The second annual Pittsburgh Jam Fest seemed to have attracted a number of top players, not to mention just about every Big East coach was there to watch. This is as much about recruiting for 2009 and 2010, as it is for 2008. I get dizzy thinking about it and feeling a little creepy when I stop and think that this is about evaluating 14 to 16 year-old kids.
The nation’s top football prospect Terrelle Pryor will switch gears and play for the hometown Pittsburgh JOTS in the Steel City Division. Other local stars include Aliquippa two-sport star Jonathan Baldwin and area guard Brian Walsh. Nasir Robinson, a Pitt commitment, will be a welcomed guest to the Panther faithful this weekend. He was outstanding at the Boo Williams Invitational.Other notable players in the field include Florida teammates Kenny Boynton, a 2009 five-star guard, and Eloy Vargas, a top Pitt target.
The Friday report mentions Jonathon Baldwin having a good night. Baldwin appears to have Pitt in the overall mix for football/basketball.
Another Pitt target, Sarmando Samuels had a good Saturday.
Samuels has been outstanding all spring, as you’d expect from a player in the top 10 in the nation. His hands and power are his best strengths. This season is all about progression and the Jamaican is on the fast track to instant impact status as a college freshman.
It was a who’s who coaching crowd at Samuels’s games. Norm Roberts of St. John’s and Jamie Dixon of Pittsburgh watched the big man in the afternoon action while assistant coaches from Florida, Texas, North Carolina and Rutgers were all front and center for his games on Saturday. John Thomson, III and Jay Wright also took peeks. Samuels said he’s “just enjoying the experience” of being recruited. He never seems to really tip his hand about his next recruiting move.
A power forward on the Providence team, by the name of Kevin Jones, listed Pitt as one of the teams offering him. Apparently Pitt was scouting further into the future, a kid from Georgia by the name of Tony Mitchell.
Pitt target Eloy Vargas is getting a good look at one of his top suitors this weekend. The big man is also playing well in the Steel City. He was good in a blowout win on Saturday afternoon and gave Jamie Dixon something to smile about. Miami, Tennessee, Kentucky, Florida, Maryland and NC State all took a good look at the Miami area star.
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Playing on his future home court, Travon Woodall had to impress the Panther fans that came out to see him play. He was aggressive on the defensive end of the floor frustrated those that lined up against him. The 6-foot-1 guard used his quick hands to spark the transition offense and opened the floor up with steals that turned into lay-ups.
On the Sunday report, a couple members of the incoming freshman class at Pitt looked good.
Pittsburgh fans had plenty to smile about this weekend. 2007 signees Dejuan Blair and Bradley Wannamaker both played in the event and both players got it done. Blair is his usual tough guy self, bullying teams around for blue collar points and man sized rebounds. Wannamaker was really good, leading his Positive Image team deep into the championship bracket. He’ll be a fine player for the Panthers and fit right into to their style of play.
Vargas got special mention last week in the Trib.
Vargas, who plays for Team Breakdown (Fla.), is one of the Pitt’s leading recruiting priorities from the Class of 2008. Ranked among the nation’s top 20 junior power forwards, Vargas has nearly a dozen Division I offers from Big East, Atlantic Coast Conference and Big 12 schools.
“Miami, Florida, Florida State, Clemson, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Maryland,” Vargas said Wednesday with a heavy Spanish accent. “They have called me.”
Pitt, with one scholarship remaining for the Class of 2008, is considered the leader for Vargas’ services based on an early start in the recruiting battle and a close relationship with Antigua, who speaks fluent Spanish and hails from the same region of the Dominican Republic.
Vargas moved from the Dominican Republic to Florida two years ago. His stock soared after eye-opening efforts in the AAU circuit last summer and then a high school season in which he averaged 21 points, 14 rebounds and four blocked shots for American Heritage, a Class AA-sized school outside Fort Lauderdale, Fla. He also added 20 pounds of muscle to his frame.
“Pitt has been there from the very beginning,” said coach Kenny Gillion of Team Breakdown, which opens with Positive Image at 6:30 p.m. Friday at Petersen Events Center. “They have recruited him the hardest, and Eloy is looking favorably upon them. He can tell the schools that are putting forth the effort.”
We’ll see. I’m hoping Pitt lands him. With Pitt’s de-emphasis on NYC at the moment, Orlando Antigua hasn’t had as much of an impact in recruiting yet.
