You know, the one thing that makes me smile in the whole recruiting bit is how nearly every kid who commits says the same thing.

…Street said. “I love the coaches, and it’s all about family there. I can see myself playing as a freshman. Everything just fell into place.”

[Emphasis added.]

I know a lot of that has to do with the confidence in their own ability. Then there’s the recruiting and hearing what they want to hear.

Still, just take a look at the roster some time and look for the asterisk by “class” in the spring football guide (PDF, p. 40) to see just how many freshmen and sophomores at Pitt have had a redshirt. This is not a bad thing for the team, but it is a bit of a disconnect between beliefs/expectations and reality.

Meanwhile Brock DeCicco may be slowing down his decisionmaking. His top choices haven’t changed — Pitt, Iowa, Florida, Wisconsin and Illinois — but the times when he was planning to take a couple visits this summer have.

DeCicco was scheduled to visit Illinois this past weekend but he didn’t go because of a family friend’s death. He says he will visit Wisconsin at the end of July and most likely reschedule his trip to Illinois. While Pitt is still the heavy favorite as the local school and his older brother is a sophomore on the team, the TE has options.

Meanwhile Redshirt Freshman Fullback Henry Hynoski had a piece in his local paper to see how he was fairing.

“I’m out here (Pittsburgh) living with five of my teammates,” said Hynoski, the 2006 AP Class A Player of the Year, by phone this week. “I have classes twice a week, and we have workouts Monday, Wednesday and Friday.”

Hynoski, a fullback, said the workouts, despite the fact that they are summer practices, are pretty tough.

“We’re in a high intensity period right now,” he said. “We’re trying to get in the best shape possible before camp starts. We’ve been doing a lot of lifting and running, and just trying to be stronger overall.”

…

I’m pretty much at the weight I was at in high school, but I’ve lost a lot of fat and put on more muscle. I feel stronger. My weightlifting maxes went up tremendously. I am going to try to lose five pounds by camp.”

Both players are looking at backup jobs entering the season. Hynoski is listed as the Panthers’ No. 2 fullback, and Marks is listed as backup right guard for the Nittany Lions.

“Our starting fullback, Condredge Collins, is great,” Hynoski said. “Just about everybody has him listed as a number one pick in the draft right now. But we have a lot of rotations in the backfield. Our fullbacks and tailbacks take a beating, so even a second team guy will be called on once in a while. Once he graduates things look better for me.”

Obviously, Hynoski knows the reality right now. Barring an injury to Collins, Hynoski might get no more than 10 carries in 2008. Collins only had 33 in 2007. With McCoy, Stephens-Howling and Harris or Collier; touches in the backfield will be tough to distribute.