
Ugwu and his family made a trip to Pittsburgh on Thursday and left with a very favorable impression of the Pitt football program.
“After the visit, I left feeling that I was very comfortable with the coaches especially with Coach Partridge and Coach Narduzzi. I had really good talks with them and I know they’re good coaches and are trying to not only get good players but good people too,” said Igwu.
Ugwu (6-foot-3, 210 pounds) is a talented 3-star defensive end and spent a lot of time with his possible future position coach. I asked him the message Partridge was trying to get across to him.
“We talked for a long, long time and one thing that I feel he stressed was Pitt is a great program. He told me that he had opportunities to go to other programs but he decided to stay at Pitt because of the potential and what they’re growing there. He also named a few players that he coached in the past like JJ Watt and told me that I’m a great person and player that he really wants to coach which was good to hear.”
Courtesy of Brian Ugwu
One thing is certain, Ugwu left Pitt knowing that he’s not just a player with an offer from Pitt but someone that’s a priority recruit for the staff.
”As I was talking with Coach Partridge and Coach Narduzzi, that was the first thing they said to me, that I was a priority for them and they showed that. When I got there, I was never left alone. During the practice, I always had someone with me, either Coach Partridge, Coach Narduzzi or one of the other assistants. They really tried to make me feel at home and always had someone talking with me. I came to the visit with a couple teammates but I was barely with them because I was always doing something with one of the Pitt coaches. During practice, they put me in as part of the huddle and wanted me to feel like I was part of the team,” said Ugwu.
Ugwu tells me that most coaches feel like his biggest strength is his ability to get to the quarterback and Pitt tells him they’re really looking to sign a speed rusher.
Pitt isn’t the only program recruiting Ugwu as he holds offers from Boston College, Duke, Minnesota, NC State, Rutgers (visiting them on Tuesday) Syracuse and Temple.
Pitt was the first school to offer Ugwu and as he put it, “they already have a special place in my heart.”
Let’s see if that eventually means a commitment.
