Following the decommitment of Chandler Kincade, Pitt’s 2014 football recruiting class stood at zero for the last week-and-a-half. That all changed today. It’s back to having one name on the commit list.

The long-term reconstruction of the Pitt offensive line continued Monday when Connor Hayes of Traverse City, Mich., said he will enroll next year.

Hayes, a 6-foot-4, 300-pound guard, is the only recruit in Pitt’s Class of 2014 after Blackhawk quarterback Chandler Kincaide decommitted last month.
…
“He’s the most physical player I have ever coached,” Traverse City West coach Tim Wooer said of Hayes. “He will fit in perfectly into everything Pittsburgh wants to do.

“If you look up the definition of the word mauler in the dictionary, you would probably find a picture of Connor. He is a physical, nasty kid. He is going to try to embarrass you.”

Hayes is a consensus 3-star recruit per Rivals.com, Scout.com and 247 (ESPN.com has no evaluation at this time).

(more…)

Kind of depressing, but it sure puts the back-to-back 6-7 records into context. No Pitt players heard their name called in the NFL Draft this weekend. This was not terribly surprising.

There have been, and are good players on this team. But a lack of excellent ones. Factor in the crushing injuries, and there weren’t been any surefire NFL prospects wearing the Blue and Gold the last couple of years.

I am not sure how much of that has been missing in recruiting, and the constant churn in coaches that may have stagnated/crushed the development of some players. Likely some mixture of both, but I have no idea on the percentages.

That said, Ray Graham will get his shot to show how healthy his knee is with the Houston Texans.

Mike Shanahan will have his chance to transition to TE in the pros with the New York Jets (sans a Tebow presence).

Ryan Turnley will try to make it with the Buffalo Bills. While on the small side, his versatility on the offensive line can only help his chances of sticking around.

Tight end Hubie Graham and his many injuries will get a chance with Tampa Bay. Just speculation, but I’m thinking that TB HC Greg Schiano remembers the potential Graham once had before injuries and transfers made him entirely forgotten.

It’s also been reported that Jarred Holley will get a tryout with the Pittsburgh Steelers at their first undrafted free agent camp next week.

Darrell Strong:

I told my mother 7yrs ago I would come back and get my degree prior to leaving school early to chase… instagram.com/p/YqEbMnGMIK/

— Darrell Strong (@DarrellStrong82) April 28, 2013

Congratulations.

Lets go pitt!!!! instagram.com/p/YqQ7gGGMNL/

— Darrell Strong (@DarrellStrong82) April 28, 2013

Since the season ended there have been rumors that J.J. Moore would transfer. On its face it made little sense. Moore just finished his junior year. He did not graduate early so he couldn’t be a graduate transfer. If he left, he would have to sit out a year which seems flat-out odd for a kid heading into his senior year and only a year of eligibility left.

Yet the rumors and reports are getting stronger.

A report surfaced Sunday night that Pitt junior forward J.J. Moore has decided to transfer, but there was no official confirmation from the university.

An athletic department spokesperson said Moore has not yet asked for his release, and as of Sunday night, had not informed coach Jamie Dixon of a decision.

Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports Network reported via his Twitter account that Moore had decided to transfer per a source.

Nothing before or after that tweet. No follow up.

(more…)