From the Desk of Jim Snyder
Getting Close to Letter of Intent Day
In case you missed the posts earlier in the week, one of our sources tells us that running back Jawan Walker is an academic casualty and has been given his release so that he can transfer. In addition, it is our understanding that Steve Walker from Akron Buchtel High School was involved in some sort of on-campus problems and has also been given his release. In theory this opens up two more scholarships.
Will Pitt offer Central Catholic’s Eugene Jarvis? Our sources say no. They will not offer Jarvis as long as Johnstown’s LaRod Stephens is on board. They will not take two running backs with similar styles. We have received new senior video on LaRod. It is out of this world. Rivals.com is in the process of editing it. Once the LaRod Stephens’ senior video is up please check it out. If you have any doubts about Stephens this will make you feel a whole lot better.
You will recall that Pitt received a verbal commitment from Dominic Jones from Columbus Brookhaven. He subsequently changed his mind and committed to Minnesota along with his stepbrother Keith Massey. Pitt apparently called him but he told them he is not interested. He is firmly committed. The staff tried to set up an in-home visit from Dave Wannstedt but Dominic Jones said he was not interested. This is one player that apparently is not open to a second pitch.
One of our “birdies” indicates that the Pitt staff has mentally reserved a scholarship for Central Catholic’s John Pelusi. We have tried not to press John and he often makes himself difficult to reach. We are assuming when the dust settles he will be a Panther. It appears the staff is hedging their bet and have brought in a number of players that could play tight end in William Berger, Tommie Duhart, Chris Joppru and Gus Mustakas.
Normally Pitt would like to take one quarterback each year. This past summer Luke Getsy transferred to the University of Akron. Last week the staff got a commitment from Central Catholic quarterback Shane Murray. It is our understand that Pitt will take a second quarterback in either Pat Carey from Cincinnati Elder or Greg Boone from Chesapeake, Virginia if they can get them. Pat Carey is scheduled to visit Pitt this weekend. He has offers from Pitt, Cincinnati and Indiana. He is not as heavily recruited as Boone and might be a little more doable. Boone is such as good athlete it is felt he could play several other positions if it did not work out at quarterback. Many think Murray may end up at safety in the long run. Carey was a tight end before he was a quarterback.
A number of our readers have asked which of the prospects might be on concern from an academic point of view. The two prospects from Akron Buchtel (Bryan Williams and Marlon Terry) have not yet qualified. Terry was scheduled to take the ACT test for the first time last weekend. In addition, two prospects from the Mon Valley would be of some concern (Shane Brooks and Mick Williams). We are often working with fragmented information in this area. The Pitt staff has often done a good job projecting which players have a legitimate shot of making it. If you gamble on four and two or three make it that is about all you can hope for. The new NCAA guidelines may cut down on the number you can gamble on going forward. In the future, schools will lose scholarships for not graduating players. It may make coaches think twice about taking prospects that look like a stretch. Players can retake the SAT exams up through May. You often are not sure which players will make it and which ones will not until August. Last year both Craig Bokor and Rashad Jennings were listed in the media guide but it took them until January to enroll at Pitt.
We tried to contact West Allegheny coach Bob Palko this week and found that he is down at the U.S Army All-Star game in San Antonio. You may recall the flap last year when Anthony Morelli was not selected and that brought wrath down on the Pitt staff from the Morelli family. The implication was that Coach Palko had blackballed Morelli, which as far as we can tell was certainly not true.
Keep in mind the “new Pitt football staff” at this point looks an awful lot like the “old Pitt football staff”. Defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads was put in charge of recruiting while Dave Wannstedt spent most of his time looking for a few new coaches including an offensive coordinator. Coach Wannstedt did visit a number of area high schools but it was primarily to start the process on juniors. Reportedly he was well received and Coach Wannstedt feels they will do better in Western PA going forward.
We reflect 17 commitments at the present time although one can argue that Craig Bokor belongs to last year’s class. How many more will Pitt take? An educated guess might be approximately four. Those will probably come from the following list. This list is in alphabetical order not in order of importance. QB Greg Boone, QB Craig Carey, DT C.J. Davis, TE Tommy Duhart, C Jon Hermann, TE Chris Joppru, WR Cedric McGee, DE Gus Mustakas, TE John Pelusi, DL Gary Watts, LB Garret White and RB Mick Williams.
You often get a surprise at the end and we might get one this year as the coaches work their Rolodexes in the closing weeks checking with players that Pitt recruited earlier in the process. We are now coming out of a Dead Period and a Quiet Period. Coaches will make in-home visits to players that have already committed and to players they still hold out hopes of signing over the next two weeks before we go back into Quiet and Dead Periods leading up to Letter of Intent Day. Many other schools will also be scrambling to get in-home visits with hope of landing a last minute recruit.
Rivals Radio
Rivals Radio has been up and running for a week and a half. They have been on a shake down cruise trying to iron out some of the bugs. They have had a number of good guests ranging from Virginia Tech’s Frank Beamer and Illinois Ron Zook to the new coaches at Mississippi and New Mexico State. Former Heisman winner Archie Griffin, Rudy of Notre Dame fame and Phil Groz also made appearances. They have featured live reports from San Antonio and the US Army All-star game, which will be played on NBC this weekend. Next week the show will be simulcast on Sirius Radio on Channel 123. I have seen their new studios and they are first class. The all-glass studios dominate as you walk into the Rivals.com office complex. Rivals Radio is available to Ultimate Ticket holders. You can find a link on the top of the Football Message Board. It airs from 10:00 AM to Noon EST Monday through Friday. In case you cannot listen live they are archiving the shows. You can listen at your leisure. Just go to the link at the top of the football board.
Annual Subscriptions
Rivals.com has been marketing annual subscriptions they past couple of months. The campaign has been a big success. You save 20% and they throw in the Recruiting Yearbook, Rivals Radio and the new AMP service. Call Customer service at 1-866-2-RIVALS. They will answer all your questions.
Note to Pantherlair.com Fans: The staff at Pantherlair.com works diligently to bring you the best information on University of Pittsburgh football and basketball recruiting (in addition to game coverage). Thousands of Panther fans visit our site on a daily basis. We have received a tremendous amount of e-mail thanking us for our efforts. If you like our site, please feel free to tell other fans about it. “Spread the word” and let’s add to our online family of Panther fans.
Getting Close to Letter of Intent Day
In case you missed the posts earlier in the week, one of our sources tells us that running back Jawan Walker is an academic casualty and has been given his release so that he can transfer. In addition, it is our understanding that Steve Walker from Akron Buchtel High School was involved in some sort of on-campus problems and has also been given his release. In theory this opens up two more scholarships.
Will Pitt offer Central Catholic’s Eugene Jarvis? Our sources say no. They will not offer Jarvis as long as Johnstown’s LaRod Stephens is on board. They will not take two running backs with similar styles. We have received new senior video on LaRod. It is out of this world. Rivals.com is in the process of editing it. Once the LaRod Stephens’ senior video is up please check it out. If you have any doubts about Stephens this will make you feel a whole lot better.
You will recall that Pitt received a verbal commitment from Dominic Jones from Columbus Brookhaven. He subsequently changed his mind and committed to Minnesota along with his stepbrother Keith Massey. Pitt apparently called him but he told them he is not interested. He is firmly committed. The staff tried to set up an in-home visit from Dave Wannstedt but Dominic Jones said he was not interested. This is one player that apparently is not open to a second pitch.
One of our “birdies” indicates that the Pitt staff has mentally reserved a scholarship for Central Catholic’s John Pelusi. We have tried not to press John and he often makes himself difficult to reach. We are assuming when the dust settles he will be a Panther. It appears the staff is hedging their bet and have brought in a number of players that could play tight end in William Berger, Tommie Duhart, Chris Joppru and Gus Mustakas.
Normally Pitt would like to take one quarterback each year. This past summer Luke Getsy transferred to the University of Akron. Last week the staff got a commitment from Central Catholic quarterback Shane Murray. It is our understand that Pitt will take a second quarterback in either Pat Carey from Cincinnati Elder or Greg Boone from Chesapeake, Virginia if they can get them. Pat Carey is scheduled to visit Pitt this weekend. He has offers from Pitt, Cincinnati and Indiana. He is not as heavily recruited as Boone and might be a little more doable. Boone is such as good athlete it is felt he could play several other positions if it did not work out at quarterback. Many think Murray may end up at safety in the long run. Carey was a tight end before he was a quarterback.
A number of our readers have asked which of the prospects might be on concern from an academic point of view. The two prospects from Akron Buchtel (Bryan Williams and Marlon Terry) have not yet qualified. Terry was scheduled to take the ACT test for the first time last weekend. In addition, two prospects from the Mon Valley would be of some concern (Shane Brooks and Mick Williams). We are often working with fragmented information in this area. The Pitt staff has often done a good job projecting which players have a legitimate shot of making it. If you gamble on four and two or three make it that is about all you can hope for. The new NCAA guidelines may cut down on the number you can gamble on going forward. In the future, schools will lose scholarships for not graduating players. It may make coaches think twice about taking prospects that look like a stretch. Players can retake the SAT exams up through May. You often are not sure which players will make it and which ones will not until August. Last year both Craig Bokor and Rashad Jennings were listed in the media guide but it took them until January to enroll at Pitt.
We tried to contact West Allegheny coach Bob Palko this week and found that he is down at the U.S Army All-Star game in San Antonio. You may recall the flap last year when Anthony Morelli was not selected and that brought wrath down on the Pitt staff from the Morelli family. The implication was that Coach Palko had blackballed Morelli, which as far as we can tell was certainly not true.
Keep in mind the “new Pitt football staff” at this point looks an awful lot like the “old Pitt football staff”. Defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads was put in charge of recruiting while Dave Wannstedt spent most of his time looking for a few new coaches including an offensive coordinator. Coach Wannstedt did visit a number of area high schools but it was primarily to start the process on juniors. Reportedly he was well received and Coach Wannstedt feels they will do better in Western PA going forward.
We reflect 17 commitments at the present time although one can argue that Craig Bokor belongs to last year’s class. How many more will Pitt take? An educated guess might be approximately four. Those will probably come from the following list. This list is in alphabetical order not in order of importance. QB Greg Boone, QB Craig Carey, DT C.J. Davis, TE Tommy Duhart, C Jon Hermann, TE Chris Joppru, WR Cedric McGee, DE Gus Mustakas, TE John Pelusi, DL Gary Watts, LB Garret White and RB Mick Williams.
You often get a surprise at the end and we might get one this year as the coaches work their Rolodexes in the closing weeks checking with players that Pitt recruited earlier in the process. We are now coming out of a Dead Period and a Quiet Period. Coaches will make in-home visits to players that have already committed and to players they still hold out hopes of signing over the next two weeks before we go back into Quiet and Dead Periods leading up to Letter of Intent Day. Many other schools will also be scrambling to get in-home visits with hope of landing a last minute recruit.
Rivals Radio
Rivals Radio has been up and running for a week and a half. They have been on a shake down cruise trying to iron out some of the bugs. They have had a number of good guests ranging from Virginia Tech’s Frank Beamer and Illinois Ron Zook to the new coaches at Mississippi and New Mexico State. Former Heisman winner Archie Griffin, Rudy of Notre Dame fame and Phil Groz also made appearances. They have featured live reports from San Antonio and the US Army All-star game, which will be played on NBC this weekend. Next week the show will be simulcast on Sirius Radio on Channel 123. I have seen their new studios and they are first class. The all-glass studios dominate as you walk into the Rivals.com office complex. Rivals Radio is available to Ultimate Ticket holders. You can find a link on the top of the Football Message Board. It airs from 10:00 AM to Noon EST Monday through Friday. In case you cannot listen live they are archiving the shows. You can listen at your leisure. Just go to the link at the top of the football board.
Annual Subscriptions
Rivals.com has been marketing annual subscriptions they past couple of months. The campaign has been a big success. You save 20% and they throw in the Recruiting Yearbook, Rivals Radio and the new AMP service. Call Customer service at 1-866-2-RIVALS. They will answer all your questions.
Note to Pantherlair.com Fans: The staff at Pantherlair.com works diligently to bring you the best information on University of Pittsburgh football and basketball recruiting (in addition to game coverage). Thousands of Panther fans visit our site on a daily basis. We have received a tremendous amount of e-mail thanking us for our efforts. If you like our site, please feel free to tell other fans about it. “Spread the word” and let’s add to our online family of Panther fans.
