Pitt head coach Paul Chryst described his class as being strong in quality, not quantity after the 16 student athletes signed with the Panthers on Wednesday, College National Letter of Intent day.
"Players are your lifeblood and we’re excited to introduce 16 players into the Pitt program," Cyryst said from the team's South Side practice facility conference room. "There’s not one guy we're not excited they're here. We hope this is the start of another great chapter in their life."
Six of the 16 players hail from Western Pennsylvania including 6-1, 210 running back Rushel Shell from Hopewell in Aliquippa, the same school Tony Dorsett attended. Shell was one of the best running backs in the country as he broke the state of Pennsylvania's rushing record with 9,078 yards.
One day his fellow recruit, 6-6, 275 offensive lineman Adam Bisnowaty from Fox Chapel should be blocking for him.
Another highly-touted recruit, 6-4, 230 tight end J.P. Holtz from Shaler, originally verbally committed to Penn State but rescinded his decision after the scandal hit State College.
Sto-Rox safety, 6-2, 200 Deaysean Rippy was considering West Virginia among other schools but chose the Panthers at the last minute.
Trenton Coles, the 6-3, 175 defensive back from Clairton also chose the Panthers and 6-0, 205 linebacker Mike Caprara from Woodland Hills rounded out the Western Pennsylvania contingent.
Chad Voytik, the 6-1, 185 quarterback from Cleveland, Tenn. is one of the most-heralded recruits in the class and is expected to be able to contribute sooner rather than later as returning starter Tino Sunseri only has one year of eligibility left.
Twin brothers, 5-9, 185 Chris and 5-10 185 Demitrious Davis, both wide receivers from Austintown Fitch in Ohio, are expected to contribute on offense and special teams.
Devon Porchia, a 6-2, 200 linebacker from Parkville, Md. and 5-11, 170 defensive back Jahmahl Pardner from Rochester, N.Y. are among the recruits from Pitt's previous coaching staff.
Gabe Roberts, a 6-5, 295 offensive lineman from New London, Wisconsin, was recruited by Chryst when he was at Wisconsin.
Defensive lineman Darryl Render, 6-2, 255 from St. Edward in Ohio is one of five recruits from the Buckeye State. Defensive lineman Terrell Jackson, 6-3, 285 hails from Columbus and 6-2, 200 safety Bam Bradley, who is current Panther linebacker Nicholas Grigsby's younger brother, is from Trotwood, Ohio.
Rounding out the class is Ryan Lewis, a 6-0, 185 defensive back from Sammamish, Wash. He is the nephew of former Panther and Steeler coach Tim Lewis and cousin of former Panther linebacker Tristan Roberts.
"To sum up this group of guys, their football players," Chryst said. "They've all won a lot of games, and we feel they can be significant contributors as we move on."
for further information: Pitt website
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