It’s been oh so long since one of these occurred that it almost seems stunning. Jeff Knox out of Maryland — though 2 years at Central Catholic and from Pittsburgh so that sort of counts as a local kid. It’s a bit confusing, but he has given a verbal to Pitt.
Knox is a solid 3-star athlete that plays safety on defense and WR on offense. He had plenty of offers including Penn State, Maryland, Michigan, Wake Forest, Illinois and others. Ultimately, he knows Pitt’s coaching staff and wanted to go home.
As for Knox, [DeMatha Coach Bill] McGregor said it was “like a dream” for the Pittsburgh native to go to his hometown school.
“He’s known the coaching staff at Pitt and I think that played a major role in where he wants to go to school,” McGregor said. “From Day One, that was his number one choice.”
That’s nice that some high-schoolers still want to play for Pitt. As Pitt hosts some summer camps in the next few weeks, there is an expecation of some more commits.
The unknown at this point is which side of the ball he will play in college. Scout.com lists him as a Safety. Rivals.com plays it safe with the general “athlete” designation. Scouts, Inc./ESPN.com considers him a better fit as a WR.
Even though he could play either side of the football, Knox is likely to end up on the offensive side of the football where his receiving talents can be maximized. He should also be a very effective special teams player.
Not sure what Knox’s preference is.
Considering the depth at WR versus S, I suspect that he might be tagged for safety. Hopefully, the coaching staff will not engage in too much shifting of the decision next year.
Here it is:
2. Penn State (Akron; Syracuse; Temple; E. Illinois) Quality point average: 2.5: Yes, this is the same exact rating as Ole Miss. PSU wins (or is it loses?) the tie-breaker because the Nittany Lions didn’t even schedule a road game and because Ole Miss at least is facing someone who went to a bowl game in the last three seasons. PSU has six of its first seven games at home and the closest thing to a formidable non-league opponent is Temple, which is 3-34-1 against the Lions and hasn’t knocked off Penn State since 1941. Akron also is an O.K. opponent, but still coming off a 5-7 season. It’s worth noting though that this is only the third time in 16 years since PSU arrived in the Big Ten that the Nittany Lions have scheduled an FCS opponent.
Pitt needs some quality offensive linemen recruits
link to pod08.prospero.com
We’ve had some of our best successes at kids who have been recruited after playing one position, and excelled at another while at PITT. Pinkston, Malecki, G. Williams this season for example, and I anticipate Shayne Hale thriving at DE – and Kinder, Ransom, etc in the past.
link to post-gazette.com
The kid made the best of that situation at another private school whose reputation here in MD is outstanding – academically as well as athletically – certainly on par with Central, has thrived in every way it seems, and wants to go back home and play ball… what part of that screams ‘problem child’ to you?
That said, if he has truly “cleaned up his act”, it will be a win-win for Knox and the Panthers.
Personally, I am just “fed up” at all the trouble athletes everywhere are getting into…maybe it’s just heavier media coverage, etc. It’s not just Pitt, it’s most college programs and the money hungry professional teams. It just frustrates me.
