Pitt lands 4-star receiver from Ohio
Ruben Flowers didn't commit to Pitt on Friday to stop the telephone calls, but he'll accept that as an added benefit. “I was getting calls (from coaches) every two hours for the past month,” he said, with a sense of relief. “I'm very happy (the recruiting process is over).”
Flowers, who had scholarship offers from Kentucky, Iowa, Illinois, Cincinnati, Buffalo and Toledo, is Pitt's first four-star recruit in the Class of 2016. Among senior wide receivers, he is ranked 50th in the nation — No. 2 in Ohio — by Rivals.com.
“Pitt isn't that far from home,” he said, adding that he plans no visits to other schools this summer. “My family can come and see me play. I also had a real connection with (receivers) coach (Kevin) Sherman and coach (Pat) Narduzzi.”
Flowers, 6-foot-4, 185 pounds, has been one of the most productive pass catchers in Ohio the past two seasons, totaling 127 receptions for 2,143 yards and 26 touchdowns at Lima High School.
He totaled 280 receiving yards in a game last year against Fremont Ross, but he deflected credit elsewhere. “Everybody was on,” he said. “When everybody is doing their job, good things happen.”
By the end of the season, Flowers had helped Lima reach the playoffs for the first time in almost two decades, and he was named first-team Division 1 all-state and co-offensive player of the year in the Three Rivers Athletic Conference. He led all Ohio pass catchers in regular-season receiving with 1,317 yards. “He is very, very physical for a high school kid,” Lima coach Micah Fell said. “It's hard for (defenses) to tackle him.”
Fell said Flowers has been timed in 4.6 seconds in the 40-yard dash and also is an excellent rebounder for Lima's basketball team. “We lob it up to him in the corner of the end zone,” Fell said. “He's a good blocker, too.”
Flowers, the eighth member of Pitt's Class of 2016 and the fourth from Ohio, is the second recruit this week to verbally commit to Pitt over an SEC offer. Linebacker Chase Pine of Williamsburg, Va., has an offer from Georgia.
Pitt has received commitments from five seniors in the past eight days, including Maurice Ffrench of New Brunswick, N.J. Ffrench, who is unranked by Rivals, amassed 1,500 yards rushing and receiving as a slotback and intercepted six passes at cornerback last season. He has offers from Army, Buffalo, Central Connecticut State and Villanova.
Jerry DiPaola is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. Reach him at jdipaola@tribweb.com or via Twitter @JDiPaola_Trib.
Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/college/pitt/8638306-74/flowers-pitt-lima#ixzz3eF3288aU
247 SPORTS LINK VIDEO:
http://247sports.com/Player/Ruben-Flowers-56116
RIVALS LINK:
https://rivals.yahoo.com/Pittsburgh/football/recruiting/player-Ruben-Flowers-165375
Ohio Final Top 60 2015 LINK:
https://rivals.yahoo.com/Pittsburgh/football/recruiting/rankings/rank-3541
#10 Ruben Flowers
#35 Tony Butler
#48 Thomas MacVittie
#53 Chawntez Moss
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