INDIANAPOLIS — Pitt made their hire of Tiquan Underwood from Rutgers after Underwood’s impressive recruiting resume with the Scarlet Knights. However, he developed an NFL wide receiver under his tutelage, too. Bo Melton is at the 2022 NFL Combine in Indianapolis, and under the guidance of Underwood, he received a Senior Bowl invite and a Combine invite.
For Melton, he credited Underwood in helping him grow as a player. Not only did Underwood help Melton understand the nuances of the game, but he was a role model off the field for his players. As such, Melton could do nothing but effusively praise the current Pitt receivers coach.
“Coach Underwood was a great coach,” Melton said. “He taught me a lot about what it meant to be a receiver. There were little things that he noticed in my game and helped me fix. He would come aside and work with me every day. He was always willing. He was a tutor to me, so I attribute a lot of my growth to him.”
Underwood has a special coaching style. It is a hands-on, always ready to help style. That is what Melton emphasized. Underwood is a teacher to his players first, and that style of coaching allowed his receivers to flourish under him. Pitt players should expect much of the same from Underwood in 2022.
“He’s a detailed coach that is going to you the ins and outs of the game,” Melton said. “He’s going to make you work hard, and get after it. You are going to learn how to run routes, attack space, and feel the game the right way. You’re going to do a lot of intensive drills. He gets the best out of everyone.”
Underwood takes over a receiving corps with a ton of talent in Jordan Addison, Jared Wayne, and Konata Mumpfield. Young receivers like Jaden Bradley and Addison Copeland are promising but could use just a little seasoning. If Underwood can do for them what he did for Melton, Pitt’s wide receiving corps can continue to be strong.
