It is June 11, and the Pitt Panthers have exactly one commitment for the 2014 recruiting class. In other words, Pitt has 239 days until National Letter of Intent day 2014. Now looking at it that way, it seems like Pitt has a lot of time, but viewing rival recruiting classes, it seems like there should be some concern.
Pitt is well behind the eight ball on many fronts. Within the ACC, 11 out of 14 teams have at least four commitments to their respective classes with Pitt, Wake Forest (2), and Syracuse (3) lagging behind. Also, on the local scene, Pitt is well behind Ohio State and sanction ridden Penn State for 2014 recruits.
It is hard to pinpoint the problem. By most accounts, Paul Chryst and his assistants do not like to pressure kids, and go with a laid back approach. Pitt has found its way into the final cut, but have yet to land an impact player. The Panthers generally have been able to land fringe top 25 recruiting classes, even without the successful seasons to go with it. This year seems like they are considerably behind for some reason.
Sure, the panic button could be pushed even though there is still plenty of hope out there. Pitt seems to be in the thick of some recruiting races. Nationally ranked players such as Keller Chryst, Shai McKenzie, Mike Grimm, Alex Bookser, Dravon Henry, and Montae Nicholson are all still considering the Panthers. Some of those prospects have even put Pitt in their final cut as well. Paul Chryst and the Panthers have been in a number of player's final lists, but have come up empty so far. Pitt needs to start hearing their name at a kid's decision party soon, or things could be rough for this recruiting campaign.
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