Pitt FB Recruiting
Pitt DT Commit Francis Brewu Elevated to 4-Star Status
The Pitt defensive line wasn’t as disruptive or productive in 2023 as has become accustomed to over the last handful of years.
With a nearly double-digit number of defensive linemen exhausting their eligibility or hitting the transfer portal, Charlie Partridge’s unit next season will have a nearly brand-new look in 2024. The room will also be adding a handful of four-star defensive linemen, too.
And that number increased by one this afternoon as Rivals elevated Francis Brewu to a four-star recruit. The 6-foot-2, 270-pound defensive tackle from Worthington, Oh. has been committed to Pitt since March — staving off interest and offers from several Power Five programs in the process.
Since the start of his senior season, despite his commitment to Pitt, Brewu picked up offers from Michigan State, Miami and Wisconsin.
“It’s a process. If you’re that guy, you’re going to get recruited by schools no matter where you’re committed to,” Brewu told PSN in May. “It’s going to happen. It doesn’t change anything really, depending on the person. It’s just bound to happen; you’re just going to keep getting recruited by big schools if you’re a guy.”
After receiving this news today, Pittsburgh Sports Now reached out to Brewu for his reaction.
“The reaction I had was just thankfulness,” Brewu said. “I just felt really blessed that my hard work paid off and is coming to light. I feel like I’m one of the best guys in my class based off my film and that’s what I should be ranked off one and Rivals is the first one to do it, so I appreciate them a lot.”
Brewu, of course, was one of the first recruits in the class of 2024 that Pat Narduzzi and the coaching staff made a home visit.
Had a great day spending some time with @CoachDuzzPittFB and @Coach_Manalac !! I appreciate you guys coming up!! #H2P @MatthewWelshAD @coachpicetti @PeteScully1 pic.twitter.com/2AQeUUnTeR
— Francis Brewu🌟 (@FBrewu) December 2, 2023
Brewu is coming off a dominant season at Thomas Worthington High in which he showcased exactly why he’s a perfect fit as an impact tackle in the defensive scheme.
“I just feel like I fit perfectly in that system because they run a four-man system and they run a vertical system, so you can get vertical,” Brewu said.
247Sports rates Brewu as the 655th-ranked recruit in the class (45th-ranked defensive lineman and 19th-ranked recruit from Ohio) while On3 rates him as the 534th-ranked recruit in the class (36th-ranked defensive lineman and 18th-ranked recruit from Ohio).
Rivals rates him as the 20th-ranked defensive tackle and 11th-ranked recruit from Ohio — holding that new four-star status and a 5.8 Rivals Rating.
Pitt’s class of 2024 now features three four-star defensive linemen in Brewu, Jahsear Whittington and Sincere Edwards.
These ratings are double-edged sword, it’s great for alumni and media but an attractor for your adversaries. In the local recreation baseball league near me I overheard a young ball player tell an adult one of the Coaches told him not to come to the grading tryout. It was so the Coaches with knowledge of him could list him as a C+ B- ranking and get him on the cheap in a later round of the player draft. With these scouting services all of the P5 (or is it P4 now yet?) conferences watch alerts on what their counterparts are… Read more »
True, during my son’s recruitment, Northwestern specifically asked us not to send him to any more camps. We said no, then they ended their recruitment. He received 20 more offers after that. I advise all young athletes that are striving for athletic scholarships to attend as many as possible.
Now he can command more NIL money