Pitt FB Recruiting
Chris Beatty and Pitt Offer Top Sophomore Cornerback Tony Grimes
New Pitt wide receivers coach Chris Beatty has earned the reputation of being an ace recruiter, especially in the DMV area of Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia.
That’s been a key region in Pat Narduzzi’s recruiting map and Beatty has already started targeting some of that areas top juniors and sophomores. Beatty has taken a Jeff Capel-like approach in that he’s doing some “big game hunting.”
Yesterday, Beatty offered a handful of elite prospects from Virginia including Tony Grimes, the No. 1 ranked sophomore cornerback in the country. Grimes (6-feet, 180 pounds) is from Princess Anne High School in Virginia Beach, Virginia. 247 Sports rates him as the top sophomore in Virginia and overall the 12th-best sophomore in the country.
“Years ago, my dad told me that if I worked hard enough that one day all of this would happen,” said Grimes. “Since then, he’s prepared and really worked with me. The ranking is nice but I’m just trying to remain humble and stay grounded. I’m just going to keep working to remain No. 1, which is something I want to be.”
Courtesy of Tony Grimes
The attention from media and college coaches is nothing new to Grimes. In fact, he received his first football scholarship back in 8th grade from Virginia Tech. Since then, the sophomore sensation has gotten offers from Texas A&M, Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Maryland, Michigan, Oklahoma, Penn State, Purdue, South Carolina, TCU, Tennessee and Virginia.
Wednesday, Grimes found out that he’d officially received an offer from Beatty, someone he knows very well.
“Coach Beatty contacted my coach and then my coach told me that I had the offer,” said Grimes. “Coach Beatty offered me back when he was with Maryland. I know Coach Beatty and I’m very, very excited that he offered me again.
“The best thing about Coach Beatty is his personality. He’s just such a cool coach and a cool dude. He’s always honest with you and he’ll tell you the way it is and gives it to you straight. He’s hilarious, he’s just hilarious, I’ll let you know that right now.”
He’s only a sophomore so a college decision isn’t imminent but the fact that Pitt has Beatty on their staff will definitely keep them in the running for this elite talent.
“Oh yes, most definitely,” said Grimes. “I’m going to making my list of top teams in a week or so and Pitt will make the list.”
— Tony Grimes (@757EliteDB) December 3, 2018
