PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) Four University of Pittsburgh Panthers football players were named Phil Steele All-Americans.
Steele is one of the foremost experts in college football, and he named safety Paris Ford, defensive tackle Jaylen Twyman, defensive end Patrick Jones II, and center Jimmy Morrissey to the Phil Steele Preseason All-America Team.
Ford and Twyman were first-team selections, making Pitt the only school to have multiple defensive players selected to the first-team.
Last season as a sophomore, Ford lead the team in tackles (97) and interceptions (three) and is regarded as Pitt’s hardest hitter in at least 20 years.
Junior Twyman was a second team All-American last season with 10.5 sacks and became the first interior defensive lineman to lead Pitt in sacks since Aaron Donald had 11 in 2013.
This is Twyman’s sixth preseason All-American selection this year.
Senior Jones racked up 43 tackles, 8.5 sacks, and four forced fumbles last season becoming one of the top defensive ends in the ACC.
Jones ranked sixth in the nation with an average of 0.31 forced fumbles per contest last season.
Senior Morrissey is returning as the premier center in the ACC, and a vital piece to the programs transition to a larger passing game last season.
He did not surrender a sack last year and is rated as Pitt’s top run blocker.