PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – There have been players from the Western Pennsylvania who have not only excelled, but become Hall of Famers at the University of Pittsburgh. They have had many on the field at the same time previously. This year, for the first time in recent memory, Pitt could have a defensive line with all from Western PA as they open up Saturday afternoon on 93.7 The Fan.
It's not just that they have four from the area in that position group, the four potential starters are Dayon Hayes (Westinghouse), Devin Danielson (Thomas Jefferson), David Green (Central Catholic) and Nahki Johnson (West Mifflin). Even behind them, Aaron Donald's nephew Elliot Donald from Central Catholic and Sean FitzSimmons (Central Valley), who assistant head coach and defensive line coach Charlie Partridge said will play this season.
"I think it's great," Partridge said. "I think it's a testament to the high school coaches in Western Pennsylvania and the great job they are doing developing D-linemen. There's been quite a few to recruit over the last five, six years."
It's not the only position, MJ Devonshire (Aliquippa) will start at one corner, Stephon Hall (Central Valley) is battling to start at safety with freshman safety Cruce Brookins (Steel Valley) one of the talks of camp.
Another freshman, Braylan Lovelace is making the jump from Class A football to get reps. What his playing time this year will be is in question, but it looks like a bright career. He's the first player from Leechburg to be on a Division 1 roster since his father did it and he's playing to inspire all those at small schools.
"We have some conversation about it, me and MJ were talking about it the other day how much WPIAL football is on the come," Lovelace said.
Offensively, Pine-Richland grad Phil Jurkovec returns home to be the starting quarterback. Butler's Jake Kradel is the starting center with Blake Zubovic (Belle Vernon) a starting guard and the potential for Dorien Ford (Baldwin) to get in the mix at the other guard. While Rodney Hammond is the starting tailback, transfer Derrick Davis (Gateway) has impressed the coaches and will get reps.
"It feels nice to be home in my backyard," Davis said after transferring from LSU. "Having a lot of the WPIAL guys around me, it's a better energy honestly. I feel like I'm a part of something."
There are other locals working to establish themselves at Pitt. While recruiting has become more nationwide than ever, the performances of the local kids will likely determine how special the Panthers season is.
"When you talk about recruiting, you are always going to start in your backyard," said Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi. "It means a lot, it tells you when you are out there looking and you worry if you should take that guy or not. You lean on taking them (local players). It's good football."
