From the desk of Jim Snyder
Rankings and ratings
Yesterday the PantherLair released its first PA Top for the Class of 2009. This is a part of the evaluation process and it will be reviewed again as we move deeper into the recruiting year.
Rivals.com will update their Top 100 on June 9th. Rivals.com will then update their Top 250 on June 10th and then the following day they will release the first batch of three-star prospects.
If you want to check the PantherLair PA Top 50 from time to time just go to Quick Links.
Weekly polls
Over the next few weeks we will feature a series of weekly polls. This week we ask which position do you think is the strongest on the Pitt team headed into the 2008 season? The Pitt coaching staff has built some depth at a number of positions. Which one do you feel is the strongest? See the poll question at the top of this board.
Some hoops talk
We had a rather long debate on the basketball board recently about Darnell Dodson. Our sources say at this point both Pitt and Dodson expect him to be a Panther after playing junior college basketball in Florida this year. We also have a report that he has gown this past year and is a bigger player than we saw when he arrived at Pitt last fall. The folks at his junior college expect a huge year from him this coming season. Dodson would have three years of eligibility once he arrives at Pitt.
Hearst Lifestyle Center
Earlier this month Pitt opened their new Lifestyle Center which was funded by the Hearst Foundation. So many of these athletes focus on football or basketball without much thought being given to life after they graduate from Pitt. Hopefully this new center will help prepare them. The more successful Pitt grads the program produces the stronger it will be in the long run.
Enjoy him while you can
Late last month Rivals.com put out a mock draft indicating LeSean McCoy would be taken as the No. 5 pick in the NFL draft next spring and he would be the No. 1 running back taken in that draft. We hear that since this time his phone has been ringing with agents wanting to sign him up.
If McCoy has a big year this year as we all expect he is gone. As a result Pitt will recruit one running back and maybe two.
One more report from the Nike Camp
Recently the coaches that conduct the Nike Camps for Student Sports put a few of their thoughts on paper. We thought we would share what they had to say in a recent article published by Student Sports about a few players that Pitt has been recruiting.
The crop of 'backers’ at Penn State was the best we've seen at any camp this year. So it was especially impressive that Pittsburgh (Pa.) Penn Hills' Dan Mason walked home with MVP honors. Mason looked great at the same camp a year ago but was even better this year. He's extremely physical and assertive in everything he does. He is poised beyond his years, is a great kid and takes to coaching as good as anyone we've seen. He's physical, runs very well, is tough, and a great leader. Mason is the kind of kid you never have to worry about rain or shine and he's going to compete as hard as he can every day.
Had he come to play all camp long, Monroeville (Pa.) Gateway's Dorian Bell would have been the MVP for this position. In fact, Bell might be the best linebacker we've seen this year and his play in the 1-on-1s was incredible. What held him back was early in the camp, he seemed to coast a little and not to take to coaching like some of the other players. As the day went on, he turned it up a notch and no one at this camp has more upside at the next level than Bell. He was the best guy we've seen this year in the 1-on-1s and his play seemed to inspire everyone else around him. He plays with a swagger to him and is one of the few players we've seen this year who has the ability to hit the switch and take his game to a new level. If he continues to work hard and hungers to be as good as he can be, Bell will be an All-American in college. Committed to Ohio State.
Monroeville (Pa.) Gateway DB Corey Brown can do it all. The 6-0 ½, 180 pounder has long arms and a good muscular/lean frame. Is very athletic and fluid and at times things looks effortless for him. Displayed a high football IQ and is good character kid. Plays both ways and even took some WR reps at the camp. He has quick feet and nice hips and has great instincts and knows how to play the ball. One of the best DB's we've seen on tour.
Abdul Smith ? 6-0, 182, Collegeville (Pa.) Perkiomen Valley
Athlete who has gifts and is learning to cover after playing QB last year.
Cory King ? 6-4.5, 317, Stoneboro (Pa.) Lakeview
Moved feet well during pass protection, could be more flexible in the hips.
Adam Gress ? 6-7, 294, West Mifflin (Pa.)
Aggressive, has great size and moves well for a big man.
John Wetzel ? 6-7, 266, Pittsburgh (Pa.) Brashear
Another big guy with good athleticism who is raw technically.
Sarafino Caliguire ? 6-1.5, 283, McKees Rocks (Pa.) Montour
Moved feet well and did a great job inside in 1-on-1s, a good center prospect.
Brock DeCicco ? 6-4.5, 220, Jefferson Hills (Pa.) Thomas Jefferson
Good looking tight end with frame to be a physical presence in college.
Jaleel Clark ? 6-4, 202, Allentown (Pa.) Parkland
Another jumbo WR who used his size very well and is a great red zone threat.
Adidas Camp at the UPMC complex
Last Sunday Recruits Unlimited hosted the adidas Camp at the UPMC complex for approximately 200 athletes. Many of the top prospects were not there but Gateway’s Corey Brown worked out again. Several of the players listed below that do not have offers were also there. We hope you caught Tony Greco’s report. If you missed it you can find it on the Ticker or better yet under Latest Headlines.
Recruiting round up
In Coach Wannstedt’s first three years the staff often pushed for a couple of early commits to create some buzz. This year they did not and as a result Pitt has been shut out early in the process.
A reporter once did a study which suggested some of the early recruits were not necessarily the best players. Last year for example Pitt got an early commitment from Chris Hayden-Martin from Greensburg Central Catholic. He did not have a big senior season and after suffering a knee injury ended up at Boston College.
There are several factors at work this year. I think it is safe to say Pitt has not gotten a big bounce from the win over West Virginia last fall and they fact that Pitt has five new coaches out recruiting does not help.
This also looks like a bit of a down year in Pennsylvania and to make things worse several of the top players in the state simply have shown little interest in Pitt from the very beginning of the process. You could put Dorian Bell, Tom Savage, Je’Ron Stokes and Jordan Hall into that category.
The new rule change prohibiting the head coach from leaving campus during the spring Evaluation Period certainly did not help. The past few years Coach Wannstedt worked tirelessly recruiting at this time of year.
Pitt will sign several players from PA but they are pounding New Jersey, Florida and the Baltimore-Washington corridor hard because they will have to supplement this class with a few out of state players.
Coach Wannstedt knows how to recruit and he knows the importance of it. He has been quoted a number of times as saying if an assistant coach is not the offense or defensive coordinator he better be able to recruit. Some of the turnover the past few years was because some did not recruit well.
Pitt has a small senior class and will have a small recruiting Class for 2009. I am not sure how many at this point but 16 might be a working number.
Here is a list of Pennsylvania players that Pitt has offered and appears still to be in the mix with:
Jaleel Clark WR Parkland
Corey Brown DB Gateway
Brock DeCicco TE Thomas Jefferson
Tyrone Ezell DL Steel Valley
A.J. Fenton Erie McDowell
Jordan Hill DL Steelton-Highspire
Juantez Hollins DT Aliquippa
Corey King OL Lakeview
Jack Lippert DE Central Dauphin
Dan Mason LB Penn Hills
Terry Patrick DB Aliquippa
Abdul Smith DB Perkiomen School
Todd Thomas WR Beaver Falls
Early in the process Gateway’s Corey Brown looked like a Pitt lean. As the number of offers have piled up and it has gotten more complicated. Ohio State and Michigan and could be leaders although the folks on the Southside have not given up.
It might be best for Pitt if Corey Brown and Todd Thomas waited to make a decision.
There is another group of prospects that may have to camp at Pitt to get an offer. I would not be surprised if Pitt offered a couple of these players and eventually signed them.
D.J. Barney Ath Eire Strong Vincent
Serafino Calguire OL Montour
Pat Eger OL Thomas Jefferson
Adam Gress OL West Mifflin
Jordan Smith Ath Steelton-Highspire
John Wetzel OL Brashear
So far the only PA player that has committed so far that I thought Pitt had a good shot at was tight end Paul Carrezola from Neshaminy. In the end geography may have played a part. His high school is less than 90 minutes from the Rutgers campus and almost six hours from the Pitt campus.
It is far too early to handicap out of state players. In most cases you simply hope they hold off making any decisions until they have had a chance to visit Pitt. Here are a few players that Pitt should be in the mix for:
DeOnte Arnett DE Forestville, MD
Shane Gordon LB Cypress Bay, FL
Bret Gunn Ath Kiski Area
Duron Harmon Ath Delaware
Isaac Holmes DT Hoboken, NJ
Jamal Merrell DE Newark, DE
Jamil Merrell LB Newark, DE
Khalil Wilkes OL St Peter’s Prep, NJ
My guess is that Pitt will have a half dozen commitments by the time fall camp starts in August. It may be best to wait and win on the football field this fall before they get commits from the rest. Winning will take you a long way with some of these recruits. This class may not have the star power of the past three years but at this point I am not worried about Coach Wannstedt putting together another solid class.
Have fun over the Memorial Day weekend and be safe.
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.
Rankings and ratings
Yesterday the PantherLair released its first PA Top for the Class of 2009. This is a part of the evaluation process and it will be reviewed again as we move deeper into the recruiting year.
Rivals.com will update their Top 100 on June 9th. Rivals.com will then update their Top 250 on June 10th and then the following day they will release the first batch of three-star prospects.
If you want to check the PantherLair PA Top 50 from time to time just go to Quick Links.
Weekly polls
Over the next few weeks we will feature a series of weekly polls. This week we ask which position do you think is the strongest on the Pitt team headed into the 2008 season? The Pitt coaching staff has built some depth at a number of positions. Which one do you feel is the strongest? See the poll question at the top of this board.
Some hoops talk
We had a rather long debate on the basketball board recently about Darnell Dodson. Our sources say at this point both Pitt and Dodson expect him to be a Panther after playing junior college basketball in Florida this year. We also have a report that he has gown this past year and is a bigger player than we saw when he arrived at Pitt last fall. The folks at his junior college expect a huge year from him this coming season. Dodson would have three years of eligibility once he arrives at Pitt.
Hearst Lifestyle Center
Earlier this month Pitt opened their new Lifestyle Center which was funded by the Hearst Foundation. So many of these athletes focus on football or basketball without much thought being given to life after they graduate from Pitt. Hopefully this new center will help prepare them. The more successful Pitt grads the program produces the stronger it will be in the long run.
Enjoy him while you can
Late last month Rivals.com put out a mock draft indicating LeSean McCoy would be taken as the No. 5 pick in the NFL draft next spring and he would be the No. 1 running back taken in that draft. We hear that since this time his phone has been ringing with agents wanting to sign him up.
If McCoy has a big year this year as we all expect he is gone. As a result Pitt will recruit one running back and maybe two.
One more report from the Nike Camp
Recently the coaches that conduct the Nike Camps for Student Sports put a few of their thoughts on paper. We thought we would share what they had to say in a recent article published by Student Sports about a few players that Pitt has been recruiting.
The crop of 'backers’ at Penn State was the best we've seen at any camp this year. So it was especially impressive that Pittsburgh (Pa.) Penn Hills' Dan Mason walked home with MVP honors. Mason looked great at the same camp a year ago but was even better this year. He's extremely physical and assertive in everything he does. He is poised beyond his years, is a great kid and takes to coaching as good as anyone we've seen. He's physical, runs very well, is tough, and a great leader. Mason is the kind of kid you never have to worry about rain or shine and he's going to compete as hard as he can every day.
Had he come to play all camp long, Monroeville (Pa.) Gateway's Dorian Bell would have been the MVP for this position. In fact, Bell might be the best linebacker we've seen this year and his play in the 1-on-1s was incredible. What held him back was early in the camp, he seemed to coast a little and not to take to coaching like some of the other players. As the day went on, he turned it up a notch and no one at this camp has more upside at the next level than Bell. He was the best guy we've seen this year in the 1-on-1s and his play seemed to inspire everyone else around him. He plays with a swagger to him and is one of the few players we've seen this year who has the ability to hit the switch and take his game to a new level. If he continues to work hard and hungers to be as good as he can be, Bell will be an All-American in college. Committed to Ohio State.
Monroeville (Pa.) Gateway DB Corey Brown can do it all. The 6-0 ½, 180 pounder has long arms and a good muscular/lean frame. Is very athletic and fluid and at times things looks effortless for him. Displayed a high football IQ and is good character kid. Plays both ways and even took some WR reps at the camp. He has quick feet and nice hips and has great instincts and knows how to play the ball. One of the best DB's we've seen on tour.
Abdul Smith ? 6-0, 182, Collegeville (Pa.) Perkiomen Valley
Athlete who has gifts and is learning to cover after playing QB last year.
Cory King ? 6-4.5, 317, Stoneboro (Pa.) Lakeview
Moved feet well during pass protection, could be more flexible in the hips.
Adam Gress ? 6-7, 294, West Mifflin (Pa.)
Aggressive, has great size and moves well for a big man.
John Wetzel ? 6-7, 266, Pittsburgh (Pa.) Brashear
Another big guy with good athleticism who is raw technically.
Sarafino Caliguire ? 6-1.5, 283, McKees Rocks (Pa.) Montour
Moved feet well and did a great job inside in 1-on-1s, a good center prospect.
Brock DeCicco ? 6-4.5, 220, Jefferson Hills (Pa.) Thomas Jefferson
Good looking tight end with frame to be a physical presence in college.
Jaleel Clark ? 6-4, 202, Allentown (Pa.) Parkland
Another jumbo WR who used his size very well and is a great red zone threat.
Adidas Camp at the UPMC complex
Last Sunday Recruits Unlimited hosted the adidas Camp at the UPMC complex for approximately 200 athletes. Many of the top prospects were not there but Gateway’s Corey Brown worked out again. Several of the players listed below that do not have offers were also there. We hope you caught Tony Greco’s report. If you missed it you can find it on the Ticker or better yet under Latest Headlines.
Recruiting round up
In Coach Wannstedt’s first three years the staff often pushed for a couple of early commits to create some buzz. This year they did not and as a result Pitt has been shut out early in the process.
A reporter once did a study which suggested some of the early recruits were not necessarily the best players. Last year for example Pitt got an early commitment from Chris Hayden-Martin from Greensburg Central Catholic. He did not have a big senior season and after suffering a knee injury ended up at Boston College.
There are several factors at work this year. I think it is safe to say Pitt has not gotten a big bounce from the win over West Virginia last fall and they fact that Pitt has five new coaches out recruiting does not help.
This also looks like a bit of a down year in Pennsylvania and to make things worse several of the top players in the state simply have shown little interest in Pitt from the very beginning of the process. You could put Dorian Bell, Tom Savage, Je’Ron Stokes and Jordan Hall into that category.
The new rule change prohibiting the head coach from leaving campus during the spring Evaluation Period certainly did not help. The past few years Coach Wannstedt worked tirelessly recruiting at this time of year.
Pitt will sign several players from PA but they are pounding New Jersey, Florida and the Baltimore-Washington corridor hard because they will have to supplement this class with a few out of state players.
Coach Wannstedt knows how to recruit and he knows the importance of it. He has been quoted a number of times as saying if an assistant coach is not the offense or defensive coordinator he better be able to recruit. Some of the turnover the past few years was because some did not recruit well.
Pitt has a small senior class and will have a small recruiting Class for 2009. I am not sure how many at this point but 16 might be a working number.
Here is a list of Pennsylvania players that Pitt has offered and appears still to be in the mix with:
Jaleel Clark WR Parkland
Corey Brown DB Gateway
Brock DeCicco TE Thomas Jefferson
Tyrone Ezell DL Steel Valley
A.J. Fenton Erie McDowell
Jordan Hill DL Steelton-Highspire
Juantez Hollins DT Aliquippa
Corey King OL Lakeview
Jack Lippert DE Central Dauphin
Dan Mason LB Penn Hills
Terry Patrick DB Aliquippa
Abdul Smith DB Perkiomen School
Todd Thomas WR Beaver Falls
Early in the process Gateway’s Corey Brown looked like a Pitt lean. As the number of offers have piled up and it has gotten more complicated. Ohio State and Michigan and could be leaders although the folks on the Southside have not given up.
It might be best for Pitt if Corey Brown and Todd Thomas waited to make a decision.
There is another group of prospects that may have to camp at Pitt to get an offer. I would not be surprised if Pitt offered a couple of these players and eventually signed them.
D.J. Barney Ath Eire Strong Vincent
Serafino Calguire OL Montour
Pat Eger OL Thomas Jefferson
Adam Gress OL West Mifflin
Jordan Smith Ath Steelton-Highspire
John Wetzel OL Brashear
So far the only PA player that has committed so far that I thought Pitt had a good shot at was tight end Paul Carrezola from Neshaminy. In the end geography may have played a part. His high school is less than 90 minutes from the Rutgers campus and almost six hours from the Pitt campus.
It is far too early to handicap out of state players. In most cases you simply hope they hold off making any decisions until they have had a chance to visit Pitt. Here are a few players that Pitt should be in the mix for:
DeOnte Arnett DE Forestville, MD
Shane Gordon LB Cypress Bay, FL
Bret Gunn Ath Kiski Area
Duron Harmon Ath Delaware
Isaac Holmes DT Hoboken, NJ
Jamal Merrell DE Newark, DE
Jamil Merrell LB Newark, DE
Khalil Wilkes OL St Peter’s Prep, NJ
My guess is that Pitt will have a half dozen commitments by the time fall camp starts in August. It may be best to wait and win on the football field this fall before they get commits from the rest. Winning will take you a long way with some of these recruits. This class may not have the star power of the past three years but at this point I am not worried about Coach Wannstedt putting together another solid class.
Have fun over the Memorial Day weekend and be safe.
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.
