Pitt Football
‘High Caliber Players’, Connection with Narduzzi Lead Mumpfield to Pitt
Konata Mumpfield wasn’t a highly recruited player when coming out of Dacula High School in Dacula, Georgia.
In fact, his only D-I scholarship offer was from Akron, which he accepted and was a member of their Class of 2020.
But it didn’t take very long for this 6-foot-1, 178-pound wideout to remind college coaches around the country that recruiting isn’t always an exact science–and that he was more than capable of playing on the Power Five stage. As a freshman, Mumpfield became Akron’s top playmaker, catching 63 passes for 751 yards and eight touchdowns, while being named to the freshman All-American team.
Courtesy Konata Mumpfield
At the conclusion of this season, Mumpfield made the decision to take his talents to a higher level and announced he’d be transferring from Akron. The decision immediately drew tons of interest from Power Five programs and Mumpfield quickly received offers from Pitt, USC, LSU, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Houston, Ole Miss, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Louisville, Vanderbilt, Central Florida, Minnesota and Utah.
After narrowing that list down to Pitt, Ole Miss, Kentucky and Mississippi State, Mumpfield made the decision to join Pitt’s high-powered offense and play alongside Biletnikoff Award winner Jordan Addison.
“When I made the decision to enter the transfer portal, I had no idea that I would receive this type of interest,” Mumpfield tells Pittsburgh Sports Now. “I went in there knowing that I’d have a couple of teams that would want me, but I had no idea that I would blow up like this. Actually, not long ago, I stopped responding to schools over my DM’s because it was so much, and it became overwhelming. But no doubt all of this has been a true blessing.”
It wasn’t easy making a decision but eventually, he knew that Pitt was the right fit and talked about a couple of the key factors.
“When I went up to make an official visit to Pitt, Coach Narduzzi and I really connected better than any of the other coaches and programs that I talked with. He also talked to me more throughout this process more than any other coach during this process, which I appreciated. A couple other things was the fact that the offensive line was all coming back, they also just got a really good transfer quarterback and Pitt is coming off of a great season. It was also amazing to me to see that they are sharing facilities with the Pittsburgh Steelers, growing up, I was always a huge Pittsburgh Steelers fan, especially Troy Polamalu. I was also impressed that Pitt’s players get NFL type treatment with their training and rehab and the players get fed the very best foods, which is exciting for me.”
“Looking at the team that Pitt is bringing back is very exciting and I feel that is going to allow me to take my game to the next level because of the high caliber players I’ll be playing with,” said Mumpfield. “Having that type of talent around me is definitely going to push me because I know where I want to take my game to. I’m a player that is going to create separation, I consider myself a smooth route runner and I know what to do with the ball after the catch. I’m an elusive player and quick in tight spaces. I’m going to bring big play ability to the offense.”
— Konata B Mumpfield (@konata_b) April 18, 2020
☺️☺️ pic.twitter.com/TcCMLEwnQL
— Konata B Mumpfield (@konata_b) December 27, 2021
Mumpfield tells PSN that he will be arriving to Pittsburgh and join the Pitt football team within the next couple of weeks.
The transfer portal giveth and taketh away. Fans just have to get used to it. Overall, Pitt at least broke even.
A very nice catch! Interesting that he did not mention Addison on his reasons for choosing Pitt list.