Obviously Pitt's OL has done a very good overall job this year, especially with 2 guys who are going to be in the NFL next season on the left side of the line: Johnson and Bisnowaty. The other 3 starting linemen return next season, plus top backup Jaryd Jones-Smith (Jr) will step into a starting role (presumably LT) to give us 4 solid starters next year, even if 2 of our current top-3 are gone.
WHO HAS WORKED OUT BEST FOR US RECENTLY
3 of the expected starters next year are huge guys well over 300#: Alex Officer (Jr), Alex Bookser (So), and Jones-Smith, and both Bookser and Jones-Smith were expected to be talented linemen based on some of their big-time offers (Bookser by Alabama and Ohio St, and J-S by Michigan and Oklahoma). Seniors Johnson and Bisnowaty also had huge offers coming out of HS: Alabama, Ohio St, ND and Michigan, Florida, respectively. The outlier in all of this is actually the guy who has played the best of the non-seniors and seems to have the highest draft ceiling down the road: RT Brian O'Neill (So). O'Neill was an unheralded 235# TE who is now a 300# tackle with very quick feet -- someone did a great job predicting his smooth transition to OT.
SUMMARY
Four of our current top-6 OL had big-time offers in HS, and a fifth was a smaller fast guy whose quick feet have served him amazingly well at Pitt despite being a relatively lackluster recruit. The only one who doesn't fit these two conditions, Officer, is arguably the worst of the six (not bad considering that group, but someone has to be the worst).
RECENT RECRUITS WHO FIT 1 OF THOSE 2 CATEGORIES
2016
--Zack Williams had a couple good offers from Miami and L'ville, but of note within the context of O'Neill is that Williams is a recently-converted TE who has shown great speed and atheticism for a lineman. For this reason, he was the '16 lineman I was most excited about. He's currently in prep school and expected to join Pitt next year.
2017
--Carter Warren is a 320# 3* recruit (still listed as 265# on Rivals, which means he's probably put on the weight recently, which should not be a problem for him at 6-6 and with his noted speed) which doesn't sound noteworthy, but he is very fast for the OL and has a decent set of offers from Michigan, Tennessee, South Carolina, Miami, and PSU.
--Carson Van Lynn is a 235# 3* recruit with a few so-so P5 offers, but his highlights prove he's fast for the position including also being a rather good DE in HS, plus he plays some TE. He has a high motor to go with his speed.
--Thayer Munford isn't yet on-board, but many people think he will be Pitt's next OL commit. He is huge at 6-5 335# so he isn't someone coming in in the mold of O'Neill, but despite being a 3* has a much coveted offer from Alabama, some decent ones in Tennesse, PSU, and L'ville, plus a possible Ohio St one coming. Highlights show him to be a high-motor mauler.
--Owen Drexel is a 2* center with no offers of note, but what is noteworthy is a) he's clearly a smart guy with offers from multiple Ivies and the Air Force (who run-run-run with multiple options all over the place, see also: Matt Canada), and b) he's a nasty, high motor guy which is good for an interior lineman on an OL being built around quickness and movement.
--Two 2* TE's have committed who are both very fast and are great downfield blockers on the move, and both are really tall (6-5 and 6-7) and can put on more weight: Tyler Sear and Grant Carrigan. Based on O'Neill's success and all the other smaller, faster OL we're recruiting, you gotta think at least one of these guys was recruited to be a potential lineman.
OTHERS
Of course these aren't the only OL we've recruited over the past few years, but it is noteworthy how many of these smaller, faster, TE-playing guys we're recruiting who all fit the mold of O'Neill, especially in the current recruiting cycle and especially since it was Chryst who last landed 4*/5* linemen. Of all the other younger OL we have on the roster or have committed for next year (includes: local guys Mike Grimm [Soph with big expectations based on 4* rating but without any great offers nor on-field success to match], Brandon Ford, Tony Pilato, Alex Paulina, Gabe Houy; and mammoth Justin Morgan [6-6, 365#]), the one who stands out as potentially fitting into the faster/athletic mold is DT-turned-C Connor Dintino (So). Dintinto's offer sheet was really weak for a 290# DT recruit, but he was an All-American wrestler (usually good for trench warfare on the line) with a very quick first step off the snap -- he's played some FB at Pitt in jumbo packages, so his relative quickness has translated to college. Considering he's currently our back-up center and we're stockpiling quicker linemen, Dintino may be in the mix as a starting G next year or as the starting C in two years.
WHO HAS WORKED OUT BEST FOR US RECENTLY
3 of the expected starters next year are huge guys well over 300#: Alex Officer (Jr), Alex Bookser (So), and Jones-Smith, and both Bookser and Jones-Smith were expected to be talented linemen based on some of their big-time offers (Bookser by Alabama and Ohio St, and J-S by Michigan and Oklahoma). Seniors Johnson and Bisnowaty also had huge offers coming out of HS: Alabama, Ohio St, ND and Michigan, Florida, respectively. The outlier in all of this is actually the guy who has played the best of the non-seniors and seems to have the highest draft ceiling down the road: RT Brian O'Neill (So). O'Neill was an unheralded 235# TE who is now a 300# tackle with very quick feet -- someone did a great job predicting his smooth transition to OT.
SUMMARY
Four of our current top-6 OL had big-time offers in HS, and a fifth was a smaller fast guy whose quick feet have served him amazingly well at Pitt despite being a relatively lackluster recruit. The only one who doesn't fit these two conditions, Officer, is arguably the worst of the six (not bad considering that group, but someone has to be the worst).
RECENT RECRUITS WHO FIT 1 OF THOSE 2 CATEGORIES
2016
--Zack Williams had a couple good offers from Miami and L'ville, but of note within the context of O'Neill is that Williams is a recently-converted TE who has shown great speed and atheticism for a lineman. For this reason, he was the '16 lineman I was most excited about. He's currently in prep school and expected to join Pitt next year.
2017
--Carter Warren is a 320# 3* recruit (still listed as 265# on Rivals, which means he's probably put on the weight recently, which should not be a problem for him at 6-6 and with his noted speed) which doesn't sound noteworthy, but he is very fast for the OL and has a decent set of offers from Michigan, Tennessee, South Carolina, Miami, and PSU.
--Carson Van Lynn is a 235# 3* recruit with a few so-so P5 offers, but his highlights prove he's fast for the position including also being a rather good DE in HS, plus he plays some TE. He has a high motor to go with his speed.
--Thayer Munford isn't yet on-board, but many people think he will be Pitt's next OL commit. He is huge at 6-5 335# so he isn't someone coming in in the mold of O'Neill, but despite being a 3* has a much coveted offer from Alabama, some decent ones in Tennesse, PSU, and L'ville, plus a possible Ohio St one coming. Highlights show him to be a high-motor mauler.
--Owen Drexel is a 2* center with no offers of note, but what is noteworthy is a) he's clearly a smart guy with offers from multiple Ivies and the Air Force (who run-run-run with multiple options all over the place, see also: Matt Canada), and b) he's a nasty, high motor guy which is good for an interior lineman on an OL being built around quickness and movement.
--Two 2* TE's have committed who are both very fast and are great downfield blockers on the move, and both are really tall (6-5 and 6-7) and can put on more weight: Tyler Sear and Grant Carrigan. Based on O'Neill's success and all the other smaller, faster OL we're recruiting, you gotta think at least one of these guys was recruited to be a potential lineman.
OTHERS
Of course these aren't the only OL we've recruited over the past few years, but it is noteworthy how many of these smaller, faster, TE-playing guys we're recruiting who all fit the mold of O'Neill, especially in the current recruiting cycle and especially since it was Chryst who last landed 4*/5* linemen. Of all the other younger OL we have on the roster or have committed for next year (includes: local guys Mike Grimm [Soph with big expectations based on 4* rating but without any great offers nor on-field success to match], Brandon Ford, Tony Pilato, Alex Paulina, Gabe Houy; and mammoth Justin Morgan [6-6, 365#]), the one who stands out as potentially fitting into the faster/athletic mold is DT-turned-C Connor Dintino (So). Dintinto's offer sheet was really weak for a 290# DT recruit, but he was an All-American wrestler (usually good for trench warfare on the line) with a very quick first step off the snap -- he's played some FB at Pitt in jumbo packages, so his relative quickness has translated to college. Considering he's currently our back-up center and we're stockpiling quicker linemen, Dintino may be in the mix as a starting G next year or as the starting C in two years.
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