Pitt has held two official visit weekends and doubled its class of 2025 over that period. That’s six commitments, and who’s to say there may not be a few more additions over the next couple of weeks? Just because a commit leaves without committing doesn’t mean he’s a lost cause.
Pitt has 12 commitments. It isn’t a glamorous class, ranked 42nd by 247Sports and 45th by Rivals, but there are some pretty talented, sought-after recruits in the class. There’s just one four-star recruit, which is what the Panthers should strive for, but those shiny stars aren’t all that important.
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The lowly class of 2019 (57th-ranked by Rivals and 49th-ranked by 247Sports) produced a four-star in Matt Goncalves, who committed way before he was a four-star, but Brandon Hill, Calijah Kancey, Jared Wayne and A.J. Woods were lowly three-stars. SirVocea Dennis was a two-star.
That’s six NFL players in one class. That’s not bad. I wonder if it led to any team success…
Obviously, the Pitt coaching staff has shown the ability to evaluate talent. It’s not as if top-ranked talent is lining up to come check out the South Side facility. So, maybe we need to take a step back sometimes and evaluate the situation before it gets out of control.
It’s anyone’s guess as to what the vast majority of a recruiting class will turn out to be, 99% of those classes, really, but it’s a class that fits exactly what Pitt is looking for. And it’s kind of surprisingly so.
Here’s who has committed so far this month:
- Max Hunt— 2025 three-star tight end
- Ja’Kyrian Turner— 2025 three-star running back
- Julian Anderson— 2025 three-star defensive end
- Justin Thompson— 2025 three-star linebacker
- DaMarion Fowlkes— 2025 three-star wide receiver
- Akram Elnagmi — 2025 offensive tackle
It’s a group that, as I’ve mentioned, isn’t star-studded. It’s all three-star recruits. But there’s plenty of potential.
There’s one offensive lineman, and he’s the newest recruit — and PSN will have further content from not only him but his coaches in the NFL Academy. He’s a huge, long-armed tackle who started as a rugby player.
Akram Elnagmi is raw, but there’s a lot of potential when looking at his size, wingspan and athleticism. There’s a lot of work to be done, but he’s worth the risk when it comes to his physical tools.
Max Hunt, by all accounts, is more so a receiver than a tight end, but that’s what the game is today. He’s a long, lean 215 pounds and coming off a strong season in which he hauled in 36 receptions for 424 yards (11.8 yards per reception) and six touchdowns.
“(Tight ends coach Jacob Bronowski) just likes my athletic ability,” Hunt told PSN when he committed. “He wants a tight end that can stretch the field, go vertically, run every route in the route tree and catch the ball. Run routes against DBs and linebackers. A versatile guy, not necessarily an inline blocking type of tight end like it used to be. A dynamic type of athlete.”
Ja’Kyrian Turner is interesting. He was recruited by some schools as a wide receiver or defensive back, but his size and dynamic ability with the ball in his hands bodes well for his future as a running back.
“Coach Kade got a great offense, he knows how to get his players the ball, he knows how to move the ball down the field,” Turner told PSN when he committed. “He just knows what he’s doing with the ball offensive-wise. He said I can fit right in and come in and make a big impact.”
I mean, if you watch Turner’s film, the first four or five clips are him racing back through an opposing offense with the ball in his hands after forcing a turnover.Turner looks like a star. He’s a legitimate athlete.
Julian Anderson decided to trust in his ability to capitalize off a prep season, moving from Florida to New Jersey, and he looks like the type of long, lean defensive end who will pack on the pounds over his first year in Pittsburgh.
“They play fast and physical, and it’s not thinking too much, we’re gonna attack you and we’re gonna hit,” Anderson told PSN when he committed. “And you’re gonna have fun while you’re playing, that’s what this defense is about. It’s going full speed at all times.”
Justin Thompson is the type of versatile athlete that Pitt prioritizes. He’s a fit at any of the three linebacker spots in the defensive scheme.
“I feel like my game fits great in there,” Thompson told PSN when he committed. “I’m a really aggressive, downhill, sideline-to-sideline linebacker. They’re the most aggressive defense in the country, they blitz a lot, always sending six, had the most sacks, TFLs, they do what I like to do. How they run the defense is similar to how I do it in high school.”
In fact, I think Thompson is just the latest in a line of very talented linebackers to commit to Pitt over the last two and a half seasons — shoutout Ryan Manalac.
DaMarion Fowlkes looks like he might be the top offensive recruit in the class — and I’m very high on three-star quarterback commit Mason Heintschel.
“I see myself fitting really the same way Poppi (Williams) plays,” Fowlkes told PSN when he committed. “That slot, getting the ball in open space and just making plays.”
Kade Bell has a type when it comes to the wide receivers he’s recruiting, and Fowlkes fits that mold. He’s a shorter, faster wideout who can play inside and outside. And he’s destined for that slot role in the offensive scheme, a weapon to be utilized in open space. He’s certainly exciting.
Pitt will have a heavy dose of official visitors in town this week, closing out the final official visit weekend on a high note, but the class of 2025 was built on the foundation of some very intriguing recruits who committed over the last couple of weeks — or months.
