Well, Signing Day is almost here. To some extent, there isn’t a ton of drama about the event for Pitt this year, but there are still a few loose ends to tie up, so here are some things to keep in mind.
- At this point, we expect 14 of the 15 current commitments (plus the one unannounced commit) to sign with Pitt on Wednesday. The lone exception is Timothy Brown, the defensive tackle from Florida whose legal situation is still unresolved after he was arrested this fall. Pitt simply can’t sign him with that stuff hanging over his head, so until things get sorted out, that’s going to be a TBD.
- This past weekend produced one commitment thus far; our bet is on JUCO tight end Daniel Moraga, and we expect an announcement to come at any point today. He’s on the west coast, so keep the time change in mind, but he should make it public later.
- What remains to be seen is how Pitt proceeds with Noah Patty. He was the high school tight end prospect on campus this weekend. The big thing to watch from this weekend was whether or not the coaches would offer him, and that didn’t happen. That doesn’t mean it won’t happen - it wouldn’t shock me if he tweeted out an offer today or tomorrow - but for now, they’re still deciding.
Patty has options here. He claims a half-dozen offers and took an official visit to Louisiana-Monroe the week before he went to Pitt, so if he wants to sign on Wednesday and Pitt hasn’t made a decision yet, he can do so. If he does, I would expect the Panthers to keep looking for a high school tight end prospect next month (there should be some available).
That will be a fluid situation to monitor this week and potentially into January.
- Of the other official visitors, we’re working on reaction from Ahkeem Mesidor, the Florida defensive lineman who could potentially replace Brown in the class. We’ve heard from Buddy Mack; the South Carolina safety who had some really positive things to say about Pitt after his visit.
“The visit went well; Pittsburgh is a beautiful school,” Mack told us. “I can see why they have success because the players buy in to what the coaches have set for them.”
What remains to be seen in this situation is whether Pitt will take Mack. I think he would flip from Charlotte if the Pitt staff would take him, but that’s another decision the coaches have to make. Mack plans to sign on Wednesday.
- I wrote about this in the Signing Day Storylines article we published this morning, but the safety position has become an intriguing one in the last two weeks. Mack is one potential target, as is his fellow weekend visitor Lovie Jenkins and two other recruits who have visited Pitt in the past: Derek Bermudez (visited in November) and Davonte Brown (visited in June).
From what I’ve been able to gather, it’s unlikely anything will come of Jenkins’ visit; he appears to be set on staying with Louisville, where he is already committed. Brown is also unlikely to pick Pitt. That leaves Bermudez, who is by no means a slouch; he’s a really talented defensive back prospect who was committed to Florida State until Willie Taggart was fired. Pitt should have a really good chance of landing him.
The decision, then, is whether to pair Mack with Bermudez (assuming Pitt gets Bermudez). Of course, if the Pitt staff senses Bermudez is drifting away after his official visit to Ole Miss over the weekend, then Mack could move up in priority so that the class includes another safety prospect. Because it could go either way, I wouldn’t read too much into what the coaches do with Mack in the next 48 hours, at least as it relates to Bermudez.
- There have been a bunch of questions about Bryan Robinson, and that’s understandable since he’s a four-star receiver prospect with Pitt as one of his top schools. He took an official visit to Florida State over the weekend, but that’s honestly about the extent of it with regards to info on his situation; he has been really quiet in the recruiting process for months, and that’s obviously not likely to change with Signing Day 48 hours away.
All I know is basically what I knew before the FSU visit: Pitt was very high on his list. Really high. What is unknown is what transpired this weekend. From all appearances, he didn’t commit, so that’s a positive. Beyond that, we’ll have to see what the next two days bring.
- You might have seen that IMG Academy offensive lineman Alex Atcavage decommitted from Florida State over the weekend after Mike Norvell’s staff told him they didn’t have room for him right now. Atcavage, like a bunch of Taggart-era FSU commits, started looking around when the coaching change first happened, and Pitt was one of the schools he talked to.
At that time, the Pitt coaches told Atcavage that they were pursuing a quarterback, and if they didn’t land that quarterback, then the scholarship spot would be his for the taking. Atcavage responded favorably to that news and seems to be pretty interested in Pitt, although the contact kind of fell off after that.
The Panthers obviously didn’t get their quarterback - since everything is connected, the QB target committed to Florida State - but it didn’t turn into an automatic offer for Atcavage. He last spoke to the Pitt coaches “two weeks ago,” he told me, and their message to him was to contact them when he decommitted.
Well, on Sunday afternoon, he decommitted and he plans to get in touch with the coaches soon. I wouldn’t expect him to be on watch for Wednesday, since I don’t think he has taken any official visits this month aside from FSU this past weekend. He could surprise me and sign with a school he hasn’t seen on an official visit, but I would imagine he’ll be an offensive line target we discuss in January.
Owen Snively, a three-star OL prospect from New Hampshire, is another I would put in that category. I expect Pitt to get him on campus next month for an official visit after he nearly took a visit two weeks ago but had to back out after a scheduling conflict.
So there should be plenty to keep an eye on in January.
- Here’s another name to keep in mind as Signing Day approaches: Connor Heyward. You probably remember him from the class of 2017; he was a three-star “athlete” prospect from Georgia who committed to Michigan State over Pitt and is now looking for a new home after he decided to leave the Spartans midseason.
In the time since he announced his desire to transfer, Heyward has been in contact with the Pitt coaches, and that’s got some interesting implications.
Pitt recruited Heyward as a linebacker three years ago, but he signed with Michigan State as a running back and that’s where he has played the last few seasons. As a sophomore in 2018, Heyward led the Spartans in rushing; admittedly, his team-leading total was only 529 yards and five touchdowns on 118 carries in 13 games, or roughly the same production Pitt got out of A.J. Davis this season in 10 games. But he had a huge game against Maryland (15 for 157 and 2 touchdowns) that season and finished the year with 80+ yards in two of his final three games.
This season, though, Heyward fell behind freshman Elijah Collins on the depth chart as Collins ran for 892 yards and five scores and Heyward got just 24 carries in the first four games. By October, he had decided to leave the team and find somewhere new to play for his final two years of eligibility.
It certainly looks like Heyward’s decision to transfer was at least aided by the four-game redshirt rule. He never redshirted as a freshman, so since he only played four games in 2019, he can use his redshirt for this season and have two years to play at his next school. One of those seasons could be spent sitting out (provided he is not on track to graduate) unless the NCAA grants him a waiver to play right away.
Anyway, it looks like Pitt is interested in Heyward and he certainly could be a fit with the school and the program. He visited multiple times as a recruit and he knows his way around the city since his older brother Cam is kind of a big deal in these parts. So we’ll see what happens. He could be a surprise addition on Wednesday if that’s how the staff decides to proceed, so keep his name in mind.
- That’s all for now. It should be an interesting couple of days.
- At this point, we expect 14 of the 15 current commitments (plus the one unannounced commit) to sign with Pitt on Wednesday. The lone exception is Timothy Brown, the defensive tackle from Florida whose legal situation is still unresolved after he was arrested this fall. Pitt simply can’t sign him with that stuff hanging over his head, so until things get sorted out, that’s going to be a TBD.
- This past weekend produced one commitment thus far; our bet is on JUCO tight end Daniel Moraga, and we expect an announcement to come at any point today. He’s on the west coast, so keep the time change in mind, but he should make it public later.
- What remains to be seen is how Pitt proceeds with Noah Patty. He was the high school tight end prospect on campus this weekend. The big thing to watch from this weekend was whether or not the coaches would offer him, and that didn’t happen. That doesn’t mean it won’t happen - it wouldn’t shock me if he tweeted out an offer today or tomorrow - but for now, they’re still deciding.
Patty has options here. He claims a half-dozen offers and took an official visit to Louisiana-Monroe the week before he went to Pitt, so if he wants to sign on Wednesday and Pitt hasn’t made a decision yet, he can do so. If he does, I would expect the Panthers to keep looking for a high school tight end prospect next month (there should be some available).
That will be a fluid situation to monitor this week and potentially into January.
- Of the other official visitors, we’re working on reaction from Ahkeem Mesidor, the Florida defensive lineman who could potentially replace Brown in the class. We’ve heard from Buddy Mack; the South Carolina safety who had some really positive things to say about Pitt after his visit.
“The visit went well; Pittsburgh is a beautiful school,” Mack told us. “I can see why they have success because the players buy in to what the coaches have set for them.”
What remains to be seen in this situation is whether Pitt will take Mack. I think he would flip from Charlotte if the Pitt staff would take him, but that’s another decision the coaches have to make. Mack plans to sign on Wednesday.
- I wrote about this in the Signing Day Storylines article we published this morning, but the safety position has become an intriguing one in the last two weeks. Mack is one potential target, as is his fellow weekend visitor Lovie Jenkins and two other recruits who have visited Pitt in the past: Derek Bermudez (visited in November) and Davonte Brown (visited in June).
From what I’ve been able to gather, it’s unlikely anything will come of Jenkins’ visit; he appears to be set on staying with Louisville, where he is already committed. Brown is also unlikely to pick Pitt. That leaves Bermudez, who is by no means a slouch; he’s a really talented defensive back prospect who was committed to Florida State until Willie Taggart was fired. Pitt should have a really good chance of landing him.
The decision, then, is whether to pair Mack with Bermudez (assuming Pitt gets Bermudez). Of course, if the Pitt staff senses Bermudez is drifting away after his official visit to Ole Miss over the weekend, then Mack could move up in priority so that the class includes another safety prospect. Because it could go either way, I wouldn’t read too much into what the coaches do with Mack in the next 48 hours, at least as it relates to Bermudez.
- There have been a bunch of questions about Bryan Robinson, and that’s understandable since he’s a four-star receiver prospect with Pitt as one of his top schools. He took an official visit to Florida State over the weekend, but that’s honestly about the extent of it with regards to info on his situation; he has been really quiet in the recruiting process for months, and that’s obviously not likely to change with Signing Day 48 hours away.
All I know is basically what I knew before the FSU visit: Pitt was very high on his list. Really high. What is unknown is what transpired this weekend. From all appearances, he didn’t commit, so that’s a positive. Beyond that, we’ll have to see what the next two days bring.
- You might have seen that IMG Academy offensive lineman Alex Atcavage decommitted from Florida State over the weekend after Mike Norvell’s staff told him they didn’t have room for him right now. Atcavage, like a bunch of Taggart-era FSU commits, started looking around when the coaching change first happened, and Pitt was one of the schools he talked to.
At that time, the Pitt coaches told Atcavage that they were pursuing a quarterback, and if they didn’t land that quarterback, then the scholarship spot would be his for the taking. Atcavage responded favorably to that news and seems to be pretty interested in Pitt, although the contact kind of fell off after that.
The Panthers obviously didn’t get their quarterback - since everything is connected, the QB target committed to Florida State - but it didn’t turn into an automatic offer for Atcavage. He last spoke to the Pitt coaches “two weeks ago,” he told me, and their message to him was to contact them when he decommitted.
Well, on Sunday afternoon, he decommitted and he plans to get in touch with the coaches soon. I wouldn’t expect him to be on watch for Wednesday, since I don’t think he has taken any official visits this month aside from FSU this past weekend. He could surprise me and sign with a school he hasn’t seen on an official visit, but I would imagine he’ll be an offensive line target we discuss in January.
Owen Snively, a three-star OL prospect from New Hampshire, is another I would put in that category. I expect Pitt to get him on campus next month for an official visit after he nearly took a visit two weeks ago but had to back out after a scheduling conflict.
So there should be plenty to keep an eye on in January.
- Here’s another name to keep in mind as Signing Day approaches: Connor Heyward. You probably remember him from the class of 2017; he was a three-star “athlete” prospect from Georgia who committed to Michigan State over Pitt and is now looking for a new home after he decided to leave the Spartans midseason.
In the time since he announced his desire to transfer, Heyward has been in contact with the Pitt coaches, and that’s got some interesting implications.
Pitt recruited Heyward as a linebacker three years ago, but he signed with Michigan State as a running back and that’s where he has played the last few seasons. As a sophomore in 2018, Heyward led the Spartans in rushing; admittedly, his team-leading total was only 529 yards and five touchdowns on 118 carries in 13 games, or roughly the same production Pitt got out of A.J. Davis this season in 10 games. But he had a huge game against Maryland (15 for 157 and 2 touchdowns) that season and finished the year with 80+ yards in two of his final three games.
This season, though, Heyward fell behind freshman Elijah Collins on the depth chart as Collins ran for 892 yards and five scores and Heyward got just 24 carries in the first four games. By October, he had decided to leave the team and find somewhere new to play for his final two years of eligibility.
It certainly looks like Heyward’s decision to transfer was at least aided by the four-game redshirt rule. He never redshirted as a freshman, so since he only played four games in 2019, he can use his redshirt for this season and have two years to play at his next school. One of those seasons could be spent sitting out (provided he is not on track to graduate) unless the NCAA grants him a waiver to play right away.
Anyway, it looks like Pitt is interested in Heyward and he certainly could be a fit with the school and the program. He visited multiple times as a recruit and he knows his way around the city since his older brother Cam is kind of a big deal in these parts. So we’ll see what happens. He could be a surprise addition on Wednesday if that’s how the staff decides to proceed, so keep his name in mind.
- That’s all for now. It should be an interesting couple of days.
