Sorry for the lengthy silence. Drive back from the family visit in Lebanon. Oddest thing. Listening to Pittsburgh sportstalk both on Friday and today during part of the drive, all I heard was talk about this Steelers-Colts playoff game. Not one damn word about Pitt. I just don’t get it.
A new verbal for Pitt, Tamarcus Porter. This information from Pittsburgh Sports Report e-mail update.
Porter, 6’1″ and 170-pounds, can play wide receiver, cornerback or free safety at the next level. He chose Pitt over Boston College, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Virginia, Maryland and a host of others. Porter is the fourth Floridian in Pitt’s current recruiting class and will join Pahokee teammate Ricky Gary in the Panthers’ class of 2006.
Porter is classified on some recruiting sites as “athlete.” A top-50 athlete in Florida. The last couple of years have demonstrated the value of speed and “athletes” if used properly. Both Rivals.com and Scout.com list him only as a 3-star recruit, yet he held offers from lots of “name” programs, suggesting that he might be raw, but with lots of potential. If you are looking for optimism, ESPN’s Scout’s Inc. (Insider Subs.) is higher on him, giving him a 6.9 on their 9 point scale (Ricky Gary and Kevin Collier both get 6.9).
Porter is a playmaker every time he touches the football on both offense and defense. He is so fun to watch because his ability to make people miss is uncanny and he is a “ballhawk” as a free safety which is where we believe he will end up in college. One of the better overall athletes in this class with great flexible hips and fluid movements. He possesses an excellent feel for the game, has natural football instincts and always seems to be around the football. Has good size and strength. Plays with a great motor. Flies around the field and shows very good aggressiveness in run support. Has good short area quickness and burst when coming forward. Has good balance and body control. Takes solid angles in pursuit, sifts through traffic smoothly and is a sound and consistent tackler. Shows great range and could match up versus the slot if need be. Certainly has the tools to matchup with tight ends and backs in man coverage. The problem with Porter is that he lacks elite top-end speed. If he was faster he would be receiving national recognition as a recruit and would also be just as viable a recruit as a receiver as he is a safety. However, this guy is a football player with burst and explosiveness and his playmaking skills compensate for his lack of ideal speed.
They rank him as the 24th best Safety in the country. At only 170 pounds, he will be getting bigger, stronger and faster. I suspect the keyword is “upside.”
Meanwhile, the jewel of Pitt’s recruiting class receives a nice award and Pitt’s past is there to give it to him.
Dorin Dickerson didn’t know what to expect of the Pittsburgh Athletic Association Mercury Award banquet, so the West Allegheny star was surprised Friday night when Tony Dorsett took him aside to give him some advice.
Dickerson, a Pitt recruit, became the fifth recipient of the PAA’s Mercury Award, sponsored by the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and presented annually to the top high school football player in Western Pennsylvania.
“It shocked me at first when I walked in. This is a really big award,” said Dickerson, who was presented the trophy by Dorsett and Bill Fralic. “I’m excited I got to share it with the greatest players to come out of Pitt.”
About 2 weeks to NLI day.
