PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – They knew since the ACC Championship game, but made it public on Wednesday. All four starting seniors from the Pitt offensive line will return for another season.
"We all had our own situations to look at, but bottom line," said guard Marcus Minor, "we did talk to each other about it. We do think as an O-line having a year playing together, having the chemistry. We were able to talk about it after making our decisions. We all thought it was a great thing to do."
"It was really hard," tackle Carter Warren said of his decision. "I was thinking about it for a very long time, but it came down to the boys coming back. We are here as a whole, excited for another year."
"I think it's huge, especially for me and Marcus," said tackle Gabe Houy of the group's choice. "He's dealt with something I have, injuries early on. Just being able to progress another year is huge for us and to be able to do it with your best friends is even bigger."
Center Owen Drexel is the other member of the senior group deciding to return who said they feel like family to him. He also noted as a big positive, they won't have to go through the time of having to jell again.
"That's a big thing," said Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi. "Those guys made that decision. That was not twisting arms, I'm not that guy. These kids have to make decisions, they made business decisions. They took their time and I'm happy for them."
For Minor, he thought he would only be at Pitt for one season after leaving Maryland. He said having time with this group, he thought it would be great to do it again.
"I feel like we know each other," Minor said. "We will be able to work with each other and know what our faults are. Be able to coach each other and know what the best is for each other."
All said offensive line coach Dave Borbely is happy with the decision, as was Narduzzi. Minor said they discussed it with new transfer quarterback Kedon Slovis as part of a way to convince him to come to Pitt.
Barring any new decisions, the return of the four seniors means the top seven offensive linemen will be back including currently injured guard Jake Kradel, guard Blake Zubovic and swing tackle Matt Goncalves. They will also add sophomore Ohio State transfer tackle Ryan Jacoby, a four-star out of high school that joined the team early in the season.
Their top recruit for 2022 is also an offensive lineman, four-star Ryan Baer out of Eastlake, Ohio.
There will be a new quarterback, but plenty of support up front for whoever becomes the starter.
