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June 17, 2014

And The June Commits Continue

Filed under: Football,Recruiting — Chas @ 8:31 pm

A definite position of need. Defensive tackle is a spot Pitt needs to bring in some players. Today, it looks like Pitt got a good one in Kraig Howe.

Howe visited Pitt three times in the last year, with two visits in the fall and another unofficial visit this spring. After the spring visit, he spoke very highly of the Panthers.

“Pitt has been one of my favorites for a long time; really, since I got that offer,” he said after the visit. “They were my second offer and they’ve always been up there with my favorites and top choices, and this visit was really a boost for how much I could see myself playing for Pitt and going to school in Pittsburgh and playing for these coaches. I can see myself fitting in well with program and the defensive scheme and the school and the city. It’s all clicking.”

Howe had offers from BC, Northwestern, Iowa St. and Illinois. 247 ranks him as the the 53d best DT nationally (Rivals.com says 37th and Scout.com has him 45th). He is a 3-star recruit by every site.

He has a positive scouting report from ESPN.com (Insider subs.), but make it clear that he needs to bulk up. So, despite a need at that the DT spot, he will likely need a redshirt year.

Howe looks to be a tough, lunch pail type player. He needs to add size to his frame and continue to develop. A DL prospect that could potentially fit as a DT or 34DE. A solid prospect that will line up battle and can contribute.

He isn’t likely to do too much bulking up during his senior year of high school, as he is also on the basketball team.

One other thing I liked reading in the report is that he is a wrap-up tackler. Not a player that just tries to hit.

Howe is the first defensive lineman  and the second defensive player in the 2015 recruiting class.





Solid get. Time to get to work…H2P

Comment by Gordo 06.18.14 @ 2:20 am

Another good pick up.

Comment by notrocketscience 06.18.14 @ 5:25 am

Say hello to our newest O-Lineman. 🙂

Comment by Reed 06.18.14 @ 6:08 am

Why is Franklin’s picture on another article about Pitt? He is on the basketball team too, so he must be athletic. Good deal.

Comment by gc 06.18.14 @ 6:16 am

gc, the Trib is in love with Franklin. There has been at least 3 stories a week on him, either an article or on the blog, for the past 3 weeks.

Comment by wbb 06.18.14 @ 6:34 am

BTW, Franklin has already said that he is treating Maryland as his own state recruiting wise. To his credit, Edsall treated it much like PC did a few months ago, downplaying everythng … to the point that he even referred to the UM-PSU series as one-sided (1-35 or something like that).

FWIW, I believe the 2 new eastern entries to the B1G have a combined total record of something like 2 and 70 vs PSU.

Comment by wbb 06.18.14 @ 6:40 am

This kid has great feet.

link to youtube.com

Comment by gc 06.18.14 @ 6:49 am

he is certainly quick and mobile. Dare I say that he reminds me a little of AD in how quick ke gets off the ball snap

Comment by wbb 06.18.14 @ 6:55 am

IMO the best indicator of a recruit’s potential is not the number of stars, but what other schools are interested. The post-camp commits we’ve been getting all seem to have major program interest, which is a great sign that the caliber of player is improving under HCPC, albeit somewhat slowly.

Comment by steved 06.18.14 @ 8:12 am

@ wbb, I read your post above and said to myself, “Come on”! Reminds you of AD, seriously? Then I watched Howe’s YouTube highlight reel.

Now of course it’s a given that we are seeing the best plays from him in that video, but half the time Howe looks like he’s in the backfield unblocked, he has a great nose for the ball, never quits on the play, sheds blocks well with both a spin move and a swim move decently for a HS player and has great footwork. So yeah, he kind of does remind you of Aaron Donald. That is very high praise for a frickin Junior HS football player, to say the least, but he does, and I’m not drinking any Koolaid today either. Watch for yourself and draw your own conclusions.

Comment by Dr. Tom 06.18.14 @ 11:13 am

@ wbb

That’s got to really be helping out in recruiting for the Pedo’s. Companies pay big bucks to get their names out there, cause they know the more people hear their name, the more likely they’ll use their service or buy their product.

The Trib is doing it for free for the Charlatan.

Maybe they have some child molesters on their staff.

Comment by Emel 06.18.14 @ 11:26 am

Dr Tom, note the qualifier … “dare I say” Howe only reminds me of AD is how quick he gets off the ball … however, AD is across the LOS in a flash, Howe just is out of his stance and too many times rises up too quick and loses his leverage

Comment by wbb 06.18.14 @ 12:26 pm

I agree with wbb after watching the video. I will say though that one thing I saw recurring was him hustling on each play and going full force with effort. He never gave up on those plays and was often seen flying around the ball. And after reading the article on Rivals about him, seems like quite a good young man.

Comment by JJ 06.18.14 @ 2:06 pm

JJ, yes, his hustle was very apparent, and lovbed the way he made tackles whe the ball acrrier was either down the field or on the other side. I think if he improves his upper body strength, he will become quite an asset

Comment by wbb 06.18.14 @ 3:26 pm

If this kid focuses and learns what Inoke is trying to teach him, I think he can be pretty good.

Comment by Atlanta Panther 06.18.14 @ 3:49 pm

Dionte Austin CB/WR from Towson, Md. I just finished viewing the HUDL Highlights on this kid and WOWEEE is he fast!
Austin is a lightweight at 160lbs // 6ft. I am sure he will add weight and strength as he matures. The offer sheet for Austin includes at least 10 solid programs. I believe he recently visited one of Pitt’s Camps.
I could be wrong, however, if he adds some weight he will be a terrific CB/punt returner…??? Does anybody know anything about him? (Based on his offers he appears to have solid academic standing)

Comment by isnore99 06.18.14 @ 4:00 pm

So this is what it’s like to have a head coach develop relationships with freshman, sophomores and juniors and still be around when it comes time for them to commit. I’d almost forgotten.

Comment by CNorwoodAZ 06.18.14 @ 8:05 pm

The kid looks like Chas Alechxis. Hope he plays like him also. However, I see nothing at all that reminds me of Aaron Donald. Agree with wbb in his senond post re: Howe plays very upright off the snap. Which is OK at this point because that is what college coaches are paid to correct.

It strikes me that Chryst and staff are looking at raw talent along both side of the LOS and will be patient in moving the underclassmen up into the two deep as they develop on the lines.

link to pittsburghpanthers.com

Comment by Reed 06.19.14 @ 7:58 am

I’m a big Chas Alechxis fan. Former walk on that made it big. Love that. Hope the Kraig has similar if not more success.

Also if you want to continue to drink the kool-aid, Malik Henderson was rated as one of the top “steal” of this recruiting cycle by 247…link to pitt.247sports.com

Comment by Atlanta Panther 06.19.14 @ 9:50 am

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