Pitt Losing Out On Another 4-Star Recruit?

Pitt football recruiting is in a good place right now as the class holds Top 20 team rankings by both Rivals and 247Sports.

However, they appear to have hit a speed bump, as they appear likely to finish as runners-up again for a top target.

On Wednesday, Ohio four-star safety Koy Beasley announced his commitment to Purdue. This late switch comes after Pitt was the leader in the clubhouse following his official visit at the beginning of June.

Now, it looks as though the Panthers won’t be getting a commitment from a player that looked to be leaning toward Pitt not so long ago.

Ohio four-star defensive end Dominic Kirks is set to make his college decision tomorrow, and the recruiting analysts have him heading out West.

Both Rivals and 247Sports have a crystal ball prediction of Kirks committing to Washington.

The 6-foot-5, 250-pound defensive end from Cleveland made official visits this month to Pitt (June 1), Wisconsin (June 9) and Washington (June 16).

This is what Kirks had to say to PSN right after his official visit to Pitt.

Photo courtesy of Dominic Kirks.

“I’ll rate the visit a 10 out of 10. Throughout the weekend, I just felt the genuine care and the love that the coaches have for their players. I also felt the care that the players on the team had for the recruits that were visiting. They didn’t have to do everything they did for us when they hosted us. Nahki Johnson, the defensive end, he was my host and was a real good guy. He gave me great advice and he was open to every question I had. Which was a great thing because he wasn’t sugarcoating anything.”

At the end of his official visit on Saturday, Kirks and his family met with Narduzzi and made sure he expressed how much he’s interested in possibly becoming a future Pitt Panther.

“Coach Duzz asked me how it was (official visit), and I straight up told him it was 10 out of 10,” said Kirks. “I told him that I definitely see myself having a future at the University of Pittsburgh. He told me to take my time but to realize that I’m not the only recruit in the world and that they’re only taking two defensive ends and spots are filling up. I definitely understand and am aware of that.

“Although Pitt was great, I feel that it’s important for me to check out other schools. This was my first visit, so I definitely want to try and get to at least two more schools. I believe that I’d be selling myself short if I didn’t at least look and see what other schools have to offer as well. I’m also humble enough to realize that recruiting is a business thing and that I’m not the only recruit in the world. Even if I get replaced by a school, I understand that because it’s business.”

If the Crystal Ball Predictions are correct, Pitt isn’t going to land Kirks and its sights now will be on Sincere Edwards, Mylachi Williams and Elias Rudolph.