The mystery of Tamarcus Porter isn’t that big of a mystery. He just needs more time.

The four Pahokee seniors sat in a row in the school’s auditorium, prepared to sign their scholarships, when someone asked the question many people in the room were thinking.

“Where’s T.J.?” asked Rick Lammons, an assistant coach for the Blue Devils, who is also the father of senior Ricky Gary.

Coach Leroy Foster shrugged his shoulders.

Shortly before the afternoon signing ceremony, Tamarcus Porter, who goes by the nickname “T.J.,” decided he wasn’t ready to choose between the University of Pittsburgh — where he had a verbal commitment — and Wake Forest. Porter called coaches from both schools and asked for more time, and both said they would hold his scholarship, Porter’s mother, Tammy Bussey, said.

“We were at the school today with both of his scholarships, but he looked at us and was like, ‘Mom, Dad, I’m not ready,’ ” Bussey said. “I’m very proud of him that he was able to make a decision like that. I’m glad he didn’t jump out there and make a hasty decision when he really wasn’t sure.”

Porter will visit both schools with his parents in two weeks before making his decision.

Porter’s absence was particularly disappointing for Gary, who Wednesday made good on his commitment to Pittsburgh by signing with the Panthers. Gary said he’s hopeful Porter will eventually pick Pitt, coached by former Dolphins coach Dave Wannstedt, so the two can remain teammates.

“It’s a big risk by him doing that,” Gary said. “But I understand, and I know he just wants to make the right decision. I can’t blame him for it.

Technically, a player never has to sign a Letter of Intent to play. Granted most schools wouldn’t give the player a scholarship (unless he happened to be elite-level I suspect), because otherwise a player could actually walk away without needing to be released.

Signing day is also symbolic. Kids do it for the media attention and to just end the hassles. Really, a kid has until the beginning of April to sign.

Scott Corson out of Johnstown was first noticed last year when Pitt was checking out LaRod Stephens-Howling.

Greater Johnstown High School’s contribution to the University of Pittsburgh football team doubled Wednesday when offensive lineman Scott Corson signed a national letter-of-intent.

Corson, who will be a freshman in the fall, joins sophomore-to-be LaRod Stephens-Howling with the Panthers. Stephens-Howling is the top returning tailback and expected to be a starter this fall. Pitt linebackers coach Curtis Bray recruited both players.

“Scott has got great size and athletic ability,” Bray said. “He’s about 6-foot-4, 270 or 280 pounds, but he can really run. He’s played on the defensive line, but we project him probably to play on the offensive line. He’s a smart kid, and he’ll do well for us. He just has to keep working hard.”

In Central PA, Aaron Berry — also recruited by Linebackers Coach Curtis Bray — signed with Pitt.

“They had about five Division I players there, and we targeted a couple guys,” Bray said. “But corner was a need position for us, since we’re losing Josh [Lay] and others soon. It took a while, but we hung with him. He’s a great athlete from a big school, and he’s fast.

“He had 64 catches this past year as a wide receiver, so he can hold onto the ball. We signed some other guys like that who can play wideout or in the secondary, but Aaron wants to play corner. And we believe he can be a good one. But that doesn’t mean he might not catch a few balls here.”

Both of the afore mentioned articles were written by the same guy, and he found a way to save time. Aside from the opening bits about each player are the same article with the same quotes from Coach Wannstedt and TE Coach and Recruiting Coordinator Greg Gattuso. They both contain an annoyingly inaccurate statement:

Pitt’s 2006 class is rated as high as 11th by Scout.com, SuperPrep and Sports Illustrated-CNN, 16th by ESPN and 21st by Rivals.com. The Panthers are ranked No. 1 in the Big East.

[Emphasis added.]

SI.com used Scout.com’s ranking, and SuperPrep is part of Scout.com. They are all the same ranking.

Looking up in New York, Kevin Collier is ready to go.

“I got the playbook at the house,” Collier said. “You’d be surprised. I go home and watch football.

“It is a job, and I enjoy it.”

Collier plans to leave for the Pittsburgh campus in late June, a week or two after graduating from Churchville-Chili to enroll in summer college classes.

“I need to start lifting (weights),” Collier said. “I’ll have to do what I have to do, education and football-wise, to open up different avenues for myself.

“The next 10 years start right now.”

Collier, despite the pressure locally to choose Syracuse, actually said he liked the process.

No school offered him a free car or even a starting job, for that matter. But everyone made him feel special. And if Section V’s all-time rushing leader had to do it all over again, he gladly would.

“What kid wouldn’t want to take plane trips to different parts of the country, stay in hotel suites and be catered to by various colleges?” Collier said Wednesday afternoon, a few hours after signing a letter of intent to play football at Pitt.

“I really enjoyed it.”

That’s not to say there weren’t times when it stressed him out. Although Collier verbally committed to Pitt last summer, Syracuse coach Greg Robinson and some of his assistants kept reminding Kevin that a scholarship was waiting for him, just in case he had a change of heart.

High school classmates selfishly wanted him to go to the ‘Cuse, so they could see him play in the Carrier Dome. His mom, Angela Williams, and his younger brother, Averin, initially had the same desires.

Collier took their feelings into account. The opportunity to resuscitate a once-proud Orange football program coming off a 1-10 season was intriguing.

“It’s New York, man, and everyone around here grows up following Syracuse whether they are bad or not,” he said. “I thought about it long and hard, but after analyzing everything — the campus environment, the cities, the football teams and the educational opportunities — I felt like Pitt suited me best.”

Not just because he chose Pitt, but Collier seems really, really sharp. Very aware of the whole system and the way the game gets played.

Staying in Upstate New York, there was McKenzie Mathews.

“It’s been a long, extensive process,” Mathews said. “I will keep this short and tell you that I will be going . . .”

Mathews then ducked behind the podium and rustled through a drawstring bag revealing a blue-and-gold hat.

“To the University of Pittsburgh,” Mathews said, as he pulled on his cap with a smile.

Mathews received congratulatory pats on the back and handshakes as he posed for several pictures with family members.

“The stress is over,” Mathews said. “In my gut it was the best thing to do.”

Mathews said Pitt’s strong coaching staff – including former Syracuse assistant David Walker – and its business program were contributing factors in his decision. He also discussed turning down the hometown Orange, while heaping praise on coach Greg Robinson.

Then there are the boys from Baldwin.

His devotion to Dave Wannstedt was such that Jason Pinkston made it a point to give a report to the Pitt coach after each of his unofficial visits to other schools.

It didn’t hurt that Pinkston was one of the Panthers’ top recruiting targets or that the defensive tackle played at Baldwin. In his first full recruiting class at Pitt, Wannstedt turned to his high school alma mater and signed two recruits – Pinkston and defensive end Justin Hargrove.

“There is a very special bond that has developed between coach Wannstedt and Jason and Justin,” Baldwin football coach Mike Silianoff said. “We’re very fortunate to have a Baldwin graduate at Pitt, that one of our own kind is looking after them at Pitt.”

The 6-foot-5, 285-pound Pinkston was one of the most heavily recruited players in the WPIAL, and chose the Panthers over scholarship offers from Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Southern Cal. Wannstedt took one look at the 6-4, 250-pound Hargrove and envisioned another Jason Taylor, the All-Pro defensive end he coached with the Miami Dolphins.

In case the point hasn’t been hammered home at this point. The Pitt defense is going to get a hell of a lot faster as this class starts getting on the field. Seemingly the first thing mentioned in just about every defensive player Pitt has recruited, is his speed.

For a final recruiting story, how about one Pitt didn’t get, and probably wasn’t fully aware that it still may have had.

Few college football recruits are told they should expect to start right away.

In the case of Indiana University and linebacker Vernon Smith, however, that’s right on point. Smith, the lone junior college recruit among IU’s 20 signees Wednesday, is penciled in to start at middle linebacker.

Smith, who played the past two seasons at Butler (Kan.) Community College, was a late addition for IU. Former IU player Luke Stone learned Smith was available and called the IU staff.

Last weekend, Smith made his official visit and committed. Out of Dillard (Fla.) High School, Smith committed to Pittsburgh but did not qualify academically.

Smith said many schools believed he was still committed to Pitt and didn’t pursue him this season.

“I think people (at Butler) put out the word that I was going to Pittsburgh, and those other schools just figured it was a done deal,” Smith said. “But I haven’t talked to Pittsburgh more than a few times in the last two years. I really don’t think those people really thought I was going to make it out of here (academically).”

Not sure if he would have fit in Pitt’s present plans on defense. At least at Indiana he’ll get a real chance.