Well, it isn’t just college football that is almost ready to start. High school football is closing fast, and that means stories on teams and their top players.

Hopewell’s Ryan Turnley — an offensive tackle — committed to Pitt a while ago, gets a nice story.

“I’m very excited about it,” he said. “They’ve always been my favorite team. I was waiting for them the whole time, even though I was pretty close to committing to Louisville or Maryland.”

Akron, Georgia Tech and Wisconsin also had been vying for Turnley’s services when he decided in June to make Pitt his choice.

Another offensive lineman, Rob Gumbita of Mt. Pleasant hasn’t been offered by Pitt at this poin, but has received interest.

Football is also fun for Gumbita, who said he enjoys taking the field on game nights and being the center of attention.

“I like the big stage,” he said.

So far, that stage has been good to him. As one of Mt. Pleasant’s top linemen, Gumbita has garnered interest from several colleges, including Rutgers, Buffalo, Maryland, West Virginia, Pitt and Penn State.

“I’m just going to wait and see what happens with that,” he said.

He has a 2-star rank (Rivals.com) and 1-star (Scout.com) but does have offers from Buffalo and Maryland. Judging by the interest around him, I’m guessing he’s a project with potential.

Out in Muhlenburg, a couple members of the team are Pitt targets.

The Muhls return two of the top players in the league, led by game-breaking receiver and defensive back Vaughn Carraway. The speedster has received serious looks from Michigan, West Virginia, Pitt, Syracuse and Connecticut.

Linebacker Jeremy Rodriguez anchors the defense. Georgia Tech, Pitt, Syracuse and Villanova are recruiting him heavily.

I know Pitt wants to get Carraway. Not sure quite how hard they are actually recruiting Rodriguez. He’s only listed as 1-star on Scout.com — and no offers on his page. He didn’t even turn-up in Rivals.com either under the linebacker lists or just searching the database. Have to keep an eye on that.