The contact period is underway, and that means the Pitt coaches are on the road for in-school and in-home visits. Here's a look at where they'll be and who they'll be seeing this week.
- First, let's refresh on the contact period. During the contact period, college coaches can conduct in-person, off-campus visits with recruits. That second part - "off-campus" - is the key difference between the contact period and the quiet period; during the quiet period, in-person contact is only permitted on campus.
So during the contact period, coaches can go into the schools and visit with the recruits - as well as the recruits' coaches, teachers, guidance counselors, etc. - watch them practice football or basketball and also visit the recruits at their homes. You get a full day for the visit, so a coach could go into a school in the morning and visit the recruit's home that evening and it would still count as one visit.
- The current contact period runs through Saturday, Dec. 12. Then there is a one-day quiet period on Sunday, Dec. 13 - which allows for the final day of official visits that weekend - before a dead period (no in-person contact is permitted) begins on Monday, Dec. 14, and runs through Wednesday, Jan. 13. Then there is another contact period from Thursday, Jan. 14, through Saturday, Jan. 30. There's a one-day quiet period on Sunday, Jan. 31, and then a dead period through Signing Day on Wednesday, Feb. 3.
So here's the calendar:
Nov. 29-Dec. 12 - Contact period
Dec. 13 - Quiet period
Dec. 14-Jan. 12 - Dead period
Jan. 13-30 - Contact period
Jan. 31 - Quiet period
Feb. 1-4 - Dead period
- Each staff gets one visit per recruit per week in the contact period, so that means there are opportunities for a maximum of five visits with each recruit (two in the first contact period and possibly three in the second contact period). The other caveat is that head coaches can only visit with each recruit once, so there is some strategy involved in when the head coach goes on the road.
- That leads us into Pitt and Pat Narduzzi, who will be on the road in the early part of the week. On Monday, Narduzzi will be in Virginia to visit with defensive end Patrick Jones. The reasons for Narduzzi using his visit with Jones so early are two-fold: Jones plans to enroll in January and will announce his commitment on Wednesday, so the timeframe on Jones' recruitment - both officially (his early enrollment) and unofficially (his impending commitment) - has impacted Narduzzi's visit schedule.
Jones took an official visit to Pitt two weeks ago and spoke highly of it; that visit was his second official, following a trip to Virginia Tech in October. He had planned to visit N.C. State as well but canceled that visit and will commit to either the Panthers or the Hokies. Virginia Tech officially hired Justin Fuente from Memphis over the weekend, so the Hokies will have a coach, but it remains to be seen if Fuente will target Jones or if there will be enough time to secure his commitment.
As such, things seem to be pointing in Pitt's direction here, and Narduzzi will attempt to make a final push on Monday.
- Meanwhile, most - but not all - of Narduzzi's staff will be local on Monday. Pitt will have a trio of assistants at Central Catholic, with defensive coordinator Josh Conklin, linebackers coach Rob Harley and cornerbacks coach Renaldo Hill heading down Fifth Avenue. The targets at Central are obvious: four-star CB Damar Hamlin and Pitt commits Bricen Garner and Rashad Wheeler (in addition to a number of underclassmen, although they can't have contact with the coaches during these visits).
Hamlin remains one of Pitt's top uncommitted targets, and he has shown plenty of interest in the Panthers, visiting multiple times over the summer and attending five of Pitt's six home games this season. He'll take an official visit to Pitt in addition to visits to Ohio State and Penn State (he already visited Notre Dame). Hamlin hasn't scheduled the Pitt visit yet, but the weekend of Dec. 11 is one possibility, although that will depend on whether Central Catholic advances to the state semi-finals and whether the semi-final game is held on Friday, Dec. 11, or Saturday, Dec. 12.
- Sticking in WPIAL AAAA football, Pitt coaches will be at Woodland Hills on Monday, too. There are a few interesting targets there, but the biggest one is Miles Sanders, the four-star running back who is committed to Penn State. Sanders attended three Pitt games this season and will take an official visit, so while he has maintained - and, at times, reiterated - his commitment, Sanders' interest in the Panthers is sincere.
In addition to Sanders, the Pitt coaches who visit Woodland Hills will be checking on Amon Baldwin-Youngblood, a big offensive lineman who has drawn a good deal of interest from the staff. He's one to keep an eye on.
- Not all of the Pitt assistants will be local on Monday. Offensive line coach John Peterson will be in Florida to visit with North Marion lineman Zack Williams. Williams will be taking his official visit to Pitt next weekend and will most likely choose Pitt or West Virginia after taking an official visit to Morgantown at some point in January.
- On Tuesday, Narduzzi will stay on the road and head to North Carolina for a visit with Pitt's newest commit, South Mecklenburg defensive end Zack Gilbert. Like Patrick Jones, Gilbert is enrolling early, so Narduzzi is getting his one allowed visit with the Pitt legacy in the first week.
- Conklin will also head south after spending Monday in western Pa. The defensive coordinator has recruiting territories in eastern Pa. and New Jersey, but he also has an area in Florida, and that's where he'll be on Tuesday. He'll be seeing a number of recruits, but one he'll visit Tuesday is Orlando Oak Ridge athlete Tyrek Tisdale. Tisdale decommitted from Florida in October and has had "here and there" contact with Pitt, but the visit indicates at least some interest.
On Wednesday, Conklin and Hill will visit Kissimmee (Fla.) Gateway cornerback Henry Miller, who is still considering an official visit to Pitt.
Continued in the next post...
- First, let's refresh on the contact period. During the contact period, college coaches can conduct in-person, off-campus visits with recruits. That second part - "off-campus" - is the key difference between the contact period and the quiet period; during the quiet period, in-person contact is only permitted on campus.
So during the contact period, coaches can go into the schools and visit with the recruits - as well as the recruits' coaches, teachers, guidance counselors, etc. - watch them practice football or basketball and also visit the recruits at their homes. You get a full day for the visit, so a coach could go into a school in the morning and visit the recruit's home that evening and it would still count as one visit.
- The current contact period runs through Saturday, Dec. 12. Then there is a one-day quiet period on Sunday, Dec. 13 - which allows for the final day of official visits that weekend - before a dead period (no in-person contact is permitted) begins on Monday, Dec. 14, and runs through Wednesday, Jan. 13. Then there is another contact period from Thursday, Jan. 14, through Saturday, Jan. 30. There's a one-day quiet period on Sunday, Jan. 31, and then a dead period through Signing Day on Wednesday, Feb. 3.
So here's the calendar:
Nov. 29-Dec. 12 - Contact period
Dec. 13 - Quiet period
Dec. 14-Jan. 12 - Dead period
Jan. 13-30 - Contact period
Jan. 31 - Quiet period
Feb. 1-4 - Dead period
- Each staff gets one visit per recruit per week in the contact period, so that means there are opportunities for a maximum of five visits with each recruit (two in the first contact period and possibly three in the second contact period). The other caveat is that head coaches can only visit with each recruit once, so there is some strategy involved in when the head coach goes on the road.
- That leads us into Pitt and Pat Narduzzi, who will be on the road in the early part of the week. On Monday, Narduzzi will be in Virginia to visit with defensive end Patrick Jones. The reasons for Narduzzi using his visit with Jones so early are two-fold: Jones plans to enroll in January and will announce his commitment on Wednesday, so the timeframe on Jones' recruitment - both officially (his early enrollment) and unofficially (his impending commitment) - has impacted Narduzzi's visit schedule.
Jones took an official visit to Pitt two weeks ago and spoke highly of it; that visit was his second official, following a trip to Virginia Tech in October. He had planned to visit N.C. State as well but canceled that visit and will commit to either the Panthers or the Hokies. Virginia Tech officially hired Justin Fuente from Memphis over the weekend, so the Hokies will have a coach, but it remains to be seen if Fuente will target Jones or if there will be enough time to secure his commitment.
As such, things seem to be pointing in Pitt's direction here, and Narduzzi will attempt to make a final push on Monday.
- Meanwhile, most - but not all - of Narduzzi's staff will be local on Monday. Pitt will have a trio of assistants at Central Catholic, with defensive coordinator Josh Conklin, linebackers coach Rob Harley and cornerbacks coach Renaldo Hill heading down Fifth Avenue. The targets at Central are obvious: four-star CB Damar Hamlin and Pitt commits Bricen Garner and Rashad Wheeler (in addition to a number of underclassmen, although they can't have contact with the coaches during these visits).
Hamlin remains one of Pitt's top uncommitted targets, and he has shown plenty of interest in the Panthers, visiting multiple times over the summer and attending five of Pitt's six home games this season. He'll take an official visit to Pitt in addition to visits to Ohio State and Penn State (he already visited Notre Dame). Hamlin hasn't scheduled the Pitt visit yet, but the weekend of Dec. 11 is one possibility, although that will depend on whether Central Catholic advances to the state semi-finals and whether the semi-final game is held on Friday, Dec. 11, or Saturday, Dec. 12.
- Sticking in WPIAL AAAA football, Pitt coaches will be at Woodland Hills on Monday, too. There are a few interesting targets there, but the biggest one is Miles Sanders, the four-star running back who is committed to Penn State. Sanders attended three Pitt games this season and will take an official visit, so while he has maintained - and, at times, reiterated - his commitment, Sanders' interest in the Panthers is sincere.
In addition to Sanders, the Pitt coaches who visit Woodland Hills will be checking on Amon Baldwin-Youngblood, a big offensive lineman who has drawn a good deal of interest from the staff. He's one to keep an eye on.
- Not all of the Pitt assistants will be local on Monday. Offensive line coach John Peterson will be in Florida to visit with North Marion lineman Zack Williams. Williams will be taking his official visit to Pitt next weekend and will most likely choose Pitt or West Virginia after taking an official visit to Morgantown at some point in January.
- On Tuesday, Narduzzi will stay on the road and head to North Carolina for a visit with Pitt's newest commit, South Mecklenburg defensive end Zack Gilbert. Like Patrick Jones, Gilbert is enrolling early, so Narduzzi is getting his one allowed visit with the Pitt legacy in the first week.
- Conklin will also head south after spending Monday in western Pa. The defensive coordinator has recruiting territories in eastern Pa. and New Jersey, but he also has an area in Florida, and that's where he'll be on Tuesday. He'll be seeing a number of recruits, but one he'll visit Tuesday is Orlando Oak Ridge athlete Tyrek Tisdale. Tisdale decommitted from Florida in October and has had "here and there" contact with Pitt, but the visit indicates at least some interest.
On Wednesday, Conklin and Hill will visit Kissimmee (Fla.) Gateway cornerback Henry Miller, who is still considering an official visit to Pitt.
Continued in the next post...
