The open lie in recruiting is that the players commit to the school not the coach. That’s what the NLI says. That’s what every program claims. Even in the face of statements from the kids who say upfront that they committed because of the coaches and/or the system they run. They may like the school, programs offered, the players they meet. But those are lower on the list.

Everyone knows it. When there is a coaching change, losses to a recruiting class have to be expected from all but the most deluded. When it is a coach like Dave Wannstedt, who is highly personable and very involved in the recruiting, I expected significant losses to the recruiting class. And for it to happen quickly.

Surprisingly, that really hasn’t been the case. After the initial shocked reaction to the firing by recruits (and the coaches), there hasn’t been a huge fallout — yet.

Some players have talked about reopening their commitments, but they had already seemed to do that. The firing of Wannstedt just allowed them to make it public. Yet, at the same time, they have been smart enough not to blindly toss aside a scholarship without being certain. Most of the stuff is behind pay walls for the details, but the implication or snippets indicate a lot of wait-and-see-attitude. Much like the stance taken by NJ commits Quinton Alston and Bill Belton.

“I’m going to stick with Pitt and see what they do with their staff,’’ Belton, a quarterback/safety from Winslow Township, said earlier this afternoon. “I’m waiting to see what they do with the staff and what coach they bring in. Those are the two major factors that would change my mind. If they don’t keep that staff, I might have to go in a different direction.’’

Alston was unavailable for comment but his mother, Connie Alston, said via e-mail that he was going to wait a few days in hopes of getting more information on the situation.

“He is still solid on Pitt,’’ she said, also noting that Quinton has received numerous phone calls from interested schools.

“He definitely has options, so that is a plus. I feel kind of bad, though, because he was/is very high on Pitt. … With that said, we also know that college football is a business.’’

Only one player has formally renounced his verbal commitment and committed elsewhere. Ben Kline switched from Pitt to Penn State. Kline was a very early Pitt commit. While that article makes it seem like he made the choice after the firing of Wannstedt, it has to be noted that he also took a recent visit to Penn State. So this may have happened with or without Wannstedt’s firing.

The Nittany Lions came through with their offer a couple of weeks ago, and Kline took an official visit to University Park last weekend. While he said he liked the atmosphere at Penn State, he didn’t want to decommit from Pitt. Then came Wannstedt’s resignation Tuesday.

“I was hesistant [to change], because I had made a commitment to these coaches. That was the biggest reason [for committing there],” Kline said. “When you took that away, though…. As soon as I heard Coach Wannstedt was stepping down, I pretty much knew what I was going to do.”

Sucks that he chose Penn State, but generally I have trouble begrudging kids the right to change their minds on verbals. I definitely won’t hold it against a kid who does so when the coach he thought he would play for is no longer there.

Even with the coaching change happening, at least one player is still hoping for an offer.

Three-star outside linebacker Dillon Lucas (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) has scholarship offers from Duke, Buffalo, Villanova and Youngstown State, but the offer he really wants is from Pittsburgh.

“If Pitt offered that would be my No. 1 school as of right now,” Lucas said.

Lucas said Pittsburgh, which parted ways with head coach Dave Wannstedt on Tuesday, is one of four schools that he hears from the most. West Virginia, Cincinnati and Villanova are the others. He said he’s also heard from Nebraska and Connecticut.

“Mostly Big East schools have started to contact me,” Lucas said. “Most of the schools have said they really like my speed. I’m a vocal leader and I take pride in my ability to run from sideline to sideline.”

Lucas is planning to take an official visit to Pitt in January (best way to see a good basketball game). Scout.com and Rivals.com both have him as a 2-star player. ESPN.com/Scouts, Inc. like him more (Insider subs.).

Lucas is a tough, active player capable of making plays all over the field. Has the height and athleticism for the outside linebacker position at the major level of competition; will need to add some bulk to his frame without hindering his playing speed. … This guy can punish and make ball carriers pay the price with his tough tackling ability. We like the intense motor and big play ability he brings to the game; it’s what we look for when evaluating linebackers. Lucas may need some time to add weight to his frame.

So there’s that.