The commits from New Jersey keep piling up. The latest, Defensive Tackle Marquise Wright.

Wright, a 6-foot-3, 270 pound defensive tackle from Paramus Catholic in New Jersey, had several other offers, most notably from from Florida State, Miami, Oklahoma, West Virginia, Maryland and Penn State. His final decision came down to Pitt, Maryland and Penn State.

Now here’s where the vagaries of recruiting rankings come in to play.

Scout.com has him as a 3-star recruit and the 21st best player at his position. Seems solid enough, and when you look a the list of teams pursuing him you have to figure that he is either due for a significant upgrade by the end of the summer or he has a lot of very raw potential.

ESPN.com/Scouts, Inc. also has him as a moderately good prospect with a score of 79 (Insider subs.).

He flashes some good raw athleticism, but can tend to get tall out of his stance and needs to keep better pad level to maximize his ability. As a pass rusher he can be active with his weapons, but needs to be sure to not attack the whole man. Wright is kid who could offer some versatility in where he is played on the defensive line. He has some good tools, but needs to work to be more consistent in areas. He is a prospect who shows good upside as a defensive lineman.

Then there is Rivals.com, which has him as a 4-star, but also the #2 prospect out of New Jersey. Naturally, since they have him ranked the highest, and Wright has committed to Pitt their rankings are most accurate in terms of Wright.

Worth noting on the Rivals.com list of top-30 NJ prospects, 4 of the top-14 (Wright #2, Bill Belton #6, Quinton Alston#10, and Gary Nova #14) have verballed to Pitt.

And to think in May, there was concern over when Pitt would get some verbals.

Newest Pitt verbal Lafayette Pitts may have been listed as an athlete or running back on recruiting sites, but Pitts makes no bones about where he wants to and likes to play.

Pitts made a verbal commitment to Pitt Satuday at its team passing camp, where he shined in showing off his coverage skills.

Pitt was the first to offer a scholarship to the 6-foot, 185-pounder, who picked the Panthers over Buffalo, Illinois, Iowa, Kent State, Maryland and West Virginia.

“I bring a little bit of toughness to the cornerback spot because I like to press,” Pitts said. “I want to stay close to home and they all feel like family here.”

Pitts played receiver and running back last season for the WPIAL Class AAAA champions, and also starred in the secondary and as a kick returner.

“He’s like the Energizer Bunny – he’s always on the go,” Woodland Hills coach George Novak said. “He can do a lot of things but he’s very natural at defensive back. He’s very competitive for the ball and a good tackler.”

No question Pitts is a solid player for Pitt and as a DB, fills a need spot. This is recruiting, though, and nothing ever occurs in a vacuum. Everyone wants to see whether this effects other players.

But perhaps, most importantly, Pitts’ commitment could swing a couple other Woodland Hills’ prospects — LB Ejuan Price and DL Quinton Jefferson – to stay closer to home and choose Pitt as their school. Both Price and Jefferson are piling up the scholarship offers — Price has nine offers to date and Jefferson 10.

“That’s what we’re hoping (that Pitts committing to Pitt helps keep Price & Jefferson local),” said Woodland Hills assistant coach Joe Lafferty told me prior to the Wolverines’ first scrimmage Saturday morning against Findlay.

Pitts said he committed to the Panthers to stay closer to his family and to home. He also said Pitt was always his favorite program.

“Pitt has a great program and Dave Wannstedt is one of the top coaches in the nation,” said Woodland Hills head coach George Novak. “Pitts is a very versatile athlete and is one of the best in the WPIAL and the entire state.”

Unanswered (or asked) is just how close Pitts is to Price and Jefferson. That would offer more insight into how much his decision holds any sway. Jefferson might decide on Pitt, but it may have as much to do with 2010 commit and his cousin Brandon Ifill.

Like Pitts, the other two are solid 3-star prospects. All of three of them recevied offers from Iowa and WVU. Price has offers from Michigan State and Ohio State as well. Jefferson holds offers from Illinois, Maryland and Wisconsin.

As a sidebar, you can bet that fans/alum of other schools are less than thrilled to read Gateway coaches openly hoping their players go to Pitt and any fawning given to Coach Wannstedt.

Speaking of fawning. Here’s a solid puff-piece on Coach Wannstedt. Native Pittsburgher. Check. Worked iron mills. Check. Great recruiter. Check. Pro style offense run. Check.

Still, Wannstedt believes he’ll take the Panthers to the Promised Land again. “Nothing has changed since that press conference,” says Wannstedt, whose team finished No. 17 in the final BCS poll last season. “In fact, enough things have happened recently to reaffirm what I said then.”

There is evidence to support Wannstedt’s beliefs. First, Pittsburgh is winning regularly. After three seasons in which the program went a combined 16–19, the Panthers went 9–4 in 2008, then produced that 10–3 mark last season. The Panthers were seconds away from the Big East title and a BCS bowl berth in the regular-season finale, but a one-point loss to Cincinnati foiled those hopes. That setback was followed by a victory over North Carolina in the Meineke Car Care Bowl.

Small steps, yet vital, according to one college football historian. “I thought 2009 confirmed that the program is moving forward,” says Beano Cook, the venerated analyst. “Now, the question is: Can they go from this point to a national championship? It would be difficult, but feasible. Things are more challenging today because they don’t have the high school players in Pennsylvania that they used to have. And, Pitt has to play a tough non-conference schedule. That’s imperative. And, to their credit, they are playing tough non-conference games.”

A pleasant enough read.