Moritz Schmoranzer hasn’t been playing American football long, but he’s attracted the interest of quite a few major programs.
Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Tech, Miami, James Madison, Liberty, Ohio, Old Dominion, Pitt, Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and Wake Forest have all extended offers, but Schmoranzer has set a final four of Miami, Pitt, Virginia Tech and West Virginia.
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Schmoranzer — a 6-foot-4, 275-pound three-star offensive lineman from North Cross School in Roanoke, Virginia — made official visits to all four of his finalists, and with his official visit to Pitt coming over the last weekend of June, he left Pittsburgh with a new perspective on the program.
“It was amazing,” Schmoranzer told PSN. “Just seeing everything with more time because the last time I came to Pitt, it was a pretty quick schedule. It was a day unofficial, and we kinda rushed through a lot, and just having a whole weekend and looking at everything without being in a rush, it showed more things about life and Pitt itself.”
Schmoranzer made official visits to Virginia Tech (June 2), West Virginia (June 9) and Miami (June 16) before making it out to Pittsburgh. And as he’s made a couple of visits to Pittsburgh over the last few months, he’s built a strong relationship with the coaching staff.
And considering Schmoranzer’s inexperience in playing tackle football, playing soccer and running track (actually running, boasting a 13.01 100-yard dash at 275 pounds) in Germany, his rise as an offensive lineman has been very quick.
He’s only played one season on the offensive line, spending his first season in the United States as a wide receiver, and that speed and athleticism are what jump off the screen when watching him play either tackle spot.
247Sports rates Schmoranzer as the 44th-ranked interior lineman and the 19th-ranked recruit from Virginia. Neither Rivals rates him as the 15th-ranked recruit from Virginia — holding a 5.6 Rivals Rating.
With Miami, Pitt, West Virginia and Virginia Tech fighting for Schmoranzer’s commitment, it’s a true old Big East battle. And it comes down to whichever school can truly make him feel at home.
“I’m away from home, my whole family is from Germany, so I would say the family aspect wherever I go, the football team is gonna be my family,” Schmoranzer said. “And the other one is the development.
“I know even though I have all these offers, I’ve played O-line for one year, and I may redshirt, but wherever I go, I need the development. I need the college to look at me and be like, ‘Hey, you’re not a four-star or five-star, you need time, you need development, and we can give you that here.’”
When it comes to Pitt’s current commitments, there are commitments from four-star interior offensive lineman Caleb Holmes, and three-star linemen Adham Abouraya, Jiavani Cooley and Mason Lindsey.
Schmoranzer has set a commitment time of 6:30 p.m., and he would be a very nice — very high upside — addition to the class.