From the desk of Jim Snyder
Ratings and rankings
This past week Rivals.com has been releasing their rankings by position. Most prospects that will be receiving a three-star ranking on the first pass have now been updated. They have now begun the process of ranking the players by state. Yesterday they ranked Texas, South Carolina, Arizona, Kansas and Delaware. I suspect Pennsylvania will be up in a day or two. The state rankings will be completed by the end of next week.
Rivals.com has also downloaded photos from the Nike Camps at State College, Purdue and Rutgers this past week. The football database should look a little richer now with the new photos and new three-star rankings.
Some hoops talk
We had an article this week on point guard Maalick Wayns out of Roman Catholic High School in Philadelphia. He now has an offer from Pitt and is in the recruiting Class of 2009. One article I came across indicated he was the third best prospect out of the Philly area. They ranked him only behind Tyreke Evans from American Christian School and Pitt commit [/B]Nasir Robinson[/B] from Chester. Both of these players are older than Wayns and are in the Class of 2008.
The folks at Villanova have told us that forward Brian Oliver from New Castle, Delaware will make an unofficial visit to Pitt on June 22nd. He also is in the Class of 2009. He has an early offer from West Virginia. There was an article on him on the Ticker yesterday.
One of our sources indicates that Eloy Vargas remains Pitt’s top target for a big man for 2008. His voice mail says he is still out of the country. We will keep trying.
The Big 33 game
The Big 33 game will be played in Hershey on Saturday night. The game has been watered down in recently for a couple of reasons. A number of players have already enrolled in summer school and are not eligible. In addition Ohio will hold their annual North-South all-star game the same day in Columbus and all Ohio State recruits will play in that game.
The game is scheduled to be televised on the NFL network. It will give Pitt fans a chance to see DL Myles Caragein, DB Dom DeCicco, OL John Fieger, DL Wayne Jones, RB Henry Hynoski and OL Chris Jacobson .
Freshmen that have enrolled early
Most of the national forecasters have Pitt going 5-7 and out of the bowl picture this year. There are five freshmen that have enrolled at Pitt in May. So far Chris Peak has written articles on LeSean McCoy, Tommie Duhart and Max Gruder. I thought all three were excellent interviews. If you were on vacation this week and missed them please check them out. These three players could move into the bowl picture if they can help this year.
Cincinnati coach on Rivals Radio
I hope you caught the interview with Bearcat coach Brian Kelly on Rivals Radio. Their coach indicated the move to allow players to play five years is gaining some traction (it would eliminate the redshirt concept). He indicated that NCAA president Myles Brand now endorses the idea. He also said the rule would apply only to football and not basketball. It sounds like a good idea. Check out the replay of the Football Board if you missed it.
The Ted Ginn bus tour
We have enjoyed both the photo gallery and video piece on the Ted Ginn bus tour. Defensive back Donnie Fletcher from Glenville High School has been featured in both as has Isaiah Pead from Columbus. Both have offers from the Panthers.
Let’s go camping
Pitt will host their prospect camp on Friday and Saturday at the UPMC complex. The Pantherlair will be there covering it.
We have written about a on a number of players over the past couple of weeks and reported that many of them will be visiting Pitt over the next ten days now that school is out. They might not all be there on Friday and Saturday. Earlier this week we reported that quarterback Zack Stoudt could not come this weekend so he stopped by Pitt this past Monday.
Stoudt’s high school, Dublin Coffman, will be hosting a passing tournament for 48 teams so a lot of Ohio players will be tied up on Saturday.
In addition Gateway is hosting a passing tournament on Saturday. There are several teams participating with high profile recruits. Gateway features LB Shayne Hale, RB Cameron Saddler and RB Eric Livsey. Jeannette features QB Terrelle Pryor. Central Catholic features QB Tino Sunseri and TE Quentin Williams. Trinity features LB Andrew Sweat and LB Mike Yancich. If you are in the Monroeville area you might want to stop by. The camp runs from 8:00 am until 4:00 pm. Yough and Franklin Regional will also participate. Rivals.com is scheduled to have Mike Farrell and a video crew at the Gateway passing camp.
Next weekend Pitt will hold their annual passing camp at the UPMC complex.
I have to admit I was surprised by Jeannette’s Terrelle Pryor’s early list which did not include Pitt. I was always a little skeptical of Pitt’s ability to land him because I am not sure Matt Cavanaugh’s offense best suits his talents. You hate to say it but Pryor could be scary in the West Virginia offense.
I am not sure what Jeannette head football coach Ray Reitz was thinking about. Other schools and players have sent signals that Pitt was not at the top of their list without saying most schools east of the Mississippi are under consideration except Pitt. He either is one of the more politically incorrect high school coaches I have come across or he was trying to send a loud message to the Southside (perhaps in is a combination of both).
Pitt has encouraged a number of quarterbacks and offensive linemen to attend this weekend. Pitt would like to land three offensive linemen this year. A couple of linemen should get offers after the staff has had a chance to fully evaluate them. Mike Farrell, Corey Lewis, Chad Hounshell, Wayne Tribue, James Harvey, Ryan Hurley and Jimmy Bennett are all possibilities.
With Pryor out of the picture for now, Matt Cavanaugh will have to make a decision on a quarterback to target. Josh Vick, Zac Dysert, Matt Carroll and Nolan Kearny are possibilities. So is Zach Stoudt. Most of these players are not heavily recruited so an offer might bring a quick commit. If they are not sold on this group they might have to look out of state (perhaps to Florida-Star Jackson).
Pitt will take at least two linebackers this year. I would love to have Shayne Hale and Mike Yancich but I would be happy with Justin Staples from Lakewood St Edward’s and Steve Gardiner from Dublin Coffman.
One of our members inquired about linebacker Doug Rippy out of Columbus, Ohio. We called him this week and he said at this point Pitt is not recruiting him.
A few of the other players that indicated they will be stopping by the Pitt summer camp include Averin Collier (New York), WR Vaughn Caraway (Reading area), WR Marcus Sales (New York), WR/LB Julian Harrell (Bishop McDevitt), DB Mike Jones (McDevitt), WR Jonathan Baldwin (Aliquippa), LB Shariff Blake (Harrisburg) and OL Brian Clarke (Hanover).
The Open in Oakmont
The Open being held at the Oakmont Country Club brings back many memories. I watched Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus battle it out years ago. I was there the day a man got hit by lightening during a bad storm.
A couple of my best friends held their reception there after their wedding. Some of my buddies reported his car stolen. They indicated it was seen in the Oakmont CC parking lot. The police interrupted the reception and demanded to see a driver’s identification card. The sight of police in the middle of the wedding was a little unsettling to some but the bride survived and so did their marriage.
No War Room article next week
Chris Peak will take some well deserved vacation time next week and will head for the beach in North Carolina. I will be attending the annual Rivals.com’s publisher’s conference in Nashville late next week. Chris will return in time to cover the passing camp next weekend at the UPMC complex. We will keep you updated.
The War Room is targeted towards our premium customers. We ask that all information reported in the War Room MUST stay right here! That’s the way this deal works. When this information is repeated outside of the Between Fifth and Forbes forum it only cheapens the price of yours and every other die-hard who have purchased premium services. The War Room is one of our more popular features...thank you all for keeping the information on this board.
Ratings and rankings
This past week Rivals.com has been releasing their rankings by position. Most prospects that will be receiving a three-star ranking on the first pass have now been updated. They have now begun the process of ranking the players by state. Yesterday they ranked Texas, South Carolina, Arizona, Kansas and Delaware. I suspect Pennsylvania will be up in a day or two. The state rankings will be completed by the end of next week.
Rivals.com has also downloaded photos from the Nike Camps at State College, Purdue and Rutgers this past week. The football database should look a little richer now with the new photos and new three-star rankings.
Some hoops talk
We had an article this week on point guard Maalick Wayns out of Roman Catholic High School in Philadelphia. He now has an offer from Pitt and is in the recruiting Class of 2009. One article I came across indicated he was the third best prospect out of the Philly area. They ranked him only behind Tyreke Evans from American Christian School and Pitt commit [/B]Nasir Robinson[/B] from Chester. Both of these players are older than Wayns and are in the Class of 2008.
The folks at Villanova have told us that forward Brian Oliver from New Castle, Delaware will make an unofficial visit to Pitt on June 22nd. He also is in the Class of 2009. He has an early offer from West Virginia. There was an article on him on the Ticker yesterday.
One of our sources indicates that Eloy Vargas remains Pitt’s top target for a big man for 2008. His voice mail says he is still out of the country. We will keep trying.
The Big 33 game
The Big 33 game will be played in Hershey on Saturday night. The game has been watered down in recently for a couple of reasons. A number of players have already enrolled in summer school and are not eligible. In addition Ohio will hold their annual North-South all-star game the same day in Columbus and all Ohio State recruits will play in that game.
The game is scheduled to be televised on the NFL network. It will give Pitt fans a chance to see DL Myles Caragein, DB Dom DeCicco, OL John Fieger, DL Wayne Jones, RB Henry Hynoski and OL Chris Jacobson .
Freshmen that have enrolled early
Most of the national forecasters have Pitt going 5-7 and out of the bowl picture this year. There are five freshmen that have enrolled at Pitt in May. So far Chris Peak has written articles on LeSean McCoy, Tommie Duhart and Max Gruder. I thought all three were excellent interviews. If you were on vacation this week and missed them please check them out. These three players could move into the bowl picture if they can help this year.
Cincinnati coach on Rivals Radio
I hope you caught the interview with Bearcat coach Brian Kelly on Rivals Radio. Their coach indicated the move to allow players to play five years is gaining some traction (it would eliminate the redshirt concept). He indicated that NCAA president Myles Brand now endorses the idea. He also said the rule would apply only to football and not basketball. It sounds like a good idea. Check out the replay of the Football Board if you missed it.
The Ted Ginn bus tour
We have enjoyed both the photo gallery and video piece on the Ted Ginn bus tour. Defensive back Donnie Fletcher from Glenville High School has been featured in both as has Isaiah Pead from Columbus. Both have offers from the Panthers.
Let’s go camping
Pitt will host their prospect camp on Friday and Saturday at the UPMC complex. The Pantherlair will be there covering it.
We have written about a on a number of players over the past couple of weeks and reported that many of them will be visiting Pitt over the next ten days now that school is out. They might not all be there on Friday and Saturday. Earlier this week we reported that quarterback Zack Stoudt could not come this weekend so he stopped by Pitt this past Monday.
Stoudt’s high school, Dublin Coffman, will be hosting a passing tournament for 48 teams so a lot of Ohio players will be tied up on Saturday.
In addition Gateway is hosting a passing tournament on Saturday. There are several teams participating with high profile recruits. Gateway features LB Shayne Hale, RB Cameron Saddler and RB Eric Livsey. Jeannette features QB Terrelle Pryor. Central Catholic features QB Tino Sunseri and TE Quentin Williams. Trinity features LB Andrew Sweat and LB Mike Yancich. If you are in the Monroeville area you might want to stop by. The camp runs from 8:00 am until 4:00 pm. Yough and Franklin Regional will also participate. Rivals.com is scheduled to have Mike Farrell and a video crew at the Gateway passing camp.
Next weekend Pitt will hold their annual passing camp at the UPMC complex.
I have to admit I was surprised by Jeannette’s Terrelle Pryor’s early list which did not include Pitt. I was always a little skeptical of Pitt’s ability to land him because I am not sure Matt Cavanaugh’s offense best suits his talents. You hate to say it but Pryor could be scary in the West Virginia offense.
I am not sure what Jeannette head football coach Ray Reitz was thinking about. Other schools and players have sent signals that Pitt was not at the top of their list without saying most schools east of the Mississippi are under consideration except Pitt. He either is one of the more politically incorrect high school coaches I have come across or he was trying to send a loud message to the Southside (perhaps in is a combination of both).
Pitt has encouraged a number of quarterbacks and offensive linemen to attend this weekend. Pitt would like to land three offensive linemen this year. A couple of linemen should get offers after the staff has had a chance to fully evaluate them. Mike Farrell, Corey Lewis, Chad Hounshell, Wayne Tribue, James Harvey, Ryan Hurley and Jimmy Bennett are all possibilities.
With Pryor out of the picture for now, Matt Cavanaugh will have to make a decision on a quarterback to target. Josh Vick, Zac Dysert, Matt Carroll and Nolan Kearny are possibilities. So is Zach Stoudt. Most of these players are not heavily recruited so an offer might bring a quick commit. If they are not sold on this group they might have to look out of state (perhaps to Florida-Star Jackson).
Pitt will take at least two linebackers this year. I would love to have Shayne Hale and Mike Yancich but I would be happy with Justin Staples from Lakewood St Edward’s and Steve Gardiner from Dublin Coffman.
One of our members inquired about linebacker Doug Rippy out of Columbus, Ohio. We called him this week and he said at this point Pitt is not recruiting him.
A few of the other players that indicated they will be stopping by the Pitt summer camp include Averin Collier (New York), WR Vaughn Caraway (Reading area), WR Marcus Sales (New York), WR/LB Julian Harrell (Bishop McDevitt), DB Mike Jones (McDevitt), WR Jonathan Baldwin (Aliquippa), LB Shariff Blake (Harrisburg) and OL Brian Clarke (Hanover).
The Open in Oakmont
The Open being held at the Oakmont Country Club brings back many memories. I watched Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus battle it out years ago. I was there the day a man got hit by lightening during a bad storm.
A couple of my best friends held their reception there after their wedding. Some of my buddies reported his car stolen. They indicated it was seen in the Oakmont CC parking lot. The police interrupted the reception and demanded to see a driver’s identification card. The sight of police in the middle of the wedding was a little unsettling to some but the bride survived and so did their marriage.
No War Room article next week
Chris Peak will take some well deserved vacation time next week and will head for the beach in North Carolina. I will be attending the annual Rivals.com’s publisher’s conference in Nashville late next week. Chris will return in time to cover the passing camp next weekend at the UPMC complex. We will keep you updated.
The War Room is targeted towards our premium customers. We ask that all information reported in the War Room MUST stay right here! That’s the way this deal works. When this information is repeated outside of the Between Fifth and Forbes forum it only cheapens the price of yours and every other die-hard who have purchased premium services. The War Room is one of our more popular features...thank you all for keeping the information on this board.
