Sorry, in my mind I had no choice.

A former City League player, Ed Tinker has decided to commit to Pitt. Tinker has spent the year in prep school in North Carolina. As a 2008 recruit he was a 3-star prospect. The evaluations are still from that time (Insider subs).

Tinker is a monster of a physical specimen, and while he is raw and rough around the edges, he has the tools to develop into a very good college wide receiver. He is tall with a thick, sturdy build. He has long arms. He has a wide catch radius and flashes the ability to snatch the ball outside his frame. He does not show blazing speed, but he is a long strider who can get vertical. He shows very good leaping ability to go up to play that ball at its highest point. He has the potential to develop into a very good red-zone target because of his height and arm length.

That’s right a project. And if we go back to the 2008 evaluations, Chris Dokish put him as #30 in the Commonwealth last year and someone who might be of use on the defense.

The top prospect in Pittsburgh’s City League. Solid at 6’1” and 190 pounds. Decent speed and good athleticism. Excellent hands. Can also project at safety or even grow into a linebacker down the road. Strong, fluid runner on offense and a rangy hitter on defense.

Last year, Pitt wasn’t one of his schools. He was looking at WVU, L-ville, MSU and Colorado.

On it’s face, in a year where Pitt only has a limited scholarships and a glut at WR this seemed like a head scratcher. Especially with the gaps especially at safety and linebacker. Thankfully few things truly disappear on the internet and the possibility that Tinker might be on defense at those need positions suddenly makes a bit more sense.