Ryan Howerton decided to stay home in the state of Maryland in the end.
Howerton — a 6-foot-5, 305-pound four-star offensive tackle from St. Vincent Pallotti in Laurel, Maryland — announced his commitment to Maryland Saturday afternoon, over a list of finalists that included Pitt, Virginia Tech, Howard and West Virginia.
Pitt hosted Howerton numerous times over the spring and summer, starting with Junior Day in January and ending with his official visit in June for his final official visit, but ultimately, Pitt and Howerton went in separate directions.
Pitt recruited Howerton hard, with Dave Borbely and Andre Powell leading the way.
“It’s always been good energy,” Howerton said. “Every time I’ve went, there’s been good energy. It just feels like a good place to be. I’ve never seen any player come back and say they feel bad after, I’ve never seen anybody do anything else, so it’s just good energy all the time. It seems like a good place to grow as more than just an athlete.”
247Sports rates Howerton as the 598th-ranked recruit in the class (44th-ranked offensive tackle and 17th-ranked recruit from Maryland) while On3 rates him as the 629th-ranked recruit in the class (43rd-ranked offensive tackle and 19th-ranked recruit from Maryland).
Rivals is even higher on Howerton, rating him as the 38th-ranked offensive tackle and 15th-ranked recruit from Maryland — holding a 5.8 Rivals Rating.
Howerton would have been Pitt’s sixth offensive line commitment in the class of 2024, and the fourth offensive lineman to commit after taking an official visit in June, so it was already a pretty full room.
The offensive linemen in the class of 2024 include four-star Caleb Holmes, and three-stars in Adham Abouraya, Moritz Schmoranzer, Jiavani Cooley and Mason Lindsey.
We didn’t need him as a #6 OL recruit but it’s still tough to see another 4-Star slip through the cracks 🙁