As far as I can tell, nothing has really changed with some of the guys we’ve been talking about - namely, transfer candidates Donovan McMillon and Derrick Davis.
I still expect Pitt to land McMillon. The former Peters Township standout who went to Florida for two seasons has been circled as a likely Pitt commit since he entered the transfer, and I think it’s just a matter of time.
Position-wise, McMillon fits well as a boundary safety in Pitt’s defense. He has experience in college and should be able to step in as a replacement for Brandon Hill, who is not expected to return for his redshirt senior season in 2023.
The Panthers actually have some talented young players at safety, with Javon McIntyre and Stephon Hall, in particular, penciled in at the boundary safety spot. But McMillon fits really well there and will give the secondary more depth, talent and experience. I think he’ll be a good add.
As for Davis, it really is about the Pitt staff deciding what to do with him. I don’t think they will take him as a defensive player; that’s not about his preference or anything like that - I think they just don’t projecting him as an ACC-level safety or linebacker. It’s pretty much running back or bust, from what I gather, so the coaches have to make some of the decisions we discussed yesterday:
Do they want a transfer running back? And do they believe he can play running back at an ACC level?
Like I’ve said, I would do it. I think he can hit some home runs if the blocking gives him an opening. And adding another older back to the room would help fill out the depth this season, when Pitt is projected to have two veterans and two freshmen.
We’ll see how things develop over the next few days, but I think that if Pitt gives Davis the green light, he’ll be a Panther.
Where has Narduzzi been?
As coaches hit the road for off-campus recruiting the last few weeks, there are a few rules guiding their travels.
For instance, each coaching staff can visit each recruit once per week. And the head coach can only have one total off-campus visit with each recruit.
Given that rule, it’s notable anytime Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi visits a recruit. So let’s run down where he has been over the last two weeks.
Narduzzi’s travels started on Friday, Dec. 2, with a trip to Washington, D.C., to see defensive tackle commit Isaiah Neal. Defensive line coach Charlie Partridge and running backs coach Andre Powell joined on that visit, and I think it was interesting that Narduzzi made Neal the first stop on his December tour.
A recently-minted four-star who emerged this fall as one of the top recruits in the class, Neal is a recruit who has the staff excited. He’s a playmaking defensive tackle, explosive and fast, and he’s got a really high ceiling.
- The next day, Narduzzi went to Virginia for one of the most important visits he made in December. Along with linebackers coach Ryan Manalac, Pitt’s head coach attended the state semifinals to watch linebacker commit Jordan Bass in action. Bass helped lead his team to a victory that day - as well as another one a week later for back-to-back state titles - and after the game, Narduzzi and Manalac spent the better part of the evening with Bass and his family.
Locking up Bass - as well as a few others - was a key step in securing the top end of this recruiting class. He’s arguably the top overall prospect in the group and a high-end outside linebacker who should be a great fit for Pitt’s defense. He had a number of schools chasing him, but Pitt seems to have him set to sign next Wednesday.
- On Sunday Dec. 4, Narduzzi and Manalac were local, heading out to Leechburg for an in-home visit with linebacker commit Braylan Lovelace. While Lovelace plays at a lower level in the WPIAL, he’s got athleticism and a frame that he should be able to fill out once he gets into a college strength program. He was a productive do-it-all player at Leechburg, though, rushing for 1,241 yards and 17 touchdowns with 9.8 yards per carry this season and adding four catches for 80 yards and another score on offense.
- Monday, Dec. 5, found Narduzzi meeting with receivers coach Tiquan Underwood to visit receiver commit Kenny Johnson. One of two receiver commits in the class, Johnson has slid under the radar since June, but I think he was a really good commit for the coaches to land and one of Underwood’s priorities after he got the Pitt job last offseason.
- The next day, Narduzzi and cornerbacks coach Archie Collins were in Georgia to visit offensive line commit BJ Williams. Pitt flipped Williams from Memphis after he took an official visit at the end of June, and he’s a three-star guard prospect. Williams plays left tackle for Creekside High School in Fairburn (Ga.), and I think if you recruit high school tackles to play guard, you’ve got a good chance of ending up with solid athleticism in the interior of your offensive line.
Williams looks like he can make that transition and bring some pretty good mobility - as well as plenty of physicality - to the guard position.
- Narduzzi came back north after the Williams visit for a pair of in-home visits with two commits from Ohio: linebacker Rasheem Biles and offensive lineman Ryan Carretta.
Biles fits the mold of recent Pitt linebacker commits: he’s an athletic player who lines up at safety for Pickerington Central on defense and also plays receiver and running back on offense. MaxPreps says he had two interceptions in his five games played this season, but his Hudl shows him picking off more than that; maybe some of them were called back. But he scored at least two pick-sixes, and when he bulks up a bit, he looks like he can be another big athlete playing outside linebacker with the physicality to defend the run and the athleticism to play in coverage.
Carretta is from Columbus, in the heart of Big Ten country, and he committed to Pitt right on the heels of an official visit to Michigan State. The Spartans were the Panthers’ top competition, and Pitt won that battle.
Carretta and Biles are both commits we should probably talk about more than we currently do.
- Narduzzi finished last week in Florida, as he and tight ends coach Tim Salem were in Apopka to visit offensive line commit Tai Ray. Apopka’s left tackle, Ray is big and athletic, and while he could ultimately end up as an athletic guard, I suspect he’ll stay at tackle in college.
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I still expect Pitt to land McMillon. The former Peters Township standout who went to Florida for two seasons has been circled as a likely Pitt commit since he entered the transfer, and I think it’s just a matter of time.
Position-wise, McMillon fits well as a boundary safety in Pitt’s defense. He has experience in college and should be able to step in as a replacement for Brandon Hill, who is not expected to return for his redshirt senior season in 2023.
The Panthers actually have some talented young players at safety, with Javon McIntyre and Stephon Hall, in particular, penciled in at the boundary safety spot. But McMillon fits really well there and will give the secondary more depth, talent and experience. I think he’ll be a good add.
As for Davis, it really is about the Pitt staff deciding what to do with him. I don’t think they will take him as a defensive player; that’s not about his preference or anything like that - I think they just don’t projecting him as an ACC-level safety or linebacker. It’s pretty much running back or bust, from what I gather, so the coaches have to make some of the decisions we discussed yesterday:
Do they want a transfer running back? And do they believe he can play running back at an ACC level?
Like I’ve said, I would do it. I think he can hit some home runs if the blocking gives him an opening. And adding another older back to the room would help fill out the depth this season, when Pitt is projected to have two veterans and two freshmen.
We’ll see how things develop over the next few days, but I think that if Pitt gives Davis the green light, he’ll be a Panther.
Where has Narduzzi been?
As coaches hit the road for off-campus recruiting the last few weeks, there are a few rules guiding their travels.
For instance, each coaching staff can visit each recruit once per week. And the head coach can only have one total off-campus visit with each recruit.
Given that rule, it’s notable anytime Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi visits a recruit. So let’s run down where he has been over the last two weeks.
Narduzzi’s travels started on Friday, Dec. 2, with a trip to Washington, D.C., to see defensive tackle commit Isaiah Neal. Defensive line coach Charlie Partridge and running backs coach Andre Powell joined on that visit, and I think it was interesting that Narduzzi made Neal the first stop on his December tour.
A recently-minted four-star who emerged this fall as one of the top recruits in the class, Neal is a recruit who has the staff excited. He’s a playmaking defensive tackle, explosive and fast, and he’s got a really high ceiling.
- The next day, Narduzzi went to Virginia for one of the most important visits he made in December. Along with linebackers coach Ryan Manalac, Pitt’s head coach attended the state semifinals to watch linebacker commit Jordan Bass in action. Bass helped lead his team to a victory that day - as well as another one a week later for back-to-back state titles - and after the game, Narduzzi and Manalac spent the better part of the evening with Bass and his family.
Locking up Bass - as well as a few others - was a key step in securing the top end of this recruiting class. He’s arguably the top overall prospect in the group and a high-end outside linebacker who should be a great fit for Pitt’s defense. He had a number of schools chasing him, but Pitt seems to have him set to sign next Wednesday.
- On Sunday Dec. 4, Narduzzi and Manalac were local, heading out to Leechburg for an in-home visit with linebacker commit Braylan Lovelace. While Lovelace plays at a lower level in the WPIAL, he’s got athleticism and a frame that he should be able to fill out once he gets into a college strength program. He was a productive do-it-all player at Leechburg, though, rushing for 1,241 yards and 17 touchdowns with 9.8 yards per carry this season and adding four catches for 80 yards and another score on offense.
- Monday, Dec. 5, found Narduzzi meeting with receivers coach Tiquan Underwood to visit receiver commit Kenny Johnson. One of two receiver commits in the class, Johnson has slid under the radar since June, but I think he was a really good commit for the coaches to land and one of Underwood’s priorities after he got the Pitt job last offseason.
- The next day, Narduzzi and cornerbacks coach Archie Collins were in Georgia to visit offensive line commit BJ Williams. Pitt flipped Williams from Memphis after he took an official visit at the end of June, and he’s a three-star guard prospect. Williams plays left tackle for Creekside High School in Fairburn (Ga.), and I think if you recruit high school tackles to play guard, you’ve got a good chance of ending up with solid athleticism in the interior of your offensive line.
Williams looks like he can make that transition and bring some pretty good mobility - as well as plenty of physicality - to the guard position.
- Narduzzi came back north after the Williams visit for a pair of in-home visits with two commits from Ohio: linebacker Rasheem Biles and offensive lineman Ryan Carretta.
Biles fits the mold of recent Pitt linebacker commits: he’s an athletic player who lines up at safety for Pickerington Central on defense and also plays receiver and running back on offense. MaxPreps says he had two interceptions in his five games played this season, but his Hudl shows him picking off more than that; maybe some of them were called back. But he scored at least two pick-sixes, and when he bulks up a bit, he looks like he can be another big athlete playing outside linebacker with the physicality to defend the run and the athleticism to play in coverage.
Carretta is from Columbus, in the heart of Big Ten country, and he committed to Pitt right on the heels of an official visit to Michigan State. The Spartans were the Panthers’ top competition, and Pitt won that battle.
Carretta and Biles are both commits we should probably talk about more than we currently do.
- Narduzzi finished last week in Florida, as he and tight ends coach Tim Salem were in Apopka to visit offensive line commit Tai Ray. Apopka’s left tackle, Ray is big and athletic, and while he could ultimately end up as an athletic guard, I suspect he’ll stay at tackle in college.
Continued...
