December 2, 2011
Welcome back for another edition of In the Pitt, Panther-Lair.com’s rundown of everything going on in Pitt recruiting.
(A brief note: The former incarnation of In the Pitt was known as the War Room, and each War Room carried a disclaimer at the bottom about keeping premium information premium, i.e. not spreading it to other message boards or what-have-you. I don’t mean to be territorial about things, but I would prefer that what follows stays here. Thanks.)
Back to the quarterbacks
All season - or at least after Tino Sunseri’s less-than-good games - Pitt fans have clamored for the coaching staff to take a second quarterback in the class of 2012 to complement four-star commit Chad Voytik.
This week, Todd Graham acknowledged that the coaching staff is video of Graham talking about QB recruiting here).
Graham’s statement marked a considerable change from the direction the staff was taking with the class. After Voytik committed in July, the plan was clear: the staff was only going to take one quarterback. The coaches told Voytik he was their only guy and that they didn’t intend to sign another. And I don’t think that was just fluff-speak for Voytik’s sake; I was told that the staff could consider an “athletic” quarterback who could possibly play another position.
But with Sunseri back for one more year, Mark Myers with three years of eligibility left, and the emergence of Trey Anderson, the staff seemed content to take just Voytik in the class of 2012.
So what changed?
According to Graham, there is a numbers issue. Anderson has been sidelined since the Utah game with tendonitis in the wrist on his throwing hand, and while the doctors seem to believe that rest will allow him to return to full health, Graham didn’t sound so certain. It seems that the condition has no definite timetable; if Anderson cannot return, Pitt would have Sunseri and Myers in spring camp and Voytik joining them in the summer.
The coaches would prefer to have at least three quarterbacks in the spring and at least four in the summer/fall, so that increases the need for another quarterback.
Anderson’s injury isn’t the only possible numbers issue. The possibility cannot be ignored that one of the other two quarterbacks on the roster decides to not finish his career at Pitt. I have heard different rumors with varying degrees of support, but it sounds like the possibility does exist that either Sunseri or Myers could decide to move on.
Either way, Pitt seems to be facing a shortage of quarterbacks, making the need for another one in the class pretty significant. The good thing about a numbers situation is that it is easy to explain to Voytik, because this much is certain:
Maintaining Voytik’s commitment is priority number one. So while they evaluate and pursue other quarterbacks, they have to make sure that Voytik understands that he is still the future of Pitt quarterbacks. They can’t lose his commitment and they are still very excited about having him at Pitt. So the key - as I have posted this week - is that they continue to be up-front and honest about their plans and intentions; as long as they make it clear that they are pursuing a quarterback to address a numbers issue, things will be fine.
Now for the real question:
Who are they going after?
The targets
I started looking into possible quarterback targets Monday night and did so by checking in with some of the prospects I have talked with in the past. Earlier this fall I found a few junior-college quarterbacks who had been hearing from Pitt in the spring; Pitt had been in contact because the coaching staff wasn’t sure if Anthony Gonzalez would be able to return to the team.
If Gonzalez would have to leave the team permanently, then the coaches wanted another quarterback to go along with Sunseri and Myers. Gonzalez returned to the team, so the need vanished and the contact between Pitt and the JUCO’s fell off.
But I kept those names handy just in case the situation at Pitt changed. So on Monday, I checked in with guys like Cody Sokol.
And I generally responses indicating varying degrees of interest: McDonald hadn’t heard from Pitt but wanted to; Sokol heard that Pitt might be contacting him but hadn’t heard anything yet; and Woods heard from Pitt but they told him they were still deciding whether or not they were taking a junior-college quarterback.
I then doubled back on talked to Johnson and showed some interest at restarting the relationship, but made it clear that his offer is not still on the table.
To sum it up, then, the feedback I was getting from the quarterback recruits was that Pitt didn’t seem set on taking another quarterback, at least from the group I was talking to. It seemed like Pitt was considering the possibility, but not completely sold on it. So I wondered: was Pitt really going to take a second QB?
Enter Deon Anthony.
The one?
Okay, I admit: that profile I linked to has a whole lot of nothing in it; that’s often the case with JUCO kids. But I’ve been researching, and Deon Anthony very well could be the quarterback Pitt will take in the class.
Here are Anthony’s highlights from this season.
Anthony is a 6’1” 210-pound dual-threat quarterback who actually played receiver and package-quarterback as a freshman at Hinds Community College before moving to full-time quarterback this season. During the offseason, he dedicated himself to working on becoming a better pocket-passer, and Anthony told me that he threw for 2,200 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions this season. He also rushed for 461 yards and 9 touchdowns in 10 games.
But here’s the real question: is he what Pitt is looking for?
As far as I can tell, yes.
Anthony spoke to Pitt for the first time this week, and he talked to receivers coach Mike Norvell, who actually recruited Anthony (a native of New Iberia, La.) for Tulsa in the class of 2009. Norvell told Anthony that Pitt is very interested and wants him to visit next weekend or the weekend after, and he gave Anthony the distinct impression that once he gets on campus and meets Todd Graham, an offer would be coming.
If that happens, Anthony seems like a near-lock to commit. He’s on a shorter timetable because he will enroll at a college in January.
So you’ve got a dual-threat quarterback who can enroll in January and compete in spring camp; sounds like the recipe for what Pitt is looking for.
I’ll have an article later Friday morning on Anthony. But that’s the long and short of it.
Upcoming visits
The next two weekends will be big ones for Pitt, as both will feature notable official visitors.
First up is a trio of recruits for this weekend. Pitt commits JP Holtz, who has officially decommitted from Penn State.
Holtz will keep an eye on the Penn State situation, but it sounds like Pitt and Purdue are his most likely finalists. He already took an official visit to Purdue, and I’ve heard from a couple people that he is very high on the Boilermakers. But he’ll be on Pitt’s campus with two of the Panthers’ best recruiters in the Davis twins.
The next weekend will be even bigger. Pitt really wants a junior-college receiver in his class, and four-star things are interesting on that front.
Also from the junior college ranks is offensive tackle Chandlor Mathews. Like Gardner, Mathews doesn’t have an offer but seems pretty likely to get one on his visit.
Locally, Chartiers Valley athlete Deaysean Rippy is also likely to visit. I heard two weeks ago that Rippy was a possible visitor for this weekend, but then heard that his plans changed and he is looking at next weekend. Nothing is set yet.
Pitt commits Devon Porchia area also expected to take their official visits next weekend.
A very interesting unofficial visitor this weekend
I’ve been gathering info on 2013 Downingtown East receiver this play.
Yeah, he looks pretty good. And he’ll be at the Pitt game against Syracuse on Saturday. That’s a good thing for Pitt and we’ll have more on Harris in the near future.
But here’s what’s really interesting: Harris will have several teammates with him, including Drew Harris (no relation).
Yes, the same Drew Harris who is committed to Virginia Tech. He’ll be at the game on Saturday.
I don’t have a good sense of what it means, but it’s certainly not a bad thing. And Harris is different-enough from Rushel Shell that Pitt could take both and not have them step on each other’s toes, so to speak. But that’s getting way ahead of ourselves; let’s see what Harris has to say after this weekend.
This post was edited on 12/2 12:24 AM by Chris Peak
Welcome back for another edition of In the Pitt, Panther-Lair.com’s rundown of everything going on in Pitt recruiting.
(A brief note: The former incarnation of In the Pitt was known as the War Room, and each War Room carried a disclaimer at the bottom about keeping premium information premium, i.e. not spreading it to other message boards or what-have-you. I don’t mean to be territorial about things, but I would prefer that what follows stays here. Thanks.)
Back to the quarterbacks
All season - or at least after Tino Sunseri’s less-than-good games - Pitt fans have clamored for the coaching staff to take a second quarterback in the class of 2012 to complement four-star commit Chad Voytik.
This week, Todd Graham acknowledged that the coaching staff is video of Graham talking about QB recruiting here).
Graham’s statement marked a considerable change from the direction the staff was taking with the class. After Voytik committed in July, the plan was clear: the staff was only going to take one quarterback. The coaches told Voytik he was their only guy and that they didn’t intend to sign another. And I don’t think that was just fluff-speak for Voytik’s sake; I was told that the staff could consider an “athletic” quarterback who could possibly play another position.
But with Sunseri back for one more year, Mark Myers with three years of eligibility left, and the emergence of Trey Anderson, the staff seemed content to take just Voytik in the class of 2012.
So what changed?
According to Graham, there is a numbers issue. Anderson has been sidelined since the Utah game with tendonitis in the wrist on his throwing hand, and while the doctors seem to believe that rest will allow him to return to full health, Graham didn’t sound so certain. It seems that the condition has no definite timetable; if Anderson cannot return, Pitt would have Sunseri and Myers in spring camp and Voytik joining them in the summer.
The coaches would prefer to have at least three quarterbacks in the spring and at least four in the summer/fall, so that increases the need for another quarterback.
Anderson’s injury isn’t the only possible numbers issue. The possibility cannot be ignored that one of the other two quarterbacks on the roster decides to not finish his career at Pitt. I have heard different rumors with varying degrees of support, but it sounds like the possibility does exist that either Sunseri or Myers could decide to move on.
Either way, Pitt seems to be facing a shortage of quarterbacks, making the need for another one in the class pretty significant. The good thing about a numbers situation is that it is easy to explain to Voytik, because this much is certain:
Maintaining Voytik’s commitment is priority number one. So while they evaluate and pursue other quarterbacks, they have to make sure that Voytik understands that he is still the future of Pitt quarterbacks. They can’t lose his commitment and they are still very excited about having him at Pitt. So the key - as I have posted this week - is that they continue to be up-front and honest about their plans and intentions; as long as they make it clear that they are pursuing a quarterback to address a numbers issue, things will be fine.
Now for the real question:
Who are they going after?
The targets
I started looking into possible quarterback targets Monday night and did so by checking in with some of the prospects I have talked with in the past. Earlier this fall I found a few junior-college quarterbacks who had been hearing from Pitt in the spring; Pitt had been in contact because the coaching staff wasn’t sure if Anthony Gonzalez would be able to return to the team.
If Gonzalez would have to leave the team permanently, then the coaches wanted another quarterback to go along with Sunseri and Myers. Gonzalez returned to the team, so the need vanished and the contact between Pitt and the JUCO’s fell off.
But I kept those names handy just in case the situation at Pitt changed. So on Monday, I checked in with guys like Cody Sokol.
And I generally responses indicating varying degrees of interest: McDonald hadn’t heard from Pitt but wanted to; Sokol heard that Pitt might be contacting him but hadn’t heard anything yet; and Woods heard from Pitt but they told him they were still deciding whether or not they were taking a junior-college quarterback.
I then doubled back on talked to Johnson and showed some interest at restarting the relationship, but made it clear that his offer is not still on the table.
To sum it up, then, the feedback I was getting from the quarterback recruits was that Pitt didn’t seem set on taking another quarterback, at least from the group I was talking to. It seemed like Pitt was considering the possibility, but not completely sold on it. So I wondered: was Pitt really going to take a second QB?
Enter Deon Anthony.
The one?
Okay, I admit: that profile I linked to has a whole lot of nothing in it; that’s often the case with JUCO kids. But I’ve been researching, and Deon Anthony very well could be the quarterback Pitt will take in the class.
Here are Anthony’s highlights from this season.
Anthony is a 6’1” 210-pound dual-threat quarterback who actually played receiver and package-quarterback as a freshman at Hinds Community College before moving to full-time quarterback this season. During the offseason, he dedicated himself to working on becoming a better pocket-passer, and Anthony told me that he threw for 2,200 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions this season. He also rushed for 461 yards and 9 touchdowns in 10 games.
But here’s the real question: is he what Pitt is looking for?
As far as I can tell, yes.
Anthony spoke to Pitt for the first time this week, and he talked to receivers coach Mike Norvell, who actually recruited Anthony (a native of New Iberia, La.) for Tulsa in the class of 2009. Norvell told Anthony that Pitt is very interested and wants him to visit next weekend or the weekend after, and he gave Anthony the distinct impression that once he gets on campus and meets Todd Graham, an offer would be coming.
If that happens, Anthony seems like a near-lock to commit. He’s on a shorter timetable because he will enroll at a college in January.
So you’ve got a dual-threat quarterback who can enroll in January and compete in spring camp; sounds like the recipe for what Pitt is looking for.
I’ll have an article later Friday morning on Anthony. But that’s the long and short of it.
Upcoming visits
The next two weekends will be big ones for Pitt, as both will feature notable official visitors.
First up is a trio of recruits for this weekend. Pitt commits JP Holtz, who has officially decommitted from Penn State.
Holtz will keep an eye on the Penn State situation, but it sounds like Pitt and Purdue are his most likely finalists. He already took an official visit to Purdue, and I’ve heard from a couple people that he is very high on the Boilermakers. But he’ll be on Pitt’s campus with two of the Panthers’ best recruiters in the Davis twins.
The next weekend will be even bigger. Pitt really wants a junior-college receiver in his class, and four-star things are interesting on that front.
Also from the junior college ranks is offensive tackle Chandlor Mathews. Like Gardner, Mathews doesn’t have an offer but seems pretty likely to get one on his visit.
Locally, Chartiers Valley athlete Deaysean Rippy is also likely to visit. I heard two weeks ago that Rippy was a possible visitor for this weekend, but then heard that his plans changed and he is looking at next weekend. Nothing is set yet.
Pitt commits Devon Porchia area also expected to take their official visits next weekend.
A very interesting unofficial visitor this weekend
I’ve been gathering info on 2013 Downingtown East receiver this play.
Yeah, he looks pretty good. And he’ll be at the Pitt game against Syracuse on Saturday. That’s a good thing for Pitt and we’ll have more on Harris in the near future.
But here’s what’s really interesting: Harris will have several teammates with him, including Drew Harris (no relation).
Yes, the same Drew Harris who is committed to Virginia Tech. He’ll be at the game on Saturday.
I don’t have a good sense of what it means, but it’s certainly not a bad thing. And Harris is different-enough from Rushel Shell that Pitt could take both and not have them step on each other’s toes, so to speak. But that’s getting way ahead of ourselves; let’s see what Harris has to say after this weekend.
This post was edited on 12/2 12:24 AM by Chris Peak
