With their announcement on Friday declining any bowl invitation extended to them, the Pitt Panthers 2020 football season is now officially in the books and the off-season begins.
The four layers to the off-season will consist of 1) recruiting for their Class of 2021 2) decide if any changes will be made to the coaching staff 3) determine which players will decide to transfer from the program 4) wait and see which seniors decide to take advantage of the opportunity to return next season.
The first player to officially announce his intentions for next season was cornerback Jason Pinnock, who plans to leave and enter the 2021 NFL Draft. Pinnock released this statement Friday evening on Twitter:
“First & foremost, I want to give all glory to God! This game of football started on the pavement in the street and I’ve been in love with it every since. Football has provided so much for me, with the potential of even more in store. With that in mind, and after countless conversations with my family, I have decided to forgo my last year of eligbility to officially enter the 2021 NFL Draft.
To my coaches: I can’t thank you all enough. The lessons you’ve taught me from the age of 17 will be carried with me far beyond football. I want to personally thank Coach Narduzzi for discovering a small town kid from Windsor, CT & giving him a chance. I also want to thank Coach Collins and Coach Sanders for allowing me to grow and mature in front of their eyes without any judgement. You two believed in me even when I didn’t believe in myself. To the rest of the coaches, both past and present, I am grateful for you!
To the city of Pittsburgh: The city of CHAMPIONS, I can’t thank Panther Nation enough and you all will forever be in my heart. I drove through that Fort Pitt tunnel back in 2016 not knowing what to expect. Our fans are the best in the country, and accepted me and my family since our very first visit. I made a promise to my family & to this city to finish my degree here at Pittsburgh and it will be done! I hope you all continue this journey with me and I am just grateful for every one of you here in Pittsburgh as well as Panther Nation across the world.
To my family: Anybody who knows me, knows my family is the most important part of my life after God. The endless support from my family across the country is what has driven me for these last 4 years and will continue to drive me for years to come. To my big brother, thank you for being my motivation, my role model, and somebody I can always call upon. To my Road Runners (Mom & Grandma), the love I have for you two is simply indescribable. You two are my rock, my heart, my soul, and the foundation of my faith. To my father, you have been the hardest working man I’ve ever seen. You are driven, ambitious, and persistent, all things that you’ve instilled in me since we were throwing that Nerf football around.”
Thank you Pittsburgh, forever blue & and gold!
#R15KYout #Connetiway #H2P
In four seasons with Pitt, Pinnock played in 42 games, recording 53 tackles and five interceptions, including one in his final game against Georgia Tech.
He’s a player who would benefit by staying an extra year, but best of luck to him. Should be a late round pick.
Agreed!!! He really needs another year of learning and developing, especially now that he has grown into the #1 role. Other than speed, learning how to studying film is the biggest thing that separates the good from the best CBs.
UFA here he comes
He is definitely getting bad advice and could really use another year. Yeah he had a couple nice interceptions but the only time I ever noticed him was when he was chasing a WR into the end zone. Also, he was suspended for a game this year. That’s the only time I ever noticed him. Then again, Maddox and Lewis spent their Pitt careers getting torched and somehow landed nfl jobs so what do I know?…