A verbal commit is always a little special when it is clear how enthusiastic the kid is to want to come to Pitt. Mike Cruz definitely made it clear.
“Pitt’s been my dream school,” Cruz said. “It’s always been my favorite school.
“My head football coach (Ken Salem) told me to wait a little longer, but I couldn’t wait anymore. I wanted to make it official and let everyone know Pitt was it for me.”
He’s one of the top TE prospects, and also appears to have quite the tolerance for pain. He tore the ACL and MCL in his left knee last year and played 3 more games after that. Not necessarily the smartest decision, but damn tough.
That’s what makes the comment from his high school coach so, um, amusing.
“He has been rehabbing his ACL since the beginning of December,†Salem said. “We are trying to be very careful with him. We will be working to try to enhance his speed over the summer. The sky’s the limit for him.â€
Careful in the rehab only, apparently.
Given the depth and stockpiling of talent at TE, I don’t think Pitt will be taking anymore at that position unless it is with the idea of moving them somewhere else.
For those who paid attention to 05-’06 recruiting, test my reality on this one because to me, these kids seem to have materialized from nowhere, just sorta crawled out the woodwork committed panthers headed to campus this very instant.
When Pitt lands top local talent with terrific attitude, I’m happy. Not disappointed, either, by tossing scholarships to D Lineman…even if I don’t know Wayne Jones from the next guy.
I’m a little miffed about what appears (IMO) an arbitrary offer to yet another cornerback/ receiver type (Antwuan Reed). I can’t justify it unless he’s a can’t-miss prospect. As it stands, the offense doesn’t lack for young receivers and, the D’s not yet overdue for fresh deposits of undeveloped talent at CB. (Sh*t, ’06 selections intended for the Pitt secondary were not small in number, nor were they “under-recruited†or won without contest.)
The debate about moving recruits to different positions can go on and on, but the good programs do it as a matter of course, so I’m not surprised at DW’s doing it now.
The same could have been said before the signing of Cruz. But I guess it never hurts to have good players, particularly when they are that excited to come to Pitt.